Speech #890138061

Senator PASTORE of Rhode Island. and the late Senator Richard Neuberger of Oregon. introduced a bill to replace the socalled McCarranWalter Act. In stating the principal purposes of this bill. Senator Lehman said that the bill was to establish an annual world immigration ceiling of approximately 250.000 a year. Then. he stated that one of the major purposes would be to require all ordinary immigration from the Western Hemisphere to be included within the annual quota limits. In other words. the bill which was introduced by Senator Lehman and his cosponsors on February 25. 1955. proposed a worldwide immigration quota of 250.000 persons and covered the Western Hemisphere along with the Eastern Hemisphere. On February 25. 1955. the same day. Senator Lehman. in a speech in the Senate. said: A major feature of the proposed act Is Its consolidation. within the quota. of all general immigration. including immigration from the Western Hemisphere. This has been done in order to put all foreign countries on the same basis consistent with the best interest and needs of the United States. Thus the proposed act does not give nonquota status. as present law does. to aliens born in the Western Hemisphere. with the right to immigrate to the United States without limitation as to number. Senator Lehman then testified in favor of the bill before the Committee on the Judiciary on November 22. 1955. In the course of his testimony. he said: I say to those who criticize placing Western Hemisphere nations under the quota systemlets be fair to all. The same criteria should apply to all peoples. regardless of the place of their birth. I believe our Latin American neighbors will respect us for such a policy. Two years prior to that time. on August 3. 1953. Senator Lehman. who was the first person to introduce a bill to abolish the national origins quota system of the McCarranWalter Act. said this on the same subject: In the place of the national origins quota system a new unified quota system has been substituted. This new system. for the first time. places all general immigration for permanent residence. including immigration from the Western Hemisphere. within the framework of the liberalized quota system. and makes that system equitable and nondiscriminatory In all respects while at the same time maintaining a regulated and closely supervised flow of immigration to these shores. I cite these statements because I believe they have a direct bearing on the subject the Senator from New York is discussing. I recognize that there is a difference of opinion on this point. Some take the position that it would be wiser not to impose a limitation on immigration from the Western Hemisphere. others take Senator Lehmans position. This is my position for two reasons: In the first place. such a limitation would abolish discrimination in favor of the Western Hemisphere as against the Eastern Hemisphere. and. in the second place. it would be wiser at this time to impose a limitation. because. at a future date. when we receive pressure for immigration from those countries. it will be more difficult to impose restrictions. I think all of us agree that we do not want unrestricted immigration. that the country is no longer in a position to accept unrestricted immigration. I feel we should be consistent in applying our restrictions. As the Senator from Massachusetts