President Obama has promised a vigorous push for a comprehensive immigration reform early in his second term. He has not yet announced a specific plan for immigration reform though he is likely to present an outline during the State of the Union address on February 12, 2013. Issues expected to be addressed include, but are not limited to: a pathway to U.S. citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants;1 a national system to check the legal status of all workers; and creation of a guest-worker program to provide a way for low-wage workers to enter to the U.S. legally.2
A bipartisan group of congressman named the “Gang of Eight” are working on an immigration bill but have not gone public with what will be included in their bill beyond the commitment to an earned pathway to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), a leader of the group assured the New York Times that immigration reform is a top priority and is “so important now to both parties that neither the fiscal cliff nor guns will get in the way.”3
White House press secretary Jay Carney said Tuesday that the administration expects the immigration debate to begin in earnest soon after president Obama is inaugurated on Monday, January 21, 2013. Carney stated that he was encouraged by the immigration proposals outlined over the weekend by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.).
In a series of recent interviews, Rubio, who is working on several immigration bills with both Democrats and Republicans, indicates that he hopes to introduce in the coming the weeks, certain immigration provisions which: call for a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants already in the U.S.; increase the number of visas for skilled workers to bring in more engineers and other high-tech professionals who are in demand; increase the number of visas for farm workers; include an alternative to the Dream Act; and in order to win Republican support, include a provision for tighter border controls and increased enforcement.4
An aide for Rep. Paul Ryan said on Tuesday that the congressman “supports the principles outlined by Sen. Rubio and will continue to work with Sen. Rubio and members on both sides of the aisles to fix our broken immigration system.” Rep. Raul Labrador (R-Idaho), a conservative who was born in Puerto Rico has emerged as a leader in the House on the immigration issue stating that “I think we need to let people understand that we’re a party of inclusion, we need to let people understand that we want them, we welcome immigrants, and we welcome anybody who wants to join our party.” However, many Republicans remain staunchly opposed to any bill that sounds like an “amnesty.”5
The technology industry is crying out for immigration reform. Experts in the field are pushing for immigration reform as a way to educate and retain the most talented workers in the world. Leaders in these industries stress that the U.S. needs more high-level scientists and engineers and that immigration reforms will allow them to retain highly skilled foreign workers to help bolster the economy and spur innovation. As it stands, they say, too many workers currently obtain advanced degrees in the U.S. and return to their home countries to start businesses that compete with companies here. Gary Shapiro, president and chief executive officer of the Consumer Electronics Association, said business owners need reform desperately and that immigrants create economic activity, whether they are highly skilled or not.6
1How Do We Know There Are 11 million undocumented? The figure actually comes from the Pew Hispanic Center, a research institution. See http://abcnews.go.com/ABC_Univision/News/11-million-undocumented-immigrants/story?id=17886889
2http://abcnews.go.com/ABC_Univision/obama-rubio-immigration-plans-difference/story?id=18212543&singlePage=true&utm_source=AILA+Mailing&utm_campaign=b94db8b9c0-AILA8_1_16_13&utm_medium=email
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4http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/citing-rubios-ideas-on-immigration-reform-white-house-sees-hope-for-bipartisan-deal/2013/01/15/d83f4102-5f48-11e2-9940-6fc488f3fecd_story.html, http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/editorials/rubios-helpful-move-on-immigration-reform/1270655 and http://www.politico.com/story/2013/01/paul-ryan-marco-rubio-immigration-86254.html#ixzz2I8w7Ca41
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6http://abcnews.go.com/ABC_Univision/Politics/tech-experts-immigration-reform-happen/story?id=18220248.