Mr. Chairman. during the entire course of debate on the problem of Vietnamese evacuation. one aspect of the problem has been consistently overlooked: what will happen to the Vietnamese nationals who arrive in this country as refugees? Certainly. we cannot turn our backs to these people. many of whom will be in danger of their lives because of past cooperation with the United States. It is not enough to provide simply for their removal from Vietnam. Consideration must be given to the care of Vietnamese refugees after their arrival in this Nation. We have precedents for this type of operation. During the early 1960s. approximately 600.000 Cuban refugees arrived in this Nation. Special waivers were required to grant them legal status in this Nation. and the task of providing for them was tremendous. Because of this problem. Congress passed the Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1962. This law provides Federal responsibility for refugee assistance. and gives the President of the United States broad authority in implementing aid for refugees arriving from foreign nations. The intent of my amendment is to clarify for Congress. and the people of the United States. the cost to the taxpayer for the support of these refugees once they arrive in this Nation. As of now. we do not even know how many refugees to expect. Attorney General Edward Levi says he will use his authority to permit the entry of nearly 130.000 refugees into this country. Los Angeles County Supervisor James Hayes. a responsible public official. chairman of the board of supervisors. reports that Federal officials have instructed him to expect between 600.000 to 1 million refugees. Most of these people will arrive in Los Angeles and San Francisco. the two main ports of entry on the west coast. Inmigration to these extents would cost our people billions of dollars anually.
Keywords matched
Refugee refugee refugees