After immigration ruling, Democrats’ once-sweeping agenda continues to shrink

President Biden’s governing agenda is at risk of unraveling on Capitol Hill after a mounting series of delays, clashes and setbacks that have sapped momentum from an ambitious and intricate push to deliver on long-standing Democratic policy priorities.

An overhaul of the nation’s voting laws has been blocked by Republicans. An effort to strike a bipartisan deal on police reforms has lost all momentum. A sweeping immigration plan to provide a path to legal residency for millions of undocumented immigrants is now all but dead.

And centrist Democrats on Capitol Hill appear poised to pare down a planned $3.5 trillion economic package as their liberal counterparts in the House threaten in turn to kill the bipartisan infrastructure deal that passed the Senate last month.

Both chambers returned to session together Monday for the first time since July, as many Democrats acknowledged a sense of foreboding about the weeks ahead, with not only major aspects of their agenda on the line but also key deadlines looming to provide government funding and extend the federal debt limit.

“This is why we drew a very big circle at the outset, knowing that we might have our sails trimmed,” said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.). “This is all frustrating, because it’s clear that some really important things are going to be a lot harder.”