Speech #960255081

Although the amendment is consensus of the Congress without thi force and effect of law. the Congres. would expect the President to honor it - insofar as it is possible to do. Within thi very large limit of 650.000. the Presideni could make necessary tradeoffs. For example. if he decides that some of th * Cuban arrivals should be allowed to re* main within the country. he could sta3 within the limit by reducing refugee admissions or by reducing regular immigration. He has the statutory power to do either. - Fifth. it would result in delaying the admission of some immigrants who want - to enter this country. However. regardless of how high the limit is set. we will always be faced with this prospect. There are literally hundreds of millions of people who want to live in the United States and we cannot be reasonably expected to accommodate them all. That is why we have established an immigration quota system. If demand did not exceed supply. we would not need quotas. Earlier this year. Congress reaffirmed the quota system when it set a new quota for refugees. This amendment does nothing more than set an overall quota. a concept that is well established in our laws. The courts have consistently ruled that there is no right to immigrate and that the people of the United States. through their elected representatives. may determine who may or may not immigrate. We can see how that policy has been reversed. because this latest influx from Cuba was determined not by the United States at all. It was determined by the Marxist dictator of Cuba. who not ofly set the number of people who came to this country but also identified who they were. taking that question totally out of the hands of the Congress of the United States or of the executive branch.