Republican Sen. John McCain says he's "literally pleading" with President Barack Obama not to take unilateral executive action on immigration, saying that such a move by the White House would be "a devastating blow."
"I literally am pleading with the President of the United States not to act," the Arizona lawmaker told Andrea Mitchell on MSNBC. "Give it a chance. We have a new Congress. We have a new mandate. Let's let the House of Representatives decide if they want to move forward with immigration reform."
McCain, who helped push a bipartisan immigration bill through the Senate last year before it languished in the House, said the president should "hold off and ... see what happens" as the newly elected Congress works to address illegal immigration.
Obama has promised to issue new rules regarding the deportation of undocumented immigrants before the end of the year.