Debbie Dingell: “this is a bad amendment. Like a lot of other Members, in the enthusiasm of the early days following the last election I…”

“this is a bad amendment. Like a lot of other Members, in the enthusiasm of the early days following the last election I supported the idea that we should constrain the rights of new Americans and permanent residents to participate to the fullest in our election process. That was a mistake. It was wrong. These are not citizens but they are people who have been permitted to come here. They will become citizens almost without exception in the orderly passage of time. They serve in our Armed Services. Indeed, there are better than 20,000 of these permanent residents who now serve the United States in our Armed Services. I would say that we ought to permit them to have full participation. After all, it is the main thesis of my good colleagues and friends on the Republican side of the aisle that the giving of campaign contributions is an exercise of the right of free speech. Indeed, the Valeo case says so. Why then is it that we should deny these people who have come here, who have entered the country legally and who are for all intents and purposes, from tax paying to serving in the defense of this Nation, acting almost completely as American citizens? Almost without exception, they intend to become American citizens. Almost without exception, they have a great reverence and love for this country.”