Obama to Tackle Immigration Reform at Closed-Door White House Meeting, Miami Townhall to Be Moderated by Telemundo's José Díaz-Balart

President Barack Obama was set to host immigration advocates in a closed-door meeting on Wednesday, the White House announced in its daily schedule. It remained unclear who exactly would be present the meeting in the Roosevelt Room, however.

The Weekly Standard noted the event comes as the Obama administration and the Republican-controlled Congress continue their battle over Department of Homeland Security funding, which GOP leaders have linked to the president's decision to extend immigration benefits to hundreds of thousands of undocumented residents by executive action.

In the afternoon, Obama is scheduled to travel to Miami, where he will hold an immigration townhall. The event will be broadcast on MSNBC and moderated by José Díaz-Balart of Telemundo, according to Huffington Post.

As his confrontation with Republicans heats up, the president has sought to reassure immigration advocates that he has no intention of backing down on the issue. Obama is also increasingly counting on public support to push his immigration policies.

On Tuesday, the president published an op-ed in The Hill, in which he offered ways to "fix our broken immigration system." He criticized the decision of U.S. District Judge Judge Andrew Hanen, who had ruled that the administration could not implement the executive actions on immigration while the Brownsville, Texas, court considers a lawsuit from 26 states challenging their constitutionality.

"Much recent attention has focused on a single court decision in Texas in response to a partisan lawsuit that delays some of these lawful, common-sense steps," Obama wrote. "To those who are affected and disturbed by this ruling, I share your concerns. To those who have questions, the Department of Homeland Security will continue to provide information."

Executive action would create a new program giving parents of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents three-year work permits and allowing them to remain in the United States. They would also include an expansion of the existing Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy aimed at benefitting undocumented immigrants who entered the country as children.