I have to admit, I’ve been waiting for this day for a while now. Because today is when President Obama is meeting with key members of Congress to discuss immigration reform.

In light of my enthusiam, reading White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel’s following statement on the Immigration Prof blog made my heart sink a little:

Just hours before President Obama hosted lawmakers for a discussion on immigration at the White House, Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel conceded that Obama and his allies on Capitol Hill do not have the votes to pass a comprehensive reform bill.

Emanuel could not have been any more direct when he told reporters, "If the votes were there, you wouldn’t need to have the meeting." The only real glimmer of hope he was willing to offer was saying that it would not be impossible to do this year. He also does not consider putting it off until next year the kiss of death, as many pro-migrant activists have implied, and as this LA Times article discusses.

Mr. Emanuel’s bluntness is in marked contract to statements made by Senate majority leader Harry Reid just two days ago, when he reiterated that the votes to pass immigration reform this year were there. 

The White House has referred to today’s gathering as a "working session" that will allow participants to get a feel for what passable legislation will need to look like. But the White House has been extra careful not to make promises on a timeline for passage or offer details on what final legislation will look like.

I can’t wait to see what the official meeting report will look like and what plans will be put in place beginning today. Waiting on pins and needles...

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