Speech #970223924

The United States as a sovereign nation must insure the wellbeing of its people. While protecting our borders is essential. we have failed miserably to control illegal entry. There are currently between 4 and 6 million illegal aliens in our Nations work force. This has an enormous negative impact on our own citizens and on the economic condition of our Nation. The problem of illegal immigration is only one of the problems that we must deal with in this legislation. Under current law. 270.000 immigrants may enter for permanent residence annually. This is in addition to certain relatives of U.S. citizens and refugees designated by the President in consultation with the Congress. In 1980 alone. total immigration. including Cuban and Haitian entrants and Indonesian refugees. was estimated at more than 800.000. The United States admits more of the worlds stock of 14 million refugees than any other nation. Responsible immigration policy must be our goal. History has proven that our country is strong because of the diverse backgrounds of our people. Thirty percent of all U.S. Nobel laureates came to the United States as immigrants. Legal immigrant residents have contributed greatly to the strength of the Nation. I am sure that the debate on many provisions of S. 2222 will be heated and controversial. I would urge my colleagues to remember that we must act in a manner which will insure that those who currently reside in America and those new Americans that will come to our shores in the future will be protected.