Pres. Obama Downplays Immigration Reform in 2010

Pres. Obama met briefly with reporters last night and said there might not be “the appetite” for immigration reform this year. His comments came on the same day the Senate Democrats circulated an Amnesty proposal. Later today, Majority Leader Harry Reid will unveil an Amnesty plan during a press conference.

Pres Obama said he would like to proceed on immigration reform with bipartisan support and he’s willing to wait for Republican Senators.

“It’s a matter of political will . . . This is a difficult issue. It generates a lot of emotions . . . I need some help on the Republican side,” Pres. Obama said.

Pres. Obama said he thinks that immigration reform needs ideas from both Democrats and Republicans with solutions to the nation’s border issues and other immigration problems.

“If you’ve got hundreds of thousands of people coming in, not playing by the rules, that’s a problem,” Obama said. “And the federal government has been abdicating on its responsibilities for a very long time on this issue.”

For more information, see the Washington Post and the New York Times.