Axios

The White House will host security officials from Japan and South Korea in Washington, D.C., next week for “intensive consultations” on North Korea, senior Biden administration officials told reporters on Tuesday.

Driving the news: Officials acknowledged reports that North Korea performed a series of missile tests over the weekend, first reported by the Washington Post, but downplayed that news by calling it “normal military activity.”

Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) says she plans to join Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) in opposing "non-diversity" nominees until President Biden makes a commitment to appointing Asian American Pacific Islanders (AAPI) in key executive branch positions.

Why it matters: Lawmakers have pressed Biden to nominate AAPIs to Cabinet and Cabinet-level positions since November. Hirono and Duckworth's opposition could also hurt nominations that don't have strong bipartisan support.

The Senate voted 57-43 on Tuesday to confirm Vivek Murthy as surgeon general.

Why it matters: His appointment will allow him to reprise a role he previously held. Murthy served as surgeon general under the Obama administration but was dismissed in 2017, a year before the end of his term, by the Trump administration.

U.S. customs officials reported a 28% increase in apprehended migrants between January and February, and the number of unaccompanied minors is up an astonishing 61%.

Axios Re:Cap goes deeper into the reasons for the surge and what President Biden plans to do about it.

The 21-year-old suspect in the Boulder massacre bought a Ruger AR-556 semiautomatic pistol less than a week before Monday's mass shooting, which killed 10 people, per an arrest affidavit released Tuesday.

Details: The suspect, identified by officials as Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, purchased the AR-556 pistol on March 16, according to the affidavit. It was not immediately clear whether it was the weapon used in Monday's shooting or where the gun was purchased. The affidavit states that police removed "a rifle (possible AR-15)" and a "semiautomatic handgun" from the scene.

The Senate on Tuesday voted 63-37 to confirm Shalanda Young as deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

Why it matters: Young will likely immediately be appointed as acting OMB director, while President Biden looks for a permanent nominee to replace Neera Tanden, who withdrew her nomination amid Senate opposition.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced on Tuesday that he is calling on President Biden to nominate Damian Williams as the next U.S. attorney in Manhattan, which would make him the first Black man to hold the position.

Why it matters: The U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan is one of the most prominent federal prosecutor's offices in the nation.

A lack of Black leadership in the NFL and NBA is an "extremely" concerning trend, ABC/ESPN analyst Jalen Rose told Axios in a virtual event on Tuesday.

Why it matters: People of color still face systematic barriers in sports and glaring inequities at all levels — including youth sports, college games, and in their post-playing careers, Axios' Hard Truths found.

President Biden on Tuesday urged Congress to pass gun control legislation, including two House-approved bills to expand background checks, and renew bans on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

Why it matters: They were some of Biden's most forceful comments on gun control since he was elected, and they came in the wake of a mass shooting in Boulder, Colorado, on Monday and a series of shootings in Georgia last week.

Former President Barack Obama expressed his condolences to the families of the 10 victims of the shooting in Boulder, Colorado, and called on political leaders to take action to curb gun violence, in a statement released Tuesday.

Why it matters: This is the second mass shooting in the U.S. in a week, after a gunman in Atlanta killed eight people on March 16. The shootings have brought a renewed focus on the presence of gun violence in America, following a year during which the coronavirus pandemic slowed the rate of such attacks.

Two Democratic senators of Asian American and Pacific Islander heritage confronted a senior White House official Monday night over the absence of AAPI representation in President Biden's Cabinet, four Senate aides familiar with the call tell Axios.

Behind the scenes: Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), backed up by Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), leveled the complaint to deputy chief of staff Jen O’Malley Dillon during a Zoom call between the White House and the Senate Democratic Caucus.

10 people were killed in a shooting at a grocery store in Boulder, Colorado, on Monday, including one police officer, the local police department confirmed.

The latest: The suspect has been identified and charged with 10 counts of murder in the first degree, police said in a Tuesday morning update.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Tuesday said the Senate will take up two bills focused on hate crimes, including one that addresses anti-Asian hate crimes and another focused on the threat of domestic terrorism and white supremacy.

Why it matters: Following a rapid — and sometimes deadly — rise of attacks on Asians and Pacific Islanders in America, the pressure is on for Congress to enact new protections. Congress is also still dealing with the fallout from the Jan. 6 Capitol riots, which authorities said involved multiple demonstrators from white supremacist organizations.

Elliot Diringer, a well-known figure in climate diplomacy circles, has joined the State Department as the Biden administration looks to step up global collaboration.

Driving the news: Diringer's auto-reply email at the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES), where he had long been a senior executive vice president, says he began the job on Feb. 18.

The White House is starting to fill in some of the blanks on plans to push an infrastructure package with climate and energy provisions.

