Tip News Daily Brief

Your Daily Brief

December 15, 2023

Good morning and happy Friday! Elon Musk has revealed his plans to disrupt a new industry. According to tax filings by one of his charities, the billionaire owner of SpaceX, Tesla and X is planning to open his own university in Texas. Musk will donate $100M to launch a STEM-focused primary and secondary school in Austin; once that school is off the ground, he plans to open an institution of higher learning. We cannot wait to see what school mascot he cooks up. Have a great weekend!

In Today’s Brief

Trump: Suffers another legal setback
Putin: Comments on American prisoners
HBO: Curb Your Enthusiasm's final season
Starbucks: NRLB lodges new complaint

... and more

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Top Tips

U.S. continues to push back on Israel

The White House continued to signal frustration with Israel's approach to the war in Gaza yesterday.

Biden's comments: President Joe Biden said he wants to see the Israelis put more focus on protecting civilians as their war against Hamas continues in Gaza. Biden said he does not want Israel to pull back its operations against the militant group but that it must do more to avoid unnecessary casualties. Biden criticized Israel for "indiscriminate bombing" earlier this week. U.S. intelligence reportedly indicates almost half of the bombs Israel has used in the war were unguided. Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry claims nearly 19K have been killed in the enclave during the war.
Netanyahu's vow: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan his country will continue fighting until it secures "absolute victory" over Hamas. Sullivan was in Israel meeting with top officials. Sullivan asked Israel's war cabinet to be more precise with its attacks and stressed the U.S. wants to see the war shift to "lower intensity operations" soon. But Israeli officials told Sullivan they believe the war will continue for several more months.
Other news: Israel criticized the International Red Cross for its continued inability to visit hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza. The IOC claims the militant group has refused to cooperate and it cannot force its way to the captives. Sullivan is scheduled to meet Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas today in Ramallah.

Ukraine gets boosts from Senate, EU

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky scored a pair of victories yesterday thanks to the U.S. Senate and European Union.

Optimism in Washington: The Senate will delay its holiday recess after progress on a $110B supplemental spending bill deal that would send $60B in aid to Ukraine and strengthen border security measures. The White House has signaled President Biden will make significant concessions to Republicans on the border in return for boosting Ukraine's war effort against Russia. Senate negotiators have said they think a deal could happen next week; the House could then called back from recess to vote on the bill and send it to Biden's desk. Biden has said Ukraine must get the aid approved by the end of the year.
EU breakthrough: The European Union agreed to begin formal membership talks with Ukraine at its summit in Brussels. The move was a surprise given Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban repeatedly vowed to block the unanimous consent from the 27-nation bloc needed to start accession negotiations. But German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and others convinced Orban, who has sought ties with Russia, to leave the room while the other 26 nations signed off on talks. It will likely take Ukraine years to join the EU, but it is key step as it seeks to align with the West and eventually join NATO.
Putin speaks: Russian President Vladimir Putin held a marathon press conference yesterday. The highly choreographed spectacle took over four hours and marked the first such event Western reporters could attend since the Ukraine invasion almost two years ago. Putin vowed the war would continue until Russia achieves its goals of "denazifying" and demilitarizing Ukraine and guaranteed Russian victory.

Terror plots thwarted in Europe

Authorities in Europe continue to foil attempted acts of terrorism after calling for extra vigilance during the holiday season.

Hamas plot stopped: Police in Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands arrested seven men they say planned to attack Jewish sites. German authorities said they arrested three members of Hamas in Berlin and Dutch police arrested a fourth militant in Rotterdam connected to the investigation. Israel attributed the three Danish arrests to Hamas, but police there did not confirm ties to the group and said their investigation was unrelated to the German arrests. The arrests have heightened concerns elsewhere on the continent.
Ohio plot revealed: A 13-year-old boy was arrested in September after Discord, a messaging platform, reported to police he detailed a plan to commit a mass shooting at a Canton synagogue. His alleged actions pre-date Israel's war in Gaza. Las Vegas police arrested a 16-year-old last week for allegedly planning attacks in the name of ISIS.
Big picture: Both FBI Director Christopher Wray and EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson have warned about the increased probability of terrorist attacks in recent weeks. A tourist was stabbed to death in Paris earlier this month by a man of Iranian descent who officials said was an Islamist. Israel said it helped Brazilian officials thwart a terror plot against synagogues by militant group Hezbollah earlier this year.

