President Barack Obama has warned a narrow two to three month window remained to pass immigration reform before mid-term elections, seeking to keep alive his last hope for a major second term domestic achievement.
Obama told police chiefs and top law enforcement officers that bitter party politics ahead of November's polls would threaten hopes of moving a reform bill, currently stalled in the US House of Representatives.
"It is hard to believe that this place (Washington) could get a little more dysfunctional," Obama said.
"It is very hard right before an election, we have got a window of two, three months to get the ball rolling in the House of Representatives," Obama said.
The Democratic-led Senate passed an immigration reform bill last year.
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But the bill has ground to a halt in the Republican House, with conservatives arguing that they cannot trust Obama to enforce laws on border enforcement to crack down on illegal immigration.
Conservatives in the restive Republican caucus are also loath to pass a bill many see as offering amnesty to around 11 million illegal immigrants.
And Republican party chiefs want to keep the focus on Obama's health care law - a key motivator for the party's base voters.
The Senate bill includes a path to eventual citizenship for 11 million illegal immigrants, includes tighter border monitoring, an overhauled work visa program and other key reforms.
Republican House Speaker John Boehner has said the House will deliver its own bill.
But even if the House passed its own immigration bill, its prospects of winning Senate agreement are uncertain with some lawmakers wary of tough votes before an election in which Republicans are hoping to win control of the Senate.
