Speech #820245017

Mr. President. it is difficult to formulate. point by point. answers to the veto message on the omnibus immigration and naturalization bill. because the points contained in the veto message are in most instances vague generalities based upon conclusions which are not supported by the provisions of the bill. The President commences his message by commending the bill for the elimination of the racial bars to naturalization and he faintly commends the bill for the provisions which establish minimum quotas for those aliens who are presently racially ineligible for admission into the United States. The President then commends the bill for those provisions which would permit American women citizens to bring their alien husbands to this country as nonquota immigrants and enable alien husbands of resident women aliens to come in under a quota in a preferred status. Then the President commends the bill for accomplishing a revision and codification of the hodgepodge of our immigration and naturalization laws and the elimination of such deadwood as the unjust and archaic requirements that carriers pay the expenses of aliens detained at the port of entry. even though such aliens have arrived with proper travel documents. But. Mr. President. notwithstanding all these good things which the President finds in the bill. he has vetoed it. Notwithstanding the fact that every agency of the Government which is concerned with immigration and naturalization has urged the President to sign the bill. including the Immigration and Naturalization Service. the Visa Division. our Central Intelligence Agency. the Department of Justice. and the Department of State. he has vetoed the bill. Notwithstanding the fact that over 100 Nationwide patriotic. civic. and religious organizations have urged the President to approve the bill. he has vetoed it. Notwithstanding the fact that as much care and time and effort has gone into this bill as into any legislation which has been in the Congress in the last generation. the President has vetoed it. Notwithstanding the fact that the bill passed both Houses of the Congress by overwhelming majorities. the President has vetoed it. Why is it that the President of the United States has vetoed this measure? His first principal objection is that the bill retains the basic pattern of our present national origins quota system which he attacks as unfair and discriminatory. The President complains that the national origins quota system is at variance with our American ideals. is out of date. and unrealistic. If his veto is sustained. what do we have? We have the national origins quota system which has been the law of this land since 1924. Indeed. Mr. President. may I point out that even the socalled HumphreyLehman substitute measure contains the national origins quota system formula. Mr. President. the basic principles upon which the national origins quota system is founded are fair and just. Furthermore. the national origins quota system is the only system that has been suggested which is practicable and reasonable for the control of immigration. In a word. the national origins quota system allocates quota numbers on the basis of the ratio of each racial group in the United States to the aggregate population. Let It be emphasized. Mr. President. that although the national origins quota system has been in effect since 1929. no one has yet come forth with a satisfactory substitute for the allocation of quota numbers. If this veto is sustained we shall continue to have the national origins quota system under the present law. but without the desirable revisions within such system which are made by the instant bill. If this veto is sustained we will not have met the problem of the oriental races which are presently inadmissible to the United States. If this veto is sustained we will not have those provisions of the bill which grant nonquota status to husbands of citizens. If this veto is sustained we will not have the system of selective immigration within our quota system so that we can meet the needs in this country of aliens of special skill or knowledge. If this veto is sustained we shall not have those provisions of the bill which are designed to prevent the separation of families by permitting a more liberal designation of the quota to which certain relatives of admissible aliens may be charged. In his veto message the President next proceeds to criticize those provisions of the bill which are designed to strengthen the exclusion and deportation procedures so that we can prevent the entry and cause the deportation of subversives. criminals. and undesirables. The President states in his message that we have adequate and fair provisions in our present law to protect us against the entry of such aliens. If the President of the United States would consult the experts of the Immigration and Naturalization Service of the Department of Justice. and the Visa Division of the Department of State he would know. as the committee of the Senate which studied our immigration system for 5 years found out. that our present laws are shot through with weaknesses and loopholes. and that criminals. Communists. and subversives of all descriptions are even now gaining admission into this country like water through a sieve and we cannot under our present laws effectively exclude or deport them. The sponsors of this bill.