The Bush administration and Congress may join forces on immigration reforms, but there is growing public alarm at the local impact of illegal immigrants.

Since winning reelection in December, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has moved swiftly to advance his “21st Century Socialism.” As Chavez-friendly leaders take office in Ecuador and Nicaragua, will they do the same?

The only concrete measures produced by a yearlong congressional debate on immigration reform have involved border security. But a broader discussion looms on immigration and its role in U.S. economy and culture.

After a burst of momentum earlier this year, immigration reform is stalled in the U.S. Congress, with both chambers sharply divided over how to treat illegal immigrants. Major action is unlikely until voters make their views known in November.

With Mexico's presidential and legislative elections less than two weeks away, CFR releases a new report that argues the United States should restore the U.S.-Mexico relationship and encourage collaboration on immigration, trade, and drug trafficking.

President Bush proposes sending 6,000 National Guard troops to the border with Mexico as part of a major speech on immigration reform. Critics say the move is a politically motivated attempt to boost the president's sagging ratings.

Hundreds of thousands throng U.S. cities to call for legislation that permits a path to citizenship for many illegal immigrants. It remains to be seen how responsive U.S. lawmakers struggling with a reform bill will be to their demands.

President Bush is in Mexico, where the issue of immigration is likely to dominate the trilateral North American summit. The U.S. Senate is debating proposals ranging from tougher enforcement measures against illegal immigrants to providing them with a path to citizenship.

The U.S. Senate is debating punitive immigration measures as the new federal budget proposes heavy investments in "hardening" America's borders. The issue adds fuel to the election-year fire—particularly in the American southwest—as political passions rise.

Shannon K. O'Neil says after Republicans' election-year drubbing, the United States has an historic opportunity to fix its broken immigration system. And the arguments against reform simply don't hold up anymore.

Edward Alden discusses a new assessment from the Government Accountability Office, which concludes that crossing U.S. borders illegally has become far more difficult than the American public realizes.

The November election had many consequences, but few may be as profound as its impact on the likelihood of immigration reform, says Richard N. Haass.

Edward Alden says that as the United States has for the past two decades pursued securing the nation's borders against illegal immigration, the more serious threat to U.S. national security is that ill-conceived or poorly implemented border controls will do lasting damage to the U.S. economy.

Edward Alden says recent progress in the use of biometrics in border control is impressive, but the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department need to tell travelers what is in store.

Edward Alden writes that skilled workers, frustrated by the tight U.S. quotas on work visas and the long waits for permanent residency, are being lured by other countries that have overhauled their immigration laws and promise a smoother transition to a new life.

In this excerpt from The Closing of the American Border, Edward Alden writes that George Bush came to office as the most pro-immigrant president in modern U.S. history. Yet he presided over a war on terrorism that has been waged through anti-immigrant measures.

Immigration reform that includes a pathway to citizenship would have sweeping effects on the lives of the estimated eight million undocumented Hispanics living within the United States. But it would not have an acute, immediate effect on U.S. politics.

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