Driving the news: President Biden is considering using budget reconciliation two more times this year to pass up to $3 trillion in spending aimed at core priorities, including infrastructure, climate change, education, taxes and health care, Axios' Hans Nichols and Alayna Treene report.

Words and hashtags used to symbolize Asian hate have increased in the past year amid the COVID-19 crisis, data from social intelligence firm Zignal Labs shows.

The big picture: Shortly after last week's deadly murders of eight people, including six Asian women, the hashtag #StopAsianHate overtook every anti-Asian term measured by Zignal, proving the power of positive social movements online.

The crisis at the border is beginning to take over the news cycle, pulling attention and coverage away from the COVID-19 vaccine.

The big picture: The crisis at the border has proven to be a prime post-Trump topic online, particularly for conservative media.

16 LGBTQ and social justice advocacy groups including the Center for American Progress, the Human Rights Campaign, and the Trevor Project are putting $4 million behind a lobbying and ad campaign to pass the Equality Act.

Why it matters: The act, which would expand federal protections for LGBTQ people by prohibiting discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation, passed the House last month and faces an uncertain future in the Senate.

The Biden administration kept a Trump-era policy known as "Title 42" as a tool to quickly turn back adults and families who illegally cross the southern border— but new Department of Homeland Security data leaked to Axios shows in recent days it's hardly been used for families.

Driving the news: The data shows an average of just 13% of nearly 13,000 family members attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border were returned to Mexico between March 14 and March 21 using the public health order, which essentially says the U.S. can close the border to nonessential travel because of the coronavirus.

Inflammatory rhetoric about China can exacerbate the sense that Asian Americans are "racialized outsiders," Russell Jeung, co-founder of the advocacy group Stop AAPI Hate, told Axios.

The big picture: The U.S.-China relationship is at its lowest point in decades. Tensions between the two countries are reflected in U.S. policies and leaders' rhetoric that at times conflate Chinese people with China's government and can fuel anti-Asian racism in the U.S., Asian American advocates say.

Having a politician in the top spot at NASA signals the agency will be a priority for the Biden administration, some space industry experts tell Axios.

Why it matters: Bill Nelson, a former senator with President Biden's ear, is the administration's nominee to lead the space agency and could help make NASA a priority for the president if he's confirmed.

Heavy rains and flooding pummeling Australia's east coast that have forced thousands to evacuate are set to continue for at least another day, forecasters warn.

The big picture: Rains have lashed New South Wales and southeast Queensland since last Thursday. Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters 18,000 people were under evacuation orders and the situation remained "dynamic," with western Sydney the area of "greatest concern." A natural disaster was declared in 16 areas.

The City of Boston named Kim Janey (D) as its acting mayor on Monday.

Why it matters: She's the first woman and first person of color ever to take the office in Boston and is due to be sworn in at a ceremony on Wednesday.

The City of Evanston, Illinois, on Monday night approved a plan to distribute $10 million in reparations to Black residents for housing and mortgage assistance.

Why it matters: The city of 73,000 people, 12 miles north of downtown Chicago, is the first in the country to pass such a measure.

The 21-year-old white man who confessed to opening fire at three Atlanta-area spas and killing eight people, including six Asian women, has been charged with "malice murder" and aggravated assault, a county sheriff said Monday.

Why it matters: The killings spurred nationwide outrage over anti-Asian violence in the U.S. Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) leaders and public officials have called for police to rule the shootings a hate crime, arguing that law enforcement are unable to recognize a case of anti-Asian hate.

While the migrant crisis plaguing the Biden administration still pales in comparison to another peak under then-President Trump in 2019, the trends are alarming and only expected to get worse with warmer weather.

The big picture: The Biden administration is seeing a weekly average of about 500 unaccompanied children cross the southwest border every day, and it was able to return to Mexico just 10% of the migrant families who crossed illegally Saturday, according to government data provided to Axios.

The White House is considering using budget reconciliation two more times this year to pass up to $3 trillion in spending aimed at core priorities, including infrastructure, climate change, education, taxes and health care, according to Democratic and Republican budget experts.

Why it matters: The tactic would allow some legislation to pass the Senate without eliminating the filibuster and require only a simple majority vote in both chambers.

The nonpartisan Freedom House is making a bipartisan plea for U.S. lawmakers to expand voting rights — and reject proposals for new barriers for voting — to protect racial minorities and the strength of American democracy.

Why it matters: A new report from the group, previewed by Axios, marks the first time in almost 15 years it has turned its attention inward, rather than its traditional focus on freedom and democracy elsewhere in the world.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Monday a 15% increase in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits through September, providing about $3.5 billion of assistance to people affected by food insecurity.

Why it matters: The pandemic has spurred an uptick in food stamp spending. As part of the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package, the increase in benefits will provide about $28 more per person per month or more than $100 more per month for a household of four.