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> Real ID isn't required for domestic travel, it's required for federally-regulated air travel.

What’s the distinction here? I would think flying with any commercial airline domestically is considered “federally-regulated air travel.”

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The article called Real ID a North Korea-style domestic passport. That is not what it is. There is no categorical control on domestic travel. Commercial aviation is regulated by the federal government. If you believe that no ID should be required for air travel, that is one thing, but if you accept the need for a credential to fly, of course you'd expect it to use a standard defined by the entity requiring it.

I believe they're pointing out that flying isn't the only way to travel domestically. You can drive or take the train without needing to have a Real ID.

(You can certainly quibble about relative practicality of that in a country the size of the USA.)

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