Speech #1050139800

I have listened to the debate on this issue. It has been an important and illuminating debate. We are really talking. as I understand itand I am going to ask the Senator from West Virginia a question about thiswe are talking about approximately 1.000. maybe 1.500 visas or green cards a year. We issue about 900.000 green cards annually. and with the investor visa. we are talking about a very small program by comparison. There Is a principle involved and I have heard the Senator from Arkansas. But it actually is a very. very modest program. It was developed at a time when we had higher unemployment than we do at the present time. It was a recognition that in many of these areas of unemployment we were trying to devise as many different kinds of ways to bring jobs into those areas as possible. But I ask the Senator from West Virginia if he would not agree with me that the immigration policy is a policy which is basically to benefit the United States? That is overarching and a generalization. I know. But our overall immigration policy includes a number of different features. We have the reunification of families. That has a very high priority. We have provisions in our immigration laws for 140.000 skilled workers. Most of our major hockey league players are players from other countries. They come over here. play hockey. get citizenship. and make a lot of money. We have artists who come in here and appear on our stages and they make a lot of money. They have money when they come in here. and they make a lot of money. but we feel they add to the theater or to sports. so we let them in. We have artists who come over here who are wealthy and have particular talents and settle here. get green cards and become citizens. But we believe they add to the country. too. so we let them in. We are. as I understand it. not a nation that just is taking in the dispossessed. although we have an important tradition for that. As I look at immigration. the way that it actually works -a matter which we have been debating hereI believe we ought to give Americans the first crack at these jobs under the temporary worker program. which we can certainly do. But if we are talking about Andrew Lloyd Webber coming over here. he gets in here. He has not waited 2 years. 3 years to get in.