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[Congressional Record: October 13, 2000 (Senate)]
[Page S10584-S10585]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:cr13oc00-139]
CONSIDERATION OF IMMIGRATION MATTERS
Mr. LEAHY. I would like to commend Senator Reed for allowing us to
proceed on several important immigration matters even though the
Republican majority has refused to act on his compelling legislation to
do justice for Liberians. Senator Reed has been a persistent advocate
for the Liberian nationals who have fled the strife in their nation for
the United States. He has recognized that the U.S. has a special
relationship with Liberia's citizens and has sought to respect and
enhance that relationship. But his efforts have been resisted by the
majority, which has consistently denied his requests to take up his
bipartisan bill, which would allow Liberians who fled here and meet
certain criteria to become legal permanent residents of the United
States. I hope that we will change course and address this issue before
we adjourn. I commend the Administration for its commitment to insist
on action.
Meanwhile, I am pleased that we were able to pass H.R. 2883, a bill
that will confer automatic citizenship upon foreign-born children who
are adopted by the American parents. Given the severe curtailment of
noncitizens' rights under the immigration laws we passed in 1996, it is
all the more important to
[[Page S10585]]
extend this right to American parents and their adopted children.
Everyone in the Senate supports adoption, and we should make sure the
law expresses that support.
Many Senators on both sides of the aisle worked hard to see this bill
become law, and I would like in particular to commend Senator Landrieu
for her efforts. She and her staff were dedicated to this bill and were
instrumental in its passage.
I hope that we are able today to move forward on a number of pieces
of legislation. First, I hope we can pass the bill that extends the
program under which religious workers can obtain visas to enter the
U.S. Senator Kennedy has championed this legislation, it has
significant bipartisan support, and there is no reason not to act
quickly to pass it. We should also pass the bill benefiting Syrian Jews
that Senator Schumer has advocated, as well as legislation benefiting
the Hmong people, which the late Congressman Bruce Vento did so much to
promote. Although many of the larger immigration issues that should
have been addressed in this Congress--from reforming expedited removal
to restoring due process rights for legal permanent residents--may
regrettably remain unresolved, we can at least take these more limited
steps and demonstrate some commitment to immigrants and a sound
immigration policy.
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