WASHINGTON, D.C. — Amid what the United Nations says is the largest displacement of people across the globe in modern history, the Trump administration plans to slash the number of refugees the U.S. will accept to 18,000 for 2020, the State Department announced Thursday.

Last year, President Donald Trump capped the total at 30,000 refugees, already one of the lowest levels since the beginning of the U.S. refugee program. By comparison, in President Barack Obama’s last year in office, he set the cap at 110,000 refugees.

The sharp reduction in refugee acceptances is yet another step in the administration’s aggressive drive to reduce even legal immigration to the United States, a pledge on which Trump campaigned in 2016 and one he has renewed in the run-up to his 2020 reelection bid.

“At the core of the Trump administration’s foreign policy is a commitment to make decisions based on reality, not wishes,” the State Department announcement stated, echoing Trump’s realpolitik rhetoric at this week’s United Nations General Assembly meeting. “The current burdens on the U.S. immigration system must be alleviated before it is again possible to resettle large number of refugees.”

The administration framed the move as tied to migration to the U.S. southern border, which has seen near-record numbers this year, mostly in Central American families, traveling north and seeking asylum. At the same time, the Trump administration has touted a more than 60% drop in apprehensions at the border in recent months as a result of its deterrence policies, such as forcing nearly 50,000 asylum seekers back to Mexico to await their cases in the United States.

The proposal on the annual refugee cap is required to be submitted to Congress each year, and the president’s ultimate determination is issued “in consultation with Congress.” In reality, lawmakers do not have much say.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., rejected the administration’s proposed refugee cap. “No administration has ever proposed admitting this few refugees,” she said in a statement, adding, “We’re better than that.”

Advocates reacted to the proposal Thursday with alarm. Refugees International President Eric Schwartz called the planned ceiling for 2020 “a sad commentary on American leadership.”