Good morning. It’s Saturday. Thank you for reading Morning Brief. Send me a line—Ivan Pentchoukov. |
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President-elect Donald Trump released a battery of appointments for his incoming administration on Friday evening, including the secretaries of treasury, housing, and labor. He also named picks for the CDC and FDA, two agencies key to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s plan to “Make America Healthy Again.”
- A New York judge has indefinitely delayed the sentencing in Trump’s business records case, raising questions about the future of the prosecution and whether a sentencing will take place.
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Former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) won’t return to the House of Representatives. Gaetz resigned from his current term as he was considered for the U.S. attorney general role. He won his reelection bid on Nov. 5, but it wasn’t clear if he’d return.
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Business activity in the United States surged in November to its highest level in nearly three years, bolstered by rising demand, easing inflation, and growing optimism about the incoming administration’s pro-business policies, according to a pair of consumer sentiment surveys released on Friday.
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In Jane Austen’s “Mansfield Park,” a quiet and passive heroine elevates the value of standing against the current to do what’s right. Story after the news.
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| Ivan Pentchoukov,
National Editor |
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Scott Bessent speaks at the National Conservative Conference in Washington on July 10, 2024. (Dominic Gwinn/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images) |
President-elect Donald Trump unveiled a flurry of nominees late on Friday: |
- Scott Bessent for secretary of the Treasury. Bessent, 62, is a Wall Street veteran and founder of international macro investment company Key Square Group. He served as an economic adviser to Trump’s 2024 campaign.
- Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Ore.) for secretary of Labor. Chavez-DeRemer, 56, is a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
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Scott Turner for secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Turner, an NFL veteran, worked during Trump’s first term, serving as the executive director of the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council to support distressed communities.
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Dr. Marty Makary to head the Food and Drug Administration. Makary, an outspoken critic of COVID-19 mandates, is a Johns Hopkins University professor and surgeon.
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Dr. Dave Weldon to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Weldon is a former congressman, physician with 40 years of experience, and an Army veteran.
- Dr. Janette Nesheiwat as the next surgeon general. Nesheiwat is a double board-certified medical doctor known for her work in preventive medicine, public health, and disaster relief.
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Sebastian Gorka, who served as a deputy assistant to the president in 2017, will reprise that role while also serving as counterterrorism director.
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Alex Wong, who served in the State Department during Trump’s first term, will be a deputy assistant to the president and serve as principal deputy national security advisor.
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Russell Vought, who led the Office of Management and Budget during Trump’s first term, will hold the same position in the new administration.
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- Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) conceded to his Republican opponent on Nov. 21, after weeks of maintaining that he could win a race called by news outlets on Nov. 7
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President-elect Donald Trump’s wife, Melania Trump, has selected her longtime aide, Hayley Harrison, as her chief of staff upon her return to the East Wing of the White House.
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Explainer: How Crypto Won the 2024 Election
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Four years after Oregon became the first state in the country to legalize the therapeutic use of psilocybin, the active compound inside the most popular form of psychedelic mushrooms, voters in an increasing number of cities are banning the substance. |
- Four cities that encompass rural and coastal towns and Portland suburbs approved prohibitions for psilocybin, a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, in the Nov. 5 election.
- Another dozen communities that passed two-year moratoriums in 2022 moved to make those restrictions permanent this year.
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Oregon is not the only state now rejecting measures to legalize certain psychedelics in the wake of the opioid and fentanyl epidemic.
Massachusetts voters rejected a ballot measure this year that would have legalized the growing and use of plant-based psychedelic drugs, such as mushrooms, in certain circumstances for residents aged 21 and older. (Full Story) More U.S. News |
- A high-ranking Mexican cartel member who faked his own death to live a life of luxury in southern California has been arrested and charged with drug trafficking and money laundering, the Justice Department said.
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Public schools in Texas now have the option to use a new elementary school curriculum with reading materials containing biblical stories.
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Congestion pricing took another step toward becoming a daily reality for New York City on Friday, as the Federal Highway Administration signaled its approval of the plan to charge a base toll of $9 for entering Manhattan below 60th Street.
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A blockbuster deal that would have combined DirecTV and Dish Network is off.
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The chairman of the House China Select Committee is calling for U.S. colleges to shut down joint institutes in China, after a blacklisted Chinese college sent over $3 million to the University of Minnesota. Watch ➞ |
The Department of Homeland Security blacklisted 29 more Chinese companies on Friday over the use of forced labor, bringing the total to 107.
The companies produced a wide range of goods, from foods to pharmaceuticals to gold and technology. |
- Since the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act went into effect in 2022, the United States has sought to eliminate forced labor from its supply chains.
- The law is named after the Uyghur Muslims of Xinjiang, a group that international investigations have found to be subjected to forced labor by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The group has also been targeted for persecution by the regime.
- The Xinjiang region is rich in resources, including metallic minerals and arable land. The majority of the companies blacklisted in the latest batch were in the agricultural sector and produced products, including tomato paste, walnuts, and raisins, sold wholesale.
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“Forced labor is a violation of basic human rights,” Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement. (Full Story) More world news: |
- The conflict in Ukraine has taken on “elements of a global nature,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Nov. 21 after Moscow fired an advanced hypersonic ballistic missile at Ukraine’s central-eastern city of Dnipro.
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South Korea’s national security adviser claims that Russia supplied North Korea with anti-air missiles and air defense gear in exchange for troops aiding Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
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A former NATO spokesperson has said members of the 32-nation bloc may need to spend 4 or 5 percent of their GDP on defense in the coming years, especially if the United States pulls back on its commitments under President-elect Donald Trump.
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A man washes carpets during the seventh annual Ouaouzguit Carpet Festival in Tazenakht, Morocco, on Nov. 21, 2024. (AFP via Getty Images) |
By Kevin Shelley
Why did the turkey cross the road? Because it was the chicken’s day off. Why should the rest of us cross the road? Because we probably need the exercise. |
- We are rapidly approaching the holiday season, that magical time of the year of eating more and exercising less than we should.
- Post-feast weight loss is another popular tradition many engage in. Though crossing the road can help, what we need is an organized exercise program to help us shed Thanksgiving-acquired pounds.
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My patients generally tolerate these exercises well. However, it’s always a good idea to confer with your medical provider to see if they are right for you.
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Fanny Price (Frances O’Connor), the heroine of “Mansfield Park.” (Miramax Films) |
Fanny Price, the heroine of Jane Austen’s “Mansfield Park,” seems the least likely candidate to inspire controversy over her merits as a heroine. Yet one of the most common objections to Fanny is that she seems too passive to be a true heroine. Other characters drive the novel’s action while Fanny often observes quietly from the outside or isn’t present at all. |
- Still, Fanny remains steadfast in her convictions. In fact, she’s the character with the most perceptive insights in the novel. Her steadfastness is what merits her the title of heroine.
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Although everything and everyone around her at times seem to be moving in the wrong direction, she remains where she ought to be.
- As we see, Fanny’s adherence to what is right only grows in intensity throughout the novel rather than changing direction.
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And while her meekness is often misunderstood as feebleness of character, the reader is offered the chance not to overlook her as so many of the other characters do. We can see in her a quiet tenacity that refuses to relinquish what she loves and what she knows to be right.
Read the full analysis of Fanny Price by our colleague Marlena Figge here. |
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Thanks for reading. Have a wonderful day. |
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