Speech #1040167760

President. earlier today. Senator LAUTENBERO responded to a statement I made yesterday regarding the socalled Lautenberg amendment. In defending this abused program. which has made a farce of the Refugee Act. my friend and colleague claimed that the beneficiaries "have to prove a credible fear" of persecution before they qualify. Yet. in fact. these people do not have to prove a credible fear of persecution. rather all they have to do is assert a fear of discrimination. Discrimination. Mr. President. is not persecution. and asserting a fear is not proving it. All other refugees in the world who are coming to this country are required to prove a "wellfounded fear of persecution." Senator LAUTENBERG responded to the reports of criminals using this program to enter the United States by saying it wasnt designed to "allow criminals to enter." He said it is the responsibility of the INS and the State Department to prevent criminals from using the program. I would remind my good friend that when the INS tried its level best to effectively screen these people. representatives of "the groups" went directly to Moscow to Insist upon lower standards. Do not blame the Justice and the State Departments alone for this fiasco. "The groups" and their skilled lobbyists created this one from whole cloth. Senator LAUTENBERG said he was surprised to hear me refer to Russia as our "best friend." Perhaps best friend was a bit of an overstatement. but they are certainly among our friends. and certainly this administration and this President as well as the previous administration have gone out of their way to cultivate friendly relations with that country. Whether it is a best friend or a good friend. there is certainly no justification whateverat. this present dayfor some blanket "presumption" of "refugeeness" for any of their citizens who happen to belong to one of several religious groups. some of whose members have been subject to discrimination or even persecution in the past. However. the most astounding thing the Senator from New Jersey said was that the program ought to be extended for another year. Even if we cut this off today. there are 100.000 of these beneficiaries of the Lautenberg amendment already "in the pipeline." That means that even without an extension we will have 35.000 entering every year for the next 3 years. I can only reply to my friend that he should read again the article I placed day. and I respectfully recommend that he should talk to the Immigration Service about the current traffic from Moscow regarding this program. How can any of us support a program where only onehalf of 1 percent of those applying now could qualify as a "refugee" under the American and the international law definition of "refugee"? We make a mockery of the law if we do so. Why should the American taxpayer provide our severely limited refugee aid for these persons. who are actually regular "immigrants." not "refugees." These "asserters" are not even required to prove a wellfounded fear of persecution. so we have absolutely no assurance that they are. in fact. refugees. And more importantly please recall that when they do receive permission to enter the United States. they take months. even sometimes more than a year. to decide whether or not they really want to come here. About 40.000 of them who are authorized to come here are lingering in the former Soviet Union. weighing their options. They are clearly in no hurry. That is what an immigrant ordinarily doesto calmly. and without urging. weigh all the pluses and minuses of staying or going to the United States. A true refugee does not have any possible luxury of such a lengthy. deliberative process. After all they are required to be "fleeing" or have a "well founded fear" of persecution. Again.