A COVID spike adds stress to the holidays for the second year in a row. The Omicron variant is now the dominant COVID strain in the U.S.-- making up more than 73% of new cases, according to a CDC estimate. The very first Omicron-related death was reported in Texas yesterday. President Biden is expected to address all this in a speech to the nation today. There are long lines at testing sites across the country now -- as many Americans prepare for the holidays. The jury in Ghislaine Maxwell's sex abuse trial will continue deliberating today. Another jury in Minneapolis is deciding the fate of former police officer Kim Potter. We revealed last month that more than 30 soldiers, injured by an Iranian missile attack in Iraq, were denied the Purple Heart. After our investigation, the army reopened the case. And decided another 50 soldiers deserved the medal, given to military members wounded in action. The last eleven of those awards were approved over the weekend. More Purple Hearts have been issued for that attack in January 2020, than any other incident of its kind in decades.

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