The Biden administration is considering actions that would make the president’s tough but temporary asylum restrictions almost impossible to lift, people familiar with the plans said Wednesday.

The move would essentially turn what had been a short-term fix into a central feature of the asylum system in America. And it would be yet another sign that the country is moving away from the traditional American practice of allowing anyone who sets foot on U.S. soil the opportunity to seek protection.

The changes under consideration would build on the executive order that President Joe Biden issued in June.

U.S. officials have said that the order has deterred migrants from making the dangerous trip north and resulted in a dramatic drop-off in asylum claims.

Under the June order, the restrictions on asylum would lift when the number of people trying to cross illegally each day drops below 1,500 for one week.

Crossings have not fallen that low, even with Biden’s restrictions in effect. Now, administration officials want to extend the required period of lower crossings to several weeks, according to two people with knowledge of the order. That change would make it extraordinarily unlikely that the restrictions would lift any time soon.

White House officials say no decision has been made yet on any changes to border policy. A spokesperson with the Department of Homeland Security said the president’s earlier action had been successful in reducing illegal crossings by more than 50%, but declined to confirm that a new, tougher approach was under consideration.

Judge broadens Alaska abortion access

An Alaska judge struck down Wednesday a decades-old state law that restricted who could perform abortions in the state.

The decision comes out of a 2019 lawsuit brought by Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawaii, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky, which challenged the law that says only a doctor licensed by the State Medical Board can perform an abortion in Alaska.

The Alaska Supreme Court has interpreted the right to privacy in the state’s constitution as encompassing abortion rights.

In her ruling Wednesday, Alaska Superior Court Judge Josie Garton found that the law violated the privacy and equal protection rights of patients by burdening their access to abortion, as well as the rights of clinicians qualified to perform the procedures.

Courts block Ohio abortion restrictions

Two more Ohio laws restricting abortions have been blocked by the courts as the legal impacts of a 2023 constitutional amendment guaranteeing access to the procedure continue to be felt.

Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Alison Hatheway issued a preliminary injunction Aug. 29 that extends an existing order temporarily halting enforcement of a law banning use of telemedicine in medication abortions.

It also blocks another law prohibiting non-doctors — including midwives, advanced practice nurses and physician assistants — from prescribing the abortion pill mifepristone used in the procedure.

Hatheway’s decision followed a Columbus judge’s order blocking Ohio from enforcing several other laws that combined to create a 24-hour waiting period for abortion seekers. Any appeals by the state could eventually arrive at the Ohio Supreme Court, where three seats — and partisan control — are in play this fall and abortion is considered a pivotal issue.

Tribal leaders call out Montana candidate

Tribal leaders in Montana urged Republican U.S. Senate candidate Tim Sheehy to apologize over remarks he made to supporters about Native Americans being “drunk at 8 a.m.” and throwing beer cans at him on the Crow Reservation

Audio recordings of Sheehy’s racial comments were obtained and published by Char-Koosta News, the official publication of the Flathead Indian Reservation.

Sheehy, who is backed by former President Donald Trump, is challenging three-term incumbent Democratic Sen. Jon Tester.

A Sheehy campaign spokesperson did not dispute the authenticity of the recordings, which the tribal newspaper said came from fundraising events held in Montana last November.

Sheehy is heard commenting in one of the recordings that his ranching partner is a member of the Crow Tribe with whom Sheehy ropes and brands cattle on the tribe’s southeastern Montana reservation.

“Great way to bond with all the Indians, to be out there while they’re drunk at 8 a.m.,” Sheehy says.

Migrants missing after boat to Italy capsizes

About 20 migrants are believed to be missing after their boat capsized in the Mediterranean this week, the U.N. refugee agency and the Italian coast guard said Wednesday.

Seven Syrians were rescued and taken to the southern Italian island of Lampedusa, Italian rescuers said. The coast guard said local officials had spotted the sinking boat around 10 miles southwest of the island.

The seven survivors were “in critical condition and many have lost their relatives,” Chiara Cardoletti, the UNHCR representative to Italy, said on X.

Survivors said 28 people had left Libya on Sept. 1, the coast guard said in a statement. Twenty-one of them, including three children, “fell into the sea due to adverse weather conditions,” it added. The children were missing.

Naval units and a coast guard aircraft were searching.

Blinken subpoenaed in Afghan withdrawal

House Republicans have issued a subpoena demanding testimony from Secretary of State Antony Blinken as they wrap up a sprawling yearslong investigation into the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.

Rep. Michael McCaul, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, sent a subpoena letter late Tuesday ordering Blinken to appear before the committee by Sept. 19 or face a contempt of Congress charge.

“You served as the final decision maker for the department on the withdrawal and evacuation,” McCaul wrote.

He added that three years later, Blinken is “in a position to inform the Committee’s consideration of potential legislation aimed at helping prevent the catastrophic mistakes of the withdrawal, including potential reforms to the Department’s legislative authorization.”

Matthew Miller, a State Department spokesman, said Blinken is unable to testify on the dates proposed by the committee as he will be traveling for diplomatic work the majority of September. He claimed the committee denied “reasonable alternatives” to the subpoena date.

Prosecutor: Reinstate Alec Baldwin charges

A prosecutor asked a New Mexico judge to reconsider the decision to dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge against Alec Baldwin in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie, according to a court filing made public Wednesday.

Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey said there were insufficient facts to support the July ruling and that Baldwin’s due process rights had not been violated.

State District Court Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed the case halfway through a trial based on the withholding of evidence by police and prosecutors from the defense in the 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film “Rust.”

The charge against Baldwin was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it can’t be revived once any appeals of the decision are exhausted.

— From news services