Obama visits fasting immigration activists
| Washington
President Barack聽Obama聽on Friday told activists who are fasting to protest inaction in Congress on聽immigration聽legislation that their "commitment to change" ultimately will help pressure lawmakers to act.
On the day after the US harvest holiday of Thanksgiving, marked by an abundance of food,聽Obama聽stopped in at a heated tent on the National Mall, home to Washington's most famous monuments, where some activists have drunk only water since Nov. 12 in support of聽immigration聽legislation.
Republican House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner has refused to schedule a vote on a comprehensive聽immigration聽measure the Senate passed this summer that would offer a path to citizenship for the 11 million聽immigrants聽living in the US illegally and tighten border security.
Many Republicans question offering citizenship to people who broke US immigration聽laws.
"I want everybody to know I remain optimistic that we're going to get this done,"聽Obama聽said, according to video of his remarks.
The White House issued a statement after the approximately 40-minute visit that said聽Obama聽thanked the hunger strikers "for their sacrifice and dedication and told them that the country is behind them on聽immigration聽reform."
Organizers of the fast said聽Obama聽expressed concern for the health of the hunger strikers, and he held the shoe of an聽immigrant聽who died in the Arizona desert while trying to enter the US.
Immigration聽frustrations have been in the news in recent days. One man who was part of a backdrop for an聽Obama聽speech in California shouted during the president's speech for聽Obama聽to stop separating families by deporting people who are living in the country illegally.
Obama聽was the latest administration official to visit with the hunger strikers. Vice President Joe Biden, Cabinet secretaries and top White House advisers have also visited.
Obama聽won about 70 percent of the Hispanic vote in his re-election last year, leading some Republicans in the Senate to take a different approach than their House colleagues, expressing concern that the party's opposition to聽immigration聽reform could hurt future election prospects by alienating the rapidly growing Latino voting bloc.
