Speech #980185863

April 24. edition of the New York Times. The editorial examines the embarrassing policies of the State Department in barring entry to the United States to scholars. writers. and others whose political viewpoints the administration finds unsettling. Those denied visas have included Nobel laureates and internationally acclaimed writers. Each time the State Department arbitrarily denies a visa to a foreign speaker or writer our international prestige and reputation suffers. Such actions make the United States appear hypocritical as we proclaim freedom of speech and association while at the same time prohibiting those with certain political beliefs from visiting our shores. At the same time. such policies do a serious disservice to our own citizens. denying them their first amendment rights to hear and freely associate with those who hold dissenting views. It is past time that the laws which permit the State Department to arbitrarily exclude foreign visitors on the basis of their ideology were reformed. As the editorial mentions. our colleague. the gentleman from Massachusetts . has introduced legislation that would revise the current exclusionary sections of the Immigration and Nationality Act by substituting language that examines a visa applicants behavior rather than the applicants political viewpoints. I commend my colleague for his legislation and look forward to working with him to achieve its enactment. I am sure my colleagues will find the following editorial useful in examining the need for change.