GOP leadership — some combination of Boehner, Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) and Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) — is likely to give a short presentation in which they’ll urge lawmakers to speak their minds so the party can develop a policy.

Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mike McCaul (R-Texas) will explain what House committees have already passed and options going forward.

Then comes the key part: letting members vent.

Leadership needs to find out where people stand on four main areas: the future flow of immigrants into the U.S., a possible pathway to citizenship, government benefits and border security. Could they tie these items together in one bill? It’s possible, but there are political upsides to putting them on the floor separately: One reason would be to jam Democrats who vote against them. Putting the bills together would allow members to say they supported a package with items they both liked and disliked. It’s possible that the House takes up the Senate bill in committee and strips it down to the studs and rewrites it.

A lot of this will be decided in a somewhat stealthy manner.