Speech #530023295

Marshall. Gerry. and Pinokney. or the arrogance of Talleyrand. or the plundering of an American merchantm an by a French privateer. furnished sufficient excuse for that rigorous policy which was adopted by the dominantFederal party against the French Directory. bit I do say that the right then asserted. aside from the policy of its exercise. the power asserted by Congress to send away or expel aliens. was a constitutional and an essential one. which must be preserved. You are not only endangering the whole Chinese question. you are not only depriving this body of any power to exclude Chinamen. but you are endangering the validity of all our immigration statutes. and all our immigration legislation under the general act of March 3. 1891. and every act controlling pauper. convict. idiot. and insane. or any other kind of immigration. if you do aught to aid in our being shorn and deprived of the power asserted in this House in February.1799. The alien law gave the President power to send away all such aliens as he judged dangerous to the peace and safety of the United States. and to imprison anyone so ordered to depart. who was found at large without a license to remain. and to remove aliens imprisoned in pursuance of the act. That power must remain intact. You will remember that the select committee of this House to which the question had been "refered in 1799 reported that the right of removing aliens is an incident to the power of war and peace. that aliens are not entitled to the protection of the Constitution. because the Constitution was made for citizens. not for aliens. and that the removal of an alien can not be considered a punishment inflicted for an offense. substantially taking the same ground which was taken by the Supreme Court of the United States in the decision In the Chinese deportation cases. The report of the special committee closed with three resolutions. one of which was that it was not in the interest of the public good to repeal the alien law. and on the 25th of February. the House being in Committee of the Whole. the resolution was carried. and subsequently the House agreed to the action of the committee on the resolution. So much for the example of history and the action of this House in the last century.