Poll shows majority in US back immigration reform

A poll of US voters released on Monday 21st January 2013 shows that 53% of those responding would support a change to the law to allow the estimated 11m immigrants currently living in the US to become legal permanent residents and grant them 'a path to citizenship'. 43% of respondents said that the government 'should prioritize deporting undocumented migrants. The poll shows that the US electorate is polarised on the issue of immigration as it is on many issues but the fact that there is a clear majority in favour of immigration reform will strengthen President Obama's hand as he presses for reform in Washington this year.

In his second inauguration address, also on Monday 21st January, President Obama said 'Our journey is not complete until we find a better way to welcome the striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as a land of opportunity, until bright young students and engineers are enlisted in our workforce rather than expelled from our country.' Washington insiders have said that the President intends to make immigration one of his three top priorities in 2013 (along with solving the US budgetary crisis and gun control).

Longoria the power broker

In Washington, Latino pressure groups have continued to place pressure on the President and Congress to ensure that immigration reform is not forced out of the limelight. The Desperate Housewives actress Eva Longoria has turned Washington power broker in recent years. She was a co-chair of the President's re-election campaign and hosted the Latino Inaugural concert which celebrated Mr Obama's electoral victory at the Kennedy Center in Washington on 20th January.

Ms Longoria told reporters that she hoped the Obama administration would see that 'immigration is an economic issue'. She continued 'We have to understand that we are dependent upon a labor in this country, specifically agriculture, to provide low-cost products and they're jobs no one else is doing.'

Republicans in House of Representatives hold the key

In the US system, for legislation to become law it must be voted through by both Houses of Congress; the Senate and the House of Representatives. So, if the President is going to force immigration through Congress, he will have to persuade the House of Representatives, which is controlled by the opposition Republican Party, to vote for reform.

This may be difficult. A significant number of Republicans are known to be implacably opposed to any moves to legalise the immigration status of illegal immigrants. Ms Longoria said 'I hope the Republicans are going to realise that they have to do this because it is morally imperative and if they're not going to do it because it's morally imperative, they've got to do it because it's economically imperative. So there's a lot of gains for everybody, no matter what party affiliation, to get this done and to fix this problem.'

Workpermit.com is a specialist visa consultancy with nearly twenty-five years of experience dealing with visa applications. We are OISC registered. We can help with a wide range of visa applications to the UK or your country of choice. Please feel free to contact us for further details.