GOP fury as Obama fails to include guarantee of tougher border controls in blueprint that allows 11 million illegal immigrants to become U.S. citizens

Senator Marco Rubio, a conservative Republican who is behind an immigration proposal in the Senate, said he would not vote for a bill that doesn't but enforcement first
Obama said the 'time is now' for immigration reform and promised to push his plan plan if Senate negotiations get bogged down
Proposal includes citizenship for illegal immigrants, enforcement mechanism and reforms to make legal immigration easier for highly-skilled foreigners

PUBLISHED: 15:26 EST, 29 January 2013 | UPDATED: 18:02 EST, 29 January 2013

President Barack Obama managed to provoke the ire of Republicans before he even unveiled his immigration reform plan this afternoon

The president is refusing to tie tougher border enforcement to his proposal that would allow 11million illegal immigrants to become American citizens.

Obama, who campaigned on giving undocumented immigrants 'a pathway to citizenship,' laid out his plan this afternoon, claiming it is similar to the one proposed on Monday by a bipartisan group in the U.S. Senate.

His proposal includes stepped up enforcement - like a new program to that would help businesses verify the immigration status of applicants before hiring them. The lynchpin, though is a provision that would give illegal immigrants legal status if they register with the government, pay a fine and back taxes and learn English.

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Three points: President Barack Obama's speech at Del Sol High School in Las Vegas, Nevada, laid out stepped up enforcement measures, a pathway to citizenship and loosening restrictions on legal immigration

Push: Obama said he would do everything in his power to make Congress act quickly on immigration reform

The president said Congress must also act to make legal immigration easier for highly-educated and highly-skilled foreigners who want to settle in the United States.

'We need congress to act on the 11 million undocumented immigrants who are in the country right now,' he said.

Later he added: 'Remember that this is not just a debate about policy, it’s about people. It’s about men, women,' the President said. 'They want nothing more than the chance to earn their way into the American story.'

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The battle-hardened Obama, anticipating a fight with Republicans in the U.S. House said that if lawmakers did not act quickly, he would introduce his plan to Congress and demand an 'up or down' vote on it.

'The foundation for bipartisan action is already in place,' he said.

The president said that a bipartisan coalition of senators, including Tea Party conservatives Marco Rubio of Florida and Jeff Flake of Arizona and established progressive Chuck Schumer of New York and Dick Durbin of Illinois, had agreed on a package similar to his own.

Standing tough: Florida Senator Marco Rubio said he would not support any immigration reform package that doesn't require enforcement mechanisms before allowing illegal immigrants to become citizens

OBAMA'S IMMIGRATION PLAN INCLUDES CITIZENSHIP, ENFORCEMENT AND MORE VISAS

President Barack Obama's plan to reform immigration relies on three tenants - stepped up enforcement, a 'pathway to citizenship' and making it legal immigration more accessible for highly-skilled workers. Here are excerpts from Obama's proposal.

Enforcement:

'By enhancing our infrastructure and technology, the President’s proposal continues to strengthen our ability to remove criminals and apprehend and prosecute national security threats.'
'The President’s proposal is designed to stop these unfair hiring practices and hold these companies accountable. At the same time, this proposal gives employers who want to play by the rules a reliable way to verify that their employees are here legally.'

Citizenship:

'Immigrants living here illegally must be held responsible for their actions by passing national security and criminal background checks, paying taxes and a penalty, going to the back of the line, and learning English before they can earn their citizenship... The proposal will also stop punishing innocent young people brought to the country through no fault of their own by their parents and give them a chance to earn their citizenship more quickly if they serve in the military or pursue higher education.'

Legal immigration reform:

'Legal immigration should be simple and efficient. The President’s proposal attracts the best minds to America by providing visas to foreign entrepreneurs looking to start businesses here and helping the most promising foreign graduate students in science and math stay in this country after graduation... The President’s proposal will also reunify families in a timely and humane manner.'

Both packages include increased border enforcement and a system that will force businesses to determine whether they are hiring legal residents.

Both include a 'pathway to citizenship' that forces immigrants to pay back taxes, a fine and 'go to the back of the line' behind legal immigrants before they can become American citizens.

Obama's plan also includes provisions to allow higher numbers of highly-skilled legal immigrants to move to the country if they study at American universities or plan to start businesses in the United States.

A second group of U.S. Senators has proposed similar measures.

However, Rubio told Fox News on Tuesday - before the speech - that he was angry that president has not tied the pathway to citizenship to cracking down on new immigrants coming into the country.

Under the Senate agreement, a group of border-state law enforcement officials and policymakers will have to certify that border security has been tightened.

Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security must develop a better exit control system to track foreign visitors and ensure the country knows which ones have overstayed their temporary visas.

Rubio said he would refuse to support any bill those does not include those 'triggers.'

'I think that would be a terrible mistake,' he told Fox News. ;We have a bipartisan group of senators that have agreed to that. For the president to try to move the goalposts on that specific requirement, as an example, does not bode well in terms of what his role's going to be in this or the outcome.'

