WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama’s choice to be the next attorney general isn’t the only major decision that will have to wait until after November’s midterm elections. A host of other contentious announcements are also in a holding pattern — chief among them the Keystone XL pipeline and immigration.

With Obama’s own approval ratings sagging, the White House is wary of making any bold moves now that could become a litmus test for candidates, forcing Democrats across the country either to disagree with the president publicly or embrace him — and risk the fallout from voters. By holding off for a few more months, the White House hopes to prevent those moves from being used against Democrats in television ads and on the campaign trail.