Immigration reform critic Rep. Steve King (R-IA) was concerned when he saw immigration on the agenda for this week’s GOP conference meeting, The Hill reports.

Said King: “Up on our agenda came immigration… leadership is going to bring immigration, according to the agenda, sometime to the floor. How do we know we’re going to do immigration when we haven’t talked about it yet? How come don’t I know this, because I’m on the Judiciary committee? How come all these meetings on immigration are going on and I’m not being invited to them?”

A new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll finds most Americans support “creating a pathway to citizenship for immigrants who are working in this country illegally — and one with a shorter timeline than that contemplated by Congress.”

Key findings: “Nearly two-thirds of those surveyed said they favor giving citizenship to those who came here illegally and now hold jobs. Support jumped to 76% for a plan that required immigrants to pay fines, back taxes and pass a security check, among other measures, to gain citizenship. Bipartisan legislation now being written in the Senate could open a pathway to citizenship with similar requirements.”

In addition, 51% say illegal immigrants with jobs should gain citizenship after five years with an additional 18% backed immediate citizenship. The plan being discussed in Congress has a 10 year time frame.

“A bipartisan group of senators has largely agreed on a broad immigration bill that would require tough border measures to be in place before illegal immigrants could take the first steps to become American citizens,” the New York Times reports.

“But in a delicate compromise worked out over weeks of negotiations, the bill avoids any hard hurdles related to border enforcement that could eventually halt the progress of those immigrants on a pathway to citizenship. Instead, the bill sets ambitious goals for the Department of Homeland Security to fortify the borders — including continuous surveillance of 100 percent of the United States border and 90 percent effectiveness of enforcement in several high-risk sectors — and other domestic enforcement measures over the next 10 years. It provides at least $3 billion to meet those goals.”

Although they “blew yet another deadline” today, senators told Roll Call “that they are on track to deliver a bill this week or next.”

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) said that a bipartisan group of eight senators is “on track” to introduce comprehensive immigration legislation by the end of this week, despite recent “kerfuffles” in its negotiations and competing items on the congressional agenda, Roll Call reports.

But the Washington Post reports that Republican members “expressed skepticism” about that timetable.

“The timetable is important because President Obama has called for a comprehensive immigration reform measure that could be approved by the Senate and House in time for him to sign it into law by the end of the year. Under the timetable eyed by the Senate group, whose proposal is expected to be the template for a potential deal, the legislation would be introduced in the Judiciary Committee this month for the amendment process.”

Politico has five things to watch in the immigration debate.

When Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) “last appeared with a bipartisan group of senators to discuss their plans for a broad overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws, he looked optimistic, apple-cheeked — and slightly nervous,” the New York Times reports.

“Given the disdain some conservatives reserve for Republicans who consort publicly with Democrats, he had reason to be.”

“The next time Mr. Rubio is likely to appear with his colleagues in the eight-person bipartisan group could be an even bigger moment, when its members officially introduce joint immigration legislation this month. The probable tableau seems ready-made for problems in the 2016 Republican presidential primary fight in which many expect Mr. Rubio to partake: images of Mr. Rubio, smiling and celebrating alongside Democratic senators and maverick Republicans as he claims co-authorship of an overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws that many Republicans will reject.”

“A deal between the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and labor groups on visas for low-skilled workers was supposed to clear a path for an immigration reform package in the Senate,” Politico reports.

“Instead, some business groups are grumbling about the deal and they’re gearing up for a lobbying battle on Capitol Hill — where powerful interests helped doom immigration reform over the same issue before.”

A new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds 57% support a path to citizenship for undocumented workers, but that number is just 35% among self-identified Republicans — “evidence of the political peril for Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and other GOP politicians involved in the negotiations on a compromise immigration bill.”

Among self-described “conservative Republicans,” the numbers are even more negative, with just 30% supporting the idea.

At the same time, Democratic support is reaching new highs — moving up to 73% from 68% in February — and 84% of self-identified liberal Democrats support providing a path for undocumented workers to gain legal status.

Marc Ambinder puts odds on everything from immigration reform passing Congress to a grand bargain on the national debt.

Aides to Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) told Roll Call that the senator “views a lengthy, traditional process that includes hearings, a healthy committee markup and an open floor debate during which senators can offer amendments as key to his ability to build and maintain conservative support for a comprehensive immigration rewrite. Rubio does not have a specific timetable in mind. But anything viewed as ‘rushed’ would violate promises he made to grass-roots conservatives and could cost his support, even if he is OK with the bill in principle.”

Edward Morrissey: “No one doubts that momentum has quickly developed for a deal on
comprehensive immigration reform and border security. But by rushing to
get a deal done and working behind closed doors, Congress is cravenly
trying to sneak reform through without a full hearing before the
American public.”

