Biden and officials are concerned that more radical moves would be politically polarizing ahead of November’s midterm elections, undermine public trust in institutions like the Supreme Court or lack strong legal footing, sources inside and outside the White House say.

Biden is “telling people the truth and putting the focus where it needs to be, holding Republicans’ feet to the fire for the harm they’re causing,” a White House official said when asked about the strategy…

Biden has not endorsed scrapping the Senate filibuster rule that could allow them to pass a federal law making abortion legal with a simple majority. Democrats only have 50 votes in the 100-seat Senate – not enough to get around a filibuster – and Republicans have lined up against proposals to make abortion a legal right nationwide.

Several Democratic lawmakers want to get rid of the filibuster altogether, including House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi. And Republicans plan to scrap it to pass a law making abortion illegal nationwide, former Republican National Committee chair Michael Steele said this week.

Biden has only endorsed Congress suspending the filibuster in limited cases, for instance to pass voting rights legislation or to raise the debt ceiling.