Immigration Reform 2013 News: As Young Immigrants Plea for Obama to Pass Reform, Advocates Look to Bolster Ranks

One battle has ended on the front of the immigration reform debate, but pro-immigration advocates are looking to bolster their support as the immigration reform bill prepares to head to the full U.S. Senate.

The bipartisan U.S. Senate panel had much to celebrate after the Senate Judiciary Committee passed their compromise immigration legislation Tuesday, which allows for a pathway to citizenship for millions of immigrants living illegally in the U.S. as well as adding provisions for border security. However, they still have quite a task ahead as they attempt to rally more voices in favor of the bill.

In particular, they will need to get more Republican support in Congress for the bill. However, to do that, pro-immigration advocacy groups could be looking at possibly making concessions on border security, something that Republicans have been pressuring them to do.

Already, the same-sex amendment that would have allowed gay Americans to sponsor their foreign-born spouses for green cards was stomped out in committee in order to debunk the risk of upsetting conservatives on the right opposed to the amendment.

"It'll kill the bill. It'll kill the bill," Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., a member of the "Gang of Eight," said of the amendment, as National Public Radio notes. "We lose evangelicals. We lose the Catholic Church."

In the wake of that, Democrats will have to work to mend the fences with gay advocates, their allies, who were livid that the provision was left out.

"It is going to be rough going on the Senate floor, and when the Democrats did not speak up for gays, they made it clear they will fold under pressure," Rachel B. Tiven, executive director of Immigration Equality, told the Times.

In addition, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., a prominent "Gang of Eight" member, has stated that he is aiming to bolster what he deemed as border security "triggers" when the bill hits the Senate floor in June, the New York Times reports. This refers to the set of requirements in the bill on border security that must be met before immigrants living illegally in the U.S. can be considered for legal status and citizenship.

Sen. Rubio, who met with border security and law enforcement agents this week to talk about the future of strengthening border provisions, is reportedly working on an amendment to give authority to Congress regarding the execution of the border plan.

Meanwhile, immigrants have taken their pleas for the passage of immigration reform to the White House this week, when a group of young immigrants shared their stories of grappling with the current immigration system with President Obama and Vice President Biden.

Melissa McGuire-Maniau, an Air Force veteran from Florida who participated in the meeting, told reporters about the struggles that she went through recently when ICE officials came to her home and attempted to deport her husband, an undocumented immigrant.

"[We] told just a few of the millions of personal stories that are the real moral, political case for immigration reform," she said, as reported by ABC News Univision.

Mehdi Mahraoui, 22, a legal permanent resident from New York City, spoke of how his parents and older sister were currently in deportation proceedings. He noted how both the president and vice president were visibly moved by their stories.

"I am confident the bill is going to be passed because of the simple fact that people like me are at the front line of the debate," he continued. "Instead of looking at the policies and the numbers, they are looking at people's stories and how it's impacting families."