Politics
Obama to push for immigration reform this year
(Reuters) – President Barack Obama is forging ahead on a wide-ranging plan to overhaul the U.S. immigration system early this year, including a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants already in the country, the New York Times reported on Sunday.
Obama wants to advance the plan even as he faces tough battles with Congress over fiscal issues and gun-control laws, and may lay out his ideas during his annual State of the Union address on February 12, the Times said, citing senior administration officials and lawmakers.
The president had made immigration reform a key promise for his second term, and said in November after he won the election that he expected a bill would be introduced in Congress shortly after his January inauguration.
“We are still assessing our options, no decisions have been finalized and as a result it would be premature to speculate – reports to the contrary are inaccurate,” a senior administration official told Reuters on Sunday.
The Times said the immigration plan would require immigrants seeking to obtain legal status to pay fines and back-taxes, and would make it possible to pursue citizenship.
The plan would require businesses to verify that new employees are in the country legally, and could create a guest-worker program for low-wage immigrants, the report said.
It may also add visas to relieve backlogs and allow high-skilled immigrants to stay in the country, the Times said.
Some analysts had expected that Obama’s immigration reform plans could be delayed by fractious deficit talks with Congress, which face a series of critical deadlines in February and March.
