'Nasty lies'

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COVID-19 vaccines for kids under 5 are finally here. But not all parents are jumping in line. And a giant sunspot is pointed toward Earth – but there's no need to panic.

👋 It's Laura Davis. It's Tuesday. Let's talk news, shall we?

🐩 But first, paws for a minute and check out these very fancy, very cool pups of all shapes and sizes: The best photos from the 146th Westminster Dog Show. You're welcome.

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Jan. 6 hearings continue with emotional testimony from election workers

Tuesday's House hearings on the Jan. 6 Capitol attack focused on the pressure former President Donald Trump applied to state officials to overturn 2020 election results, including Trump’s infamous call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. Shaye Moss, an election worker from Fulton County, Georgia, testified about how she “became the target of nasty lies spread by President Trump and his allies” in the months after the 2020 election, Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said in the hearing. On Facebook, she received threats, including racist ones. "A lot of them are just hateful," she said. Her mother, Ruby Freeman, is a former election worker and business owner known to the community as Lady Ruby. She also received threats, and even left her home for two months on the FBI's advice. "Do you know how it feels to have the president of the United States target you?" she asked. "There is nowhere I feel safe. Nowhere."

  • Also on Tuesday: The committee learned through testimony that fake Michigan Republican electors planned to hide overnight in the Michigan Capitol so they could cast their votes in the statehouse chambers the next day.

Next session: The Jan. 6 committee will reconvene at 3 p.m. Thursday for its fifth hearing. Did you miss Day 4? Fake electors, Trump pressuring state leaders and more. Catch up here.

Wandrea "Shaye" Moss, a former Georgia election worker, becomes emotional as she testifies before the committee to investigate the January 6 attack on the United States Capitol on June 21, 2022. Left is Ruby Freeman, Moss' mother.
Wandrea "Shaye" Moss, a former Georgia election worker, becomes emotional as she testifies before the committee to investigate the January 6 attack on the United States Capitol on June 21, 2022. Left is Ruby Freeman, Moss' mother.

Parents taking 'wait and see' approach for kids' COVID-19 vaccines

Tuesday was the first day COVID-19 vaccines were available to children under 5. But not all parents are jumping in line. In polling data from April, 18% of parents said they would vaccinate their young child right away, while 27% said they definitely wouldn't and 38% said they'd wait and see. And some parents say the trials conducted among young children were too small to satisfy their safety concerns, said Grant Paulsen, an infectious disease pediatrician at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. Keep reading for more.

Leo Simon, 2, covers his eyes as registered nurse Reisa Lancaster administers a dose of a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at Children's National Hospital's research campus June 21 in Washington. Holding Leo is his mother, Brittany Head.
Leo Simon, 2, covers his eyes as registered nurse Reisa Lancaster administers a dose of a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at Children's National Hospital's research campus June 21 in Washington. Holding Leo is his mother, Brittany Head.

What everyone's talking about

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Deshaun Watson settles 20 of 24 sexual misconduct lawsuits

Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson has reached a confidential settlement with all but four of the 24 women who sued him and accused him of sexual misconduct during massage sessions, the women’s attorney said Tuesday. The settlements end the women’s litigation against him nearly 15 months after most were filed in 2021. Watson's attorney had said the women were lying and that Watson was seen as a “payday” after the women accused him of improper behavior, including exposing himself, causing his genitals to touch them and in some cases coercing sex. Read more.

Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson runs a play during minicamp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.
Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson runs a play during minicamp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.

Could more lives have been saved?

Multiple police officers stood in a school hallway armed with rifles and at least one ballistic shield within 19 minutes of a gunman arriving at the Robb Elementary School campus in Uvalde, Texas, according to documents reviewed by the Austin American-Statesman, further raising questions whether more lives could have been saved during the deadly attack. Even as officers with high-powered weapons and ballistic shields massed inside the school, the gunman could be heard firing rounds, the documents show. Investigators say the latest information indicates officers had more than enough firepower and protection to take down the gunman long before they finally did. The massacre killed 19 children and two teachers. Much of the new information is expected to be presented at a Texas Senate hearing Tuesday, the first of two days of hearings that give members of the public an opportunity to address lawmakers. Keep reading for more from the documents.

Real quick

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Giant sunspot getting bigger

"No need to panic," scientists said, which for some reason, makes me want to panic even more. Here's the deal: A sunspot with the potential to cause solar flares captured the internet's attention Tuesday. But experts said the it is far from unusual, and eased concerns of how any potential flares would affect us. Active Region 3038, or AR3038, has been growing over the past week, said Robert Steenburgh, acting lead of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Forecast Office. The sunspot's size and growth rate are normal, he said. "This is what sunspots do," he said. "Over time, generally, they'll grow. They go through stages and then they decay." Okay, I'm convinced. No need to panic. Keep reading to learn more about sunspots.

A sunspot, dubbed Active Region 3038 or AR3038, has the potential to cause solar flares.
A sunspot, dubbed Active Region 3038 or AR3038, has the potential to cause solar flares.

A break from the news

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jan. 6 hearings, Uvalde shooting, giant sunspot, COVID-19 vaccines for kids. It's Tuesday's news.