Good morning and Happy New Year!

I have no idea whether this will still be true when you read this, but right now as I’m writing this sentence, at 7:07 a.m. Tuesday morning, I’m looking at Google Maps. I’m zooming in on I-95 between Washington, D.C., and Richmond. It’s … closed. Like, almost the whole way, which is about 110 miles. There have been accidents because of the snow, and fallen trees, according to this article, which sort of blows my mind because aren’t trees usually 30 or 40 feet back from an interstate highway? Anyway, people have been sitting in their cars all night. And it’s bitter cold—17 degrees as I write in Fredericksburg, a little more than halfway down toward Richmond from the capital.

The Elizabeth Holmes headlines are blaring that she was convicted, and that’s true, with respect to four counts. But how on earth was she acquitted of four counts? And the jury couldn’t agree on three more. Mind-boggling. But hats off to the heroes here: Wall Street Journal reporter John Carreyrou, who broke the story of how the Theranos machines weren’t accurate; Erika Cheung, the whistleblowing former employee; and the prosecutors. This is how the truth wins, when it does: a free press, a person with a conscience, and the rule of law.

Omicron, reports The Washington Post, is moving to the South, where lower rates of vaccination and masking suggest the variant is going to sweep across the place like a prairie fire. But Texas Governor Greg Abbott says, “We’re moving forward with life as we know it.” 

On the omicron/schools front, Politico reports that Atlanta, Milwaukee, and Detroit closed classrooms this week, and more closures are almost surely on the way. This is potential trouble for the White House, and there’s not a lot Joe Biden can do, although he did promise last month that 500 million tests would become available in the new year, so he pretty much needs to deliver on that.

Of course, Donald Trump endorsed Viktor Orbán. It’s so not shocking that it barely qualifies as news, but the statement Trump released is pretty unsettling. “Viktor Orbán of Hungary truly loves his Country and wants safety for his people,” Trump wrote. “He has done a powerful and wonderful job in protecting Hungary, stopping illegal immigration, creating jobs, trade, and should be allowed to continue to do so in the upcoming Election. He is a strong leader and respected by all. He has my Complete support and Endorsement for reelection as Prime Minister!”

At NewRepublic.com, you can check out my profile of Representative Jamie Raskin, which is the cover story for the new issue. Kate Aronoff reports on how fossil fuel companies and their political allies are crafting legislation in various states aimed at trying to prevent financial advisers from “discriminating” against coal, oil, and gas. And Daniel Strauss has an interview with January 6 select committee Chairman Bennie Thompson, who lays out to Strauss the committee’s plans for the year. 

Stay off the interstate,

Every day, our journalists are exposing the right’s assaults on our democracy—and pushing the Democrats to go bold to preserve the republic. Here’s a special offer from The New Republic so you won’t miss their scoops and sharp analysis.

Today’s political history question: On this date in 1965, Lyndon Johnson delivered his State of the Union address to Congress, outlining some specifics of the Great Society programs Congress would pass that year. How large were the Democrats’ congressional majorities in that eighty-ninth Congress—that is, how many senators and House members were Democrats?