Speech #1040206041

Mr. President. I rise today to speak in support of this bill to curb illegal immigration. Since its first days as a nation. the United States has always been a refuge for those seeking to escape political and religious persecution. America has consistently provided limitless economic. political. and social opportunities for those who come to our Nation and are intent on working hard and improving their lives and those of their children. It is this influx of immigrants from diverse cultures and distant lands that has made America a shining example to the world. Thats why millions of people across the globe look to the United States as a land of opportunity. Its why they come to our borders in the hopes of entering our Nation and achieving a better life. It was the promise of the American Dream that brought my family to this country from Ireland. And it was the desire for a better life that brought millions of other immigrants to America. whether they came over on the Mayflower or if they came to our land in just the past few days. As Franklin Delano Roosevelt reminded us more than 50 years ago. with the exception of native Americans. "All of our people all over the country. * * * are immigrants or descendants of immigrants. including even those who came over here on the Mayflower." Nearly every Senator in this body is a descendant of immigrants. And I believe that we should provide the same opportunities for those who come after us as our forefathers accorded to those who came before us. However. while I strongly support continued immigration to our Nation. there are proper rules and procedures to be adhered to. If you play by the rules and follow the laws of our country than the opportunity to live in America should be available. But. the opportunity to come to America does not give people the right to enter our Nation illegally. It does not give them the right to break the law. Nor does it give companies or businessman the right to hire illegal aliens and take away jobs from hardworking Americans who pay their taxes and play by the rules. Let me just say that I commend this administration for all it has done in curbing illegal immigration. Since 1993. the Clinton administration increased the Immigration and Naturalization Service budget by 72 percent. More than 1.000 new Border Patrol agents have been deployed. Additionally. more than 140.000 illegal and criminal aliens have been deported since 1993. Whats more. this administration is helping more eligible immigrants become citizens. In fact. in fiscal year 1995 more than half a million citizenship applications were completed. These are substantial gains. but there is more to be done and this bill takes important steps in the right direction. This legislation increases the size of the Border Patrol. It authorizes voluntary pilot projects to test improved employee verification system. It forces sponsors to take greater responsibility for the immigrants they bring into the country. And it increases the penalties for alien smuggling and fraud. These are all necessary steps and I believe they are necessary to curb illegal immigration in our country. Whats more they were strongly influenced by the bipartisan Jordan Commission on Immigration Reform. While. I do remain concerned about the benefit provisions in this legislation. there are enough positive aspects of this bill to make it worthwhile. I am particularly pleased that this body decided to defer taking up the issue of legal immigration. It is essential that we do not confuse the two issues. Legal immigrants play by the rules that this government has established. Whats more. legal immigrants have an overwhelmingly positive benefit for this Nation. Legal immigrants pay nearly 95 percent more in taxes then they receive in benefits. More than 93 percent do not receive welfare benefits. In fact. nativeborn Americans are more likely to receive welfare then poor immigrants. Legal immigrants are not the problem. They play by the rules and they dont deserve to have their benefits or their rights cut. I am also pleased that this bill includes the Leahy amendment. which prevents barriers from being placed in front of those who seek political and humanitarian asylum. We must avoid putting those who come to our country seeking asylum. into a position where their political beliefs could cause them to face the possibility of imprisonment. injury. or even death if they return to their homeland. We must never forget as a nation that America has and will continue to be seen as a beacon of hope and freedom for those who are oppressed or maltreated. We must not shirk our role as a haven for those fleeing persecution. Unfortunately. I think those facts have sometimes been lost in our recent national debate on immigration. They should always be our core concern when discussing immigration reform measures. Our Nation was founded on the concept of taking in the downtrodden and persecuted. And throughout our history. America has prospered because we have kept the doors open for new immigrants. Today. we must continue to maintain our obligation to immigration as a nation and as a people. While not perfect. I believe this bill takes us in the right direction toward upholding our commitment to an inclusive and commonsense immigration policy.