Speech #1010217382

Mr. Chairman. H.R. 4300 before the House today increases the level of immigration in America from 530.000 persons a year. which is the current level. to 850.000 persons a year. In fact. I think it goes far beyond that. I submit to Members that we already admit into our country more legal immigrants every year than all the rest of the countries of the world combined. and it is very difficult to understand the justification for coming forward in this particular era in our history. and increasing that level. in view of the fact that in our Nation today we obviously cannot pay our bills. we have an enormous crime rate. we also have an education system that is straining under its burden. In view of that. many Members of this House wonder why this bill is on the floor today. I submit to Members the one defensible purpose is to promote the notion of family unity. and so I am bringing to the House an amendment which does exactly that. *My amendment would strike from the bill all the provisions which increases the level of new immigration into this country except those that relate to family unity. In effect. what it does is maintain in the bill the section which prohibits the deportation of spouses and children of aliens. which were legal in 1986 under the Immigration Reform Act of that time. and also maintains the new category in the bill which grants 115.000 visas a year for the spouses and children of permanent resident aliens. but it limits that to 5 years. unlike the current bill. which allows it to go as long as 10 years. Finally. it also allows 10.200 visas for the unmarried adult sons and daughters of legal immigrants who otherwise have to wait a long time to be processed. I submit to Members that the legitimate defensible purpose of this bill which the American people might be willing to tolerate is family unity. This amendment restricts the purposes of this bill to family unity. and says "We are not going to increase the level of legal immigration beyond that which we already have today at 530.000 persons per year." I think it is an amendment which might make this bill useful and acceptable to the American people. I find it to be completely indefensible to come forward in this particular time in our history and say that we ought to allow another 300.000 legal immigrants every year to come into the United States. I yield to the gentleman from Texas .