Speech #890138283

It saddens me to see that it has become completely out of vogue for an American to embrace nationalism. For some time there has been a trend in this country toward conformity. toward the norm with the resultant lowering of standards of the whole society. The immigration policy provided for in the pending bill would seek to extend that lowering of standards. This despite the cries for excellence that rang so eloquently across the land just a few brief years ago. For example. Australia bars all except the white race. Canada bars practically all Asiatic people. Israel excludes all but those of Jewish origin. Switzerland accepts no immigrants. Russia admits only by special arrangement. and England has further tightened her immigration laws even as they relate to members of its Commonwealth. So if there is to be world criticism of immigration policyif that is in orderlet it be directed to those countries and not against the one country of the world which has consistently taken the most humanitarian attitude toward foreigners. As I stated a few moments ago. immigration is not a right. but a privilege. and it should be treated as such. If it is in our own selfinterest to restrict immigrationas every great nation of the world doesthen let us frankly do so without apologies. and not enact this illadvised piece of legislation. Many proponents of this bill base their plea for support on humanitarian grounds. I say to them that the greatest service that this Nation can perform for the world is to remain strong. economically and militarily. The greatness of America just did not happen. This Nation achieved its greatness by dedication to the principles of selfgovernment. to hard work and a strong sense of nationalism. And I say that liberalizing our present immigration policy will only tend to dilute rather than to augment our strength. What high purpose do we serve by letting down the bars? Certainly we cannot hope to relieve the overpopulated areas of the world by easing immigration restrictions. The very idea is sheer folly. It is equally a disservice in my mind to establish an expanded immigration policy that seeks to drain the professional and the skilled workers from other nations who need them far more desperately than we do. By promoting this socalled braindrain on underdeveloped countries. whose purpose do we serve? Is that not a selfish attitude on our part? And if we are to be selfish at all. then let us be so at the threshold and set realistic immigration figures. Certainly I contend that no useful purpose is served by setting a completely arbitrary figure. One of the crying issues of the day is the problem of birth control. and how to check the population explosion.