Monday, December 9, 2024

December 9, 2024

Good morning,

Welcome to the news for independent thinkers

Leading the News . . .

Assad's exit breaks Iran's sway in Syria but risks Islamist resurgence . . . The ouster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, after rebel forces swept into Damascus this weekend, shattered Iran's network of influence in the Middle East but Israel, the United States and Arab powers must now deal with the risk of instability and extremism from the mosaic of forces that replaces him. Chief among the rebel forces that ended 50 years of brutal dynastic rule by Assad and his father was Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a Sunni Muslim group previously affiliated with Al Qaeda that is designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the U.N. Reuters

Regime changes in countries like these never amount to anything good. It's either just as bad, or worse. Just ask the Shah of Iran.

The Who had it right . . .

ALSO . . .

Politics

Joe and Jill Biden awkwardly ignore a beaming Kamala Harris at the Kennedy Center Honors . . . Lame duck President Biden and first lady Jill Biden ignored a beaming Vice President Kamala Harris — who was applauding enthusiastically for the couple — as they entered the Kennedy Center Honors to a standing ovation, awkward video shows. The Bidens didn't greet or acknowledge Harris as they entered the 47th Kennedy Center Honors, even as they took a spot standing right next to the vice president her husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff. New York Post

Lara Trump leaves RNC amid Senate chatter . . . Lara Trump is stepping down as co-chair of the Republican National Committee, a role she has held since March, as some of Donald Trump's allies continue to push for her to replace Florida Sen. Marco Rubio on Capitol Hill. In announcing her resignation on X, Lara Trump, who is the president-elect's daughter-in-law, said "the job I came to do is now complete," touting the RNC's fundraising records, election integrity efforts and voter turnout. Politico

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will appoint Rubio's replacement. Trump invited him to the Army-Navy game this weekend and has floated his name as a possible pick for defense secretary if Hegseth falls. Now it all adds up.

Biden Is Ceding Presidential Influence to Trump, and Some Democrats Are Furious . . . The American tradition is that the nation has only one president at a time. Right now, that president looks like Donald Trump—because President Biden is ceding the spotlight. While Biden remained in Washington, it was the president-elect who met on Saturday in Paris with French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, who is lobbying Trump to continue wartime aid. Wall Street Journal

National Security

Trump says he wants deal for DACA amnesty, will also strive to end birthright citizenship . . . President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday revived the idea of an amnesty for illegal immigrant "Dreamers," saying the time has come to offer them more permanent protections in the U.S. Mr. Trump also said he is serious about a significant deportation effort that will initially target "criminals." In mixed families with someone in the country illegally, those with legal status must decide whether to join their deported relatives. In an interview with NBC News' "Meet the Press," Mr. Trump said he will attempt to end birthright citizenship. Washington Times

Curtain drawn back on Chinese Communist influence in New York politics . . . For years, Mr. John Chan has exerted influence over the city's ethnic Chinese communities . . . to help sway elections, all without drawing much attention. But lately, federal investigations into foreign influence efforts have swirled around city and state government in New York. Mayor Eric Adams has been charged with conspiring to accept illegal foreign campaign contributions from Turkey. The same prosecutors recently accused an aide to Gov. Kathy Hochul of serving the Chinese government by blocking Taiwanese officials from the governor's office. New York Times

Chan has allegedly been on a mission to put the lid on opposition to Xi Jinping.

International

Haiti gang kills 110 people accused of witchcraft . . . At least 110 mostly elderly people have been brutally murdered by gang members in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, according to a human rights group. The National Human Rights Defence Network said a local gang leader had targeted them after his son fell ill and subsequently died. The gang leader reportedly consulted a voodoo priest who blamed elderly locals practising "witchcraft" for the boy's mystery illness. BBC

Money

Apple Tops the List of Best-Managed Companies of 2024 . . . Tech companies hold six of the top 10 spots, while Mastercard jumped to fifth place from 24th last year. In the annual Management Top 250 ranking of America's best-run companies, with Apple unseating Microsoft at No. 1. Rounding out the top four are Nvidia, Microsoft—which came in at No. 1 the previous four years—and Intel. Wall Street Journal

You should also know

Manhunt for UnitedHealthcare CEO Killer Meets Surprise Obstacle: Sympathy for the Gunman . . . As they search for the man who assassinated a top health-insurance executive in Midtown Manhattan last week, authorities are contending with an unanticipated challenge: an outpouring of popular sympathy for the killer. From online forums and social media to the streets of Manhattan, people have been celebrating the suspect as a quasi-folk hero who struck a blow against a detested institution—the nation's for-profit healthcare system. Wall Street Journal

How Childhood Tragedy Shaped the Doctor Trump Picked for Surgeon General . . . At the age of 13, Dr. Janette Nesheiwat said she accidentally knocked over a box in a darkened room. A handgun went off, leaving her father dead. "Something fell out of it and there was a loud noise," she recounted to the police. "I saw blood on my father's ear." On the floor was a .380 caliber handgun that had fallen with the tackle box and discharged. The local newspaper said the police believed it was a "freak accident." New York Times

We are more German than anything else . . . The most detailed Census Bureau ancestry data consistently shows the most common ancestry in America is actually German. In the 1800s, Germany (or the bits of Europe that would more or less become Germany) sent the United States more immigrants than any other country by a fairly wide margin. If you account for the nation's population at the time, it's the largest wave of immigrants America has received from any country since we started keeping track in 1820. Washington Post

Second is Irish, third English, fourth is African American, and fifth is Mexican.

San Francisco 'Defund the police' activist begs for police help after everything she owned is stolen . . . When thieves made off with Darcie Bell's rented U-Haul truck, the San Francisco woman put out a call for help on X: "If you see a 26 foot uhaul truck with the Arizona plate AL50003- would you let me know because it had like everything I own on it." The post went viral, but not for the reason she hoped for. Bell spent years posting left-wing "Defund the police" views — and users across the site blasted and mocked the activist. New York Post

Guilty Pleasures

Trump turns photo of beaming first lady Jill Biden into a perfume sales pitch . . . President-elect Donald Trump smelled a business opportunity when the cameras caught first lady Jill Biden smiling at him during the grand reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. Mr. Trump posted a version of the photo on Truth Social with his brand of colognes and perfumes and the tagline: "A fragrance your enemies can't resist!" Washington Times