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Biden is trying to cancel student debt again... April 09, 2024 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( PRESENTED BY [Boka]( Good morning. That eclipse was pretty epic, right? Hope you savored the moment, because a total eclipse isn’t coming back to the US until 2044. Crazy to think that all the babies named “Totaliteigh” will be juniors in college by then. —Sam Klebanov, Cassandra Cassidy, Molly Liebergall, Abby Rubenstein, Neal Freyman MARKETS Nasdaq 16,253.96 +0.03% S&P 5,202.39 -0.04% Dow 38,892.80 -0.03% 10-Year 4.424% +4.6 bps Bitcoin $71,632.04 +3.27% Diamondback $206.57 +1.10% *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 9:00am ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: Like you, investors were a little [checked out]( yesterday, focusing on the eclipse or perhaps the fact that earnings season starts later this week, and stocks were relatively flat. Diamondback Energy hit an all-time high following several other energy companies that did so last week as oil prices surge.  EDUCATION [Student debt relief unveiled as college prices soar]( [Cancel student debt protesters]( Countess/Getty Images After months of all-nighters hashing out the details, President Biden submitted a new plan to make college loans a lighter lift for debt-holders. Up to 30 million Americans could benefit from the [measures]( announced yesterday, a redo of Biden’s previous student loan forgiveness attempt that the Supreme Court flunked last summer. What’s in the new plan? The initiative targets older borrowers and people saddled with debt from accrued interest. If the proposal makes it past the expected legal challenges, it will: - Cancel up to $20,000 in federal loan interest regardless of income, providing relief to millions of people whose debt exceeds the initial loan they took out. - Entirely forgive the debt of anyone who’s been making loan payments for more than 20 years. - Cut down loans for people who didn’t receive “sufficient financial value” from their studies due to specific education quality issues and people who may be eligible for loan forgiveness programs but haven’t applied. College…more like caviar The announcement comes as some of America’s most prestigious colleges are getting price tags steeper than the rock climbing walls at their bougie facilities. An academic year at institutions including Boston University, Dartmouth College, the University of Pennsylvania, and Harvey Mudd College will cost at least $90k this fall, and many expect it will soon cross the $100,000 mark at some schools. Though Biden’s debt relief efforts mainly help people who graduated years ago, current and incoming students worried about future debt can at least take comfort in knowing that most people don’t end up paying the sticker price for their education. - Need-based government grants, scholarships, and financial aid colleges offer often cover much of the cost. - Universities with stacked endowments are especially generous. Every Ivy League school [offers free tuition]( for families in the lower tax brackets. But…this year’s [bungled rollout]( of an updated FAFSA, the online system used to assess students’ financial needs, has made aid prospects even more nebulous than usual.—SK PRESENTED BY BOKA [Make this switch for your mind and body]( [Boka]( As detailed on the Huberman Lab podcast, your oral health has a direct impact on your mental and physical health. Maintaining a healthy oral microbiome is important, and Boka makes it easy. Boka is the [No. 1 toothpaste brand on Amazon]( and contains n-Ha, a scientifically proven ingredient that remineralizes teeth to support a healthy microbiome. n-Ha mimics your natural tooth composition to close holes in enamel that cause tooth sensitivity. Fluoride-free, non-toxic Boka toothpaste is [15% off your first purchase]( when you use code 15MBREWAPRIL by April 30. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#) [Jamie Dimon]The Washington Post/Getty Images Jamie Dimon is bearish on a soft landing but bullish on AI. In his annual letter to shareholders, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said yesterday that the odds interest rates return to the Fed’s target of 2% without triggering a recession are “a lot lower” than the 70%–80% chance that several markets seem to have priced in. Dimon said JPMorgan is [preparing]( for interest rates to possibly spike to 8% in the coming years, citing geopolitical risks, the green transition, and higher energy costs (but he’s notorious for having cautious outlooks). Artificial intelligence also topped Dimon’s list of pressing issues, and he’s “completely convinced” that AI’s impact will be “extraordinary”—maybe even as revolutionary as the printing press or the steam engine. Biggest chipmaker gets billions of dollars for new plants in AZ. President Joe Biden [said]( yesterday the government’s planning to give $11.6 billion in grants and loans to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.