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Florida Braces For Major Hurricane

Florida Braces For Major Hurricane

Your unbiased daily news brief

James Kratch
September 25, 2024

Good Wednesday morning. We wish we knew this hack for grating cheese a long time ago. Have a great day!

In Today’s Brief

House: Contempt threat
Zelensky: Optimistic tone
Harris: Filibuster stance
FTX: Another jail sentence
Brett Favre: Health reveal

... and more

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Top Tips

1) Brewing storm

A major hurricane is bearing down on the Gulf Coast.

The news: Tropical Storm Helene was excpected to have reached Category 1 status by this morning, according to the National Hurricane Center. It should skirt past the west coast of Cuba and Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula today and keep barreling north while gaining strength.
Land fall: Helene will likely be a Category 3 hurricane when it hits Florida tomorrow night, according to meteorologists. Winds are projected to be at 115 MPH. The capital of Tallahassee is square in the storm's current path and coastal towns could see significant damage. Officials are warning of lengthy electricity and water outages. Federal and state level states of emergency have already been declared.
Into the weekend: The storm will weaken once over land, but it will likely bring heavy rains into Atlanta before heading into the Midwest and toward Chicago. The weather could potentially throw a wrench into the end of the Major League Baseball regular season; the Braves are set to host games this week that will impact the National League wild card race.

2) Trust busters

The Biden Admininistration has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Visa.

The news: Department of Justice officials allege the financial services giant has purposely stifled competition in the debit card market. The lawsuit claims Visa's actions have cost consumers and businesses in the billions of dollars.
Go deeper: The complaint alleges Visa penalizes banks and merchants that use third-party payment processing technology rather than its own. The company earns an incremental fee on every transaction processed on its network and controls about 60% of debits nationally each year, raking in over $7B in fees annually.
Big picture: Visa said the lawsuit is meritless and it will vigorously fight it; any form of defeat could be a significant blow to its business given the prevelence of potential rivals in the sector. It is the latest example of DOJ taking aim at major corporations it alleges are non-competitive "middlemen." The Biden Administration has also pursued legal remedies against Live Nation/Ticketmaster, RealPage and Google, among others.

3) Citizen's arrests?

A Haitian nonprofit group has filed criminal charges against the Republican presidential ticket.

The news: The Haitian Bridge Alliance, which works on behalf of immigrants from the Caribbean island nation, filed private citizen criminal charges yesterday in Ohio. They allege former President Donald Trump and Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance are responsible for the recent upheaval in the city of Springfield due to rhetoric they knew was false.
Specific claims: The group said Trump and Vance, who have amplified viral and widely-rebuked claims about Haitian migrants in Springfield and surrounding areas, are accountable for strains on the city's public resources and disruptions caused by bomb threats in the community. The complaint also accuses the candidates of aggravated menacing, telecommunications harassment and other offenses.
Big picture: The group said it filed the charges after local prosecutors declined to take action. A judge now must decide whether the group has standing under the state's law and if there is probable cause to issue arrest warrants. The group is arguing Trump is not protected under presidential immunity and Vance has not operated in his capacity as a member of Congress.

Quick Tips

U.S. News

House Republicans are moving to hold Secretary of State Antony Blinken in contempt of Congress. They allege he obstructed a 2021 investigation into the chaotic U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan; a full vote will likely come after the presidential election (More)
The son of former President Trump's alleged would-be assassin was arrested on child pornography charges. The material was discovered during a raid of Oran Routh's North Carolina home; the search is believed to have been connected to his father Ryan Wesley Routh's case (More)
New York City Schools Chancellor David Banks will retire at the end of the year. He is the fourth high-ranking member of embattled Mayor Eric Adams' administration to exit in recent weeks, but there is no indication he is under federal investigation (More)

World News

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his nation is "closer to peace than we think" in its war with Russia. He has continued calls for Western allies to give Ukraine more flexibility and support to fight the Kremlin during his ongoing U.S. visit (More)
President Joe Biden addressed the United Nations General Assembly for what is likely the final time. He defended the U.S. exit from Afghanistan and warned about the dangers of isolationism, among other comments (More)
Egypt sent its second arms shipment to Somalia in a month. Ethiopia is objecting to the move amid water supply feuds with both nations and its ties to the breakaway Somaliland region, generating new regional tensions (More)

Campaign News

Vice President Kamala Harris said she supports ending the Senate filibuster to pass abortion rights legislation. West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin said he will not endorse her presidential candidacy due to the comments against the 60-vote threshold; President Biden has supported the concept in the past (More)
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg is playing Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance as Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz prepares for next week's vice presidential debate. The event will be held next Tuesday in New York and hosted by CBS (More)
Harris has a 46-45 lead on former President Trump in North Carolina, according to an Elon University poll. Scandal-plagued Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson trails Democratic rival and state Attorney General Josh Stein by 14 points in the same survey (More)

Business & Markets

Major indexes closed higher yesterday. The Dow Jones and S&P 500 rose to new record highs (Dow +0.20%, Nasdaq+0.56%, S&P 500 +0.25%).
Former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison was sentenced to two years in prison and must forfeit $11B, a stiffer penalty than federal officials sought. The ex-girlfriend of disgraced cryptocurrency tycoon Sam Bankman-Fried was a key witness in the case against the ex-FTX CEO (More)
Coca-Cola bailed on its new "permanent" flavor after just six months. The "spiced" variation of the soda will be pulled from shelves; the company pledged it will be replaced with a new flavor next year (More)

Entertainment & Sports

NFL legend Brett Favre said he has Parkinson's disease. The 54-year-old Hall of Fame QB made the revelation during a House hearing on welfare reform; he is connected to a sprawling welfare fraud case in Mississippi but has not been criminally charged (More)
Cineplex will appeal a $29M fine for deceptive marketing practices in Canada. The movie theater chain said it was "shocked" by the ruling and expressed confidence it adhered to Canadian law with its ticket sales process (More)
Wheel of Fortune enjoyed its biggest season premiere week audience since 2019. An average of about 8.3M viewers watched the initial episodes of the game show with new host Ryan Seacrest; the former American Idol presenter replaced the recently-retired Pat Sajak (More)

Quick Hitters

Festive Stuff: Schmaltzy holiday movies produced by cable television networks have become integral to fall and winter. Here is a look at how the cultural phenomenon blossomed.
Take Note: Avoiding salt is not a magic trick to establish a balanced diet. Here are some dietician tips for using just the right amount.
Helping Hand: More and more "wind phones" are popping up to help people grieve late loved ones. They are rotary or push-button phones left unconnected inside booths in secluded areas, allowing people to feel connected to those they have lost.
New Idea: Risk-free bone marrow transplants may be possible. A team of Australian researchers has developed a method of creating lab-grown blood stem cells that are personalized to patients.
Life Hack: Your words can get you into trouble on vacation, even if you mean no harm. Avoid these travel taboos to help ensure you receive good service.

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