Plus: Light shows grow | Monday, December 20, 2021
| | | | | | | Presented By Facebook | | | | Axios PM | | By Mike Allen ·Dec 20, 2021 | | Good afternoon: Today's PM — edited by Justin Green — is 477 words, a 2-minute read. | | | | | | 1 big thing: California relief |  | | | Spotted last week in Big Bear Lake, Calif., which got 8-10 inches of fresh powder. Photo: Jared Meyer/Big Bear Mountain Resort via AP | | | | The West Coast is about to get a major snowfall, causing issues for holiday travelers and blanketing parts of California's Sierra Nevada with as much as 10 feet of snow. Why it matters: Mountain snowpack is essential to recharging California's drought-stricken reservoirs, The Washington Post reports. - "The snow melts and the runoff from the snowmelt is what a lot of reservoirs feed off going into the dry season for us," Weather Service meteorologist Sierra Littlefield told the Post.
- 28% of California is locked in an "exceptional drought," according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
To the north, Oregon and Washington are expecting heavy rains. The states have already suffered multiple floods this year from so-called "atmospheric rivers." The bottom line: The last "all clear" day on the roads is today, the National Weather Service told travelers. - "Winter storm watches span the length of the Sierra Nevada, where hurricane-force winds will also combine with the snow to bring near-zero visibilities," the Post reported.
- "In the Cascades, winter storm warnings have been issued. Freezing fog was already affecting parts of Northern California and the Great Basin of Nevada" earlier today.
|     | | | | | | 2. Trump got his booster | | This guy dressed as a wall, a regular at Donald Trump rallies, showed up Saturday in Phoenix at Turning Point USA's AmericaFest. Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images Former President Trump revealed on Bill O'Reilly's "History Tour" that he has received a booster, while speaking out against vaccine mandates. - Back in September, Trump told the Wall Street Journal that getting boosted was "probably not for me."
The big picture: Trump often downplayed the pandemic and delivered mixed signals on the shot. Video. | | | | | | | | A message from Facebook | | Why Facebook supports updated internet regulations, including Section 230 | | |  | | | | Aaron is one of 40,000 people working on safety and security issues at Facebook. Hear more from Aaron on why Facebook supports updating regulations on the internet's most pressing challenges, including reforming Section 230 to set clear guidelines for all large tech companies. | | | | | | 3. Catch up quick | - Another retiring Dem: Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.) won't seek re-election next year, bringing the total number of Democratic retirements to 21, compared to 12 Republicans. Chart.
- Israel is adding the U.S. and Canada to its "red list," banning people from traveling to the countries as the Omicron variant spreads its grip.
- Biogen is cutting the list price of its controversial Alzheimer's treatment Aduhelm from an average of $56,000 per year to $28,200.
- Oracle will buy Cerner, one of the largest vendors of electronic health record systems, for $28.3 billion in cash.
| | | | | | | | 4. 1 hopeful thing: Christmas lights | | Photo: Robert F. Bukaty/AP Above: Cars drive through a tunnel of holiday lights at the Cumberland Fairgrounds in Cumberland, Maine, last week. Why it matters: Seasonal lights remain a bright spot amid COVID. - From New England to California, more lights shows have launched during the pandemic — and they're more elaborate than ever, with sparkly spectacles Clark Griswold could only dream about, AP reports.
- "They're exploding because people are looking for something to do," said Wayne Wheeler, whose Wisconsin company imports bulk lights for professionally produced shows.
Photo: Thomas Cordy/The Palm Beach Post via Reuters In Boca Raton, Florida, hundreds of spectators filled bleachers Saturday for the 47th annual Holiday Boat Parade, on the Intracoastal Waterway. - This boat sported strings of light-emitting diodes, with a deck full of holiday tchotchkes and revelers.
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