Obama: Immigration bill could pass by summer

• Obama says he is %22confident%22 Washington can complete work on an overhaul of immigration laws
• Sen. Charles Schumer says Gang of Eight has completed 90%25 of its work on crafting legislation
• Obama said he is %22prepared to step in%22 and introduce his own plan if necessary

WASHINGTON — President Obama expressed optimism on Wednesday that Congress will have a bill that overhauls the nation's immigration laws ready next month and that passage of the legislation can be completed by summer's end.

"If we have a bill introduced at the beginning of next month as these senators indicate it will be, then I'm confident that we can get it done certainly before the end of the summer," Obama said in an interview with the Spanish-language network Telemundo.

Obama's comments come as four members of the Senate's so-called "Gang of Eight," including Arizona Republican John McCain and Democrat Charles Schumer, took a tour of the Arizona-Mexico border on Wednesday.

Schumer told reporters after the tour that the lawmakers were 90% done with their work crafting the legislation.

Obama called on Congress this week to hustle up and get him an immigration bill as soon as possible.

The president overwhelmingly won the Latino vote in his race against Mitt Romney, but he's been criticized by some Latinos for failing to revamp immigration in his first term and for a record number of deportations being carried out under his watch.

In the Telemundo interview, Obama dismissed the suggestion that there could be potential political fallout for his party if the push on immigration falls short.

"I'm not concerned about the Democratic Party, I'm concerned about the people whose actual lives are (going to) be impacted by it," Obama said.

"The most important thing is that we're seeing a strong commitment to finally solve this problem in a way that strengthens our border security, makes sure that there's a pathway to citizenship, an earned one, a tough one, but a pathway so that people can live out their dreams and make sure that they have a better life for themselves and their kids," he said.

He also noted that he is reserving the option of introducing his own plan.

"I've got my own legislation I'm prepared to step in," Obama said. "But I don't think that's going to be necessary."

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