BOGOTA — U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio urged President Barack Obama to hold off using executive authority to overhaul immigration regulations, saying reform should be gradual and come only after authorities clamp down on illegal immigration.

“Taking executive action will set back the opportunity to make progress,” Rubio told reporters in Spanish on Wednesday during a two-day trip to Colombia. His comments echoed those by incoming Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell a day after Republicans took control of the Senate.

Rubio, a Florida Republican, was in a bipartisan group of lawmakers that put together a broad immigration package that would boost border security and provide a path to citizenship for 11 million migrants in the U.S.

Obama has said he will act after midterm elections because Congress has failed to pass legislation.