Speech #920283021

I have been concerned with the problem of illegal entry. I have litigated it. made some studies. done some writing. and It is certainly one of the most frustrating problems one can encounter. The Congress of the United States has always been frustrated with the problem of alien labor. In 1885. legislation was first enacted to minimize the exploitation and the abuse of alien workers. both because they were harmed and because the domestic laborers were displaced. The situation hasnt really changed since then. although Congress periodically comes back and provides what they deem at the time to be sufficient safeguards in the law. to insure that the domestic labor force wont be harmed by the influx of foreign laborers. For example. the bracero program. like every other. was subject to abuse. So much so that a governmental agency which studied it in 1954the Presidents Commission on Migratory Laboractually. perhaps without precedence. condemned the Government of this country for complicity in encouraging lawbreakers to disregard the bracero law. In fact. the Immigration and Naturalization Service withheld illegal entrants to farmers who had refused to pay the minimum wages to the bracerosaccording to the agreement between the two countries. And so it continues todaythe statistics. Im sure you are familiar with them. show this fantastic impact on unemployment and on poverty. 133.000 illegal entrants were apprehended in California alone. in 1970.