☕ Rush to retire

What a rapper’s trial has to do with Donald Trump... November 28, 2023 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( PRESENTED BY [EnergyX]( Good morning. Yesterday, Merriam-Webster released its 2023 Word of the Year and, instead of going with something quirky like “zhuzh” or “amazeballs,” they chose “authentic.” The dictionary said authentic was consistently among its most-looked-up words in the year of ChatGPT-generated content, celebs trying to present their real selves through music or memoirs, and Outback trying to convince us the Bloomin’ Onion is Australian. —Molly Liebergall, Sam Klebanov, Cassandra Cassidy, Abby Rubenstein, Neal Freyman MARKETS Nasdaq 14,241.02 -0.07% S&P 4,550.43 -0.20% Dow 35,333.47 -0.16% 10-Year 4.391% -8.0 bps Bitcoin $37,151.66 -0.81% Shopify $73.79 +4.89% *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 4:00am ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: Like all of us coming back from the holiday weekend, stocks were [sluggish]( yesterday. But not Shopify which, also like all of us, capitalized on Black Friday deals. The e-commerce company hit its highest level since March 2022 after reporting that merchants using its platform made 22% more sales than last year on the big discount day.  LAW [The other big Georgia RICO trial has begun]( [Young Thug AKA Jeffery Lamar Williams appears in court]( Law&Crime Network via Youtube The trial of Atlanta rapper Young Thug finally began yesterday in Fulton County, Georgia, more than a year after District Attorney Fani Willis indicted the artist for allegedly leading a criminal street gang via his record label, YSL. The case could have big implications for the use of rap lyrics in court and…Donald Trump. Along with five codefendants, the rap icon, whose legal name is Jeffery Lamar Williams, is [charged]( with violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, participating in gang activity, and committing drug and firearm crimes. Williams has pleaded not guilty to all counts. Sound familiar? Trump and his codefendants are also facing RICO charges brought by Willis in Fulton County for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 election. Legal experts [are watching]( Williams’s trial to understand how Trump’s day in court could go. Here’s how Williams’s words could be used against him This month, the judge presiding over the YSL trial made the [controversial decision]( to allow prosecutors to use some Young Thug song lyrics, including, “I never killed anybody, but I got something to do with that body,” as evidence that Williams directed his alleged gang to commit murder and other felonies. Williams claims the lyrics are fictional. And critics believe introducing them as evidence is a racist violation of his freedoms of speech and expression since experts say rap lyrics are most often used against defendants of color. Defense attorneys for both Williams and Trump maintain that statements and behaviors from the accused—including in social media posts—are protected under the First Amendment. Williams’s lawyer sought to distinguish between Young Thug songs and Trump’s tweets, [arguing]( pretrial that, unlike the former president’s words, Williams’s lyrics did not incite violence. Big names on the docket: The YSL trial is expected to last up to a year and could call high-profile witnesses to the stand, including rappers Lil Wayne, T.I., and Killer Mike.—ML   PRESENTED BY ENERGYX [Lithium: The next gold rush]( [EnergyX]( Lithium is essential for batteries in electric cars, renewable energy storage, and even smartphones. That’s why demand for lithium is projected to grow 20x by 2040. So when [EnergyX]( revealed that their technology could extract 300% more lithium than traditional methods, investors everywhere took note—General Motors included. GM is the lead investor in EnergyX’s $50m funding round. And [you can join them](. That means you have the unique opportunity to get in on the ground floor of a company just as they’re set to unlock the US lithium supply. Don’t miss your chance: [Click here]( to become an EnergyX shareholder and transform the future of renewable energy. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#) [People wave flags and cheer as a second helicopter with Israeli hostages released earlier by Hamas lands.]Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images Israel and Hamas agreed to extend their cease-fire two more days. Yesterday, on what would have been the final day of the cease-fire, Israel and Hamas [decided]( to keep their truce in place for another two days, during which Hamas is expected to release an additional 20 hostages while Israel frees more Palestinian prisoners. So far, 69 of the 240 hostages Hamas captured in its Oct. 7 attack have been freed, including 11 women and children yesterday, and 117 people have been released from Israeli prisons. Though Israel says it remains dedicated to ending Hamas’s rule in Gaza, the extension has raised hopes for a longer break in the fighting that allows more aid into the area. Shein files to go public. You might be able to get a whole new kind of Shein haul soon, as the Chinese fast-fashion company has reportedly [filed confidential paperwork]( with US regulators for an IPO that could happen next year. The company known for all things cheap and trendy was most recently valued at $64 billion, but it might be seeking a valuation of as much as $90 billion when it goes public. Though Shein’s digital commerce game is on point, the company is not without liabilities: It’s been plagued by allegations of stealing designs and using questionable labor and environmental practices. Tesla can come get its license plates, Swedish court rules. Gird your meatballs because Elon Musk is coming for Sweden: Tesla filed lawsuits yesterday against Sweden’s transportation agency and its postal service after workers refused to deliver its license plates in solidarity with striking Tesla mechanics. And the carmaker quickly [scored a victory]( with a court ruling that the transportation agency, which has an exclusive deal with the postal service for its mail, must allow Tesla to pick up the plates directly from its offices within the next week. Tesla said the court’s decision will allow it to continue delivering new cars to Swedish customers. CLIMATE [UAE might be using UN climate conference for oil deals]( [COP28 president Sultan Al Jaber ]( Ryan Lim/Getty Images The Gulf country hosting COP28 this week reportedly wanted to kill two birds with one climate summit: advancing environmental goals and selling fossil fuels. COP28 President Sultan Al Jaber, who’s also the head of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), allegedly planned to propose [energy deals]( to international leaders involved in the UN conference, according to leaked docs seen by the Centre for Climate Reporting (CCR) and the BBC. His critics are flabbergasted by what seems to be a brazen conflict of interest. Saving the planet…and oil rigs The leaked briefing notes for Al Jaber’s pre-summit meetings with officials from at least 15 countries mention fossil fuel deals. The proposed talking points show that he might’ve planned to... - Tell China’s representative that Adnoc wants to expand its $15 billion natural gas partnership with the country. - Lobby Adnoc’s interests in Brazil and signal to Egypt that it can count on the company to keep supplying petrochemicals. CCR confirmed that Adnoc’s business was discussed with at least one country. COP28 staff deny any UAE oil industry influence on the summit. Zoom out: COP28 attendees will assess how far humanity is from hitting goals to slash carbon emissions. Organizers hope to boost the clean energy transition and create some consensus on the role of fossil fuels going forward, all while persuading rich countries to finance climate-change-related relief efforts.—SK   TOGETHER WITH BEAM [Beam]( Say goodbye to bad sleep. Invest in your rest and sip on something delicious before bed. Beam’s Dream Powder is a naturally sweetened, guilt-free treat that’s clinically shown to [improve sleep](. It’s made from all-natural ingredients, has zero sugar, and boasts fan-fave flavors like Sea Salt Caramel Dream. Shop Beam’s exclusive MB cyber sale [for 50% off](. GOVERNMENT [The rush to retire from Congress]( [GIF of Tim Robinson saying “I’m Done”]( I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson/Netflix via Giphy It turns out that many of our nation’s lawmakers are as exhausted by being a part of the chaos in Washington, DC, as we are reading about it. So far this month, 13 members of Congress have [announced]( that they will not be seeking another term, the highest number in over a decade, per Axios. Last month’s speaker of the House [saga]( sent lawmakers looking for exits like Hogwarts students after the Triwizard Tournament. - Many retiring lawmakers [cited dysfunction]( and lack of efficacy in governing as reasons for leaving their roles. - Of the 20 Democratic lawmakers leaving their House seats, nine are running for the Senate. It could shift the balance of power in 2025: Most departing lawmakers will likely be replaced by members of their own party, but a handful of seats could flip. Virginia Rep. Abigail Spanberger’s spot in the House seems poised to turn from blue to red, as does Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia’s seat. Quitting is just another way lawmakers are out of step with the public…in the year since the pandemic-fueled “Great Resignation,” workers over in the private sector have been [staying put]( forcing companies to adjust hiring plans and budgets, per the Wall Street Journal.