Good morning. It's Tuesday, Jan. 6, and we're covering an overhaul of the US childhood vaccine schedule, the trial of a police officer in a 2022 school shooting, and much more. First time reading? Join over 4.5 million insatiably curious readers. Sign up here.
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Deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, pleaded not guilty yesterday to US drug- and terrorism-related charges in their first New York court appearance after being captured in a weekend operation.
The US has charged Maduro and Flores with narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine trafficking, and weapons offenses. Maduro's lawyers are expected to challenge the legality of his military capture and argue he is immune as head of state. Former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega unsuccessfully tried the same defense after the US captured him for drug trafficking and other charges in 1990. The US doesn't recognize Maduro as Venezuela's legitimate leader after evidence that he lost by a wide margin in the 2024 reelection. Maduro and Flores maintain their innocence.
Meanwhile, Maduro ally and Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez was sworn in as interim president, and the UN Security Council convened an emergency meeting over the military operation.
Later this week, the US energy secretary is expected to talk with oil executives about reviving Venezuela's energy sector. Venezuela is home to the world's largest oil reserves (see graphics), though much of it is costly and difficult to extract and refine. |
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention overhauled its childhood vaccine schedule yesterday, reducing the number of recommended vaccines from 17 to 11. The changes were made without review from the CDC's vaccine advisory panel, and bring the US more in line with Denmark and 19 other developed countries.
The latest guidance removes recommendations for vaccines against flu, COVID-19, meningococcal disease, rotavirus, hepatitis A, and hepatitis B, instead suggesting parents decide on those vaccines in partnership with clinicians. Going forward, some of these vaccines—and others, including for respiratory syncytial virus and dengue—will be recommended for high-risk populations only. States mandate vaccine schedules and have historically deferred to federal guidelines. All recommended vaccines will be covered by insurance.
Separately, most women ages 30 to 65 will be able to self-administer HPV tests next year for routine cervical cancer screening, per new guidance. The approach marks a shift from the nearly 100-year-old Pap smear as a first line of screening for that age group. |
Opening statements are scheduled to begin today in the trial of a former school police officer charged with 29 counts of child abandonment or endangerment for his response to the 2022 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
Adrian Gonzales was among the first officers at Robb Elementary, where a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers. Gonzales allegedly failed to confront the gunman despite knowing his location, allowing roughly 77 minutes to pass before a tactical team led by federal agents killed the shooter. A guilty verdict for Gonzales would mark the first time a police officer is held criminally accountable for their response to a mass shooting. Each count carries up to two years in prison.
Former Uvalde schools police chief Pete Arredondo is the only other officer facing criminal charges for their response; his trial has not been scheduled. Both Gonzales’ attorneys and some victims’ family members have questioned why only two of the nearly 400 responding officers were charged. |
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Sports, Entertainment, & Culture |
> Corporation for Public Broadcasting to dissolve months after losing over $1B in federal funding; the private nonprofit funded NPR, PBS, and thousands of local news outlets nationwide since 1967 (More) |
> Las Vegas Raiders, Arizona Cardinals, and Cleveland Browns fire coaches, bringing NFL head coach vacancies to six (More) |
> Netflix announces "Stranger Things" behind-the-scenes documentary, airing Jan. 12 (More, w/trailer) |
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> Nvidia announces plans to launch robotaxi service with an unspecified partner as soon as 2027, joining the growing industry dominated by Alphabet's Waymo (More) |
> Lego unveils Smart Play, a technology that infuses toy bricks with responsive sensors, sounds, and lights (More) |
> Biological anthropologists find changes in the gut microbiome facilitate brain development, helping humans evolve the largest brains relative to body size of any primate (More) |
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Experts Agree: This Is The Secret To Clarity |
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> US stock markets close higher (S&P 500 +0.6%, Dow +1.2%, Nasdaq +0.7%) as oil stocks rise after the US' weekend strike on oil-rich Venezuela (More) |
> US-based multinational companies to be exempt from paying 15% global minimum tax as part of agreement between the US and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development nations (More) |
> General Motors Co. reports 5.5% annual sales gain in 2025, retaining position as America's largest vehicle seller; Stellantis' Jeep brand posts first annual sales gain since 2018 (More) |
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> Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) drops reelection bid amid scrutiny over allegations of widespread child care fraud (More) | Two thousand federal agents reportedly deploy to the state to investigate (More) | See previous write-up (More) |
> French court convicts 10 people on grounds of cyberbullying first lady Brigitte Macron by spreading allegations she was born a man; Macron is also pursuing a separate case against US podcaster Candace Owens (More) |
> Iranian government announces it will give citizens $7 per month as protests enter 10th day, with at least 19 people killed (More) |
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> The Stranger You Can Trust
The Free Press | Larissa Phillips. In the midst of the so-called antisocial century, one writer appeals to the lost Greek art of xenia—hosting a stranger—and recalls a story from her 20s, when strangers invited her to join their Christmas party. (Read) |
> Why Doesn’t the Yucatán Have Rivers?
SciShow | Staff. The Yucatán Peninsula is a rare landmass that lacks major rivers. The phenomenon can be explained through an understanding of the region's roughly 9,000 sinkholes. (Watch) |
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Historybook: Joan of Arc born (1412); Telegraph publicly demonstrated for first time (1838); President Teddy Roosevelt dies (1919); US Capitol stormed in attempt to disrupt certification of 2020 electoral results (2021); Actor Sidney Poitier dies (2022). |
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