Congress Gets Many Bills to Restrict Immigration

A bill to bar all immigration to this country for a period of five years is now being considered by the House Immigration Committee. The bill has been introduced by Chairman Johnson and is similar to the one sponsored by Senator Reed of Pennsylvania, except that Reed would bar immigration for a period of two years only.

After discussing his bill with President Hoover, Senator Reed declared last night that the President is in favor of barring all immigration for a period of two years. Senator Reed believes that his bill and Representative Johnson’s can be harmonized in conference.

Additional bills for the restriction of immigration have been introduced by Congressmen Bachmann of West Virginia and McClintic of Oklahoma. Bachmann’s bill proposes in effect the debarring of all immigrants of Russian origin and is aimed against Communists. The bill would prohibit the admission of citizens of any foreign government with whom the United States has no diplomatic relations. Congressman McClintic’s bill proposes the suspension of all quota immigration for a period of ten years.

Despite demands for further immigration restriction in Congress and by President Hoover, recommendations for liberalizing certain features of the present immigration law are made by Commissioner-General of Immigration Hull in his annual report to the Secretary of Labor made public here today.

Among these recommendations are the authorization to issue non-quota visas in favor of dependent parents over 60 of American citizens, wives and unmarried children under 21 of aliens resident in the United States who were lawfully admitted for permanent residence should be given priority over immigrants who are skilled in agriculture and the legalization of the status of aliens who entered illegally, so as to enable their naturalization, be extended to those who so entered prior to July 1, 1924, instead of only to June 30, 1921, as under the present law.