fail. >> reporter: as washington and the nation pause to commemorate martin luther king, jr., joe biden drew parallels between king's fights for voting rights decades ago -- >> i have a dream. >> reporter: and the battle now playing out on capitol hill. >> dr. king wasn't just a dreamer of that promise, he was a doer. on this federal holiday that honors him, it's not just enough to praise him, we must commit to his unfinished work. >> reporter: to democrats, that's passing voting rights bills now in the senate. >> don't tell us what you believe in, show us with your votes. history will be watching. >> reporter: the attempt to counter dozens of state laws passed after the 2020 election, which they contend discriminate against minority voters. >> reporter: republicans stand unified in opposition. >> the founders didn't have that vision in mind. they didn't want an autocrat to be able to pull a lever in one place and change all the election laws. >> reporter: senate democrats hope to make a rules change to pass the bills with just a simple majority. but two democrats, kyrsten sinema and joe manchin, say they want to preserve the filibuster, frustrating fellow party members. >> we do not allow the filibuster to hold up the budget. so why is it holding up people's constitutional rights like voting? >> reporter: senate debate will begin tomorrow. if these two bills do fail, the next move in congress might be to discuss changes to the electoral count act of 1887, which outlines how congress counts electoral votes. there appears to be bipartisan support to modernize those rules, after the last election. in washington, chris pollone, nbc news. >> chris, thank you. will this voting rights issue go away or does vit a viable chance to pass even down the road? let's bring in larry gursen. why the controversy over the proposed voting rights bill right now? >> look, if this bill passes, one or both for that matter, the federal government will have more power in dealing with those states that the attorney general believes are violating voters rights. that's how it was with the voting rights act of 1965, which lasted until 2013. then we had the shelby case, then another one that came up last july. and together, they pretty much did in that act. so now, the states are free to do whatever they want to do with respect to setting up these laws. >> larry, is it one of those things we talk about the filibuster, is it something where if the democrats are in power, they want it, if the republicans are in power, they want that action. does it swing back and forth? >> it often is, raj. if you're in the minority and you can't get what you want, you blame the majority for whatever. the democrats are in a slim majority but not enough to change it. you have to wonder, is this just about voting rights? i don't think so. if you get rid of the filibuster, that means lots of legislation you can get through that some people may not want to get through. and so this voting act issue, in some ways, can be a subterfuge, cover for other issues that people are not comfortable discussing and voting on. >> very good point. we just talked about it on the state level. a lot of priority and power theoretically on the state level. is that encouraging to you or a slippery slope for voting rights? >> it depends on how you look at it. since 2020, we have seen just a bunch of legislation, by states, most that deals with purging voters from the list, denying access or limiting access, and dropping people from the rolls. all of these types of things that are going on. now, people who support these acts say hey, we're trying to keep the vote sacred. we're trying to avoid widespread fraud. the other side says, somewhat widespread fraud? are you thinking about that or trying to keep some people from voting, like the poor, like people of color? so it all depends on what side of the fence you are on. >> congress has become involved, we're seeing that as we speak now. is that the right move? >> well, it's the right move if you want to try to change the laws to have some sort of universal guidance, some guarantees for all voters, and put it in the hands of the federal government. this gets back to this idea of federalism. this current supreme court believes that more power should be in the hands of the states, rather than the congress and the federal government. so as long as this court is in action, they're not going to allow a whole lot of these laws to go through any ways. so you wonder why they're going through this exercise, other than to let their supporters know we tried our best. but best doesn't go far when you don't have the votes. >> 50 states and a lot of varying degrees of what they want accomplished. larry, thank you for your time tonight. the omicron variant has spread at a record pace, but now there are signs the virus is slowing down. the u.s. reported nearily 800,000 cases a day in the past week. however, new reports indicate the surge is easing in places hit early by omicron like new york city. daily cases have dropped by 31%. the case count has fallen in neighboring areas such as new jersey, maryland, and washington, d.c. new york's governor says there will be a time where we can say this is all over. could the end of the pandemic be around the corner? chief medical adviser dr. anthony fauci says it's too early to call, and it remains an open question. he says that would only be the case if we don't get another variant that spreads around the globe. how about this, a two in one shot. today, moderna announced it's working on a single shot booster for both covid and the flu. the ceo says the company is aiming to make up to 3 billion of these doses this year alone and hopes to test this combined vaccine booster this march. >> our goal is to have a single annual booster so that we don't have compliance issue where is people don't want to get two to three shots a winter, but one dose where they get a booster for coronavirus and a booster for flu. >> that would be very popular. the best case scenario is this double booster will be ready in some countries this fall. moderna, which is based in the boston area, has been criticized for prioritizing distribution of its covid vaccines to rich countries, only a fraction of supply has gone to poorer countries. new research about the fourth dose of the pfizer vaccine. data from a trial in israel shows that fourth dose is not sufficient enough to protect fully against omicron. the dose did increase