White House Immigration Reform Plans Include More Visas for High Tech Workers

Immigration

President Obama is expected to announce a 10-point plan, possibly as early as next week, for a broad overhaul of the U.S. immigration system via executive action—freeing up to five million undocumented immigrants from the threat of deportation, increasing the number of visas available to high skilled workers and more.  He was reportedly on the verge of announcing the plan prior to the mid-term elections, but opted to delay in hopes of helping Democrats in tight races.  The day after the mid-term elections, the President vowed at a news conference: "Before the end of the year, we're going to take whatever lawful actions that I can take that I believe will improve the functioning of our immigration system."  Reportedly, the President is considering various scenarios that would allow many of the parents of children with U.S. citizenship or permanent residency to remain and work in the United States legally.  The plan would also increase the number of visas available to high skilled immigrants and their spouses, potentially offering another half a million immigrants a path to citizenship.  Republicans in Congress reacted negatively to the reports. "We're going to fight the President tooth and nail if he continues down this path.  This is the wrong way to govern," House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) said.  A group of Republicans, led by Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX), and Jeff Sessions (R-AL), are calling on their colleagues not to agree to pass a budget in the coming weeks unless it includes language specifically prohibiting what they term "executive amnesty" by the President.  Prior to Thursday's news that action on immigration reform was imminent, it appeared that Congress might in fact pass an omnibus budget deal this year rather than simply opting for another continuing resolution when the current short-term funding measure expires on December 11th.  Now, newly elected Republican leaders in the House and the Senate will face a much more difficult challenge as they search for a way through the impasse.