GOP senators get visit by boss on stalled deal

WASHINGTON —  For just the second time in his presidency, President Bush will travel up to Capitol Hill today to meet with Republican senators at their weekly policy luncheon -- a visit designed to underscore his commitment to legislation that is increasingly important to his legacy, particularly immigration reform.

In the days since the immigration overhaul ran aground in the Senate, the bill’s proponents, including the president, have insisted that the measure is not dead. At the end of an eight-day trip to Europe, Bush urged Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to take the bill up again as soon as possible.

“We made two steps forward on immigration; we took a step back,” Bush said before leaving Sofia, Bulgaria, on Monday.

For his part, Reid sent a letter to Bush saying that he was glad to revive debate on the bill, but only if the president could deliver more Republican votes.

“We believe it will take stronger leadership by you to ensure that opponents of the bill do not block the path to final passage. Simply put, we need many more than seven Republicans to vote for cloture and final passage of this bill,” Reid and other Democratic leaders said in the letter.

The stalled legislation was based on a fragile compromise between Republicans and Democrats: In return for offering a path to citizenship for many of the estimated 12 million people currently in the country illegally, future immigration visas would be targeted more at those with needed skills than at family members of those already here.

Reid yanked the immigration bill from the Senate floor Thursday in a dispute with Republicans over how many amendments senators would be permitted to debate. At the time of the break, the two sides were nearing agreement on allowing an additional eight to 12 Republican amendments. That has raised hopes among proponents that a deal is still possible.

“The bipartisan compromise, while it has its flaws, is better than the status quo, and I hope we can get back to it in the near future,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Monday.

There are splits within the Republican and Democratic parties over the issue, but both sides say they think they can muster 60 votes -- the number needed to overcome a filibuster -- if they can resolve their procedural issues.

McConnell said he thought it was unlikely the president’s visit would sway many Republicans. “I think most senators have pretty well made up their minds where they are on this, and I think there are a reasonable number of Republicans who ... in the end are likely to help get us get it through,” McConnell said in a conference call with reporters.

Bush’s visit was scheduled at least a week ago, when the immigration bill was faring well and looked likely to pass by the end of last week. His last visit to the Capitol to attend a Senate Republican policy lunch was on July 31, 2001, when he discussed education and the patients’ bill of rights.

White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said immigration was among the legislative issues the president planned to discuss with his Senate allies. “Immigration reform is too important to let this opportunity pass, and this is the best chance we’ve had in decades to make immigration reform work,” he said.

At this stage in Bush’s presidency, many observers believe he is working hard to seal his legacy on domestic policy. So far, his successes in Congress consist mostly of the No Child Left Behind education law from his first year in office, two rounds of tax cuts, and a Medicare prescription drug benefit that has gotten mixed reviews. An overhaul of the immigration system -- something he has been talking about since he started running for president -- would be considered a significant achievement.

Underscoring his interest in the bill, the president phoned key senators on Monday from Air Force One as he returned to the United States. They included the bill’s two main proponents: Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.).

Later in the day, Kennedy convened a meeting of those who forged what has been dubbed the “grand bargain.”

“We must resolve the immigration stalemate in the Senate and get back to the urgent work of fixing our broken system,” Kennedy said in a statement after talking to the president. “I’m encouraged by the determination of our leaders and so many of our colleagues to come together and do the challenging work we were elected to do. The American people deserve no less.”

Reid said he could be persuaded to bring the immigration bill back to the Senate floor as soon as the end of next week.

“We hope that President Bush and his Republican allies in Congress will find their way to work with us to deliver this bill to the immigrants, businesses and all Americans who demand and deserve it,” Reid said. “If we see new cooperation and a clear way forward from the Republican caucus, we will do everything possible to readdress the immigration issue after debate on the energy bill.”

maura.reynolds@latimes.com

Times staff writer James Gerstenzang contributed to this report from Sofia, Bulgaria.