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WASHINGTON President Donald Trump sees himself as a masterful dealmaker, and he has begun signaling that he believes he can land perhaps the thorniest of transactions in Washington: immigration reform.

Trump sparked a flurry of speculation when he privately told television anchors over lunch this week that he could support a compromise that allowed people with no criminal record to stay in the country and work and pay taxes.

Hours later, Trump made a last-minute addition to his high-profile speech before Congress, calling for an immigration overhaul that improves wages and increases security.

Real and positive immigration reform is possible, he said. ... If we are guided by the well-being of American citizens, then I believe Republicans and Democrats can work together to achieve an outcome that has eluded our country for decades.

But immigration experts are skeptical Trump has the attention span or the desire to pass a sweeping immigration overhaul, a deeply complicated undertaking that has failed twice in Washington in the last decade and would represent an about-face from Trumps hard-line campaign stance against illegal immigration and crackdown on migrants since he took office.

Trumps actions in his first month in office set his administration on a path toward a harsh deportation program that is already sweeping up many of the same people that an immigration reform package would protect from removal.

Politically, Trump has little room to maneuver. Over the last 20 months, Trump propelled himself first to the Republican nomination for president and then to the White House by railing against illegal immigration, and he would face an uproar from his base if he signed a bill that created a pathway to citizenship for people in the country illegally.

He also would face unhappy Republican leaders in Congress, who are focused on big-ticket proposals on health care and tax reform, an agenda that could be derailed by a protracted debate over immigration.

Nevertheless, Trump told news anchors in the White House that the time is right for an immigration bill and that positions on both sides need to be softened, according to a White House official present for the discussion.

The remark may have been mostly a reflection of Trumps penchant for playing to his audience in this case, journalists demanding answers about whether he can work with Congress on top policy issues.

Trump has expressed a willingness to ease his stance on immigration before. He told senators as recently as two weeks ago that they should revive a 2013 proposal that passed in the Senate but died in the House.

And in a news conference last month, Trump wavered when asked whether he will end President Barack Obamas Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which shields from deportation some young people who were brought illegally to the U.S. as children.

The DACA situation is a very, very its a very difficult thing for me because, you know, I love these kids, I love kids, I have kids and grandkids. And I find it very, very hard doing what the law says exactly to do and, you know, the law is rough, Trump said.

In addition, despite his campaign promise to end the Obama-era program that gives work permits to those young people, known as Dreamers, Trump has allowed his administration to continue to issue them.

Top aides, however, have identified ways to end the program without Trumps fingerprints, including through legal guidance issued by the departments of Homeland Security or Justice or through a lawsuit brought by states that the administration could decline to defend.

Immigration advocates, skeptical that Trumps comment to news anchors presaged a shift in his hard-line approach, acknowledged he could use his negotiating powers to bring about a deal.

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Trump sees immigration reform as the ultimate deal - The Recorder