Clinton: Obama wants immigration reform passed this year

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton this week told an Ecuador television reporter that President Barack Obama is courting lawmakers' support for immigration reform and wants it to happen this year.

"He's working very hard to get that support and I know he wants to do it in the next months," Clinton told NTN24 reporter Gabriella Baer. "I can't tell you exactly when, but fairly soon."

When asked if it would be this year, Clinton responded, "He wants it to be this year."

Clinton visited Ecuador this week to mend relations with the country's left-wing president, Rafael Correa.

During Tuesday's interview, which was released Friday, Clinton also suggested that the Obama administration has tried to repair relations with Venezuela's socialist president Hugo Chavez -- an ally of Correa's -- without much success so far.

"When President Obama came in and we went to the Summit of the Americas, our goal was to turn the page on the past eight years," Clinton said. "And we would like to turn that page, but we can only work with countries willing to work with us."

Asked if relations between the U.S. and Ecuador could be affected if the Andean country deepens its ties with Venezuela and Iran, Clinton said: "Well, we don't want it to and we hope it doesn't."

Asked if she thought there'd be fewer wars if more women ran countries and companies, Clinton replied simply: "Well, of course the answer to that is yes."

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