Speech #590040985

Mr. Chairman. in presenting this bill to the committee I do not believe that it will be necessary for me to dwell upon the importance of the subject. I think. perhaps. all members of the committee are fully convinced that the naturalization laws need revision and amendment. We have at the present time. with only a few slight amendments. naturalization laws as they were written by James Madison in 1795. Under the Constitution Congress is authorized to establish a uniform rule of naturalization. The naturalization laivs at the present time do not prescribe a uniform system of naturalization nor establish any code of procedure ip such cases. The evils and the abuses. the crimes and the frauds that have been committed against the naturalization laws of the country constitute. I think. the strongest argument that could possibly be advanced for an entire revision of those laws. The bill which we present today does not change the fundamental law In reference to naturalization except intwo particulars. to which I will address myself a little later. but it does provide for a general and a uniform sysem of naturalization to be enforced throughout the United States. I might say. Mr. Chairman. that the naturalization frauds have in the past two years attracted more attention than heretofore. A special prosecuting attorney was appointed by the Department of Justice to investigate naturalization frauds. In the short period of two years he filed criminal complaints in 791 cases. and secured convictions in 685 of those cases. During the same period of time he brought civil proceedings to cancel some fraudulent certificates of naturalization. and in that time he succeeded in having 1.916 fraudulent certificatos of naturalization canceled. The bill that is presented today undertakes to correct the abuses that have grown up under our lax and careless system of naturalization. or perhaps I ought to say that have grown up because we have no system of naturalization which is uniform throughout the country. The bill comes before the committee with the unanimous report In its favor from the Committee on Immigration and Naturalization. There were a number of bills on the general subject of naturalization presented to that committee by different Members of the House. Last year the President. by an Executive order. appointed a Commission to examine the naturalization laws of the country and to make report to the House of the changes that were deemed advisable to be made in those laws. That committee consisted of Mr. M.