—the world’s top chipmaker—to support the construction of a third factory in Phoenix, Arizona (two were already planned). It’s one of the largest awards yet under the 2022 Chips and Science Act, a signature piece of legislation for Biden. Supporting domestic semiconductor production and jobs has been a key part of the president’s reelection efforts, especially in Arizona, which he only won by 10,000 votes in 2020. UConn goes back-to-back. The UConn men’s basketball team handled Purdue in last night’s NCAA title game 75–60 to become the [first repeat champions]( since the Florida Gators in 2006–2007. The Huskies made it look easy, beating their six opponents in the tournament by an average margin of 23.3 points; they’ve now won 12 straight tournament games by double digits going back to last year. On the women’s side, the TV ratings are in for the South Carolina–Iowa final: A massive 18.7 million people watched the game, the largest audience for a basketball game, college or pro, since 2019. TECH [Why Elon’s got beef with Brazil]( [Two boxing gloves, one with the X logo and one with the flag of Brazil]( Scialabba Brazil’s relationship with Elon Musk is experiencing a rapid unscheduled disassembly. On Sunday, the country opened an [investigation]( into Musk over alleged obstruction of justice because Musk defied a Brazilian Supreme Court order for X to shut down accounts that posted what it deemed antidemocratic content. The feud started in the typical way—with Musk saying things—and snowballed from there: - X’s global affairs team posted on Saturday that the Brazilian court ordered X to block certain far-right accounts but that it disagreed with the orders and would challenge them. - Musk then posted from his own account, “Content restrictions in Brazil have been removed,” and that it likely meant the company would lose all revenue there. He has since called on users in Brazil to download a VPN in case the country blocks the platform and posted that Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who issued the order, should resign or be impeached. How we got here: De Moraes is all about tackling [misinformation](. He called it “a singular threat to Latin America’s largest country” and previously threatened to shut down social media apps, like Facebook and Telegram, as part of a larger government crackdown. He’s faced pushback from tech companies before. Big picture: Musk claimed when he took over Twitter that it was to protect free speech…but Musk and X grudgingly complied with Turkey’s request last year to limit access to tweets that were critical of the Turkish government, and he has suspended journalists on X who are critical of him.—CC TOGETHER WITH UPWAY [Upway]( Ride into springtime savings. [Score up to $1k off a selection of e-bikes]( at Upway’s Spring Sale (plus an additional $100 off for Brew readers with code BREW2024) for the next 48 hours only. Upway is the #1 e-bike provider offering a wide range of top-tier brands. [Shop the Spring Sale](. CULTURE [You don’t need glasses for these eclipse pics]( Millions of people across North America put their obligations on hold yesterday to stare at the sky and remember how insignificant email typos are when we’re all just floating through space on a big rock. Celestial event enthusiasts flocked to the cities in the path of totality—handing as much as a $6 billion [boost]( to local economies. Airlines also ran [so many]( eclipse flights that a few airport tarmacs were briefly overrun with planes, causing some ground stops. Here are a few highlights from yesterday that’ll beat the pixelated shots you saw on everyone’s Instagram stories: [Solar eclipse over Colebrook, NH]Scott Eisen/Getty Images Sitting pretty in the path of totality, the ~2,000-person town of Colebrook, New Hampshire, was absolutely bustling yesterday for maybe the first time. This was peak darkness at around 3:30pm. [The Cleveland Guardians during the solar eclipse]Mike Lawrie/Getty Images The first pitch is shaking: In Ohio, the Cleveland Guardians kicked off their home opener against the Chicago White Sox by briefly swapping their pit vipers for eclipse goggles. [People look at the eclipse at the Edge at Hudson Yards]Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images Fresh off an earthquake but outside the path of totality, New Yorkers took to rooftops—like the Edge at Hudson Yards observation deck—to see the moon cover 89% of the sun.—ML GRAB BAG [Key performance indicators](#) [Janet Yellen drinking a beer in China]Pedro Pardo/Getty Images Quote: “She definitely eats Chinese food on a regular basis.” