Speech #990050495

I understand the hour is late. but what we are dealing with here is a very important issue. We are talking about the most helpless people in the world in many ways. at least the most helpless in this country. They are refugees. They did not just parachute here without any screening. They met some fairly stiff tests that said that they were fleeing from very unpleasant conditions. In many cases they are here because of a war that was fought. that destroyed and uprooted and caused them these problems. The gentleman from Kentucky and the gentleman from California between them have put an enormous amount of time on this kind of a subject and there is not a less useful thing for a politician to do than to concern himself with refugees. as the gentleman from California and the gentleman from Kentucky have done. These are not people who vote. Certainly they are not people who have friends. They are not people who are very well liked. to a certain extent. What we have tried to do is to work out a thoughtful program that on the one hand maintains for them a minimal level of decency. and at the same time confronts these terrible conditions for these people who do not speak our language. but they did not come here in a planned or an orderly way. and by the nature of the case of these refugeessome violent people sent them hereof course. they are unprepared. and the communities are unprepared to meet their needs. So we have tried to cope in a sensible way with their problems. We are told what about the budget resolution.