Tip News
Posts
George Santos Faces The Music

George Santos Faces The Music

Your unbiased daily news brief

James Kratch
August 20, 2024

Good Tuesday morning. At least 200 people and places claim to possess the Holy Grail, and that is just in Europe alone. Where is Indiana Jones when you need him? Have a great day!

In Today’s Brief

House: Inquiry report
South China Sea: New tensions
Biden: Convention speech
7-Eleven: Takeover bid
Live Nation: Lawsuit expands

... and more

First time reading? Sign up here

Top Tips

1) Fessing up

Disgraced former New York Rep. George Santos pleaded guilty to two felony charges yesterday, avoiding a criminal trial set to begin next month.

The news: Santos initially faced 23 fraud charges, but only copped to aggravated identity theft and wire fraud after reaching a plea deal with federal prosecutors. The former carries a minimum two-year sentence; federal guidelines suggest Santos will receive about 6-7 years in prison.
Catch up: Santos was the first openly gay Republican elected to Congress after flipping New York's 3rd District in 2022. He was then exposed as a serial fabulist before being hit with federal charges. Santos was expelled from the House last year following a scathing Ethics Committee report.
Big picture: Santos apologized and conceded "unethical and guilty" actions in open court. Prosecutors said he admitted to a myriad of crimes, including false campaign finance reports, misleading and stealing from donors and fraudulent unemployment claims. Santos also faces over $500K in fines and forfeitures.

2) Disaster at sea

A British tycoon and two Americans were reportedly missing after a yacht disaster off the coast of Italy.

What happened: The Bayesian, a 184-foot-long luxury ship, sank during a violent storm near Sicily. The ship was anchored, but a waterspout apparently snapped its mast in half. There were 22 people on board -- 12 passengers and 10crew members. Fifteen people were rescued by a nearby Dutch vessel. One person was found dead and six were missing as of last night.
The missing: Mike Lynch, a billionaire tech magnate recently acquitted in a U.S. fraud trial, is among the missing. His daughter was also unaccounted for while his wife was a confirmed survivor. Italian media reported two Americans were missing, but U.S. officials had not confirmed that. The other missing people were reportedly Canadian.
Next steps: Eight people were hospitalized; a 1-year-old child was among the survivors. The ship sank to a depth of about 160 feet. Divers have reportedly observed bodies inside the boat's wreckage, but had not yet been able to recover them.

3) Phil Donahue: 1936-2024

The journalist and talk show host died Sunday night at 88 after a long illness.

A pioneer: Donahue worked in radio and television news before launching The Phil Donahue Show in 1967. The program, which started on local television in Dayton, Ohio, is credited with creating the modern format of issues-based talk shows with audience participation.
Going national: The show, eventually titled Donahue, was eventually syndicated before moving to Chicago and then New York. Donahue focused on provocative topics and had a 29-year-run, ending the show in 1996. He also contributed to The Today Show and co-hosted a Cold War-era series that sought to foster understanding between the U.S. and SovietUnion.
Later years: Donahue returned to television with a short-lived MSNBC primetime show in 2002-03; it was canceledamid his opposition to the war in Iraq. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom last year. Donahue was married to actress Marlo Thomas for 44 years.

In partnership with Surfshark

Protect yourself from a data breach

The best defense is a good offense, especially regarding your digital safety.

Identifying online threats before they become a problem is more important than ever. If you want to safeguard yourself from viruses or browse ad-free without being tracked, Surfshark has you covered.

Surfshark Alert performs real-time credit & ID alerts, delivers instant email data breach notifications and provides regular personal data security reports to keep you safe from threats before they happen. And you can get 80% off if you sign up now.

Protect yourself. Get Surfshark.

Please support our sponsors!

Quick Tips

U.S. News

House Republicans accused President Joe Biden of "impeachable offenses" in a long-awaited report. The lengthy investigation is not expected to go further; the GOP does not appear to have the votes to impeach (More)
A Wisconsin woman received an 11-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to reckless homicide of an alleged sex trafficker. The agreement allows Chrystul Kizer to avoid a potential life sentence; she had argued she was legally permitted to kill Randall Volar because he repeatedly abused her (More)
East Palestine, Ohio, residents are challenging a $600M settlement following the 2023 train derailment near the town. They allege Norfolk Southern colluded with the Department of Justice and withheld critical data (More)

World News

Chinese and Philippine coast guard ships collided in the South China Sea, reigniting tensions in the disputed area. It is the latest of several recent confrontations between the countries; no injuries were reported (More)
Ukraine damaged a third bridge in Russia's Kursk region. President Volodymyr Zelensky said the surprise incursion aims to create a buffer zone and hamper the Kremlin's warmaking capacity (More)
Two top drug traffickers tied wanted by the U.S. were murdered in Mexico. Brothers Martin and Leobardo Garcia Corrales had ties to jailed Sinaloa Cartel co-founder Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada (More)

Campaign News

President Biden delivered the headline speech for the opening night of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, drawing a lengthy ovation. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also addressed the party; Vice President Kamala Harris made brief remarks (More)
A Democratic super PAC founder said public polls are painting a "rosy" picture of Harris' position. Future Forward President Chauncey McLean said private surveys show tight races in key states despite her campaign momentum (More)
Former Virginia Rep. Barbara Comstock, a Republican, endorsed Harris. The longtime critic of former President Donald Trump said he is a threat to democracy; she did not vote for him in 2016 or 2020 (More)

Business & Markets

Major indexes closed higher yesterday. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 each posted winning sessions for the eighth straight day (Dow +0.58%, Nasdaq +1.39%, S&P 500 +0.97%).
7-Eleven's Japanese parent company has received a $38B takeover offer from a Canadian convenience store giant. Circle K owner Alimentation Couche-Tard would double its North American holdings to over 20K stores with a deal (More)
General Motors laid off over 1K salaried services and software employees in a streamlining effort. The workforce reduction is about 1.3% of the automaker's global salaried headcount; about 600 jobs were lost at a Detroit-area tech campus (More)

Entertainment & Sports

Ten more states joined a federal antitrust lawsuit seeking to break up Live Nation-Ticketmaster. The Department of Justice alleges the company has an illegal monopoly on the live entertainment industry; Washington D.C. and 39 states are now co-plaintiffs (More)
Former President Trump falsely claimed a Taylor Swift endorsement on social media. The Truth Social post included artificial intelligence-generated images of Swift and women wearing "Swifties for Trump" shirts (More)
Ohio State has a nation-leading four players on the Associated Press preseason All-America college football team. Georgia and reigning national champion Michigan each had three players named to the team (More)

Quick Hitters

Feel Good: A Florida woman began painting rocks to cope with anxiety following a hurricane. A friend noticed, and it has now become a movement to inspire.
Take Note: Infectious diseases spike when kids go back to school. Here is what parents -- and everyone else -- can do to safeguard their health now that classes are back in session.
Go Deep: What is the hottest temperature that human beings can survive? Scientists are utilizing climate chambers to find out as the world gets warmer.
Interesting Approach: A British woman cured her fear of rejection by completing a series of wacky public challenges. Among them: Asking people to take items out of their grocery cart and walking into a lake while fully clothed.
Life Hack: Walking is an excellent form of exercise. But if you want to get a bit more from your workout, here are some ways to increase your stroll's intensity.
Be Smart: Do not wait until your digital safety is compromised to take action. Be proactive about online security and protect yourself with Surfshark.*

* — sponsored This

Watch This

How the CIA once stole a Russian submarine.