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Quick Tips

U.S. News

A New York court rejected former President Donald Trump's challenge to a gag order in his civil business fraud trial. Both sides have rested in the case and a bench verdict is expected in January or February (More)
Jurors in Washington are deliberating how much former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani must pay two former Georgia election workers for untruthful statements that led to racist threats. The women are seeking at least $24M in damages (More)
A former Jacksonville Jaguars employee pleaded guilty to stealing $22M from the NFL team to cover his gambling losses. Amit Patel faces up to 30 years in federal prison (More)

World News

Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested his government is making progress with the U.S. in negotiations to release Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former Marine Paul Whelan from prison. Putin claimed Russia wants to find "a solution" that facilitates a deal (More)
Guyanese President Irfaan Ali and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro are committed to peace amid a dispute over the Essequibo region, Ali said. Ali reiterated Venezuela has no right to his nation's oil-rich area despite a recent referendum approving annexation (More)
Pope Francis called for a binding global treaty that ensures artificial intelligence is developed and used ethically. Virginia Sen. Mark Warner said the U.S. is not yet ready to engage in international talks about the technology (More)

Entertainment & Sports

Curb Your Enthusiasm will end after its upcoming 12th season, according to show creator Larry David and HBO. The cable network will begin releasing new episodes in February and the series final is scheduled for April (More)
Alabama QB Jalen Milroe announced he will return for his senior season. Milroe will lead the Crimson Tide in this year's College Football Playoff and will be a Heisman Trophy contender in 2024 (More)
Barbie director Greta Gerwig has been named jury president for next May's Cannes Film Festival. She is the first woman to be the solo director of a $1B movie (More)

Business & Markets

Major indexes closed higher again yesterday as the good vibes from Wednesday's Federal Reserve meeting continued. The Dow Jones Industrial closed at a new all-time high (Dow +0.43%, Nasdaq +0.19%, S&P 500 +0.26%).
The National Labor Relations Board accused Starbucks of illegally closing 23 locations last year to punish unionized workers and stifle organization efforts. If the NRLB rules against the coffee company, it may be forced to re-open the locations and re-hire or compensate workers (More)
Europe's central banks said they do not anticipate following the Fed with interest rate cuts in 2024. The Bank of England and European Central Bank both indicated they expect to keep high rates flat indefinitely (More)

Tips & Tricks

Feel Good: It can be hard to find positive news with everything going on the world. So one person took to Reddit with a simple request: Tell them about something good currently happening in America. A deluge of sunshine followed.
Red Flag: Scientists believe it is near certain a tsunami wave will someday crash into the Pacific Northwest, and it could cause the worst natural disaster in national history. But FEMA's risk analysis program has done little to prepare. Experts are now speaking out.
Take Note: Nearly 2K cases of Coca-Cola products, including Diet Coke and Sprite, have been recalled in Alabama, Florida and Mississippi. The soft drinks contain unspecified foreign bodies.
Sneak Peek: Netflix has dropped the first trailer for the upcoming Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F. Eddie Murphy will return to his iconic role as a wise-cracking detective 30 years after the last installment in the series. The film comes out next year.
New Discovery: Researchers believe they have figured out why pregnant people get morning sickness. A new study suggests people react differently to a specific hormone inside the placenta, which dictates how ill they feel. It is possible that pre-pregnancy exposure to the hormone could prevent the issue.
Go Deep: Tuberculosis killed about 1.3M people worldwide last year, surpassing the death toll of HIV/AIDS and malaria. Yet the sole vaccine against the bacterium was invented over 100 years ago, and it only protects children. Why has the world not done more? And is that about to change?
Life Hack: Are you tired of your bananas never being perfectly ripe when you need them? You cannot fight nature, but some tricks exist to make a green banana pass for a yellow one before it goes brown. Remember them the next time you want to make banana bread or pudding.

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Tip-Offs

A loose bull shut down a New Jersey train station. No, really.

A British boy was found in France after disappearing in 2017.

Tom Brady's alternate universe baseball card is a big deal.

... and Princess Anne has been the Royal Family's workhorse.

Amazon, Target and Walmart will stop selling a dangerous toy.

The psychology behind people lining up early at the airport.

... while these interior design trends need to be phased out.

Actor Andre Braugher died of lung cancer, his publicist said.

Looking Ahead …

New Year's Day in the Magic Kingdom will be an interesting one. The earliest iterations of Mickey and Minnie Mouse will enter the U.S. public domain on Jan. 1, marking 96 years after the release of Steamboat Willie, an animated short that served as the characters' debut (copyright law now after 95 years). Disney will still maintain control of the more modern versions of Mickey and Minnie for years to come, but it is fair game on the originals. Also entering the public domain next year: The original version of the Tigger character from the Winnie the Pooh series.

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