antibodies, but offered only partial defense. vaccines that were more effective against previous variants offer less protection with omicron. however, researchers added that it's the right decision, to give the fourth vaccine to people who are vulnerable. it's back to school kids in hayward. last week, the school district voted to return to regular classes after going virtual because of staffing and testing shortages. classes will resume tomorrow. hayward unified says it has enough masks for all staff and surgical masks for students. the district and the health department believe students are safer from covid in school. the university also plans to go back to the classroom tomorrow. stanford opted to have all students attend virtual classes for the first two weeks of the quarter. now in-person instruction resumes tomorrow. everyone should be back on campus by january 24. up next, the olympics begin in about two weeks. today, the key announcement about fans. will that be allowed to watch the games in person? and speaking of the olympics. a skier from caramel has a bronze medal from the last winter games. now she's setting her sights on gold. i'm chief meteorologist jeff ranieri. i'll update you on the forecast. we have a lot of pollen floating around. that's coming up. much like the tokyo olympics last year, tickets will not be sold to the public for the upcoming beijing olympics. however, there still will be people in the stands. today, beijing olympic organizers said tickets will be issued to targeted groups only, because of covid reasons. so no international spectators are allowed. the games begin february 3rd. it's been eight years since she went to her first olympics in sochi. she took bronze in pyeongchang, and is looking for more hardware in beijing. >> i was just so lucky to have parts that were dedicated to me and to skiing as a sport. they ended up buying a condo in lake tahoe when i was young, and being the youngest of four, i did whatever my older siblings did, and that was skiing. so we did that every weekend. and i was just a little weekend warrior. >> has the sport changed over the last eight years? for example, like in figure skagt, who can do the quad? >> when i started skiing, i didn't know i would have to ski both ways. now that's basic necessity. so now these girls are progressing really quickly, and it's awesome to be a part of. >> do you have fears still when doing some of your crazy tricks? >> oh, absolutely, yes. especially with my age and list of injuries. it's hard not to think about those when i'm doing a trick that i've gotten hurt on before. but i have learned a lot in the mental aspect of competing. and i know to always focus on the positive and visualize how i want to do it. it's all about mitigating that pain and trying to keep my body feeling as good as possible. >> this is going to be different. there's going to be a strict quarantine. you folks have been notified about some of the covid measures. >> yeah, it will be a different experience for sure. i was watching the tokyo olympics just thinking about how they didn't have their families there to celebrate after their races. it did make me a little sad, having my family with me at the last two olympics has been the best part. it's a nice way to get away from all the stress in the moment. >> is there a song you listen to before you drop in? >> i don't have a specific song. i have a 50-song play list that i put on a whole bunch of songs that i like. i try not to get too caught up in one specific one, because i don't want to be fidgeting with my phone while i'm trying to drop and making sure i have the right one on. but my favorite genre is '90s hip-hop type stuff. >> where do you keep your bronze medal? >> it's in my office. i keep it in the case they gave us at pyeongchang. it's a little wooden, circular case and it fits snug in there. it's always on hand. but i'm sure i will have it displayed more permanent in the future. >> well, our coverage of the winter olympics begins on february 3rd. the next night is opening ceremony. i will be in beijing to bring you stories of our local olympians. watch it all here on nbc bay area, and online at nbcbayarea.com/olympics. >> you've got to ask her in beijing, hey, what are you listening to? >> i want to know what she's rocking to. >> '90s hip-hop. we got the general idea. >> i need to know specifics, right? yeah. we'll find out. >> look at the sunset behind you. >> i know, right? beautiful. we have had some high cloud cover move overhead today. but you may have seen it. another window of sunshine. sun has been hard to come by. solid blue sky, so today was good on that front. we'll get in on more of that. let's get you ready to go. we have rainfall happening in central and southern california. this is from the same system that brought us a lot of the overcast skies last week. it's been sitting offshore and getting its act together. i see the storm system staying off to the south tonight. so no big rain chances for us. it's going to move off towards the east. we'll start to get increased sunshine for us. also a chance of morning fog. i don't see anything that's going to slow us down too much tomorrow morning. a little bit of patchy fog to defin with. 40 in the tri valley. south bay at 41. low to mid 40s over the east bay, san francisco and the north bay. jacket for the morning, and a few of you through the afternoon will need that jacket down in the south bay. 62 in san jose. gilroy, 63. a couple of chilly spots where we could get that fog forming. might need a light jacket with just 50s from daley city to redwood city. 53 in the marina. not too gusty tomorrow. winds to between 5 to 10 miles per hour. down to nevato, 59. beautiful weather tomorrow. increased unschein around 1:00, 2:00, 3:00. so you're going to want to be outside. we do have the allergies starting to creep back in. after the december rain, things are reblooming. starting to see some thing redroip that pollen again. so watch out for the symptoms. especially with omicron floating around, consult the symptoms and your doctor if needed. it stays dry through the next seven days. would love to see some rainfall in here. just not going to happen the way things are happening. across the inland valleys, i want you to see by friday night, wind moving in, 20 to 40 miles per hour, friday night into saturday morning. these are dry winds coming out of the north and east. thankfully, we had that rain in december. but