Obama ‘nearing a final decision’ on immigration

President Obama is “nearing a final decision” on which executive actions addressing immigration he’ll undertake, but still has not received final recommendations from his top advisers, the White House said Thursday.

Press secretary Josh Earnest said Obama met with Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson in the past week to discuss possible executive actions, and that Obama still planned to act by the end of the year, according to The Associated Press. 

But the White House said the president won’t make any final decisions before he returns from his Asia trip on Sunday.

{mosads}The White House spokesman also said that House Republicans should not allow the lame-duck session to keep them from taking up the issue. And, Earnest said, Obama would allow legislation that did manage to pass through both chambers of Congress to supersede any executive action he takes.

The comments came hours after Fox News reported Wednesday that Obama could act as soon as next week. 

According to the network, the administration is weighing a 10-point plan that could defer deportations for as many as 4.5 million immigrants who are illegally in the United States. More individuals brought to the country illegally as children would be eligible for the program, as would the parents of U.S.-born children.

The administration could also increase the number of technology visas available for skilled workers and provide a discount on naturalization applications. And, according to Fox, the administration was considering raising the pay of immigration officers.

Asked about the report on Wednesday, a White House official stressed Obama had “not made a decision regarding the specific measures he will take to fix our broken immigration system.”

“In fact, he has not yet received final recommendations from the Department of Homeland Security,” the official said.