Last I used the DC DMV, there was none of this REAL ID stuff and the processing time were long and insane enough that homeless people were hired by DL-seekers to help make things easier for a price. With this REAL ID madness growing the need of many more persons to use the DMV, it seems like the demand on time will be way more insane than usual.

If enough Washingtonians show up and cause mass gridlock of the streets in and around DMV offices--simultaneously causing gridlock for Senators and Reps. getting to and from their offices...the net effect might be a repeal of the "real id" law.^

DMV anticipated that problem and moved the various offices to parts of the city few Senators and Reps. would deign to travel to (although Georgetown office opens in a week).

I was under the impression that the vast majority of current US Senators and US Reps do not have DC licenses. Their favorite staffers, less sure. Oh wait, this wasn't about getting a DC DL but about blocking DC streets.

Correct, all members of Congress are residents of their home states. If they got DC licenses, then they might run into issues with their home state's residency requirements during reelection. (Except, of course, the one Rep for DC.)

You're also correct about the staff, it's a mixed bag. Some end up becoming residents of DC/MD/VA while others retain their residency in their home state.

The one interesting bit about this is VA is very behind on Real ID compliance. MD is already there, and DC will be there soon. It'll be interesting to see if the federal government actually stops accepting VA drivers licenses after a certain date. Seems like a game of chicken to me...

While you are correct on the residency requirements normally that is tied to voter registration, not the address nor issuing agency for DLs.

Some congresspeople rotate staff so quickly I don't know if many even make the 30 day mark LOL cough, cough SJL

VA is traditionally more libertarian than DC or MD. I would expect that the VA commonwealth fellows would resist this long-term, federally un(der)-funded REAL ID state mandate nonsense more than the powerless residents of the compromise-created entity (DC) and more than the residents of the state created for followers of a traditionally hierarchical religion (MD) which has become the home of the NSA (while the CIA was given to VA).

On a sort of different but topic-related note: REAL ID does basically squat for the CIA but it does a lot for the NSA. Keep that in mind. [Snowden and some of his other acquaintances unfortunately lack the context to put a lot of the info he viewed in perspective of various governmental moves.]