warning from the pentagon that the country's rapidly expanding its nuclear arsenal. could america's adversary have hard-to-detect missiles? aaron rodgers benched: the n.f.l.'s reining m.v.p. tests positive for covid. did he lie about being vaccinated? 156 miles per hour-- tonight, the shocking details of the early-morning crash involving a raiders wide receiver that killed a 23-year-old woman. and nursing school boom: amid the pandemic, an increase in applications for students to become america's future heroes. ♪ ♪ ♪ this is the "cbs evening news" with norah o'donnell, reporting from the nation's capital. >> o'donnell: good evening, to our viewers in the west and thank you for joining us. we begin with the new wave of covid vaccinations ramping up tonight for kids 5-11 years old with pfizer's mini-dose getting the green light from the c.d.c. late tuesday. health officials say it's a major breakthrough with more than 2,000 schools in recent months stopping in-person learning because of outbreaks. well, walgreens and cvs are now making appointments for kids' shots at select pharmacies starting this weekend. but a hospital in hartford, connecticut, wasted no time giving out those shots just minutes after the c.d.c.'s authorization. and thousands of pediatricians pre-ordered the mini-doses, and pfizer said it expects to ship about 11 million in the coming days. it comes as we just crossed a milestone-- coronavirus deaths in the u.s. have now topped 750,000. well, cbs' janet shamlian is going to lead off our coverage at texas children's hospital in houston. good evening, janet. >> reporter: norah, good evening. this is where they're giving the vaccine here at the hospital tonight, and it is busy. across the country, appointments at some doctors' offices and clinics are going fast. it's here-- from the privacy of a georgia's pediatrician office. >> all done. >> it's a game-changer for us. >> reporter: ...to a large houston hospital clinic. >> going to be super fast, okay? >> reporter: ...thousands of parents across the country took their children to get vaccine on the first day it became available for 5 to 7-year-olds. >> he has a condition we're worried about and now he's vaccinated. it's a relief. >> reporter: the children's version is a third of what older aged children get with orange needles and distinctive orange packages. millions of doses were on their way to hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies awaited sign-off from the c.d.c. while some children quickly received shots, nearly a third of parents in one survey say they won't vaccinate their child. >> for my kids, i probably upon opt to not get the vaccine immediately like i did for myself. >> reporter: doctors hope hesitant parents will talk to them first. >> we can get most kids in now, and then get their second dose three weeks from now with good protection in time for the winter holidays. >> reporter: covid has taken a toll on the unprotected. more than two million 5-11-year- olds have had the virus. 8,300 have been hospitalized, 173 have died. >> that, to me, field like way too many for a disease-- for outcomes that could essentially be eliminated by this vaccine. >> reporter: daniella wilches got the shot at texas children's hospital today. >> almost finished. >> reporter: she just turned five yesterday. what made you decide to get the vaccine for her? >> we've lost some family members to covid, and so, this has been really important for us. and she has some medical conditions which make her more susceptible. >> reporter: to give you an idea of the demand, texas children's hospital currently has 38,000 children signed up for shots between now and thanksgiving. norah. >> o'donnell: wow, that is some strong demand. janet shamlian, thank you. and we're going it turn now that that rough election night for democrats. in virginia, republican glenn youngkin pulled off a big victory over democrat terry mcauliffe. in new jersey, democratic incumbent phil murphy was expected to win in a landslide but is leading tonight by a razor-thin margin. we get more now from cbs' ed o'keefe. >> reporter: big warning signs tonight for democrats as the upset in virginia and tighter- than-expected results in new jersey put president biden's agenda and democratic control of congress in jeopardy. mr. biden said voters sent a message. >> people want us to get things done. people are upset and uncertain about a lot of things. >> reporter: that was clear. republican glenn youngkin's victory over democrat terry mcauliffe in virginia, a state the president had won by 10 points a year ago. voters showed they were unhappy with the direction of the country and inaction in washington. some democrats today blame themselves. >> look, congressional dems hurt terry mcauliffe. if we had been able to deliver infrastructure and reconciliation in mid-october, he could have sold universal pre-k, affordable child care, infrastructure, creating jobs. >> reporter: with the president's approval ratings at a record low, democrats are now trying to figure out how to win in states similar to virginia and new jersey and hold on to their slim majority. >> as one who will be running for reelection in 2022, i need results that i can tell the american people that congress can deliver. >> reporter: republicans who saw democrats unsuccessfully try to tie youngkin to donald trump, relish the results. >> i think this is an earthquake. i mean, it really is an earthquake. this is a clear signal from voters in-- in a blue state-- virginia is a very blue state, that they don't like president biden's policies. >> reporter: virginia's exit polls showed another troubling sign for democrats. youngkin won in suburbs in rural areas making gains with women voters and he capitalized on concerns of parental control of public education. >> friends, we're going to embrace our parents not ignore