Drastic border restrictions considered by Biden and the Senate reflect seismic political shift on immigration

Washington — Less than two weeks after he took office and halted border wall construction, announced a deportation pause and suspended a rule requiring migrants to await their court dates in Mexico, President Biden issued an executive order signaling a dramatic shift in U.S. immigration policy.

His administration, Mr. Biden promised in that February 2021 order, would "restore and strengthen" the U.S. asylum system and reject the Trump administration's border policies that "contravened our values and caused needless human suffering."

Nearly three years into his tenure, Mr. Biden now finds himself entertaining drastic and permanent restrictions on asylum — including an extraordinary authority first invoked by former President Donald Trump to summarily expel migrants during spikes in illegal crossings — in order to convince congressional Republicans to support more military aid to Ukraine.