☕ Passing the torch

What happens next after Biden dropped out... July 22, 2024 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( PRESENTED BY [Monogram]( Good morning. If the timing of Biden’s announcement yesterday caught you off guard, you probably aren’t following @starheal on X. Ten days ago, the professional astrologer [predicted]( that if Biden were pressured to step down, it would be at the Capricorn Full Moon at 29° Capricorn, which is…July 21. That’s not all. Back in 2020, she wrote that Kamala Harris would run for president in 2024 because it coincides with her Saturn return. For the grand finale, Nick Castellanos [homered yesterday](. It was written in the stars. —Dave Lozo (Scorpio), Neal Freyman (Leo) MARKETS: YEAR-TO-DATE Nasdaq $17,726.94 +20.05% S&P $5,505.00 +16.07% Dow $40,287.53 +6.82% 10-Year 4.239% +29.3 bps Bitcoin $68,229.47 +61.43% Russell 2000 $2,184.35 +8.52% Data is provided by *Stock data as of market close. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: A vibe shift is rippling through Wall Street, with investors pulling money out of Big Tech stocks and [giving more love]( to smaller companies that had been ignored. The Nasdaq, which focuses on large tech firms, posted its worst week in three months, falling 3.65%. Meanwhile, the Russell 2000, an index that tracks small-cap stocks, gained 1.68% and is on track for its best month of the year. Whether this rotation has legs could be answered this week with the start of Big Tech earnings.  GOVERNMENT [Joe Biden drops out of presidential race]( [President Biden]( McNamee/Getty Images Joe Biden [announced]( he will not seek reelection on Sunday, ending weeks of speculation about his future following a disastrous presidential debate against Donald Trump nearly a month ago. “I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” the president said. The decision comes amid relentless pressure from Democratic leaders, political pundits, and the least popular Batman. Now the 81-year-old will do his best disgruntled Gen Z employee impression and quiet quit serve out his first and final term in the White House. Biden and numerous influential Dems—but not Barack Obama, who has stayed out of the nomination process since 2016—endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to receive the nomination when the Democratic National Convention takes place August 19–22 in Chicago. She is not, however, guaranteed to be the nominee. How will the nomination process work now? That’s a question with no definite answer, which is one of the real drawbacks of living through unprecedented and interesting times. Biden was the presumptive nominee and cruised through the primary process, leaving several possibilities for a path forward. - DNC Chair Jaime Harrison said [in a statement]( that the party will take a “transparent and orderly process to move forward” to choose the nominee, which could mean anything. - Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called on Democrats to use “neutral polling” to choose a candidate in order to better learn who has the best chance of defeating Trump. The initial news sounds mostly positive for Harris, who would become the first Black woman and first Asian American to lead the ticket of a major political party should she receive the nomination. Speculation is already rampant about [who she’d pick]( as her VP nominee. Legal challenges could be incoming: Republicans have contended that the Democrats changing their nominee would bring the matter to court in some states. On ABC’s The Week yesterday, Speaker Mike Johnson said, “Every state has its own system, and in some of these, it’s not possible to simply just switch out a candidate.” How will the markets react? Several investors who spoke to Reuters are expecting at least [some volatility]( now that Trump returning to the White House no longer appears to be a foregone conclusion and there remains uncertainty about who will be the new Democratic candidate.—DL PRESENTED BY MONOGRAM [Beyond Nasdaq…a new investment opportunity]( [Monogram]( [Monogram (Nasdaq: MGRM)]( known for its autonomous robotic surgical systems, executed a crowd-funded public offering and NASDAQ listing last year. Now, they have their sights set on a major new milestone. This year, they plan to file for FDA clearance to market their robotic surgery technology. In anticipation of this milestone, Monogram opened a new [investment opportunity]( to investors like you, the people who’ve helped them get here. The offering features preferred stock that pays an 8% dividend yield and the right to buy their publicly traded stock at a fixed price. Get all the details on how you can take advantage of this opportunity and find out about more potentially significant milestones [on their website](. Paid Advertisement. