Speech #960159365

Even though I too am incensed by these actions I join the President in urging Members of Congress. candidates for national office. and individual- Americans to exercise restraint. To do otherwise would threaten the safety or lives of the hostages. However. rather than vent our frustrations by rhetoric about the senseless acts of the Iranians. we should take this opportunity to look more carefully at our total immigration policy. because the current situation graphically illustrates that the U.S. immigration system is in shambles. The extent of these defects is demonstrated by the fact that it takes an international crisis to force the Immigration and Naturalization Service to do the job it should have been doing as a matter of routine. Furthermore. there is serious concern that even with this concentrated effort the laws and resources may not be sufficient to do the job as it should be done. This disarray has come about because of two important shifts in attitudes. one within our Government. and the other abroad. Within our own Government. we have abandoned the idea that immigration policy should be based on what is in the best interest of our own citizens. Virtually every important administrative. judicial. and legislative decision in the past decade has made it more difficult to prevent illegal entry. has restrained the enforcement of laws against illegal immigration with this country or has increased admissions. For example. the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) has been the stepchild of the Justice Department for years. When Attorney General Bell first asked about the number. status. and whereabouts of Iranian students last year. the INS did not have the answer and could not find it in its manila folders. the INS is one of the last agencies to request and receive appropriations for computerization. The entire U.S. Border Patrol is smaller than the New York City Transit police force. and last year the Justice Department requested a decrease in its manpower. INS regulations require that illegal immigrants be advised that free. Governmentsupported legal services are available to fight and stall deportation. The enforcement officers assigned to investigating immigration lawbreakers in the United States has decreased by almost onethird since January 1. 1977. In recent hearings on immigration legislation there were constant questions about what would benefit other countries or special interest groups. However. there was very little reference to what would be best for the United States or its citizens as a whole. In sum. we have abandoned the initiative in immigration policy to the increasing tide of immigrants. both legal and illegal. At the same time. the attitudes of many foreigners toward the United States has undergone a dramatic change. Potential immigrants in an earlier era saw us as a generous nation. they were grateful for the chance to come here. it is legendary that they were more law abiding than Americans who were citizens by birth. Many of todays potential immigrants hold the United States responsible for all the worlds ills. from political instability to lack of economic development. Far from being thankful for the opportunity to come to the United States. they are convinced that we are obligated to them. This attitude is illustrated by students who drop out of school or graduate and then stay in violation of their visas. Some of the Iranian demonstrators are such illegal immigrants. brazenly flouting our laws. It is further illustrated by recent immigrants who bring to this country their friends and distant relatives illegally. rather than have them wait their turns for legal immigration. I would never question the good faith and loyalty of legal immigrants. Most have the traditional positive view of America as a nation of laws. not men. But a growing number of people throughout the world do not respect our right to limit immigration into this country. Combined with the decline of our immigration policies. the results of these attitudes are serious indeed: The original ceiling on immigration is riddled with loopholes. more legal immigrants come outside the ceiling than within it. Illegal immigration is out of control. nobody claims to know how many illegal immigrants are in the United States or where they live. Some wellmeaning people are calling for the United States to embrace all of the worlds refugees. in disregard of the size of the worlds refugee problem and of Americas limited ability to absorb them. Immigrationlegal and illegalcould add 45 million people to our population by the year 2000. in a time when we have an urgent need to conserve energy and resources. It is time for the United States to regain control of its immigration policy. just as other major countries are doing. We can begin in Congress and the administration with a renewed commitment to protecting the interests of American citizens in making immigration policy. Our policies must not be determined by special interests or people in other lands. We need fundamental. comprehensive reform of our immigration laws. but that will take years to develop. In the meantime. I would recommend the following specific steps which can and should be taken by Congress and the administration.