Members of an eight-member bipartisan group in the U.S. House of Representatives praised the recently unveiled immigration reform proposal of their counterparts in the Senate on Wednesday and said they expected to release a "reasonable, common-sense plan" of their own in a matter weeks.

In a joint statement, a first for the group, the congressmen said they are focused on developing an immigration bill that will help America stay strong.

"This week, a bipartisan group of Senators stepped forward to introduce their proposal, and we applaud their effort," they said. "We are also working on a good faith, bipartisan effort in the House. We believe we will soon agree on a reasonable, common-sense plan to finally secure our borders and strengthen our economy, with a tough but fair process that respects the rule of law so immigrants can contribute to our country." more >>

In what is viewed as the most sweeping overhaul in immigration law in at least the last 26 years, a bipartisan group of eight senators unveiled a bill on Tuesday that will map a 13-year pathway to citizenship for almost 11 million undocumented immigrants.

A recent Washington Post report highlighted the 13-year pathway to citizenship as among several key features of the proposal the group of four Republican and four Democratic senators are expected to unveil.

Under the proposal, the undocumented immigrants will be able to apply for a Green Card after 10 years and citizenship three years after that. But first, they would need to pay a $1,000 fee, back taxes, learn English, keep a job and pass criminal background check. Dream Act youth would be able to obtain Green Cards in five years and citizenship immediately after that point. more >>

Senator Marco Rubio of Florida appeared on a series of talk shows this Sunday to promote the new immigration reform bill, which took months of crafting among bipartisan politicians and will be presented on Tuesday at the earliest.

Rubio has persistently stressed that this upcoming immigration reform bill will not simply "award" citizenship to those who have lived in the U.S. illegally, but rather provide a fair opportunity for them to pursue a path to citizenship.

"This bill does three things that are fundamentally important for our country," Rubio, a Republican, told CBS' "Face the Nation" on Sunday. more >>

The amnesty bill that the Gang of Eight has been working on in secret has sprung some leaks so we can identify several major flaws. The Senate Budget Committee reports that there is nothing in the plan to comply with the federal law that states that any immigrant is "inadmissible" who is "likely at any time to become a public charge."

That is the text of Section 212 of the federal Immigration and Nationality Act. The Gang of Eight appears to be willing to allow those who illegally entered the U.S. to obtain legal residence without demonstrating that they will not become a public charge, and after they get a green card they can access the 79 federal welfare benefits and anti-poverty programs.

The Senate Budget Committee staff estimates that costs to the U.S. taxpayers could be $40 billion a year just for Medicaid and ObamaCare. Robert Rector of the Heritage Foundation believes that the net cost of amnesty would eventually top $2 trillion. more >>

A bi-partisan group of Senators, known as the Gang of 8, have put together a framework for the immigration reform that supposedly America is waiting for.

Provisions of the agreement have been widely leaked and, from what I see, these Senators should return to the drawing board.

If we are going to tackle immigration reform, there should be agreement at the outset on what objectives should be achieved. In my view, there should be three. It should enhance the freedom, fairness, and security of the nation. If not, why bother? more >>

While many evangelical pastors and leaders have been active in promoting immigration reform through the Evangelical Immigration Table, recent polls suggest that white evangelicals fall behind the rest of the nation in their support of immigrants and immigration reform.

A recent poll conducted by Public Religion Research Institute and The Brookings Institution, and a recent poll conducted by Pew Research Center, both show that white evangelicals are the least supportive, among the combined religious and race/ethnic groups studied, of creating a path to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants.

In the PRRI survey, 56 percent of white evangelicals favored a path to citizenship, compared to 63 percent of all Americans. In the Pew survey, 62 percent of white evangelicals said unauthorized immigrants should be allowed to stay legally (compared to 71 percent for all Americans), with 20 percent saying they should be able to apply for permanent residency and 40 percent saying they should be able to apply for citizenship. more >>