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| Good morning, Daily Briefing readers. Opening statements are set to begin in the manslaughter trial of Kim Potter, the former Minnesota police officer who shot and killed Daunte Wright. SCOTUS will hear a Maine case that could expand school voucher programs nationwide. And it's Auf Wiedersehen, Angela Merkel and hallo, Olaf Scholz: Germany has a new leader. |
| It's Jane and Steve, with Wednesday's news. |
| 💰 The House voted overwhelmingly along party lines on a bipartisan agreement that allows Congress to move closer to raising the nation's debt ceiling. |
| 🗣 President Joe Biden warned his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that the U.S. and its allies are prepared to impose tough economic sanctions if Moscow escalates its aggression against Ukraine. |
 | | Biden's high-stakes video call with Putin came as U.S. intelligence reports a buildup of Russian troops on Ukraine's border, raising alarms that an invasion may be imminent. | | USA TODAY | |
| 🎅 "Santa will be just fine": Dr. Anthony Fauci confirmed to USA TODAY that Santa Claus got his booster shot and is "good to go" for the holiday season. |
| 🌏 "Low birth rate": Tesla CEO Elon Musk says there are "not enough people" in the world and it could threaten human civilization. |
| 👵 "Keep going": She's 100, and celebrated her birthday with her two older sisters. What's her key to a long life? |
| 📺 "Live In Front Of A Studio Audience": Kevin Hart sulking on John Lithgow's lap. Jennifer Aniston ad-libbing. Snoop Dogg being, well, Snoop Dogg. Those were just some moments from ABC's re-recitation of iconic sitcom producer Norman Lear's greatest hits. |
| 🎧 On today's 5 Things podcast, Housing and Economy reporter Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy discusses tenants' rights in the face of natural disasters. You can listen to the podcast every day on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on your smart speaker. |
| Here's what's happening today: |
Jury to hear opening statements in Kim Potter trial |
| Opening statements are expected to begin Wednesday in the manslaughter trial of former Minnesota police officer Kim Potter , who shot Daunte Wright while yelling "Taser" in a Minneapolis suburb earlier this year. Prosecutors say Potter, 48, who was a veteran Brooklyn Center police officer, who committed first- and second-degree manslaughter in the death of Wright, a 20-year-old Black man. According to the complaint, Potter recklessly handled her firearm and caused Wright's death by her "culpable negligence" – a conscious disregard of a substantial and unjustifiable risk. Defense attorneys say the shooting was an innocent mistake and that Potter immediately expressed "remorse." |
Supreme Court case could expand school voucher programs nationwide |
| The Supreme Court hears arguments Wednesday in a closely watched case about whether parents may use state education money to pay for sectarian schools . While the central question in the Maine case deals with religious freedom versus separation of church and state, the outcome could have a significant impact on the issue of school choice, including voucher programs. Some experts see potential impact far beyond Maine if the court ultimately requires states to fund religious schools in programs where they currently do not. The case comes at a time when the court's 6-3 conservative majority has looked favorably on religious freedom claims. |
Just for subscribers: |
| 🦠 Where did the omicron variant come from? Scientists suggest it evolved in one person. |
| 🚨 More young children are killing themselves. The COVID-19 pandemic is making the problem worse. The rate of growth among Black children especially worrisome. |
| 💊 More people could turn to the use of medically prescribed abortion pills amid restrictions to abortion access. Are the pills safe? Can you get out-of-state prescription? Your questions, answered. |
| 🥔 With inflation spiking, economists say grocery sales taxes may have added importance for voters. But will it propel states to undo their levies? |
| These articles are for USA TODAY subscribers. You can sign up here for $1/week. Here is all of our subscriber content. |
Trump chief of staff Meadows could face contempt charge if he no-shows Jan. 6 committee |
| Mark Meadows could become the latest official from former President Donald Trump's administration to face criminal contempt charges from the Jan. 6 committee. The panel said it would pursue the charges if the former White House chief of staff fails to attend a scheduled deposition after his attorney said Tuesday that Meadows would not cooperate. Several former administration officials and campaign advisers have also refused to cooperate. The committee's subpoena seeks communications between Meadows and Trump on Jan. 6 and between Meadows and the organizers of a rally where the then-president spoke before the attack on the Capitol. Trump is also locking horns with the committee as he fights a subpoena seeking records he opposes turning over to lawmakers. So far, only former Trump political strategist Steve Bannon has faced criminal charges over his refusal to cooperate. |
 | | Former President Donald Trump speaks as former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, right, listens prior to Trump's departure on Marine One from the White House in Washington on July 29, 2020. | | Alex Wong, Getty Images | |