Support from Rubio, a rising star in the Republican party and a late signatory to the Senate deal, is seen as one of the keys to convincing conservatives in the U.S. House to pass the legislation.

Despite possible obstacles to come, the broad agreement between the White House and bipartisan lawmakers in the Senate represents a drastic shift in Washington's willingness to tackle immigration, an issue that has languished for years. Much of that shift is politically motivated, due to the growing influence of Hispanics in presidential and other elections and their overwhelming support for Obama in November.

Another key difference between the White House and Senate proposals is the administration's plan to allow same-sex partners to seek visas under the same rules that govern other family immigration. The Senate principles do not recognize same-sex partners, though Democratic lawmakers have told gay rights groups that they could seek to include that in a final bill.

John McCain of Arizona, who is among the eight in the Senate immigration group, called the issue a 'red flag' in an interview Tuesday on 'CBS This Morning.'

Washington last took up immigration changes in a serious way in 2007, when then-President George W. Bush pressed for an overhaul. The initial efforts had bipartisan support but eventually collapsed in the Senate because of a lack of GOP support.

Cognizant of that failed effort, the White House has readied its own immigration legislation. But officials said Obama will send it to the Hill only if the Senate process stalls.

VIDEO Obama urges Congress to act on immigration reform

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Fox News: Obama says immigration reform 'within our grasp,' key senator raises concern with plan

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Comments (42)

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Does someone please have a practical answer to this........what are you going to do with the 11 million ?Even if you stopped all illegal immigration they will still breed.It's a genuine question I have no opinion either way. "an observer from overseas"

- deegee , nanaimo, Canada, 29/1/2013 23:24

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Obama plans to destroy the USA...this has all been pre-arranged and part of the Globalist take down of the country. They did it to Britain and Europe and now they want to make the US a third world country. Obama is the devil.

- Maisy , Boston, 29/1/2013 23:22

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I really wish the hispanic community would wake up and realize that Obama is playing dirty politics with the immigration bill. I really believe that Obama does not want to see immigration reform pass through the legislative process. He simply wants to dictate immigration law through executive orders. You would think Obama would have been supportive of the bill that the bipartisan Senate Committee created for immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship.Instead he threatens them with" it is his way or the highway" rhetoric. I agree with the committee that we need border enforcement first before implementing the pathway to citizenship. Isn't Obama familiar with Reagan's amnesty program from 1986 which granted amnesty to 3 million Americans but did not secure the borders??? Now we have an illegal immigration population of 11+ million.

- sara , mpls, 29/1/2013 23:18

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Who has ever heard of countries protecting their borders? Nice to know President Zero does not believe in the very definition of a country.

- trn , houston, United States, 29/1/2013 23:14

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You gotta love this,immigrants telling other immigrants that they are not wanted and are illegal to boot :-)- Name , Town o Country, Cook Islands, 29/1/2013 22:07 He didn't say they weren't wanted. He said to get in line like everyone else & it is Illegal to swim over or tunnel or what ever. There are also all those who come in on student visas then disappear. Try going into a country illegally that any of these folks came from...just try it. But yes, you are here without legally entering then you are committing a crime. Obama is such a creep..I'm not surprised he reprise his favorite trick & surrounded himself with a bunch of kids. How very communist of him how very H1[ler like.

- Smurfet , Tulsa, 29/1/2013 23:10

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If they would come here to be Americans, that would be a different story... But all they're doing is expanding their border and we're too PC to say anything about it anymore. To politicians they're just potential votes, that's it. It is ridiculous that they can hop the gate and gain citizenship while others have to earn it. Just another example of people doing the wrong thing and are being rewarded in doing so. All I can do anymore is sigh and shake my head. Why don't we just take over Mexico and make it part of the States? Fix up that bleeping country so people stop bleeding into ours?

- wevebeensurrounded , Texas, United States, 29/1/2013 23:09

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The Flip-Flopper-in-Chief - This time I KNOW I'm going to be sick! Favorite catch phrase of this administration........ EXECUTIVE ORDER!

- Melissa , Ridgewood NJjr, 29/1/2013 23:08

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How dare anybody have the same idea before our dear leader says it first....bwahahahahaha... - David Buckeye, Tampa, United States, 29/1/2013 17:05*********************You know nothing about politics, David....bwahahahahaha...

- Orchid , Sarasota, United States, 29/1/2013 23:04

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What is the point of having an immigration policy if you are not going to control the borders? I'm sorry, but if this law passes without controlling the borders FIRST, then we should just throw our hands up and invite Mexico to become the 51st state.

- VintageChick , Baltimore, 29/1/2013 23:03

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I told you , he is a low life. Europeans may love him & the slackers in this country but the rest of us loathe him Nothing but a thuggish red.

- Smurfet , Tulsa, 29/1/2013 23:00

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