Speech #1010246257

I begin by commending the distinguished senior Senator from Massachusetts and the distinguished Senator from Wyoming for crafting a masterful piece of legislation. I know from my conversations with both of these colleagues that this was a very difficult. long and arduous process which has brought us to this point this evening. It is the culmination of months of work to craft a complicated and very thoughtful immigration bill. I am delighted to stand this evening. Mr. President. in support of this conference report on the Immigration Act of 1990. This bill. as I said a moment ago. is a skillful combination of certain fundamental ideas that have always governed our immigration policy. One idea is the sanctity and unity of the family. This bill renews and extends that part of our immigration system that supports family unity. Another concept. Mr. President. is support for our economic well.being and competitiveness. This bill streamlines and extends the employment base part of the immigration system. I commend Senator SIMPSON and Senator KENNEDY for pursuing that idea. Another concept included in this legislation is the maintenance and support of Americas ethnic diversity. Most Americans. as we all know. are descendents of immigrants. This Senator. Mr. President. happens to come from an Irish ancestry. In recent years certain traditional sources of American immigration have been disadvantaged by not having enough immediate family ties to support a large number of immigrants. In order to revive our strong ties to traditional sources such as Ireland. Italy. and Poland. this bill goes a long way to address that imbalancejust for the Irish this bill provides 48.000 permanent visas Just for the Irish. this bill provides 48.000 permanent visas over 3 years. It also. of course. takes into consideration the value of new American citizens coming from the Pacific Rim as well as Latin America. Mr.