Mr. Speaker. I voted against the McCarranWalter omnibus immigration bill when it came before the House. and I am happy to have the opportunity to vote to sustain the Presidents veto of the measure at this time. Inasmuch as we have had no good. constructive legislation on immigration for 27 years. it was hoped that the bill presented to us for action would be reasonable and practicable. that it would cure the basic prejudices and discriminatory ills found in the laws now in effect. This was not our good fortune. It is essentially an exclusionist bill. as the President puts it: None of the crying human needs of this time of trouble is recognized in this bill. It is a bill which ignores elementary standards of fairness in dealing with aliens. in the Presidents irords: Seldom has a bill exhibited the distrust evidenced here for citizens and aliens alike. at a time when we need unity at home and the confidence of our friends abroad. The McCarranWalter bill. in my opinion. contains more inequities than any immigration bill ever passed by Congress. instead of allowing us to show a more humane attitude toward immigration. it threatens to close our doors tighter than ever. It perpetrates a grave injustice upon the peoples of Southern and Eastern Europe. The National Origins formula adopted in 1929 discriminates against them and the bill before us makes the nationalorigins legislation even more rigid and exclusive.
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immigration