Speech #800092599

Mr. President. the two objectives of the bill are briefly but fully set forth in the letter of the Acting Secretary of State to the former chairman of the Committee on Immigration and Naturalization on a bill of the Seventyninth Congress. H. R. 6838. and in the letter of the Acting Attorney General to the committee on the pending bill. The purpose of section 1 of the bill Is to make certain that the benefits of section 317 (c) of the Nationality Act do not run in favor of citizens who lost their status because of service in the armed forces of enemy countries. The purpose of section 2 of the bill is to guarantee that citizens who lost their citizenship because of service in Allied armies may reacquire the same citizenship status as that which existed prior to its loss. In other words. if a nativeborn United States citizen lost his citizenship by service in the Canadian Army. he could reacquire the status of a nativeborn Un:.ted States citizen by taking the oath. whereas if a naturalized citizen is involved. he would reacquire the status of a naturalized United States citizen by taking the oath.