Mr. Chairman. under no circumstances could I have supported H.R. 2580 in the form in which it was originally introduced. In that form. it would have increased annual immigration by several hundred thousand. an increase which the American economy could not possibly have absorbed. an increase which would have added an unsupportable burden to the unemployment and public welfare rolls of this country and further complicated our urban housing. sanitation. education. and medical problems. The original bill would have legalized the status of ship jumpers and lifted restrictions against admission of the insane and those afflicted with psychopathic personality. Far worse. the bill as first introduced would have surrendered historic congressional control over immigration and delegated discretionary authority to the executive branch of the Government. Specifically. it would have for the first time in our history created an Immigration Board and authorized the President to distribute up to 50 percent of pooled quota numbers as he saw fit. Suffice it to say that H.R. 2580 in its present form bears practically no resemblance to the original text. either in content or consequence. Not only does the committee bill represent a vast Improvement over the original bill. it also tightens and strengthens the present statutory law.
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