A bi-partisan immigration bill is expected to emerge from the U.S. Senate. A vigorous debate over the flawed U.S. immigration system begins in earnest this week as senators finalize a bipartisan bill to secure the border, allow tens of thousands of foreign workers into the country, and grant eventual citizenship to the estimated 11 million people living here illegally.
Some senators on the bi-partisan committee warn of struggles ahead, but all involved are optimistic that it is time to make the needed changes to the nation's immigration laws, which have not occurred for more than a quarter-century.
"There will be a great deal of unhappiness about this proposal because everybody didn't get what they wanted," Republican Sen. John McCain, a leader of the eight senators negotiating the legislation, said Sunday on CBS.
Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer, another of the eight senators involved, told CBS he is hoping for a bipartisan deal by the end of this week.
Another negotiator, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, was more cautious, saying in a television interview the he hoped to get the deal done “in the next couple of weeks."
The lawmakers are facing mounting pressure from immigration advocates. On Wednesday, tens of thousands are expected at a rally outside Congress to push the senators to produce their bill, organizers said in a conference call Monday.
"I know that they are working really hard but it is time, right now, that we have this piece of legislation," said Gustavo Torres, executive director of CASA Maryland, one of the groups organizing the rally.
In a bitterly divided Congress, the immigration bill appears to be one of the few major pieces of legislation that is likely to receive bipartisan support and become law. For many opposition Republicans, their loss in last year's presidential election, when Latino and Asians voters backed President Barack Obama in big numbers, resonates as evidence that they must confront the immigration issue.
"Every corner of the Republican Party ... is now understanding there has to be an earned pathway to citizenship," Graham said.
A deal on immigration is a top priority for Obama in his second term, and senior adviser Dan Pfeiffer said Sunday on Fox that the bill under development in the Senate is consistent with Obama's approach. He didn't answer directly when asked whether Obama would sign legislation making a path to citizenship contingent on first securing the border.
Obama has stressed that a path to citizenship should not have major hurdles, and some immigration advocates believe that's what a requirement for a secure border would amount to.
But Republicans involved in the Senate negotiations have made it clear that border security is a must before those living here illegally can be allowed to move toward citizenship.
"We are going to secure that border and it will be tied to a pathway to citizenship or there will be no deal," Graham said.
Graham also suggested that disagreement over a new low-skilled worker program could still be hanging up an overall immigration deal - even after an agreement a week ago between the AFL-CIO labor federation and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, an influential pro-business lobbying group.
The hard-won deal between labor and business would ultimately allow up to 200,000 workers a year into the U.S. to fill jobs in construction, hospitality, nursing homes, and other areas where employers now say they have a difficult time hiring Americans or legally bringing in foreign workers. Even after the deal was struck, some industries, such as construction, continued to voice complaints about the terms.
Without offering details, Graham said on NBC that negotiators were revisiting the low-skilled worker deal. But he issued a statement a short time later saying he was confident the agreement would hold.
Graham sounded optimistic overall, predicting the bill would pass the 100-member Senate with 70 votes in favor. Senators believe an overwhelming bipartisan vote is needed in the Democratic-led Senate to ensure a chance of success in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
Floor action could start in the Senate in May, Schumer said.
Associated Press writer Erica Werner contributed.
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.