them. >> reporter: the president said today that for democrats to bounce back, they should pass his sweeping social spending plan because it will help struggling americans. when i asked him what he would say to congressional democrats about passing the plan he said simply, "get it to my desk." >> o'donnell: ed o'kee norah. well, here now to discuss thenk you. well, here now to discuss the takeaways from this election is cbs news chief washington correspondent major garrett. hi, there, major let's talk about virginia. how much was the republican glenn youngkin able to exploit concerns about education, cultural, social issues? >> let me give you a couple of numbers to indicate how much virginia has moved in one calendar year. last year, president biden carried suburban voters by eight percentage points. glenn youngkin carried them by 6. a 14-point swing in one year. president biden won independents by 19 point, glenn youngkin won them by four to five. social issues are important but i think the education one in virginia was acute and important. why? because it was a proxy for a lot of things. covid fatigue. lots of parents k-12. what are the rules? how can i get my kids back in school? other parts-- how was race being taught or racism. it's a very tender issue, particularly in virginia with its history of race, the confederacy, et cetera. and the transgender issues. it became a larger question of are school boards listening to empowering parents or sort of giving them a cold shoulder orrr the heisman. lots of parents in virginia felt they were not getting what they wanted out of schools. it became a larger question of education, and republicans capitalized on that issue, which is rare for republicans to be able to achieve. >> o'donnell: all right, major garrett, thank you so much. all right, we want to turn now to the skyrocketing prices of prescription drugs. democratic leaders just unveiled a plan to cut costs of sometimes-life-saving medicines. but as cbs' kris van cleave reports, the drug industry is spending big to keep that from happening. >> reporter: marylin rose's chronic myeloid leukemia would be a death sentence without her daily medication. >> say it's my "stay alive pill." >> reporter: but that stay alive bill can cost up to $10,000 a month. she worries without a curb on prescription drug prices her bill could soar. >> it's a miracle that the drug exists, but the idea that i'm beholden to it is really a little scary. >> reporter: the new compromise plan on capitol hill would offer some relief gradually allowing medicare to negotiate drug prices, similar to private insurers, for the first time, while capping out-of-pocket costs will at $2,000, and setting limits on the cost of insulin. >> this is the time to get real relief to senior citizens who are getting mugged at the pharmacy counter all across the country. >> reporter: the pharmaceutical industry has spent nearly $263 million on lobbying so far this year, employing three lobbyists for every member of congress. >> they have really endless resources to throw at shaping the outcomes of legislation. >> reporter: millions of those dollars are campaign donations. earlier this year, congressman scott peters sparked protests outside his san diego district office when he came out against a plan to cut drug costs for seniors. he's received nearly $130,000 from the industry. arizona senator krysten sinema has gotten about $100,000, and new jersey senator robert menendez has taken in nearly $80,000. i'm curious what message that sends. >> bottom line is i'm supporting a price negotiation bill that has been worked out. what i've said since the very beginning of the discussion, how do we ensure that consumers at the counter get relief? >> reporter: new jersey is home to a number of pharmaceutical companies. all three of these lawmakers say they support this compromise, adding it will save billions. norah. >> o'donnell: kris van cleave, thank you. and there's new evidence tonight of china's growing military might. it's happening on multiple fronts and fast, prompting u.s. nuclear concerns. cbs news national security correspondent david martin is at the pentagon. >> reporter: hundreds of new i.c.b.m. silos under construction. a massive buildup which has forced the pentagon to drastically revise the number of nuclear warheads china is adding to its arsenal. the commander of u.s. nuclear forces say it's a game-changer. >> we are witnessing a strategic breakout by china. the explosive growth and modernization of its nuclear and conventional forces can only be what i describe as breathtaking. >> reporter: in a new report, the pentagon warns china could have 1,000 nuclear warheads by 2030, almost a five-fold increase over the current number. hans kristensen of the federation of american scientists has been monitoring the buildup. >> it's an astounding pace. >> reporter: have the chinese ever done anything like that before? >> it's far beyond what they have ever done in the past. >> reporter: nuclear warheads could also be loaded on hypersonic missiles, which are harder to detect than i.c.b.m.s. last august, china conducted a hypersonic test that the chairman of the joint chiefs compared to the russians beating the u.s. into space. >> what we saw was a very significant event of a test of a hypersonic weapon system, and it is very concerning. >> reporter: the chinese buildup is dramatic, but they are not about to surpass the u.s. as a nuclear power. the u.s. has 3,750 nuclear warheads, nearly four times as many as china might have by 2030. norah. >> o'donnell: david martin at the pentagon. thank you. well, there is big news tonight in the n.f.l.. green bay packers quarterback aaron rodgers is benched after testing positive for covid, and there are new questions about whether rogers violated the league's covid protocols. here's cbs' vladimir