New Bird Flu Prevention Measures

Good morning and happy Thursday. Forget about strange "Florida Man" stories. We now have a Florida Dog story: A puppy was born in Pensacola with a lime green coat. The aptly-named Shamrock's fur was tinted by biliverdin, a bile sometimes found in the wombs of mother dogs, and she will grow out of it relatively soon. Have a great day!

In Today’s Brief

• Campus protests: Johnson visits Columbia

• Germany: MEP payments probe

• Swing states: New polls tilt Trump

• Overtime pay: Revamped eligibility rules

• Reggie Bush: Gets Heisman Trophy back

... and more

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Top Tips

1) Moo, not flu

Federal officials are buckling down to prevent a bird flu debacle.

• What happened: The U.S. Department of Agriculture has instituted new rules impacting dairy cattle as it works to contain and track a growing Type A H5N1 outbreak. All lactating cattle must be tested for the virus before crossing state lines; testing was previously voluntary.

• The impetus: Inactivated remnants of the virus have been found in milk samples during processing and on store shelves. Bird flu was first detected in dairy cows last month; it has been found in about three dozen herds in eight states. Over 90M birds in commercial flocks have either died from the virus or been killed to prevent spread.

• Big picture: Only two humans (of 23 tested) have been infected in the U.S., and officials say the risk to humans remains low. The traces found in milk pose no known risk to people or national milk supplies. The virus does not appear to be changing itself to become more transmissible to people.

2) The clock is tikking

President Joe Biden signed off on the TikTok ban yesterday. Now what?

• The bill: ByteDance, the popular social media app's Chinese parent company, has one year to divest. If it cannot or will not find a new owner, the legislation says TikTok will be banned in the U.S. on national security grounds. Biden signed the bill after the Senate approved it Tuesday; the House passed it last weekend.

• Next steps: There will be many lawyers. TikTok has vowed to fight the bill, alleging a ban is unconstitutional and violates the First Amendment rights of the app's 170M users. ByteDance also denies it is controlled by the Chinese Communist Party or presents a security threat. The app will remain available in the interim and will be operational through November's presidential election.

• Big picture: Congress and the White House say the bill is constitutionally sound. But past government efforts to curtail TikTok have been shot down by the courts, including a 2020 executive order by former President Donald Trump (who now says the app should remain in place).

3) A bloody mess

Military horses ran wild in London yesterday after a parade practice went wrong.

• What happened: The animals were spooked by construction noises around 8:30 a.m. local time while the elite Household Cavalry was training near Buckingham Palace. Five horses then bolted, unseating four Army riders.

• The aftermath: The horses crashed into a bus and several cars. Paramedics took four people to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries -- three riders and a cyclist. All five horses were recovered, with a pair running five miles from the training site. At least two were hurt, but their injuries are not believed to be serious.

• Big picture: The Army thanked first responders; the police credited pedestrians for helping to calm and corral some of the horses. The exercises were in preparation for the annual Trooping the Colour event to celebrate King Charles' birthday.

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Quick Tips

U.S. News

• Speaker of the House Mike Johnson told pro-Palestinian protesters to "stop the nonsense" during a visit to Columbia University. Police arrested protesters at the University of Texas-Austin and USC as campus demonstrations continued nationwide (More)

• Arizona's House repealed a recently-reinstated 19th-century abortion ban. Three members of the Republican majority voted with Democrats; two GOP State Senate votes will be needed in the upper chamber (More)

• A fifth person has been charged in the double-murder of two women near the Kansas-Oklahoma border. The suspects are all associated with an anti-government religious group; the killings were allegedly tied to a custody dispute (More)

World News

• A European Parliament member is accused of taking payments from Russia and China. Maximilian Krah is the far-right Alternative for Germany party's top candidate in June's EU elections (More) 

• Flash floods have rocked almost half of Kenya with at least 32 people dead and two missing. The floods have impacted over 100K people and roads in the capital city of Nairobi were closed; the African nation has dealt with heavy rainfall for over a month (More)

• An American man faces a 12-year prison Turks and Caicos prison sentence for possessing hunting ammunition. Ryan Watson of Oklahoma said he accidentally left it in his luggage; guns and ammo are banned in the Caribbean nation (More)

Campaign News

• Former President Donald Trump leads President Biden in six of seven new swing state polls commissioned by Bloomberg and Morning Consult. Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appears to impact the candidates equally when included in the surveys (More)

• The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on whether Trump enjoys presidential immunity for conduct while in office. The decision will impact his federal election interference case (More)

• New Jersey Rep. Donald M. Payne Jr. died at 65, several weeks after suffering a heart attack. It is unclear if Gov. Phil Murphy will call a special election to fill the late Democrat's seat (More)

Business & Markets

• Major indexes closed mixed yesterday as there was little change across the board (Dow -0.11%, Nasdaq +0.10%, S&P 500 +0.02%).

• The Biden Administration expanded overtime pay laws; they now cover about 4M additional workers. Salaried workers who make less than just under $59K annually are now eligible; the previous threshold was about $36K (More)

• Former President Trump's social media company alleges illegal activities are depressing its share price. Truth Social has asked several House committees to investigate improper short-selling (More)

Entertainment & Sports

• Reggie Bush will get his 2005 Heisman Trophy back. The former USC star forfeited the award due to a pay-for-play scandal that led to major NCAA sanctions; The Heisman Trust said it reevaluated the decision in light of current NIL rules (More)

• Steve Carell and Tina Fey have signed on to an upcoming Netflix comedy series. The Four Seasons will be an adaptation of a 1981 film starring Alan Alda and Carol Burnett (More)

• The NFL draft starts tonight in Detroit. USC QB Caleb Williams is expected to go No. 1 overall to the Chicago Bears; the event is seven rounds over three days (More)

Quick Hitters

• Feel Good: Crayola began collecting children's artwork 40 years ago for gallery and museum displays worldwide. The art supplies company is now reuniting creators with their work decades later.

• Take Note: Do you want to make something happen in your life? A persuasion expert says there is one word that makes people 30% more likely to change their minds.

• Deep Dive: Many have dumped cable television in favor of streaming services. A select group then constantly subscribes and unsubscribes from these services to get the most bang for their buck.

• Go Green: Each person in the U.S. throws away an average of 350 pounds worth of edible food each year. Here are 10 ways to waste less and help the planet in the process.

• Life Hack: Everyone wants to get a good night's sleep. These key tips will allow you to get better rest.

• OPTIMIZE ME: Researchers “found convincing evidence that higher intake of ultra-processed foods was associated with 50% increased risk of cardiovascular disease-related death, a 48% to 53% higher risk of anxiety and common mental disorders, and a 12% greater risk of type 2 diabetes”

Want more health and wellness news? Subscribe to our brand new newsletter, Optimize Me, and start living a healthier life through diet, exercise, sleep, and mindfulness:

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Looking Ahead …

Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao will be sentenced next week after pleading guilty to money laundering. The Department of Justice is seeking three years in prison for the disgraced cryptocurrency mogul, arguing the severity of his crimes makes a sentence double the current guidelines a necessity.

Question of the Day

Yesterday’s results:

Have you ever been subject to a noncompete agreement?

• No (65%)

• Yes (35%)