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The Latest: Durbin invokes Chloe Kim in immigration debate

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Latest on the Senate's immigration debate: (all times local):

11:20 a.m.

Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois says Olympic gold medalist Chloe Kim's story is the story of immigration in America.

With the Senate debating immigration, Durbin is invoking the journey of Kim's father from South Korea to the United States in 1982 with a couple hundred dollars.

Durbin says Chloe Kim showed an interest in snowboarding as a young girl, developing into one of the best in the world and capturing a gold medal for the U.S. in the halfpipe Tuesday.

Durbin says Kim's family resembles many other immigrants who don't bring wealth and often don't bring a proficiency in English. He says "they only come here with a determination to make a better life for themselves and a better country for all of us."

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8:35 a.m.

A Republican senator who introduced President Donald Trump's immigration proposal says it's "the president's framework bill or nothing."

Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas calls the bill "not an opening bid" for negotiations with Democrats on immigration but the "best and final offer."

Like the proposal Trump unveiled last month, the measure would offer a chance for citizenship for up to 1.8 million people who arrived in the U.S. as children and stayed illegally. It would provide $25 billion for border security, restrict family-based immigration, and end a visa lottery.

The Trump plan faces an uphill battle in the Senate.

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12:13 a.m.

The Senate's Republican and Democratic leaders say it's going to be tough to broker a successful deal on immigration policy.

Debate is expected to end this week with a vote on President Donald Trump's own proposal.

The Republican majority leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, says Democrats need to back up their demand for action with hard work on finding a solution that Congress will pass and Trump will sign.

The Democratic leader, Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, expressed opposition to Trump's proposal. It would pave a path to citizenship for up to 1.8 million young "Dreamer" immigrants in the U.S. illegally, a lure for Democrats. Trump also wants $25 billion for a border wall with Mexico and other security measures.

The Capitol Dome of the Capitol Building at sunrise, Friday, Feb. 9, 2018, in Washington. The Senate is ready for a showdown debate over immigration, including whether to protect young "Dreamers" from deportation, in an election-year battle that's sure to electrify both parties' most fervent voters and could well end in stalemate. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) The Associated Press
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., left, talks with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., before his speech at the McConnell Center's Distinguished Speaker Series Monday, Feb. 12, 2018, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley) The Associated Press
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