WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. immigration system would undergo dramatic changes under a bipartisan Senate bill that puts a new focus on prospective immigrants' merit and employment potential, while seeking to end illegal immigration once and for all by creating legal avenues for workers to come here.

2. Lawmakers ready to unveil immigration deal - Friday, April 12, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan group of senators is almost ready to share with colleagues and voters an immigration overhaul crafted over several months.

The so-called Gang of Eight is finishing up the final details and is planning to unveil the proposed legislation on Tuesday. Even before the measure gets its first public airing, its authors were defending the program that would provide a pathway to citizenship for the 11 million individuals in this country who came illegally or overstayed their visit.

3. AP source: Immigration bill could exclude many - Friday, April 12, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan immigration bill soon to be introduced in the Senate could exclude hundreds of thousands of immigrants here illegally from ever becoming U.S. citizens, according to a Senate aide with knowledge of the proposals.

4. Tentative farm workers deal in immigration talks - Friday, April 05, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — A tentative deal has been reached between agriculture workers and growers, a key senator said Tuesday, smoothing the way for a landmark immigration bill to be released within a week.

5. Senators to add high-tech visas, dispute details - Friday, April 05, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senators finalizing a massive immigration bill are arguing over plans to boost visas for high-tech workers, Senate aides and industry officials say, with disputes flaring over how best to punish companies that train workers here only to ship them overseas.

6. Immigration bill envisions new farm worker program - Friday, March 29, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sweeping immigration legislation taking shape in the Senate will aim to overhaul the nation's agriculture worker program to create a steady supply of labor for farmers and growers, who rely more than any other industry on workers who have come to the country illegally.

7. Immigration deal at hand, focus turns to details - Friday, March 29, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — Big business and big labor have settled on a political framework for an immigration overhaul. Now, the lawmakers writing bipartisan legislation need to resolve the nitty-gritty — and keep their parties' political flanks mollified.

8. Big spending cuts mark tea party success, and risk - Friday, March 01, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — The pending $85 billion in federal spending cuts would seem like a tea partyer's dream. Why, then, are tea party activists and other conservatives so wary on the eve of the big reductions, which Congress and the White House seem unable or unwilling to stop?

9. Government downsizes amid GOP demands for more cuts - Friday, February 22, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans and other fiscal conservatives keep insisting on more federal austerity and a smaller government. Without much fanfare or acknowledgement, they've already gotten much of both.

10. Labor, business agree to principles on immigration - Friday, February 22, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — Business and labor groups announced agreement Thursday on the principles of a key priority for a comprehensive immigration bill: a new system to bring lower-skilled workers to the U.S.

11. Obama offering immigration plan as backup - Friday, February 15, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is downplaying its draft immigration proposal as merely a backup plan if lawmakers don't come up with an overhaul of their own. It won't be necessary, Republican and Democratic lawmakers alike are telling the Obama administration.

12. Obama, business groups differ on minimum wage plan - Friday, February 08, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama says raising the minimum wage to $9 an hour and tying future increases to inflation will boost the incomes of millions living in poverty and spur job growth by pouring more money into the economy. But business groups are not so sure.

13. FACT CHECK: Overreaching in State of Union speech - Friday, February 08, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama did some cherry-picking Tuesday night in defense of his record on jobs and laid out a conditional path to citizenship for illegal immigrants that may be less onerous than he made it sound.

14. Obama proposals face quick opposition in Congress - Friday, February 08, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama set up high-stakes clashes over guns, immigration, taxes and climate change in a State of the Union address that showcased a newly re-elected president determined to mark his legacy, facing off against a deeply divided Congress with Republicans eager to rein him in.

15. Business, unions negotiating guest worker program - Friday, February 01, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — Business leaders and labor union officials are delving into high-stakes negotiations over a particularly contentious element of immigration reform — a guest worker program to ensure future immigrants come here legally.

16. Republicans face a balancing act on immigration - Friday, February 01, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans face a delicate balancing act as they embrace an unprecedented shift in their views on immigration reform — and no one better exemplifies the potential risks and rewards than Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida.

17. Senators reach agreement on immigration reform - Friday, January 25, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan group of leading senators has reached agreement on the principles for a sweeping overhaul of the nation's immigration laws, including a path to citizenship for the 11 million illegal immigrants already in this country.

18. US Chamber makes immigration overhaul top priority - Friday, January 11, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — The president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said Thursday that the "door to the American dream must always remain open" as he announced a broad coalition of business, labor, faith organizations, law enforcement and ethnic groups intent on overhauling the nation's immigration system.

19. Faces of the new Congress - Friday, January 04, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — Politically, the 213th Congress that was sworn in Thursday won't be much of a change from the less-than-stellar 212th Congress it replaces: Democrats picked up a few seats in the House and Senate, but the balance of power is unchanged, with Republicans controlling the House and Democrats holding a majority in the Senate.

20. House re-elects Boehner speaker - Friday, January 04, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House and Senate ushered in a new Congress Thursday, re-electing embattled Republican John Boehner as speaker and hailing one of their own who returned a year after being felled by a stroke.

21. 2016 politics on display as Congress ends term - Friday, December 28, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Paul Ryan, the GOP's 2012 vice presidential candidate, voted for the "fiscal cliff" compromise that raised taxes on the wealthiest Americans. Republican Sens. Marco Rubio and Rand Paul voted against it. And Vice President Joe Biden helped broker the deal with GOP leaders in the Senate.

22. Romney demurs on VP search with Rubio at his side - Friday, April 20, 2012

ASTON, Pa. (AP) — Mitt Romney declined Monday declined to endorse an immigration proposal from potential running mate Marco Rubio. Romney said he's considering the freshman Florida senator's plan to help some young people stay in the country legally while denying them an opportunity to become citizens.

23. Jeb Bush says he'd consider vice presidency - Friday, April 20, 2012

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush says he'd consider running as vice president with Mitt Romney, but doubts he'll ever be asked.

Bush tells the conservative website Newsmax that Florida Sen. Marco Rubio is "probably the best" choice to share the ticket with Romney, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee. Bush said he hopes the freshman senator is offered the No. 2 slot and accepts it.

24. GOP's McCain to Santorum: Time for 'graceful exit' - Friday, March 30, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. John McCain says Rick Santorum should recognize "it's time for a graceful exit" from the Republican presidential campaign in the wake of Mitt Romney's sweep of primaries in Wisconsin, Maryland and the District of Columbia.

25. Is big GOP money finally flowing to Mitt Romney? - Friday, March 16, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) — In an indication the GOP establishment may be starting to coalesce behind him, major contributors to a key Republican political organization founded by political strategist Karl Rove have boosted their financial support for front-runner Mitt Romney.

26. Obama wants small business tax, investment breaks - Friday, January 27, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) — Fleshing out a year-old initiative, the Obama administration wants Congress to enact or expand tax breaks for small businesses and remove barriers to startups, seizing on some existing bipartisan proposals that could win support even in the polarized climate of an election year.

27. Rubio: Immigration not only issue for Hispanics - Friday, January 20, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Hispanic-American U.S. senator from Florida who's considered a rising star in the Republican Party says too much is being made of the significance of immigration to his community.