Final answer:
Before federal regulation, states often excluded people with contagious diseases, the mentally ill, and paupers from immigrating. U.S. historical immigration policies have also included acts that discriminate on the basis of nationality and race.
Step-by-step explanation:
Prior to the federal regulation of immigration, states often sought to exclude people with contagious diseases, the mentally ill, and paupers. This likely aligns with option B from the possible answers provided. In the context of broader immigration policies during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, various countries including the United States implemented measures to restrict certain groups of people based on nationality, race, health, and financial status. The history of immigration in the United States is marked by restrictive acts such as the Chinese Exclusion Act, which specifically targeted Asian immigrants, as well as quota systems like the one established by the Johnson-Reed Act of 1924, which favored immigrants from northern and western Europe over those from southern and eastern Europe and barred most immigration from Asia. The aim of these policies was to maintain the societal status quo and protect economic interests by limiting the influx of individuals who were deemed less desirable.