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Biden's Border Headache Takes Center Stage
Your unbiased daily news brief
James Kratch
December 28, 2023
Good morning and happy Thursday! There is another potential legal storm brewing involving Donald Trump, albeit one the former president likely would not personally be involved with. There is a movement to make his Hollywood Walk of Fame star the first ever removed from the popular tourist destination. But with several public and private groups having some say in the attraction’s operation, no one knows who has the authority to scrap the star, if it is even permissible or possible. Have a great day!
In Today’s Brief
House GOP: Biden inquiry escalates
Ukraine: Gets last U.S. aid package
Tom Smothers: Comedian dies at 86
Apple Watch: Import and sales ban paused
... and more
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Top Tips
1) U.S. officials talk border in Mexico
Secretary of State Antony Blinken led a U.S. delegation to Mexico yesterday amid a spike in illegal border crossings.
The meeting: Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Homeland Security adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall joined Blinken at a meeting with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. The delegation asked the Mexicans for more help preventing what Blinken called “unprecedented irregular migration” in the region. U.S. Customs and Border Patrol has said it is encountering record numbers of migrants at the border and had a record number of migrants in custody in its facilities. Almost 10K migrants were crossing the border daily earlier this month.
Caravan coming: A migrant caravan, said to include 7.5K people, has begun trekking north from Mexico's border with Guatemala toward the U.S. border. The caravan's organizers said people from 24 countries were marching, and some intended to seek refuge in Mexico. CBP officials cautioned migrant caravans often fizzle out before they reach the U.S. border. The U.S. has taken steps to shore up the border recently, including halting international railway traffic and closing border crossings; it is expected to lean on Mexico to do more on its side of the border. However, experts are skeptical that Mexico can affect substantial changes. Mexico requested the U.S. reopen border crossings during yesterday’s meetings.
The big picture: Border security has become a fierce political issue ahead of next year's elections and, arguably, President Joe Biden's most significant liability. Republicans have said they will not sign off on increased war aid for Ukraine without stronger border laws, including a return to some policies instituted by former President Donald Trump's administration. Biden has indicated he is willing to compromise, but Congress did not hammer out a deal before its holiday recess. Bipartisan Senate negotiations have reportedly restarted, but Speaker of the House Mike Johnson called on Biden to take executive action last week.
2) The Old Gray Lady vs. OpenAI
The New York Times has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft, alleging copyright infringement and intellectual property abuse.
The filing: The NYT says OpenAI -- whose chief investor and supplier is Microsoft -- used its content to inform ChatGPT and create large language models without compensation or permission. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The media company is seeking billions in actual and statutory demands for what it says was the unlawful copying of its property. The NYT acknowledged ChatGPT's potential in a statement, but that it should not be able to use its content for commercial purposes without permission.
The latest: This is not OpenAI's first rodeo regarding copyright-related legal battles. The artificial intelligence company has already been hit with several lawsuits. Acclaimed novelists Jonathan Franzen, John Grisham and George R.R. Martin have sued OpenAI, as has comedian Sarah Silverman. It also faces a proposed class-action lawsuit that alleges the company may have used over 100K non-fiction books to train its programs without permission.
Money talks: The Times' lawsuit argues OpenAI could negatively impact its business -- specifically mentioning web traffic and advertising revenue -- by illegally abusing its copyright and directing consumers elsewhere. ChatGPT licensing fees could potentially be a lifeline for the struggling media industry. OpenAI has already struck a deal with German publisher Axel Springer SE to use its content. That media company owns prominent outlets such as Bild, Business Insider and Politico.
3) Israel reiterates Gaza war may drag on
Israeli officials continue to say their war with Hamas in Gaza may continue for months despite international concern and pushback.
Blinken returning: The top U.S. diplomat will make another trip to Israel and other Middle Eastern countries next week. The trip will follow a meeting at the White House between Biden Administration officials and Ron Dermer, Israel's former U.S. Ambassador and a confidant of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Blinken is expected to again press Israel on transitioning the war to a lower-intensity conflict, even as Netanyahu and Herzi Halevi, Israel's top military chief, have said fighting could continue indefinitely. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel is fighting a multi-arena war.
Ceasefire push: French President Emmanuel Macron told Netanyahu that work toward a lasting ceasefire must occur, according to the French government. Macron also expressed concern over Gaza's civilian death tool and humanitarian aid crisis. Gaza's Hamas-controlled health ministry says over 21K have been killed in the enclave since the start of the war. Macron said France will work with Jordan on humanitarian operations in the enclave; he also asked Netanyahu to take steps to prevent violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
Other news: Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz suggested Israel is prepared to open a second front in Lebanon amid consistent attacks by Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militant group. The Israeli Defense Forces said they destroyed more Hamas tunnels in Gaza City. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan compared Netanyahu to Adolf Hitler and Israel's actions to the Holocaust; Netanyahu responded by accusing Erdogan of committing genocide against Kurdish people in the NATO member nation.
