The terms of the immigration debate have turned less friendly for illegal immigrants as lawmakers and the Bush administration struggle to reach a deal in the next few weeks. The landscape for an immigration overhaul has turned upside down in only a year, with a different party in control of Congress and new political realities for President Bush and the chief congressional negotiators. In an ironic twist, the outlines of a potential deal have moved to the right -- toward a more difficult road to citizenship for the nation's roughly 12 million illegal immigrants -- even as the power in Congress has shifted to Democrats, who overwhelmingly favor a more permissive approach.
See "Immigration Debate Sours for Illegals", Associated Press, The New York Times, April 12, 2007