Sen. Bennet 'more optimistic today' about passing bipartisan immigration reform

Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) said he's more optimistic about passing bipartisan immigration reform legislation now than he was before the 2012 election.

"I am optimistic," Bennet, the incoming chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, said Wednesday. "Much more optimistic today than I was before this election that this Congress can legislate in a bipartisan way and pass significant immigration reform."

Bennet's comments came during a conference call touting the Colorado Compact, an effort to encourage bipartisan immigration reform. The Compact calls for a "commonsense approach" to immigration reform that "reflects our values and recognizes the critical role immigration has played in our nation's history and economy."

Bennet was joined on the conference call by Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff (R) and National Immigration Forum Executive Director Ali Noorani.

President Obama and top Democrats and Republicans have called for passing immigration reform in 2013. But while Democrats have generally called for passing comprehensive immigration reform in one large bill, a number of top Republicans involved in negotiations on immigration reform have said the best way is through passing a set of smaller bills. Bennet, a member of a bipartisan group of senators negotiating immigration reform, said a larger deal would be better.

"My own intuition on this is the broader the deal is, the better," Bennet said.

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