ABC News political director Rick Klein and NBC senior congressional reporter Scott Wong discuss the latest moves in the lame-duck Congress to avert a rail strike. And, this weekend, one of the NFL's most controversial players will step back onto the field. The Ringer's Lindsay Jones reminds us of the sexual assault allegations against Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson and what to expect. Then, Andrew Limbong, host of NPR's "Book of the Day" podcast, talks about NPR's Books We Love site, which has more than 400 suggestions for great reads from the staff at NPR.

On World AIDS Day, we look at the status of AIDS in the present day. Marnina Miller, community outreach coordinator for the Southern AIDS Coalition, joins us to share what she tells young people about living with HIV and other thoughts. Then, the European Union is set to hold a crucial vote on whether to put a price cap on Russian oil. The aim is to cut Russia's oil revenue, but some people fear that this could adversely affect the energy market that has seen low U.S. gas prices. MSNBC anchor and economics correspondent Ali Velshi joins us. And, rail workers' fight for paid time off sheds light on the millions of Americans who also go without paid sick leave. Joe McCartin, the executive director of the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor at Georgetown University joins us.

Workers at Zhengzhou, China's big Foxconn factory are protesting against COVID restrictions. The factory produces half of the world's iPhones. China Labor Bulletin researcher Aidan Chau joins us. Then, even after laying off thousands of employees, Facebook's parent company Meta is still on track to spend millions of dollars on virtual reality. Why is Meta betting so heavily on VR and how does gaming fit into the picture? Here & Now's James Perkins Mastromarino joins us. And, following a poor Thanksgiving box office, there's still much to look forward to in terms of movie releases this holiday season. NPR's Aisha Harris and KPCC's John Horn join us to give their new movie recommendations, from "Glass Onion" to "Pinnochio."

Congress is set to take up legislation this week to impose an agreement between railroad companies and union workers. Clark Ballew from the BMWED national union joins us. Then, we get the latest on Hawaii's Mauna Loa — the world's largest active volcano which erupted for the first time since 1984 over the weekend — from Bill Dorman of Hawai'i Public Radio. And, Columbia University law professor Katherine Franke talks about what the passage of the Respect for Marriage Act would mean. Utah County marriage clerks Russ Rampton and Ben Frei explain why they perform online marriage ceremonies for same-sex couples from countries where same-sex marriage is banned, even though it runs contrary to their church's religious teachings.

Protests erupted in China over widespread restrictions as part of the country's zero COVID policy. Protesters have been calling for freedom of speech, freedom of the press and some even for Xi Jinping to step down. NPR China affairs correspondent John Ruwitch joins us. Then, the World Cup has also been rocked by protests as the U.S. team gears up to play Iran. Protests in Iran have continued for months since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody for allegedly wearing her headscarf incorrectly. Journalist and author James Montague joins us. And, effective altruism is a philanthropic model that encourages people to make a lot of money so they can donate a lot of money. But after the fall of FTX's founder Sam Bankman-Fried, the movement is at a crossroads. The Atlantic's Derek Thompson joins us.