Immigration

(Reuters) - Just over a week into his second term, President Barack Obama took his fight for immigration reform to the West on Tuesday and pushed Congress to quickly find a path to citizenship for 11 million undocumented residents.

President Barack Obama will move cautiously into the debate over U.S. immigration reform seeking to build momentum for a new plan to offer a pathway to citizenship for 11 million illegal immigrants.

A bipartisan group of senators who have agreed on an immigration reform plan said on Monday they hope to move quickly with legislation giving 11 million illegal immigrants a chance to eventually become American citizens.

With Republicans showing new flexibility, Democrats should push for comprehensive reform, according to a Los Angeles Times editorial.

According to a column by Raul Reyes, attorney in New York and a member of USA TODAY's Board of Contributors, the Republican proposal for immigration reform lacks a path to citizenship that is offered in Dream Act.

President Obama is resettling in his role as president and while many issues are expected to be addressed, the president is also expected to tackle immigration reform before the start of the next campaign season.

Mexican President-elect Enrique Pena Nieto on Tuesday backed President Barack Obama's planned push for U.S. immigration reform, pledged cooperation on border security and promised efforts to reduce violence in his own country.

President Barack Obama's re-election this month gave supporters of comprehensive immigration reform an immediate dose of optimism.

During his first year, the president promised to achieve comprehensive immigration reform but that didn't happen - calling it the biggest failure of this first time. On Wednesday, the president said he plans to make this a top priority in his final term as president.

Ricardo, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, sets off each day before dawn looking for casual work in construction not knowing if he will return home to his wife and three children or get snared in an immigration sweep. Lately, he feels the pervasive fear slowly lifting.

Two U.S. senators launched a fresh move to put together a bipartisan immigration reform plan on Sunday, restarting talks on a proposal that includes a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants already in the country.

John Boehner said on Friday the country's immigration system was broken, although he did not offer solutions and said President Barack Obama had to take the lead.

The Obama administration has directed immigration officials to recognize same-sex partners as family members in deportation cases, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said on Friday.

The League of United Latin American Citizens will host its Immigration Summit on October 4 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Washington, DC. The summit will take place in the Kennedy Caucus Room at the Russell Senate Building,

President Obama took part in a Univision Town Hall Meeting with Jorge Ramos and Maria Elena Salinas in Florida.

President Barack Obama told a Hispanic audience on Thursday that his inability to overhaul U.S. immigration laws was the biggest shortcoming of his first four years in office, but he blamed Republican lawmakers for standing in the way.

In a disappointing twist, The New York Times is reporting that the White House has decided that the 1.7 million illegal immigrants that benefited from the DREAM Act will not be eligible for health insurance coverage under President Obama's health care overhaul.