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Quick Tips
U.S. News
House Republicans have subpoenaed the White House for documents related to Hunter Biden refusing to sit for a closed-door deposition. The GOP says it wants to know if President Biden worked to obstruct his son’s cooperation (More)
Donald Trump will be allowed on Michigan’s GOP primary ballot. The state’s supreme court declined to hear an appeal on the 14th Amendment’s insurrection clause after Colorado removed the former president from its ballot pending appeal (More)
Florida Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick is the subject of a House ethics investigation. The Democratic legislator faces accusations of campaign finance and House rules violations (More)
World News
The White House sent a $250M military aid package to Ukraine. Officials have said it will be the final aid delivery for the Ukrainians until Congress passes a supplemental spending bill that will earmark $61B for Ukraine’s war against Russia (More)
Eiffel Tower workers have gone on strike, shuttering the landmark indefinitely. Paris officials will enter labor negotiations with the staff union; tourists can still access parts of the tower’s base, but cannot enter it (More)
China has threatened to impose new trade sanctions on Taiwan, roughly two weeks before the island nation’s elections. China has been accused of attempts at election interference with Taiwan’s pro-democracy ruling party leading polls (More)
Entertainment & Sports
Comedian and musician Tom Smothers died yesterday at 86. He hosted the boundary-pushing The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour with younger brother Dick, often clashing with CBS censors (More)
The Detroit Pistons will tie the NBA record for consecutive losses if they fall to the Celtics tonight in Boston. The Pistons are on a 27-game losing streak, the longest single-season skid ever; the Philadelphia 76ers previously lost 28 straight games over two seasons (More)
Lee Sun-kyun, who starred in the Oscar-winning film Parasite, was found dead in Seoul after an apparent suicide. The 48-year-old actor was reportedly under investigation for drug offenses (More)
Business & Markets
Major indexes all closed higher yesterday. The S&P 500 continued to march toward its record high while the Dow Jones jumped over 1100 points (Dow +0.30%, Nasdaq +0.16%, S&P 500 +0.14%).
Apple can sell all Apple Watch models again after a federal appeals court paused an import and sales ban. The tech giant is in a patent dispute over its two newest watch devices (More)
Aspen Skiing Co., which owns several Colorado resorts, has sued a British clothing company after influencers took photos wearing its apparel while at its facilities. The resort company alleges Perfect Moment tried to dupe consumers into believing the two entities had a relationship (More)
Tips & Tricks
Feel Good: Thomas Reid Jr. has lived in a Virginia log cabin without electricity and running water for decades. But Loudoun County officials and Habitat from Humanity have gifted the 78-year-old and his partner with a modern home built on land his family has owned since the end of the Civil War.
Sneak Peek: Director Todd Phillips has put two new photos from his upcoming Joker: Folie à Deux on social media. The pics depict Joaquin Phoenix's Joker in prison and show the character with Lady Gaga's Harley Quinn. The film, the second by Phillips about Batman's archnemesis, comes out next October. Phoenix won the Oscar for Best Actor for 2019's Joker.
Go Deep: There has been tremendous debate and speculation about third-party candidates in next year's presidential election, as we discussed in yesterday's newsletter. It has been over 30 years since the last major candidate outside of the two-party system, businessman H. Ross Perot in 1992, impacted a race. His rise — and the lessons it instructs — is now being reexamined.
List Season: Congress got little accomplished from a legislative standpoint this year. But it was pretty busy when it came to drama and scandal. So Politico has ranked the top-10 most bizarre Capitol Hill moments of 2023.
Be Safe: Whole Foods has recalled two types of frozen fish due to an undeclared allergen. The Amazon-owner grocery chain says its 365 label beer-battered pollock and cod fillets contain soy; the packages were on shelves between Sept. 8 and Dec. 22.
New Idea: Amblyopia -- commonly known as lazy eye -- is the leading cause of vision loss in children and also causes depth perception issues. The standard treatment is patching the strong eye to force the brain to rely on the weaker eye. That often works, but it is not a foolproof method. Researchers have a new idea: Virtual reality treatments that involve watching cartoons and shows like Sesame Street.
Life Hack: Christmas is over, so the clock is ticking on your real tree. What should you do with it? There are several ways to give your tree a second life once you are ready to move past the holidays. Here is a handy guide with some ideas and tips.
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Links
Dick Van Dyke recalls his brief opportunity to play James Bond.
… while Pierce Brosnan got ticketed at Yellowstone National Park.
These are the most and least expensive dog breeds in America.
Argentina’s new president just fired 5K government workers.
The hip workplace buzzwords that entered the lexicon in 2023.
Russell Wilson has been sent to the bench by the Denver Broncos.
… and Las Vegas is bracing for a record-setting wedding day on NYE.
George Santos says his car was broken into and he blames Eric Adams.
Looking Ahead …
Resurrection biology will be a significant scientific trend in 2024. While researchers hope to resurrect extinct species like the dodo bird eventually, the immediate focus is on attempting to bring strings of molecules and organisms back to life for more practical purposes, such as discovering new antibiotics and studying dormant viruses.