Washington ( CNN ) -- President Barack Obama 's State of the Union address and the traditional post-speech road trip were designed to boost both his agenda and Democratic chances in this difficult election year . But there were instant reminders of the tough terrain , and internal Democratic jitters : The Democratic candidate for governor of Wisconsin was nowhere to be found when the President visited ; that after several vulnerable Senate Democrats publicly tried to create distance between their re-election bids and Obama . Obama State of the Union themes are Democrats ' 2014 playbook . And then , this , in an exclusive conversation with CNN 's Jake Tapper : . Tapper : `` It 's possible that you might be able to get an immigration reform bill on your desk that has legal status for the millions of undocumented workers who are in this country , but not citizenship . Would you veto that ? '' Obama : `` Well , you know , I 'm not going to prejudge what gets to my desk . '' CNN exclusive : Obama says he 's not recalibrating expectations . On its own , maybe that 's just a conciliatory tone so as not to become part of the GOP 's debate about immigration . But the timing makes the President 's open mind more significant . House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi just Wednesday said of the immigration debate : `` In our caucus there has to be a path of citizenship . '' And speaking to The Washington Post , AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka , whose unions are vital to Democratic midterm campaign chances , said of a GOP plan that provides legal status but not a guaranteed path to citizenship for illegal immigrants : `` It 's a joke . It 's a hoax , is what it is . It 's like fool 's gold . '' So Obama is now on record saying he wo n't prejudge an idea that is a nonstarter to the top House Democrat and a `` joke '' to organized labor . And he is not only at odds with those two traditional allies -- he is at odds with himself . A year ago , speaking in Las Vegas , the President laid out his bottom line : `` For comprehensive immigration reform to work , it must be clear from the outset that there is a pathway to citizenship , '' he said then . The President 's refusal to draw a veto line on the citizenship question will make his liberal base anxious , and those tensions could hurt in an election year . Frustrated liberals start to look beyond Obama . But whether liberal disappointment now turns into a political problem closer to Election Day depends in large part on whether Republicans can test the President 's openness by getting a bill to his desk . And that remains a giant question mark . Speaker John Boehner wants the House to pass , in several pieces , immigration changes that would include citizenship for so-called `` Dreamers '' -- younger undocumented people who were brought illegally into the United States by their parents -- but guarantee only legal status for older undocumented individuals . House Republican leaders unveil immigration standards . If the House were to act , it would then need to try to reconcile its ideas with already passed Senate legislation . Democrats control the Senate , and finding common ground , again assuming the House acts , likely would prove difficult . But , for now , the biggest question is whether the House will act . Boehner not only believes the changes are good economic policy , he also is trying to help his party deal with a Latino voter crisis that significantly complicates any Republican White House aspirations . But many Republican members of Congress are worried more about their 2014 races and angering the conservative base , whose turnout is critical in the midterm environment . Most House Republicans believe any immigration debate distracts attention from Obamacare . And on the Senate side , there is less urgency as well because of the states the GOP is targeting in its effort to retake control . The 11 seats now held by Democrats that are the top GOP targets have relatively small Latino populations . But in each of those , conservative GOP base turnout would be critical if the race is close come November . The speaker understands that he is at center stage at the moment , and that any chance to see the Democratic immigration tensions in full force depends on whether the House can first advance something meaningful . `` It 's been turned into a political football , '' the speaker said Thursday of the immigration debate . `` So I think it is time to deal with it . But how we deal with it is going to be critically important . ''
Several vulnerable Republicans put distance between themselves and Congress . Progressives , labor say Democrats ' immigration principals come up short . November , Obama said there would be no reform without pathway to citizenship . Immigration has been turned into a `` political football , '' Speaker Obamacare says .