—CC   GRAB BAG [Key performance indicators](#) [A pile of Amazon boxes]Francis Scialabba Stat: If seeing the Amazon van approaching gives you a thrill because you’ve ordered so much that you don’t remember what’s coming and it’s like a little surprise every time, you’re probably not alone. Last year, the company delivered [more packages]( to US homes than UPS, which it surpassed for the first time, and FedEx, which it has beat since 2020. Amazon expects to deliver even more boxes this year—it’s estimating 5.9 billion, up from last year’s 5.2 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal. But the US Postal Service still carries the most packages, in part because the OG handles hundreds of millions of parcels for UPS, FedEx, and Amazon. Quote: “I know I’m going to get expelled when this expulsion resolution goes to the floor. I’ve done the math over and over, and it doesn’t look really good.” Rep. George Santos, Congress’s biggest fan of Hermès and its top prevaricator, predicted during a three-hour X Spaces event in which he swore a lot and called himself the “Mary Magdalene of the United States Congress” that he’s [unlikely]( to keep his position when the House votes on his expulsion, which could happen this week. Given the federal indictments against him and the scathing House Ethics Committee report that says he spent donor cash on himself, it’s probably safe to believe him this time. If he’s correct, he’ll be the sixth member of Congress ever to be kicked out. Read: What will Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang do next after powering the AI revolution? ([The New Yorker]( NEWS [What else is brewing](#) - [A suspect]( has been arrested and charged with the shooting of three Palestinian college students in Burlington, VT, over the weekend, which is still being investigated as a possible hate crime. - [EU antitrust regulators]( raised concerns that Amazon’s $1.7 billion purchase of Roomba-maker iRobot could harm competition. The news sent iRobot’s stock plunging 17%—but that’s after it soared 36% over five days following reports that European regulators planned to grant unconditional approval. - [Elon Musk]( who recently caught flak for endorsing an antisemitic post on X, visited Israel and toured a kibbutz that was attacked by Hamas with the country’s prime minister. - [TikTok’s parent company]( Byte Dance, is laying off hundreds of people in its video game unit after failing to produce a hit game. - [Eli Lilly’s diabetes drug Mounjaro]( performed better for weight loss than Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic in a real-world study of overweight or obese adults. - [The Transportation Security Administration]( screened more than 2.9 million passengers on Sunday, making it the busiest day ever recorded at US airports. RECS [Tuesday To Do List] Go bigger: People are asking AI image generators to make things more…like this [spicy ramen]( that’s hotter than the sun. Tech tip: Here’s how to [save your old data]( before Google deletes unused accounts this week. Read: Paul Lynch’s [dystopian novel]( Prophet Song, won the Booker Prize (one judge called it “soul-shattering and true”). These [books]( were also considered. Give back: Why your Giving Tuesday donations matter [even more]( this year, and where the day [came from](. Get holiday glam ready. [Gift yourself]( luscious lashes (that look like extensions) with the mascara that has over 25k five-star reviews. [Brew readers save 20%]( *A message from our sponsor. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Brew Mini: Since today’s puzzle is named “Rival,” seize the opportunity to defeat Neal. His time: 59 seconds. [Play it here](. Charitable trivia As a Gen Zer would say, it’s giving Giving Tuesday. For today’s trivia, see how many of the top 10 US charities by revenue you can name. Getting all 10 is probably impossible, so give yourself full credit if you get five correct. 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 - Feeding America - United Way Worldwide - St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital - Salvation Army - Direct Relief - Good 360 - Goodwill Industries International - YMCA of the USA - Habitat for Humanity International - Americares [Source]( Word of the Day Today’s Word of the Day is: prevaricator, meaning “a person who tells lies.” Thanks to Ginny B. from New Jersey and several other truth-tellers for the suggestion. Submit another [Word of the Day here](. ✢ A Note From EnergyX This is a paid advertisement for EnergyX’s Regulation A+ Offering. Please read the offering circular at [(. Written by [Neal Freyman]( [Abigail Rubenstein]( [Molly Liebergall]( Sam Klebanov, and [Cassandra Cassidy]( Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. Get smarter in just 5 minutes - Money & Career: [Money With Katie](  [Raise](  [Bossy]( Business education without the BS - Programs in [Business Essentials]( [Analytics]( and [Leadership]( Interested in podcasts? - Check out ours [here]( [ADVERTISE]( // [CAREERS]( // [SHOP]( // [FAQ]( Update your email preferences or unsubscribe [here](. View our privacy policy [here](. Copyright © 2023 Morning Brew. All rights reserved. 22 W 19th St, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10011