Progress: Senate Immigration Reform Bill Almost Ready For Vote

Legislations will include controversial earned pathway to U.S. citizenship

Good news for the 11 million plus undocumented immigrants who are waiting on Congress to act: Two senior senators working on a bill to overhaul the system said on Sunday that they expect to complete their work this week. Democratic Senator Charles Schumer of New York and Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona told CBS’s "Face the Nation" that a bipartisan “Group of Eight” senators has resolved all their major differences in a pending deal on immigration reform. The legislation is expected to include an earned pathway to U.S. citizenship for the an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants, a bolstered border security plan and an improved way for businesses to integrate high-skilled and low-skilled foreign workers into their workforce. Last month, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the AFL-CIO, the nation’s largest labor union, reached an agreement on a guest-worker program, which cleared the way for the writing of the full Senate bill. There is a bipartisan group in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives working on its own version of immigration reform. Let’s see where it all stands at the end of the week. (Reuters)

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Obama To Outline Immigration Reform Plans In Nevada Speech

Creating a pathway for illegal immigrants to become citizens remains main goal.

President Barack Obama is expected to outline his plans for immigration reform when he travels to Nevada Tuesday. He began his effort for reform by meeting with Latino members of Congress Friday, calling immigration his top legislative priority. Upon hearing that the White House would be making an announcement regarding immigration, a bipartisan group in the Senate rushed to finish a statement of principles on immigration. The group included Democrats Chuck Schumer of New York and Robert Menendez of New Jersey and Republicans Marco Rubio of Florida and John McCain of Arizona.

The November election showed the changing dynamics of the country, making Republicans realize how badly the loss of Latino voters hurt them. Finally, many Republicans are easing up on the divisive debate over immigration. However, a strong segment in the House still appears to be against anything that resembles amnesty for those entering the country illegally. In contrast, that is a central goal for any comprehensive immigration reform President Obama will support. He hasn’t decided whether the White House will draft an administration bill or support measures drafted by Congress. (LA TImes)

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NJ Sen. Menendez Had Illegal Immigrant, Sex Offender as Intern

18-year-old was recently arrested

New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez confirmed on Wednesday that he had an unpaid intern working in his office that was both undocumented and a registered sex offender. Eighteen-year-old Luis Abrahan Sanchez Zavaleta from Peru was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in front of his Jersey home last week Thursday for being in the country illegally, but Menendez said he knew nothing about the allegation and did not learn of the arrest until the day before. Zavaleta entered the country on a now-expired visitor visa, is facing deportation and remains in custody. It was discovered that he also violated the law in 2010 and was subsequently required to register as a sex offender, but the exact charge is unknown as he was prosecuted as a juvenile and those court records are not publicly accessible. Zavaleta told ICE agents that he worked on immigration issues for the senator. (NBC News)

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Illegal Immigration Levels Drop After 10-Year Rise

New census data supports theory that economic downturn kept many away

Hispanics from Mexico and Latin America immigrated to the United States at lower levels than immigrants from Asia last year, according to new census data released Thursday. That hasn’t happened since 1910. Illegal Hispanic immigrants – 80 percent of all undocumented border crossers or expired visa holders – dropped to an estimated 11.1 million last year from a peak of 12 million in 2007. The decline supports the theory that economic downtown and joblessness in U.S. kept some from coming over. Demographers say immigration levels aren’t likely to approach mid-2000 peaks again because of stronger immigration enforcement. The new census data also presents a problem for Washington Republicans, who passed legislation in the House last week that extends citizenship to a limited number of foreign students with advanced degrees. That's far from the comprehensive measures that immigration reform advocates have pushed for. (Associated Press)

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