An NBC News investigation reveals childhood vaccination rates are dropping as measles cases surge.
asserted
cases → reveal → ?
Democrats skeptical about working with new White House chief of staff Stephen Miller.
asserted
Democrats → work → Miller
And Russia’s top independent newspaper shuts down after more than two decades.
asserted
newspaper → shut → decades
Here’s what to know today.
asserted
Here → ’ → what
U.S. on the verge of losing measles-free status as cases surge
Should the U.S. lose its measles elimination status?
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U.S. → lose → status
That’s what public health experts expect will be the outcome of a meeting this week of an independent commission of the Pan American Health Organization.
asserted
experts → ’ → Organization
The group of eight people is made up of epidemiologists, infectious disease and vaccine experts from countries in the Americas.
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group → make → Americas
This is Morning Rundown, a weekday newsletter to start your day.
asserted
This → start → day
If the U.S. loses elimination status, it will join Canada as the only other country in the region to have lost control of the virus, paving the way for illnesses and deaths.
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it → lose → illnesses
The milestone would also mark a stunning reversal of efforts to stop the spread of the world’s most contagious disease.
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milestone → mark → disease
Eight people, including four babies too young to be vaccinated, have died.
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people → include → babies
An updated NBC News/Stanford University analysis reveals an alarming drop in childhood vaccination rates, particularly in the country’s most vulnerable areas.
asserted
analysis → update → areas
In hard-hit Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, the share of kindergarteners who got MMR vaccines in 2025-26 was 87.6%, compared to 95.5% before the pandemic.
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who → hit → pandemic
An immunization rate of 95% is needed to prevent the spread of measles.
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rate → need → measles
The country’s immunity was eroded by decades of scientifically dubious claims about the dangers of childhood vaccines, and misinformation then exploded during the pandemic.
uncertain
misinformation → erode → pandemic
- See maps of vaccination rates in your county and where exemption rates in schools are rising.
- Learn more about how NBC News gathered and analyzed the data.
asserted
News → see → data
Stephen Miller’s elevation sends a message to Dems
President Donald Trump signaled he might be willing to work with Democrats on his priorities after last week’s election results.
uncertain
he → send → results
But his decision to oust Susie Wiles and install Stephen Miller as White House chief of staff has left some Democratic lawmakers pessimistic.
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decision → oust → lawmakers
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, who is expected to become House speaker, said he has “zero interest” in working with Miller, calling him a “stone-cold racist.”
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he → expect → him
Rep. Jamie Raskin said Miller, the face of hard-line immigration enforcement, “might not be able to engage in any kind of course correction.”
uncertain
Miller → say → correction
Democrats have recoiled at Miller’s elevation, expecting blanket opposition to the bills they pass and the oversight investigations they plan to launch.
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they → recoil → bills
Among Republicans, views are more mixed, with some seeing his promotion as a reaffirmation of the very policies that contributed to the party’s midterm collapse.
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that → see → collapse
The Republican-led House rejected a push to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, effectively killing the effort.
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House → lead → effort
- House Republicans elected Jim Jordan as their new party leader, replacing outgoing Speaker Mike Johnson.
- Sen. Bernie Sanders won’t support Chuck Schumer to be the next Senate majority leader, saying “the time is now for change.”
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time → elect → change
- Republican Rep. María Elvira Salazar won re-election in her Miami-based congressional district after clashing with Trump over his immigration agenda.
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Salazar → win → agenda
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is laying the groundwork to set up a think tank, marking his first move toward a possible presidential run.
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DeSantis → lay → run
- Nine members of the Kennedy family asked a judge to join the legal battle to stop construction of Trump’s “triumphal” arch.
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members → ask → arch
Nvidia hires top lawyer to investigate Jensen Huang affair
Nvidia has hired a former federal prosecutor and one of Wall Street’s top law firms to investigate the events surrounding CEO Jensen Huang’s affair with an alleged Chinese spy.
Joon H. Kim, a former acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, prosecuted mob bosses and billion-dollar hedge funds during his career.
asserted
Kim → hire → career
His law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is among the country’s most prestigious, with a track record of taking on powerful corporate figures.
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firm → take → figures
The appointment of the high-profile lawyer signals that Nvidia’s board, many of whose members have worked alongside Huang for decades, intends to conduct a serious investigation into the circumstances surrounding the CEO’s affair with Alice Huang.
asserted
many → signal → Huang
Staff Pick: Russia’s top independent newspaper closes
Novaya Gazeta was an increasing rarity in Russia: a fearlessly independent newspaper in a country where most media have been brought to heel by the Kremlin.
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media → increase → Kremlin
Its investigations exposed abuses by Russian forces in Chechnya and offshore wealth linked to President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle.
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investigations → expose → circle
Since 2000, five of its journalists and associates have been murdered and a sixth has died of suspected poisoning.
asserted
sixth → murder → poisoning
This week, NBC News witnessed the somber spectacle of staff shuttering its offices in central Moscow.
asserted
staff → witness → Moscow
Russian authorities branded the newspaper a “foreign agent,” accusing it of spreading misinformation about the authorities and citing its opposition to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
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authorities → brand → Ukraine
Officials had already revoked its print and online publishing licenses, and now the newspaper was being evicted from its offices, too.
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newspaper → revoke → offices
For the paper, its readers and supporters abroad, human rights organizations and Western governments, the closure is a stark example of Putin’s intensifying crackdown on free speech and the media.
asserted
closure → intensify → speech
“People say: ‘You decided to shut down,’” the newspaper’s co-founder, Dmitry Muratov, told NBC News.
asserted
founder → say → News
“It’s like talking about a situation when a person has been shot in the head three times and then he is asked: ‘Tell me, at what point did you decide to die?’
asserted
you → ’ → me
“This was not our choice,” he added.
asserted
he → add → ?
…and 15 more, not listed.
The Aporia