there is no rain moving our way. at least we will get sunshine friday, saturday, and sunday. coming up at 6:00, a look at our monthly rain averages. it's not trending how we want it to be, and we'll show you more detail on how much rain we're losing because of the dry months so far. >> we'll enjoy the sunshine. >> thanks, jeff. up next, the way your phone gets its new 5g service may impact the next time you jump on a flight. why the airline industry is worried, and why cellular companies say it's an overreaction. nbc news has confirmed fbi agents shot the man who took four people hostage inside a texas synagogue over the weekend. he did not kill himself. and the rabbi is crediting past security training for getting him and three members of his congregation out safely. the fbi remained at the congregation tonight to collect evidence from the temple. investigators say the man who held four people hostage was a british citizen. the situation unfolded saturday morning. people evacuated from the church and from the nearby homes, and one neighbor captured those evacuations on a ring cameras. >> i worried about the people and the police officers, but i also did worry about the fact that a bomb would destroy quite a bit of my neighborhood, depending on the size, of course. >> in a statement, the rabbi said his congregation has participated in multiple security courses, adding, we are alive today because of that education. all the hostages escaped unharmed. the gunman, malik faisal akram, was killed. investigators are still looking into the motive. this wednesday is the scheduled start of 5g cell phone service, but it could be an aviation crisis. airline ceos are warning that the rollout would be catastrophic. the faa says 5g could interfere with sensitive airplane instruments like measuring low visibility. and many planes could be unusable and strand thousands of americans overseas. executives from american, delta, and united wrote in a letter to the government that the nation's commerce may come to a grinding halt. the airlines are asking for 5g not to be implemented within two miles of runways at key airports. walmart appears to be venturing into the metaverse and will create its own crypto currency. the company has a goal to make and sale virtual goods. another filing shows walmart planning to offer users a virtual currency, as well as nfts. walmart declined to comment on specifics but added it's always exploring how emerging technologies could face shopping. novak djokovic was deported from australia for not being vaccinated for covid. he arrived in serbia, ending his hopes of defending his title. he argued he should be allowed to compete, because an infection meant he was except from the vaccination rules. he could be also banned from playing in the french open this spring if he still isn't vaxed. up next, one down, two more to go to make the super bowl. we'll take you inside the 49ers locker room moments after they beat the cowboys. when you have xfinity, you have entertainment built in. which is kind of nice. ah, what is happening. binge-watching is in the bag, when you find all your apps, all in one place. find live sports faster just by using your voice... sports on now. touchdown irish! [cheering] that was awesome. and, the hits won't quit, with peacock premium included at no additional cost. all that entertainment built in. xfinity. a way better way to watch. all right. have you recovered yet? the 49ers are moving on after that wild, heart stopping game. did you watch it last night? >> oh, my gosh, yes. >> pretty fun to watch. the niners had that 23-7 lead in the fourth quarter. you thought okay, easy street. and then they held on for dear life. won the game 23-17. a lot of 49ers fans were there in dallas and everyone here in the bay area jumping for joy. after the game, pretty cool to always see that. a lot of hugs and high fives inside that 49ers locker room. you see the gm there, the head coach. next up, bring your heavy jacket. a road trip to green bay this saturday night to play the top seeded packers. the forecast, 20 degrees right now. you may remember the packers beat the 49ers on that light-second field goal earlier this season. >> i don't want to remember that. the niners are in the spotlight, but things are getting dicey for the warriors. >> they have lost five of the last seven games. yeah, the warriors, without draymond green, they're a different team. what is to watch this week around bay area sports. the warriors wrapped up their road trip with a loss to minnesota. but they finished the trip without steph curry and draymond green. curry injured his hand and friday. the team is more optimistic with with draymond, who will be out for at least two weeks. the warriors are back at chase center tuesday, hosting the pistons. you can watch the warriors tomorrow, thursday, and friday over on nbc sports bay area. our coverage begins an hour before tipoff with pregame live. and things are turning in the right direction for the 49ers. they escaped dallas with a win and move on to the divisional round of the playoffs where they will face the packers in green bay. but you can't breeze by what went down at at&t stadium. we'll break down the game and look ahead to the niners game against the packers on the latest episode of "49ers talk" the podcast. raj, janelle? >> laura, thank you. we have some historic news from the sharks. the lone all-star had an epic game this afternoon. >> it's hertl, across for myer. toe drag, he gets it! he becomes the first to score five goals. >> wow! that's a hat trick and then a couple on top of that. randy hahn with the great call. never done before in sharks history, scoring five in one game. and they won 6-2. >> that's impressive. incredible game. right now at 6:00, despite help paying for it, finding a covid test in the bay area remains a real challenge. we'll show you ways you can get your hands on a test. and i know they are hard to come by. so i just purchased the four that i thought i needed. i know there are people there purchasing a lot more. >> what insurance companies now have to do for you. also, a violent act in new york city has a bay area family mourning. they're remembering their loved one who was pushed to her death over the weekend at a subway station. swinging into action on this mlk holiday. how some spent the day honoring dr. king. right now. thanks for being with us. a new federal rule requiring insurance companies to cover the cost of rapid