Speech #990028090

The creation of 4 million jobs a year is a tall order given the fact that the American economy. which is five times bigger. created no more than 4 million new jobs during the golden years between 1970 and 1980. As todays article by George Getshow shows. the problems of our neighbors to the south ultimately drift northward and affect our Nation. This should be in the forefront of our minds as we prepare to reconsider our Nations immigration policy. No doubt some form of amnesty will be considered in the course of our debate on immigration. Inevitably. granting amnesty to illegal aliens currently residing in the United States will certainly serve as an additional "pull factor" drawing still more undocumented aliens to our Nation. desperate for the benefits of amnesty. The explosion of additional illegal immigrants that will be produced by legalization cannot be stopped unless we take steps to secure our borders before we implement a legalization program. This recommendation was adopted by the Select Commission on Immigration and Refugee Policy. chaired by Father Theodore Hessburg. president of Notre Dame University and former Chairman of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission. I will. as I have in past years. urge Congress to create a blue ribbon panel which would help to certify that our borders are secure against further illegal immigration before we implement a legalization program.*