Obama to push for immigration reform this year
Saturday, 11 April 2009
WASHINGTON, Apr 10 (EFE):- President Barack Obama plans to start tackling the prickly subject of US immigration reform this year, including the search for a path to legalization for millions of undocumented migrants.
"He intends to start the debate this year," Cecilia Muñoz, the White House director of intergovernmental affairs, told The New York Times. The Times said Obama plans to start publicly discussing the subject in May and will form bi-partisan working groups this summer with a goal of getting legislation passed by as early as the third quarter.
White House officials told The Times that changes to the immigration system will not take precedence over health care reform and energy proposals that Obama has identified as priorities.
The president said during his campaign that one of the main goals of his first year in office would be comprehensive legislation that allows at least some of the country's estimated 12 million illegal immigrants to acquire legal status.
Latinos strongly backed Obama in the November balloting.
But the paper noted that addressing the immigration problem while also coping with the economic crisis and dealing with other thorny issues could prove to be a daunting challenge for the White House. Luis Miranda, the White House's Hispanic Affairs spokesman, told Efe that "the president has consistently said that he wants to start this debate this year because our immigration system is broken and must be fixed
"He intends to start the debate this year," Cecilia Muñoz, the White House director of intergovernmental affairs, told The New York Times. The Times said Obama plans to start publicly discussing the subject in May and will form bi-partisan working groups this summer with a goal of getting legislation passed by as early as the third quarter.
White House officials told The Times that changes to the immigration system will not take precedence over health care reform and energy proposals that Obama has identified as priorities.
The president said during his campaign that one of the main goals of his first year in office would be comprehensive legislation that allows at least some of the country's estimated 12 million illegal immigrants to acquire legal status.
Latinos strongly backed Obama in the November balloting.
But the paper noted that addressing the immigration problem while also coping with the economic crisis and dealing with other thorny issues could prove to be a daunting challenge for the White House. Luis Miranda, the White House's Hispanic Affairs spokesman, told Efe that "the president has consistently said that he wants to start this debate this year because our immigration system is broken and must be fixed