duthiers. >> rogers steps and fires. >> reporter: according to multiple reports, the n.f.l. has considered the reining m.v.p. unvaccinated since the start of the season, but back in august, when asked by reporters about his vaccination status, roger says this: >> yeah, i'm immunized. you know, there's guys on the teams that haven't been vaccinated. i think it's a personal decision. i'm not going to judge those guys. >> reporter: was that misleading? >> certainly seems like it was. i feel misled. >> reporter: bill reiter is a cbs sports analyst. >> 7% of n.f.l. players are not vaccinated. that just means they followed different protocols, but the rules apply differently. this is the reality when you're a star. >> reporter: rogers has conducted weekly and postgame news conferences in person and without wearing a mask, while packers players who are unvaccinated participate in media sessions on zoom. under n.f.l. protocols, unvaccinated players are subject to a $14,000 fine if they refuse to wear a mask or maintain social distancing. repeat violations can lead to a four-game suspension. the n.f.l. says it previously disciplined individual teams for failing to enforce covid protocols in the past and says it's reviewing the situation with the packers. today, the packers' head coach declined to comment on rogers' vaccination status, norah. >> o'donnell: vladimir duthiers, thank you very much. well, after nearly two years on the front lines of the covid pandemic, america's nursing workforce is burned out, yet applications to nursing schoos are rising, driven by young people looking to make a difference. we get more now from cbs' mola leghi. >> reporter: some people never question what they want to do with their lives. why do you want to be a nurse? >> i can make a difference in someone's, like, life or even day when they're going through a difficult time. >> i think with the pandemic, people shy away from healthcare now. watching my friends and family work tirelessly, i've never felt more motivated and more excited to be in healthcare. >> reporter: michael usino of temple university initially expected the pandemic to reduce interest in nursing. >> what we were initially afraid of was that students were going to be seeing the news on social media and what is happening in hospitals and the front lines and be dissuaded from nursing but i think we've been very lucky with this generation of students with thinspirationontre >> reporter: you have seen the opposite. >> we have seen the opposite effect for sure. >> reporter: he said applications increased roughly 15% this fall. in 2019, about 7,500 people applied for about 110 spots. those who want to be nurses are stepping up, even knowing the job can take a lot. >> burnout is the first thing everyone mentioned to me, like, "oh you're crazy." >> reporter: nursing department chair mary terhaar says nursing makes self-care, mental health, and learning how to avoid burnout in the curriculum. >> you think it's the sciences, anatomy, physiology, or pharmacology. but you also need to learn how do i take care of myself? >> reporter: despite the challenges, students-- future nurses-- seem encouraged which perhaps is encouraging even any who may ever need a nurse. mola lenghi, cbs news, philadelphia. >> o'donnell: we do love our nurses. all right, still ahead on tonight's "cbs evening news," 156 miles per hour-- that's right. that's how fast prosecutors say wide receiver henry ruggs was going before that deadly crash. and the supreme court hears arguments over handguns in public. do justices think one state's law is too restrictive. and the dramatic rescue of a little girl who'd been kidnapped. to help you become a smarter investor. with an innovative trading platform full of customizable tools. dedicated trade desk pros and a passionate trader community sharing strategies right on the platform. because we take trading as seriously as you do. thinkorswim trading™ from td ameritrade. we were alone when my husband had the heart attack. because we take trading as seriously as you do. he's the most important thing in my life. i'm so lucky to get him back. your heart isn't just yours. protect it with bayer aspirin. be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. hi, i'm steve and i live in austin, texas. i work as a personal assistant to the owner of a large manufacturing firm. i've got anywhere from 10 to 50 projects going at any given time. i absolutely have to be sharp. let me tell ya, i was struggling with my memory. it was going downhill. my friend recommended that i try prevagen and over time, it made a very significant difference in my memory and in my cognitive ability. i started to feel a much better sense of well-being. prevagen. healthier brain. better life. such tree-mendous views. i'm at a moss for words. when a cough tries to steal dad's punchlines, he takes robitussin naturals powered by 100% drug-free ingredients. are you gonna leaf me hanging? 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[ laughter ] it looks like it could hurt. >> and bay area kids as young as five rolling up their sleeves for the covid-19 vaccination shot. we begin with that breaking news in alameda where a victim sell being held at the spot where alameda county supervisor wilma chan passed away after being hit by a car while walking. kenny (friends and family are devastated by this loss. will chan was walking her dog earlier this morning, right near this intersection of shoreline drive and grant street. take a look behind me. one of her colleagues just lit three candles in honor of the supervisor. chan suffered major head injuries, and was transported to highland hospital this afternoon. her chief of staff said she succumbed to her injuries around 2:30 this afternoon. we spoke to a resident and an oakland unified teacher who said that chan brought about a lot of change in so many