Obama to call for migrant reform

US President Barack Obama is to call for reform of the US immigration system in a speech in Texas.

Although Congress is seen as unlikely to enact a major overhaul, aides say Mr Obama remains committed to the issue.

Immigration reform is of particular importance to the growing Hispanic electorate, which leans Democratic and whose continued support Mr Obama will need in his 2012 re-election bid.

An estimated 11m illegal immigrants, most of them Hispanic, live in the US.

In El Paso, a Texas border city, Mr Obama is expected to tout measures he has taken to tighten border security while discussing the economic necessity of immigration reform, White House spokesman Jay Carney said.

‘Fundamentally broken’

In an e-mail to supporters, senior White House aide David Plouffe said the failures of the US immigration system, which is seen as encouraging migrants to come to the US illegally to take low-wage jobs while often making it difficult for skilled workers to come to the US legally, hinders economic growth and hurts families.

“Our nation is the leader of the global economy in part because of the steady stream of hardworking and talented people who have come to our country in search of a better life for themselves and their families,” he wrote.

“As we continue to strengthen our economy, we need an immigration system that demands responsibility and accountability from government, businesses and immigrants themselves.”

In July, Mr Obama called the US immigration system “fundamentally broken” and called for a path to legal status for illegal immigrants – probably to involve paying a fine and learning English – and also for moves to enhance border security and punish employers who hire illegal workers.

But any proposal other than further crackdowns on illegal immigrants is certain to encounter fierce opposition from many Republicans, a bloc of whom derailed bipartisan immigration reform efforts in 2006 and 2007 under President George Bush.

Opponents, mostly conservatives, criticised the proposals as an unacceptable “amnesty” for people who had broken the law.

State crackdowns

When Mr Obama sought to rally support for immigration reform in July – at a time when his Democratic Party still held control of the House of Representatives – Republicans argued that granting legal status to illegal workers would exacerbate the unemployment situation.

While Washington DC has been unable to achieve federal immigration reform, three states have sought to take action themselves.

Arizona, Georgia and Utah have passed measures giving police the power to demand documentation from people they suspect of being illegal immigrants who have been detained on other charges. Arizona’s law has been put on hold by the courts, and the others may soon be.

In 2008, 67% of Hispanics voted for Mr Obama, compared with 31% for Republican John McCain, exit polls showed.

The Hispanic vote pushed Mr Obama over the margin of victory in four states won by President George Bush in 2004, some analysts calculate.

The Republican Party lost significant support among Hispanic voters following the 2004 election, in which Mr Bush won 40% of the Hispanic vote, in part because of the party’s hard line on illegal immigration, analysts say.