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Watch President Barack Obama's speech live on Thursday at 8 p.m. ET on CNN.

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama will unveil his long-awaited immigration plan Thursday evening, changing rules governing deportations that could affect millions of undocumented immigrants and setting off an explosive battle with Republicans.

Obama's prime-time address will be followed Friday by an event in Las Vegas, sources tell CNN. While exact details of his announcement aren't yet public, the basic outline of the plan, as relayed by people familiar with its planning, includes deferring deportation for the parents of U.S. citizens, a move that would affect up to 3.5 million people.

"Everybody agrees that our immigration system is broken. Unfortunately, Washington has allowed the problem to fester for far too long," Obama said in a video posted on his Facebook page Wednesday. "And so what I'm going to be laying out is the things that I can do with my lawful authority as President to make the system work better, even as I continue to work with Congress to encourage them to get a bipartisan, comprehensive bill that can solve the entire problem."

Obama invited congressional Democratic leaders to the White House for a dinner Wednesday night to discuss his plans for an executive order, a source told CNN.

RELATED: 5 questions you should be asking about Obama and immigration

The President declared in June he wouldn't wait for Congress to pass a comprehensive overhaul of the immigration system, initially saying he would announce changes by the end the summer. The decision was delayed until after the midterm elections, when the White House believed it wouldn't be caught up in campaign politics.

But Republicans are expressing deep anger at the anticipated move, saying unilateral action on immigration would forestall any legislative action.

Two House Republicans who would play a key role in crafting immigration legislation made a fresh call for Obama to hold off on his plans Wednesday -- and warned that if he goes ahead, they'll try to stop the White House from implementing his executive order.

Read more from the original source:
Obama's immigration plans rile GOP