Scott Peterson, spared from death penalty, to be sentenced for 2002 murders |
| A California judge plans to sentence Scott Peterson to life in prison in the 2002 murders of his pregnant wife and unborn son after the state Supreme Court last year threw out his death sentence. Peterson had contended his trial was flawed. While the court upheld his murder conviction, the justices said the trial judge "made a series of clear and significant errors in jury selection that, under long-standing United States Supreme Court precedent, undermined Peterson's right to an impartial jury at the penalty phase." They agreed with his argument that potential jurors were improperly dismissed from the jury pool after saying they personally disagreed with the death penalty but would be willing to follow the law and impose it. |
Newsmakers in their own words: Crenshaw takes on the Freedom House Caucus |
 | | Congressman Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) on Capitol Hill | | Getty Images photo; USA TODAY graphic | |
| The conservative House Freedom Caucus is full of "grifters" and "performance artists," according to Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas), who slammed caucus members during a recent Texas Liberty Alliance PAC event. |
| In a clip posted to Twitter Tuesday, the Texas Republican and former U.S. Navy SEAL questioned the devotion of caucus conservatives to former President Donald Trump. The caucus comprises the most conservative members of Congress. |
Merkel's run as Germany's leader ends as Scholz is sworn in as chancellor |
| Angela Merkel saw her tenure as Germany's first female chancellor come to an end after more than 16 years Wednesday. Center-left leader Olaf Scholz was sworn in after the nation's Parliament elected him after a three-party deal to form a new German coalition government cleared its final hurdle earlier this week. Merkel, a former scientist who grew up in communist East Germany, bowed out about a week short of the record for longevity held by her one-time mentor, Helmut Kohl. Merkel, a center-right Christian Democrat, has been credited with raising Germany's profile and influence, working to hold a fractious European Union together, managing a string of crises and being a role model for women. |
 | | New elected German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is sworn in by parliament President Baerbel Bas in the German Parliament Bundestag in Berlin, Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2021. | | Markus Schreiber, AP | |
People's Choice Awards brings out the stars, reveals a surprising friendship |
| After welcoming a virtual audience last year amid the coronavirus pandemic, the People's Choice Awards returned Tuesday with a crowded, in-person ceremony in Santa Monica, California, honoring celebrities like Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Halle Berry, Kim Kardashian West, Scarlett Johansson, Simu Liu and Ellen DeGeneres. Kenan Thompson of NBC's "Saturday Night Live" and "Kenan" hosted the star-studded event. |
 | | Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson at the 2021 People's Choice Awards in Santa Monica, California on Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2021 | | Lisa O'Connor, AFP via Getty Images | |
| The show ended with Johnson receiving the People's Champion award from his "tequila drinking buddy," surprise guest Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Johnson, who also won 2021 People's Choice awards for comedy movie star and male movie star, gave his last trophy to a young guest from the Make-A-Wish Foundation, identified as Shushana. |
| 📸 Click here to see more photos from the 2021 People's Choice Awards red carpet and ceremony. |
ICYMI: Some of our top stories yesterday |
| ⛈ A powerful storm system pounded Hawaii with heavy rain, and forecasters warned of a chance for "dangerous" and "catastrophic" flooding in some parts of the state. |
| 🦠 Omicron could be more contagious, less dangerous. That would be "good news for the human race." |
| 🔴 Nick Cannon's 5-month-old son died after battling brain cancer, the TV personality revealed. The 41-year-old tearfully dedicated Tuesday's episode of "The Nick Cannon Show" to his "beautiful son Zen." |
| 🌕 China's Yutu 2 rover has been roaming across the Von Karman crater on the far side of the moon. And on its journey, it spotted a mysterious cube-shaped object. |
📸 A solemn memorial: Survivors mark 80 years since Pearl Harbor attack 📸 |
 | | Pearl Harbor survivor and World War II Navy veteran David Russell, 101, of Albany, Ore., shows off his commemorative bag to two military personnel before the start of the 80th Pearl Harbor Anniversary ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2021, in Honolulu. | | Marco Garcia, AP | |
| A few dozen survivors of Pearl Harbor and other veterans gathered Tuesday, 80 years after the bombing, to remember those killed in the attack by Japan that launched the U.S. into World War II. |
| Among them was David Russell, 101, from Albany, Oregon, who survived the attack while on the USS Oklahoma. He stood to salute the USS Chung-Hoon, a guided missile destroyer, as it passed in front of the pier in Pearl Harbor on behalf of the veterans. |
| See our gallery of Americans chronicling the commemorations. |
| Contributing: The Associated Press |
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