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen wrapped up her five-day trip to China yesterday, and while her tough economic talk made headlines, what the internet really cared about was [what she ate]( along the way. Chinese social media ate up a short video of Yellen digging into a meal, with a state TV station noting that she ordered authentic Cantonese dishes and handled her chopsticks deftly—something many Chinese [social media]( users also commended her for (with one Weibo user noting she was a “master” who must pick Chinese cuisine frequently). And while there’s no reason to believe she ingested magic mushrooms like on a previous trip, she did get a lot of attention for pounding a beer this time. Stat: Move over, town from Footloose, because Chechnya is going even harder. Last week, the Russian republic [banned]( music that’s too fast or too slow, decreeing that all music should fit into a tempo ranging from 80 to 116 beats per minute, Russian media reports. That’s slow enough that most Western pop and dance music will be outlawed by the conservative Muslim republic, which is giving artists until June to rewrite their music or stop performing it. For reference, that means Bobby McFerrin’s “Don’t Worry Be Happy” is too slow (69 bpm), Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” is too fast (119 bpm), and Radiohead’s “Creep” is just right (92 bpm). Read: The guy who made up “birds aren’t real” has found his next act. ([Slate]( NEWS [What else is brewing](#) - [Tesla]( settled a lawsuit brought by the family of an Apple engineer who died in a crash while using his car’s Autopilot feature. Details of the settlement, which was reached just as a trial was set to begin, were not made public. - [Blackstone]( is betting that property prices will go up by purchasing a trust that owns apartment buildings for $10 billion. - [Donald Trump]( said the decision about whether to permit abortion should be left up to individual states, after previously hinting he might back a federal ban. - [The Vatican]( called gender-affirming surgery and surrogacy threats to human dignity. - [Jonathan Majors]( the former Marvel actor who was convicted of assaulting a former girlfriend, will not serve time in jail but will have to attend a domestic violence prevention program. - [Morgan Wallen]( was arrested after allegedly throwing a chair from the top of a six-story Nashville bar. RECS [Tuesday To Do List] Travel tip: A ranking of the [best culinary experiences]( around the globe. Watch: An urban planning expert [answers questions]( about the housing market. Stuck in the middle: Find out the [most popular middle names]( from the decade you were born. Behold: Photos of places on Earth that [look fake](. Free Excel workshop: Learn everything you need to know about pivot tables and data visualization in [Miss Excel’s free 60-minute live workshop](. “I hate saving $2,000!” Said no MB reader ever. Save up to $2k on every flight for life with [Dollar Flight Club’s lifetime membership](. It’s only $129 (usually $1,690) [until midnight tonight]( *A message from our sponsor. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Brew Mini: Don’t be surprised to run into your ex while playing today’s Mini. [Dive in here](. Currency trivia Zimbabwe rolled out its [new currency]( the ZiG, in its sixth attempt since 2008 to establish a viable national currency that doesn’t become worthless due to hyperinflation. Let’s see how well you know your other national currencies. We’ll give you a country, and you have to name its national currency. - Japan - India - Brazil - El Salvador - Sweden - Vietnam - Vatican City SHARE THE BREW [Share Morning Brew]( with your friends, acquire free Brew swag, and then acquire more friends as a result of your fresh Brew swag. We’re saying we’ll give you free stuff and more friends if you share a link. One link. Your referral count: 0 [Click to Share]( Or copy & paste your referral link to others: [morningbrew.com/daily/r/?kid=4904f90a]( ANSWER 1. Yen 2. Indian rupee 3. Brazilian real 4. US dollar and bitcoin 5. Swedish krona 6. Vietnamese đồng 7. Euro Word of the Day Today’s Word of the Day is: nebulous, meaning “hazy or indistinct.” Thanks to Ellen Deckert from Fort Walton Beach, Florida, for the clear suggestion. Submit another [Word of the Day here](. Written by [Neal Freyman]( [Abigail Rubenstein]( Sam Klebanov, [Cassandra Cassidy]( and [Molly Liebergall]( Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. Take The Brew to work - Marketers: [Marketing Brew]( - Corporate: [CFO Brew](  [HR Brew]( - Tech: [IT Brew](  [Tech Brew]( - Retailers: [Retail Brew]( - Healthcare: [Healthcare Brew]( Get smarter in just 5 minutes - Money & Career: [Money With Katie](  [Bossy]( Interested in podcasts? - Check out ours [here]( [ADVERTISE]( // [CAREERS]( // [SHOP]( // [FAQ]( Update your email preferences or unsubscribe [here](. View our privacy policy [here](. Copyright © 2024 Morning Brew. All rights reserved. 22 W 19th St, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10011