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IMPORTANT
| | | A White House Divided | Jan. 6 Testimony Reveals Trump’s ‘Spontaneous’ Plans The committee's seventh hearing Tuesday showed how “unhinged,” in the words of one witness, the West Wing became following former President Donald Trump’s election loss. Witnesses described a raucous split between White House lawyers and staffers trying to convince Trump to concede pitted against MAGA supporters pushing conspiracy theories and urging him to take potentially illegal action to stay in power. The committee also revealed an unsent Trump tweet that suggested he planned the Jan. 6 gathering but wanted to make it appear spontaneous. The draft read, “Please arrive early, massive crowds expected. March to the Capitol after. Stop the Steal!!” (Sources: WaPo, NYT) |
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| | | Sneaking Out | Sri Lankan President Flees, Country Plunges Into Emergency President Gotabaya Rajapaksa escaped via a military flight to the Maldives just hours before he was due to resign. He’d repeatedly attempted to leave in recent days as fury over his mishandling of Sri Lanka’s economic crisis reached fever pitch, but found his exit stymied by uncooperative civil servants. The news sparked fresh protests in Colombo and the declaration of a state of emergency across the country. “We don't like it,” one protester said. “We want to keep him. We want our money back! And we want to put all the Rajapaksas in an open prison where they can do farm work.” (Sources: Al Jazeera, BBC) |
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| | | | | Blocked, Reported | Twitter Turns to Courts to Force Elon Musk’s Buyout The platform had promised to take action if he reneged on the $44 billion deal. Twitter lawyers told a Delaware judge the Tesla CEO should be forced to honor the agreement, saying the company “bent over backwards” to provide him with information. Musk said Twitter is swarming with more bots than had been revealed, but the company said he’s looking for an out as his fortunes turn. Musk, the world’s richest man, now has a battle on his hands. “While Musk didn’t get all the data he sought, he will still struggle to prove a material breach,” a Bloomberg analyst said. (Sources: Bloomberg, TechCrunch) |
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| | | Fiscal Flashback | June Data Is an ‘80s Throwback to Record Inflation The government is set to announce what many American households already know: U.S. inflation is hitting hard and consumers are feeling the pinch. June’s 8.8% increase is a new 40-year high for consumer prices — and likely means another rate hike from the Fed this month. But the data also shows relief is coming. Gas prices, which hit $5 a gallon last month, are slowly dropping, hitting a national average of $4.66 Tuesday. Still, surveys have found Americans are increasingly concerned about rising costs of living, a fear that can erode consumer confidence and see the economy spiral further. (Source: AP) |
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| | | Briefly | Here are some things you should know about today: Jet-setting Joe. President Joe Biden kicks off his first visit to the Middle East as president today, where he’s expected to visit Israel, the West Bank and Saudi Arabia. He’ll be the first president to visit Jeddah, where he hopes to secure increased oil production. (Source: Reuters) Pack leader. Rishi Sunak is leading the field of eight would-be prime ministers vying for the U.K. Conservative Party’s leadership. Elimination voting begins today. (Source: Politico) City under siege. Street battles between gangs in Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince have killed at least 50 people since Friday, while Doctors Without Borders warns that civilians are trapped in parts of the city without food, water and medical care. (Source: AP) |
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INTRIGUING
| | | Ham Sad-wich | Life Is Too Short for Deadly Charcuterie, France Rules It’s true, French health authorities warned the country: Cured meats, the star of France’s iconic charcuterie, contain nitrates that can cause a raft of health problems for sausage and ham fans all over the gourmand nation. France’s food safety agency conducted its own study after a 2015 report from the World Health Organization linked nitrates, which are added to meats to prolong shelf life and enhance flavor, to cancers — and declared processed meats carcinogens. France’s study reached the same conclusion, and the government announced that new guidelines limiting the use of the additives will be rolled out later this year. (Source: France 24) |
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| | | Heating Up | Texas Temperatures Are Soaring — and Crypto Miners Are Sweating Amid a heat wave that’s seen regular triple-digit temperatures, Texas power grids are asking residents and businesses to cut back to avoid a total meltdown. Bitcoin miners have powered down their notoriously power-hungry operations, freeing up 1% of the grid’s capacity — and saving them from skyrocketing energy prices. “They are shutting down for several reasons but primarily because it is the right thing to do to be a good ‘grid citizen,’” said Lee Bratcher of the Texas Blockchain Council. Still, crypto mines are booming in the state — and next year they’ll gobble as much energy as all the homes in Houston. (Sources: Gizmodo, The Verge) |
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| | | | | Diverse TV | Emmy Noms Make History, But Is the Industry Going Backward? Quinta Brunson, the brains behind comedy hit Abbott Elementary, became the first Black woman to collect three nominations in one season. Euphoria star and producer Zendaya set a record as the youngest producer ever to pick up a nod. And Netflix smash Squid Game was the first non-English series to be selected, earning a massive 14 nominations. But while the stars are bright for some, data shows a steep decline in actors of color being recognized by the industry. In 2020, 42 actors of color picked up nominations in main and guest acting categories. This year that’s dropped to 25. (Sources: Variety, AV Club) |
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| | | Out of Here | Wallaby on the Run Eludes North Carolina Animal Control Officers Someone’s a long way from home. The small marsupial, a close relative of the kangaroo, is typically only found in Australia and New Zealand — but this one seemed right at home hopping through the Lineberger Park neighborhood of Gastonia, North Carolina. “It was a daggone wallaby or kangaroo or whatever it was,” said Bryan Southers, who spotted the animal. “It was the trippiest thing I've seen.” Its owner has been identified, but North Carolina officials would like to stress it is illegal to keep wallabies as pets. The wallaby has so far evaded rescue efforts. (Sources: UPI, WBTV) |
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| | | Hear Him Roar | Tiger Woods Mauls Controversial Saudi-Linked Golf Tour Speaking on the sidelines of the 150th Open at St. Andrews in Scotland, Woods wondered aloud about the point of ditching longstanding relationships with the PGA Tour for the upstart Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf Invitational Series. Major players — including many of the game’s biggest names — “have turned their back on what has allowed them to get to this position,” he said. Woods saved the biggest criticism for Australian golf legend turned LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman, saying, “Greg has done some things that I don’t think are in the best interest of our game.” (Sources: Golf, SI) |
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