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#) [United States Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle looks on during a press conference at the Secret Service's Chicago Field Office]Kamil Krzaczynksi/AFP via Getty Images The Secret Service is in the hot seat. Director Kimberly Cheatle will [testify today]( before a House committee on her agency’s failure to prevent an assassination attempt on former President Trump during a rally in Pennsylvania on July 13. Congressional Republicans have been pushing for her to resign, and Speaker Mike Johnson pledged the hearing would be “must-see TV.” Over the weekend, the Secret Service reportedly admitted to [denying requests]( for additional personnel for Trump’s security team for two years, a 180 from a statement given shortly after the failed assassination. Requests were not made for the Butler, PA, rally. Bangladesh backs off of jobs quotas following deadly protests. The country’s Supreme Court [scaled back]( a quota system on government jobs after student-led protests resulted in clashes that led to the deaths of 139 people. Under the previous rule, 56% of government jobs were reserved for groups such as war veterans and their descendants, a system that university students said was unfair and restricted their opportunities. Now, due to the court order, just 7% of civil service jobs will be reserved for these groups. The quota policy was abolished in 2018 before it was reinstated this year, sparking the student protests that embroiled the country last week. MOVIES [One after the other, sequels are saving the summer]( [Still from Twisters]( Pictures One year after poor showings from a third Ant-Man, fifth Indiana Jones, and seventh Mission: Impossible signaled that sequels were killing the movie industry, sequels are back to save the movie industry. Twisters, the follow-up to 1996’s Twister, [grabbed an impressive $80.5 million]( at the North American box office this weekend, making it the latest summer sequel to find success and opening the door for a third Twisterses in the future. It’s more evidence that audiences are craving familiar storylines after Hollywood had its worst Memorial Day weekend in 43 years just two months ago. - Inside Out 2 has made $1.4 billion globally since its release in June, making it the second-highest-grossing animated film ever. - Despicable Me 4 has earned $574 million worldwide since it debuted three weeks ago. This trend is sure to continue this Friday, when Deadpool & Wolverine premieres. The third installment of the superhero saga has already set presales records. Sequels still have work to do: The domestic box office is still down 17% year over year, per Comscore. But there could be more help on the way. Gladiator 2, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (you can just call it Beetlejuice 2), and Joker 2 are among the sequels hoping the nostalgia formula still works later this year.—DL TOGETHER WITH FINANCEBUZZ [FinanceBuzz]( Annual percentage yields for high-yield savings accounts are currently reaching rarely seen highs. So what does that mean for you? If you don’t have your savings in a high-yield account right now, you could be missing out on earning practically free money every single month. [FinanceBuzz]( is even seeing banks allowing clients to earn up to 5.00% APY* (and even higher) on every dollar. [Read about which ones FinanceBuzz recommends](. STAT [Prime number](#) [A display screen showing information on flights reflects an error message amid global IT outage at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi on July 19, 2024]Money Sharma/AFP via Getty Images The massive IT outage that ruined the world’s weekend travel plans didn’t impact as many computers as you may have expected. On Saturday, Microsoft disclosed that the faulty software update from CrowdStrike affected [8.5 million Windows devices]( which is fewer than 1% of all Windows devices. But the companies using those devices are so crucial to the economy that the infinitesimal number was enough to devastate airports, hospitals, banks, and many other businesses fundamental to modern commerce. Issues persisted throughout the weekend, especially at airports, while global cyberdefense agencies warned about an uptick in phishing attacks exploiting the outage. CALENDAR [The week ahead](#) [Torch bearer Matthias Dandois, French Bicycle rider, poses for a photo with the Olympic Torch at Place du Trocadero with the Eiffel Tower in view]Maja Hitij/Getty Images Let the Paris Games begin: The opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics will take place [on the Seine]( on Friday, with organizers hoping the nearly four-hour visual feast will spur enthusiasm for the Olympics, which hasn’t been seen in quite some