“Let’s not take on any more water on this sinking ship. Let’s patch the holes. Then we’ll decide what do we do with all this water that’s here.”

— Rep. Lou Barletta (R-PA), quoted by the New York Times, on why he opposes a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants until the nation’s borders are secure.

Wonk Wire notes Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) put the brakes on an emerging immigration reform package over the weekend.

First Read: “If his role is to sell the legislation to conservatives, he can’t afford to be seen as rushing it through, so his tapping of the brakes is smart. On the other hand, if you’re an immigration-reform advocate, you have to be a bit concerned about the totality of the statements coming from him and office. (Remember, Rubio is a recent convert on comprehensive immigration reform.) Make no mistake: Rubio is the difference between the Senate bill getting 60 votes or 75 votes. And if it gets 75 votes, it has a MUCH better chance of clearing the House with a path to citizenship.”

Jeff Zeleny: “It is an attempt, a Rubio aide says, to ease perceptions that immigration reform is a done deal. Critics still point to the secrecy surrounding the 2007 immigration debate. This time, Rubio and others are calling for a more open and transparent process to litigate concerns. It remains an open question if that will help — or happen.”

“Labor and business groups have agreed on the details of a new guest-worker program, likely removing a major hurdle to an immigration deal in the Senate,” Roll Call reports.

“The framework for a guest-worker program has long vexed an immigration overhaul, as labor feared a flood of low-wage workers undercutting American workers, while the Chamber of Commerce has led the push for a steady supply of workers.”

Politico: “The agreement marks a major breakthrough and significantly improves
the odds of passing a larger immigration bill because it brings two
powerful Washington interests on board on an issue that contributed to
the defeat of past reform efforts.”

A new Pew Research survey finds that 71% of Americans say there should be a way for people in the United States illegally to remain in this country if they meet certain requirements, while 27% say they should not be allowed to stay legally.

“Among those who favor providing legal status, the balance of opinion is in favor of allowing those here illegally who meet the requirements to apply for citizenship. However, no more than about half in any demographic group supports permitting illegal immigrants to apply for citizenship.”

President Obama told Telemundo that he is optimistic that – if lawmakers release a draft bill early next month – he will be able to sign comprehensive immigration reform into law before autumn.

Said Obama: “If we have a bill introduced at the beginning of next month — as these senators indicate it will be — then I’m confident that we can get it done certainly before the end of the summer.”

Roll Call: “Obama had previously warned that he would interject himself into the
process with his own measure if Congress takes too long to act. But
Obama on Wednesday said he was pleased with the progress the group of
eight senators has made and believes they will produce a bill.”

David Hawkings: Any immigration delay works against Obama.

A new ABC News/Washington Post poll finds the popularity of the U.S. Congress, while weak overall, has gained sharply among Hispanics, likely reflecting its current efforts on immigration reform.

Key findings: “Strongly negative views of Congress haven’t changed compared with 2011 among Americans overall. But among Hispanics, strongly negative opinions have eased, shrinking what was a 27-point negative gap in intensity (6-33 percent) to an even split now (17-16 percent).”

The New York Times reports that Organizing for Action “will jump into the immigration debate this week with an aggressive online effort to highlight the personal stories of immigrants. The group has collected 7,000 stories from supporters, some of whom entered the country illegally or were brought as young children by their parents. Organizers say they will distribute the stories using Twitter, Facebook and blogs beginning this week.”

Ron Brownstein
says Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s (R) decision not to expand Medicaid (unlike
other GOP governors) could be what ultimately hands Texas to the Democrats.

“Rejecting the
federal money might not pose an immediate political threat to Texas
Republicans, whose coalition revolves around white voters responsive to
small-government arguments. But renouncing the money represents an
enormous gamble for Republicans with the growing Hispanic community,
which is expected to approach one-third of the state’s eligible voters
in 2016. Hispanics would benefit most from expansion because they
constitute 60 percent of the state’s uninsured. A jaw-dropping 3.6
million Texas Hispanics lack insurance.”

He concludes: “In
1994, California Republican Gov. Pete Wilson mobilized his base by
promoting Proposition 187, a ballot initiative to deny services to
illegal immigrants. He won reelection that year–and then lost the war as
Hispanics stampeded from the GOP and helped turn the state lastingly
Democratic.”

A new Public Religion Research Institute survey finds overwhelming support for a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants from the most religious Americans.

CNN: “The strongest support for a pathway to citizenship came from Hispanic Catholics, Hispanics Protestants and black Protestants, according to the poll. More than 70 percent of people who identified with those groups supported the immigration change. Additionally, more than half of all Jewish Americans (67%), Mormons (63%), white Catholics (62%), white mainline Protestants (61%) and white evangelical Protestants (56%) supported the inclusive immigration policy.”