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| Good morning, Daily Briefing readers! The Federal Reserve begins a meeting that could see it decide to accelerate its timetable for reducing bond purchases aimed at keeping long-term interest rates low. Kids ages 5-11 in New York City will need to be vaccinated – and prove it – to take part in most indoor activities. And a once-in-a lifetime event is coming to a sky near you – Leonard, the brightest comet this year. 💫 |
| It's Jane, with Tuesday's news. |
| 🦠 The new omicron variant is substantially more contagious and reduces the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines. But people who are fully vaccinated are still largely protected against severe disease, according to a new study. |
| 🌪 Survivors of the deadly tornadoes that ripped through several states are picking through the rubble of their communities, homes and lives. |
 | | Want to help Kentucky communities affected by the tornadoes? Here's three ways to donate. | | USA TODAY | |
| 📚 "This wasn't easy or handed to me'': Kim Kardashian is one step closer to lawyer status after passing the baby bar exam. |
| 🏨 MGM Resorts International has agreed to sell the Las Vegas Strip's first megaresort, the Mirage, to Hard Rock International for nearly $1.1 billion in cash. |
| 🎥 "Spider-Man: No Way Home" is a refreshing blast of visiting baddies and second chances, says our critic Brian Truitt in his review. |
| 🎤 "The Voice" finale: It's down to the Final Five! The reality singing show is close to crowning its 21st champion after a decade on air. |
 | | "The Voice" five finalists – (bottom) sibling trio Girl Named Tom; (top, L-R) Jershika Maple, 24; Hailey Mia, 14; Paris Winningham, 32; and Wendy Moten, 57. | | NBC | |
| 🎧 On today's 5 Things podcast, national correspondent Donovan Slack reports on sexual assault in the Peace Corps. You can listen to the podcast every day on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on your smart speaker. |
| Here's what's happening today: |
Fed could take action to tame inflation |
| The Federal Reserve has kept its key short-term lending rate near zero since the COVID-19 pandemic triggered a deep recession in March 2020. But with inflation surging to a 39-year high, those days of nearly free money likely are nearing an end. At a two-day meeting that begins Tuesday, officials are expected to rapidly reduce the amount of Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities the Fed has been buying, which would clear the way for interest rate increases as early as March, economists say. Fed rate hikes typically mean Americans will pay a little more for everything from mortgages and car loans to credit card bills and student loans, curbing consumer demand – which in turn should mean more modest price increases. |
 | | Artist Nelson Saiers Installs His Latest "Cheap Money No. 2" Sculpture At "The Wall Street Bull" In Response To U.S. Federal Reserve's Continued Lack Of Action on Dec. 7, 2021 in New York City. | | Eugene Gologursky, Getty Images for Nelson Saiers | |
House Rules Committee to set rules for debate on Meadows contempt citation |
| The House Rules Committee will meet Tuesday to set rules for floor debate on the contempt citation for former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows. On Monday, the House panel investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection voted unanimously to recommend the House cite Meadows for contempt for defying a subpoena and urged the Justice Department to pursue criminal charges. Meadows wrote in an email that the National Guard would "protect pro Trump people," according to the committee. Meadows provided some documents to the committee before refusing to testify under subpoena. His lawyer, George Terwilliger, urged the panel not to pursue contempt charges because Meadows was under orders from former President Donald Trump, who sought to keep his communications confidential under executive privilege. |
Children in NYC will need proof of vaccination for most indoor activities |
| In New York City, children ages 5-11 will be required to have proof of vaccination for most indoor activities starting Tuesday. And beginning Dec. 27, city residents ages 12 and older participating in public indoor activities will be required to show proof they have been fully vaccinated. The city is also mandating all private sector employees be vaccinated by year's end. "Omicron is here, it's all over the country," Mayor Bill de Blasio said Sunday. The city's precautions come a day after a mask mandate in all indoor public places took effect in the state of New York, unless businesses or venues implement a vaccine requirement for entry. Since Thanksgiving, COVID-19 cases have surged statewide by more than 43%. |
Just for subscribers: |
| 💉 A year after first COVID-19 vaccine, here's what's next for researchers – and what worries them. |
| ⚖️ What's next for Mark Meadows? The ex-Trump chief of staff is facing a House contempt vote as more details of his Jan. 6 actions emerge. |
| 💉 "Legal extortion": The 8.4 million diabetics in the USA who rely on insulin pay an exorbitant amount of money for a drug that supposedly belongs to them. |
| 🏀 Stephen Curry once used 3-pointer as a weapon. Now the shot has "revolutionized" the NBA. |
| These articles are for USA TODAY subscribers. You can sign up here for $1/week. Here is all of our subscriber content. |
Parents of Oxford school shooting suspect to appear in court |
| The parents of the Oxford school shooting suspect, Jennifer and James Crumbley, are scheduled to appear in court Tuesday, charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter each. A day earlier, their son Ethan Crumbley, 15, appeared in court for a probable cause conference. During that appearance, a judge denied his lawyers' request to transfer him out of an adult jail — where his parents are also being held — and into a juvenile facility. Ethan Crumbley has been charged as an adult with first-degree murder and terrorism causing death stemming from the shooting on Nov. 30 that left four students dead and seven others injured at Oxford High School, about 30 miles north of Detroit. All three Crumbleys have pleaded not guilty. |
ICYMI: Some of our top stories yesterday |
| 🔴 A man whose wife had gone to court to have his COVID-19 treated with ivermectin has died, a week after he received his first dose of the controversial drug. |
| 👨💻 Ransomware attack: If your company uses Kronos, you might not be able to use it to clock in and out of work – for a few weeks. |
| 👑 Miss India Harnaaz Sandhu was crowned Miss Universe at the glittering 70th annual event in Eilat, Israel, Sunday night. |
| 🥤The Coca-Cola Company recalled Minute Maid products due to the potential presence of metal bolts or washers, according to Food Safety News. |
'Brightest comet this year' can be seen with the naked eye |
| Beginning Tuesday, the newly-found comet Leonard will be viewable in the night sky and for a few days, no binoculars or telescopes will be needed to see it. The comet won't be the most spectacular one ever but will be "the brightest comet this year," Robert Lunsford, of the American Meteor Society, told USA TODAY. Astrophysicist and founder of The Virtual Telescope Project, Gianluca Masi, said Leonard is a long-period comet, meaning it doesn't come around often. In fact, the comet hasn't passed by Earth in over 70,000 years, and after it passes by the sun, it will be ejected from our solar system, never to be seen on Earth again. |
📸 Before and after: Tornado devastation is seen from space 📸 |
 | | Satellite image of completely leveled candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, after a tornado tore through the night before. | | Satellite image ©2021 Maxar Technologies | |
| A devastating series of tornados during the weekend killed at least 74 people in Kentucky, with victims ranging in age from 5 months to 86 years, authorities said. At least 16 people were left dead in Illinois, Tennessee, Missouri and Arkansas. Thousands were left homeless. |
| Survivors face the possibility of trying to recover without heat, water or power for days or weeks because of damage to the infrastructure in several counties. |
| Satellite images captured the devastation in Kentucky, Arkansas and Illinois in these shocking scenes of before and after. |
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