Mr. President. on June 30. 1959. I testified before the Senate Immigration Subcommittee in support of Senate bill 1919. cosponsored by Senators SALTONSTALL. JAVITS. KEATING. and me. which deals with refugee and immigration matters. At the hearing. I mentioned the need for another desirable amendment to the Immigration and Nationality Act which was not part of our omnibus proposal. an amendment which. as I said at the time. would definitely be "in the interest of love and marriage." I introduce. for appropriate reference. a bill to permit an alien fiance or fiancee of an American citizen to come to the United States for the purpose of getting married. and I ask unanimous consent that it be printed in the RECORD. At present. if an American wants to marry an alien who is a native of a country with an oversubscribed quota. there is no way for the alien to be admitted to the United States to celebrate the marriage. The result. of course. can be heartbreak and broken romance. At the least. it has long delayed marriages by permitting marriages for only those affluent and patient suitors who are able to afford to go abroad and. subsequently. to file a petition for the issuance of a nonquota visa for the spouse. Once married. there is no problem. Recently we have had a dramatic instance of the kind of situation to which my bill would apply.
Keywords matched
Immigration immigration refugee visa