Millions of free COVID tests. Help for hospitals.

Good morning, Daily Briefing readers! President Joe Biden is expected to announce aggressive new plans to combat the coronavirus. Ghislaine Maxwell's sex-trafficking trial is drawing to a close. Lucky residents in some states will get a stimulus check for the holidays. And, (astronomical) winter is coming! The solstice is today.

It's Jane and Steve, with Tuesday's news.

🦠 Omicron has raced ahead of other variants and is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the U.S., accounting for 73% of new infections last week, federal health officials said.

🌎 "Moderate to strong shaking": A strong magnitude 6.2 earthquake hit Northern California Monday, likely causing minimal damage to the sparsely populated area.

🚀 "We've never done any of this before": NASA is anxious to send a $10 billion telescope, which is seen as a successor to the famous Hubble, into space.

🐶 "Welcome to the White House”: A new member has joined the first family! President Joe Biden has a new puppy named Commander.

💉 Former President Donald Trump said he got a COVID booster: Subsequently, he got booed by some of his fans.

🛳 "The guest... was symptomatic prior to boarding but did not notify us": A Royal Caribbean International ship, Odyssey of the Seas, returned to port to disembark a passenger with COVID-19 one day after departing.

Here's what's happening today:

Biden to announce free rapid COVID tests, help for overburdened hospitals

President Joe Biden is expected to announce Tuesday the purchase of a half-billion, at-home rapid COVID-19 tests and the mobilization of 1,000 military medical personnel to overburdened hospitals in an effort to confront surging COVID-19 infections and the new, highly-transmissible omicron variant. Biden will reassure Americans that the administration is prepared for the rising case levels, while issuing a "stark warning" to unvaccinated individuals who continue to drive hospitalizations and deaths, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said. An administration official who outlined the plans to reporters declined to say how many free, at-home tests Americans will be able to access through a new website but said they would be delivered through the mail. 

Jury to resume deliberations in Ghislaine Maxwell trial

The jury tasked with considering whether Ghislaine Maxwell is a dangerous predator who recruited teens to be sexually abused by financier Jeffrey Epstein – as prosecutors put it – or the "innocent woman" a defense attorney described her as, will continue deliberating Tuesday. The closings in Maxwell's sex-trafficking trial came after two dozen prosecution witnesses testified, including the four women who say they were abused by Epstein with the help of Maxwell when they were teenagers. The defense rested its case on Friday after Maxwell told the judge she wouldn't testify. 

Just for subscribers:

🚓  A tale of two cities: Phoenix and Louisville have something in common: they're among the cities being investigated by the Justice Department for policing issues. 

🔴 A Peace Corps worker killed a woman in Africa. The U.S. helped him escape prosecution.

🏗 Opinion: Joe Biden can save his Build Back Better agenda by just listening to Joe Manchin.

🌏 What the intersex community wishes you knew: "We are OK the way we are."

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Also on Tuesday: Minnesota jury to continue deliberations in the Kim Potter trial

After meeting for about five hours Monday, a jury will resume deliberations Tuesday in the manslaughter trial of Kim Potter, a former police officer in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, who fatally shot 20-year-old Black motorist Daunte Wright while yelling "Taser" during an April traffic stop in April.

The panel must determine if prosecutors proved beyond a reasonable doubt that Potter "recklessly" handled her firearm and caused Wright's death through her "culpable negligence" – charge elements that experts say leave much to jurors' interpretation.

COVID affects sports: NHL to play final games; NFL plays rescheduled meets

Due to the rising number of positive COVID-19 cases, the National Hockey League and the NHL Players' Association agreed to start their Christmas break early. The NHL plans to pause its season Wednesday, two days before the originally scheduled break. So, the final two games on the NHL's schedule — the Washington Capitals at the Philadelphia Flyers (7 p.m. ET) and the Tampa Bay Lightning visiting the Vegas Golden Knights (10 p.m. ET) — are both a go Tuesday, pending any additional positive tests.

Meanwhile, two National Football League matchups originally scheduled for Sunday will be played Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET (both airing on FOX) due to COVID concerns. The Washington Football Team is traveling to Philadelphia to play the Eagles in an NFC East rivalry game and the Los Angeles Rams will host the Seattle Seahawks in a key NFC West matchup.

Newsmakers in their own words: Former co-stars address Chris Noth allegations

Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis on Monday broke their silence on the sexual misconduct allegations recently levied against their former "Sex and the City" co-star Chris Noth.

In a joint statement posted to their social media accounts, the actresses wrote that they are "deeply saddened" about the allegations.

Noth, 67, has faced multiple career setbacks since he was accused of sexual assault by three women in the past week. That includes being fired from CBS' "The Equalizer," hours before the actresses released their joint statement.

Certain states will see stimulus checks for the holidays

Hopes of a fourth stimulus check from the federal government have been dashed, but certain states will still offer their residents some cash ahead of the holidays. So far, there have been three rounds of stimulus checks: one in April 2020, another in December 2020 and one more in March 2021. In addition, Maine, California, Maryland, Florida, Georgia, Michigan and Tennessee have all passed legislation to provide stimulus money this month. The qualifications are different in each state, but many include money for teachers and low-income families and residents. 

ICYMI: Some of our top stories yesterday

🛳 "Everything was so confusing": Forty-eight people who were on board Royal Caribbean's Symphony of the Seas ship that ended a seven-day sailing in Miami tested positive for COVID.

📺 "I'm extremely disappointed": Paul Rudd's fifth time hosting "SNL" relied on taped and old sketches.

💰 Will there be stimulus checks over the holidays? For certain states, yes.

❓ Advice column: Am I wrong for not attending my sister-in-law's gender reveal party?

Short day, long night: The winter solstice is Tuesday

Winter is coming. The solstice, the precise moment at which the Northern Hemisphere is tilted farthest from the sun, is Tuesday. It marks the beginning of astronomical winter in the Northern Hemisphere and occurs at the same instant everywhere on Earth. Here in the United States, that's 10:59 a.m. EST. Though the solstice marks the astronomical beginning of winter, meteorologists view winter as starting Dec. 1. Additionally, most locations don't have their earliest sunset or latest sunrise on the solstice. Those events occur either weeks before or after Dec. 21.

📸 'The Matrix Resurrections' premiere: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss hit the green carpet 📸 

Twenty-two years after the original "Matrix" movie, the fourth installment of the innovative sci-fi action franchise is bringing back old favorites and introducing a new crop of characters. "The Matrix Resurrections" (in theaters and on HBO Max Dec. 22) sees Keanu Reeves reprise his role as Neo and Carrie-Anne Moss back as Trinity.

The film's stars — including Reeves, Moss, Neil Patrick Harris, Priyanka Chopra Jones and Jada Pinkett Smith — brought their eye-catching looks to the San Francisco premiere at the Castro Theatre on Dec. 18. 

Scroll through our gallery to see the stars on the green carpet!