time. While certain people on your social media timeline are sure to spend two weeks portraying themselves as die-hard trampoline fans, US ratings have been down for recent Olympics, which have taken place during the heart of a pandemic and at inconvenient hours for American viewers. Some performers for the ceremony have yet to be announced, but it will be hard to top [Mr. Bean]( in London in 2012. Hungry for earnings reports? You’re about to [feast on them](. This week, about one-quarter of S&P 500 companies will release their Q2 financials, including *takes deep breath* Alphabet, Coca-Cola, Tesla, UPS, Visa, Chipotle, Comcast, GM, and Southwest Airlines. And if you have room for dessert (economic data), the government will release its first estimate of Q2 GDP on Thursday and an important inflation gauge on Friday. Trump headlines bitcoin conference. Former President Trump will deliver the keynote address at the Bitcoin Conference, which begins Thursday in Nashville, highlighting his recent love affair with the industry. He’s also holding a campaign fundraiser on the sidelines of the conference: The priciest ticket is $844,600 per person. Everything else… - Keanu Reeves wrote a book, and it’s coming out Tuesday. The collab with science fiction author China Miéville is about an 80,000-year-old warrior who can’t be killed but longs for death. - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will [address Congress]( on Thursday. Dozens of Democrats are planning to boycott his speech, and law enforcement will increase security around the area ahead of expected protests. - Comic-Con 2024 runs from Thursday through Sunday in San Diego. Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman will appear on a panel to hype up Friday’s release of Deadpool & Wolverine. NEWS [What else is brewing](#) - [At least two people]( have died in the US from a listeria outbreak connected to meat sliced at deli counters. The CDC says it is aware of 28 people who have been infected. [Here’s what to do]( with your deli meat. - [It’s not just President Biden]( Covid cases are on the rise this summer. - [Xander Schauffele]( won the British Open, his second golf major of the year. American golfers have swept all four majors this year for the first time since 1982. - [The WNBA All-Stars]( beat Team USA 117–109 in the final tuneup game before the national team heads to Paris. In related “Oh no, what’s going on with our national basketball team” news, the US men’s team [escaped]( with a one-point win over South Sudan, which entered the exhibition game as a 43-point underdog. - [Some overheated beverages]( on Southwest Airlines flights have been exploding mid-flight, causing injuries to nearly two dozen flight attendants. RECS [Monday to-do list image] Travel tip: If eating out solo when traveling, [try a bar seat](. Doc to watch: [Skywalkers on Netflix]( which charts the romance between two people who illegally scale tall buildings. Tech review: The viral [Swype vape phone](. Health check: How much drinking is [bad for you]( AI BFCM: [Register for Attentive’s webinar]( on Aug. 7 to see how their AI tools can help you save time, maximize resources, and drive better results around [Black Friday + Cyber Monday]( Cue the tumbleweeds: Offices are (literally) [emptier than ever](. Learn just how bad vacancies are and which city is getting hit the hardest [in this video]( sponsored by Meta.* *A message from our sponsor. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Turntable: Today’s Turntable should keep you occupied for a while, because there are an astounding 55 words hidden in the letter jumble. [Start your word-finding journey here](. Olympics swimming trivia More than half of athletes who have swum for the US Olympics team come from just eight universities, according to an Axios analysis. How many can you name? 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 Michigan, Indiana, Stanford, USC, Berkeley, Georgia, Florida, UT Austin Word of the Day Today’s Word of the Day is: infinitesimal, meaning “extremely small.” Thanks to Mary from Dallas for the little suggestion. Submit another [Word of the Day here](. ✢ A Note From Monogram This is neither an offer to sell, nor a solicitation to buy, any securities. A prospectus supplement and accompanying base prospectus for the Monogram Technologies Series D Preferred Stock offering have been filed with the SEC. Before making any investment, you are urged to read the prospectus supplement and accompanying base prospectus carefully and consult your own advisers for a more complete understanding of the issuer and the offering. ( ✳︎ A Note From FinanceBuzz *APY means annual percentage yield. Rates accurate as of 5/13/2024. Fees may reduce earnings. 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