Axios PM: Biden's language push — First FEMA vaccination sites — Minor leagues get sparser

1 big thing: Biden's immigration language push | Tuesday, February 16, 2021

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Facebook   Axios PM By Mike Allen ·Feb 16, 2021 Good afternoon: Today's PM — edited by Justin Green — is 371 words, a 1.5-minute read. ⚡️Situational awareness: FEMA launched its first mass COVID-19 vaccination sites in Los Angeles and Oakland today. Go deeper.     1 big thing: Biden's immigration language push President Biden on Thursday. Photo: Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images   The Biden administration is urging officials to use more inclusive terms for immigrants, including replacing the word "alien" with "noncitizen," according to an internal email scooped by Axios' Stef Kight. Why it matters: This is a more welcoming immigration stance than the Trump administration, which referred to unauthorized immigrants as "illegal aliens" and described border crossings as an "invasion." Other changes include using "undocumented noncitizen" or "undocumented individual" rather than "illegal alien" and "integration or civic integration" instead of "assimilation." Between the lines: An agency can issue a memo directing officials to use certain words over others in official communications, but they have less leeway on the words they use in legal settings. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services email specifies that "noncitizen" is to be used rather than "alien," except when citing a statute or regulation or certain immigration forms. Then, the legal term for someone not born in the U.S. or born in certain U.S. territories — "alien" — needs to be used. The bottom line: Immigration advocates will likely applaud the changes, and hardliners will not.     2. Pic du jour Photo: Milos Bicanski/Getty Images Rare heavy snow in Athens: A man takes photos of the Parthenon.     A message from Facebook It's time to update internet regulations     The internet has changed a lot in 25 years. But the last time comprehensive internet regulations were passed was in 1996. We support updated internet regulations to set clear guidelines for addressing today's toughest challenges. Learn More     3. Catch up quick The NAACP is suing former President Trump and far-right extremist groups in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol riots. Go deeper. U.S. airlines carried about 60% fewer passengers in 2020 compared with 2019. Go deeper. Prosecutors dropped the case against Amy Cooper, a white woman who called 911 to falsely accuse a Black bird-watcher of threatening her life in Central Park, after she "completed a therapeutic educational program that included instruction about racial biases," the N.Y. Times reports. RIP: Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson died of pancreatic cancer at 62. He led the firm's acquisition of Starwood in 2016, creating the largest hotel chain on Earth. 🎧 Axios Re:Cap featured N.Y. Times reporter Nicole Perlroth on the cyber-weapons arms race. Listen here.     4. ⚾ Minor leagues get sparser Data: MILB, MLB. Logos: SportsLogos.Net. Map: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios When Minor League Baseball begins its 2021 season, there'll be 25% fewer teams than at this time last year, Axios' Andrew Witherspoon and Kendall Baker report. The realignment removes a net of 40 teams from 2020, for a total of 120 teams across 39 states. Why it matters: The reshaping of the minors is a push to modernize MLB's development pipeline. But the changes leave pockets of the country without access to high-level baseball. Keep reading.     A message from Facebook Internet regulations need an update     It's been 25 years since comprehensive internet regulations were passed. But a lot has changed since 1996. We support updated regulations to set clear guidelines for protecting people's privacy, enabling safe and easy data portability between platforms and more. Learn More     Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Suite 1300, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. Change your preferences or unsubscribe here.   Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up now to get Axios in your inbox.   Follow Axios on social media: