Eyes on the Courts

[pixel-pools-e8bf71a]www.ozy.com [OZY]() Start your day smarter with a dossier on the most important world news, rounded off with a shot of intriguing and offbeat stories. Like the president, you deserve no less. Nov 12, 2021 TODAY A U.S. appeals court granted Ex-President Donald Trump a minor victory by temporarily preventing the congressional commission investigating the Jan. 6 riot from accessing Trump’s records. Meanwhile, Postmaster General DeJoy is in good cheer, optimistically forecasting smooth operations for the nation’s postal services, unlike the delays that plagued our mail service this past holiday season. As the Rittenhouse murder trial gears up for closing arguments on Monday, police began to prepare for the verdict, which increasingly appears could result in either a mistrial or an acquittal. In China, President Xi Jinping further cements his standing as one of the communist party’s most powerful leaders ever. All this and more in today’s Presidential Daily Brief. IMPORTANT 1 - Hot and Cold U.S. appeals court temporarily blocks Trump’s White House records Two days after a federal court ordered that ex-president Donald Trump’s records be handed over to the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot, an appeals court pumps the brakes. The lower court initially required the documents be handed over by Thursday, but the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington placed a hold on the order until after its scheduled hearing on November 30. The case will be considered by three randomly selected judges. This legal back-and-forth is likely to wind its way to the Supreme Court. (Source: [BBC]() 2 - Green Lights for the Holidays U.S. Postmaster General promises a smooth holiday season Postmaster DeJoy is optimistically approaching the holiday season, signally that the U.S. Postal Service is prepared for the surge of holiday packages and mail coming this December, unlike last year. The 2020 holiday season was a nightmare of backlogs and delays in shipping, partially due to the pandemic, staffing challenges and operational changes implemented under the Trump administration. “We were overwhelmed and were not able to meet the demands of the nation,” DeJoy admitted regarding the 2020 holiday disaster. But this year, he says “we are ready” for the peak season, even though the postal service doesn’t expect to reach its standard of 95% on-time delivery until the 2023 fiscal year. (Source: [NPR]() 3 - Rittenhouse Defense Rests Nation braces outcome of Kyle Rittenhouse’s contentious murder trial Kyle Rittenhouse: A patriot acting in self-defense or a vigilante murderer in over his head? This is the question posed to the nearly-all white jury in the Rittenhouse murder trial. His defense wrapped up two and a half days of testimony (compared to the prosecution's five days) and now all that’s left are the closing arguments before the jury deliberates. However, police forces across the nation are on alert, preparing for potential civil unrest in reaction to the looming verdict in the Kyle Rittenhouse case that is growing increasingly likely to be a mistrial or an acquittal. Rittenhouse injured Gaige Grosskreutz, 27, and fatally shot Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26, on a night of violent protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Rittenhouse is charged with first-degree intentional homicide, attempted first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide, reckless endangering, and illegal possession of a weapon by a person under 18. (Source: [AP](, [Daily Mail](, [WaPo]() 4 - Xi is a Big, Big Deal Chinese Communist Party elevates President Xi Jinping status The Chinese Communist Party passed a “historical resolution” yesterday, summarizing the party’s 100-year history and setting out a vision for its future. This is only the third historical resolution ever passed, the first two being under Chairman Mao Zedong in 1945 and under Deng Xiaoping, his successor, in 1981. Some see this elevation of Mr. Xi’s status as another step in his plan to reverse decades of decentralisation in China in favor of a more authoritarian government based on a so-called cult of personality. Xi is expected to seek a third term as president next year, which goes against informal party traditions. While the last two historical resolutions were used to signal a break in political vision, Xi is using this resolution to reaffirm the country’s direction. China has experienced astronomical growth in its economy, military, and international influence over the past few decades, and Xi Jinping intends to keep that growth going, no matter the cost. (Source: [BBC]() 5 - Briefly Here are some things you should know about today: Post Content: 22-year-old college student dies after sustaining injuries at Astroworld crowd surge, bringing death toll to nine. Bharti Shahani, who was only months away from graduation at Texas A&M University, died with her sister by her side, to whom she uttered her last words “Are you OK?” (Source: [AP]() American olympic gold medalist pepper-sprayed in racist attack in LA. Suni Lee revealed in an interview with PopSugar that she and a group of friends had been verbally assaulted and pepper-sprayed in a racist hate crime earlier in October. (Source: [PopSugar]() Biden and Xi Jinping set to meet in a virtual summit Monday. As tensions rise between the two international powerhouses, each country is looking for ways to channel animosity into “positive competition,” in the words of one Chinese official. (Source: [Reuters]() Watch Rep. Maxine Waters: As she discusses COVID, Trump, and Why American Racism Is 'Hard to Digest' INTRIGUING 1 - SpaceX Success Four astronauts land at the International Space Station From NASA’s Kennedy Space Center to the International Space Station, SpaceX’s Dragon capsule completed its 21-hour-long journey yesterday. The entire flight was automated, with commander Raja Chari and pilot Tom Marshburn poised to take control of the capsule should anything go awry. Kayla Barron and Matthias Maurer completed the crew, the four of whom will spend the next six months on the space station. During that time, they will host two groups of tourists: one from Russia in December and another from SpaceX in February. (Source: [AP]() 2 - ...Oh Deer It seems white-tailed deer have had a Covid pandemic too Scientists have found that 40% of white-tailed deer populations in the Northeast and Midwest U.S. have antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. This means that 40% of the population has had COVID-19. A similar study at Pennsylvania State University found that at least 30% of deer in Iowa were actively carrying Covid in 2020 — this figure had exploded to 80% in January 2021. While the virus doesn’t appear to make deer sick, it could still be bad news for humans as deer may end up acting as a ‘reservoir’ for Covid; this means that the virus could potentially mutate in the deer population and spread back to humans. However, scientists do not yet know if this is possible — stay tuned. (Source: [NPR]() 3 - Gatsby put to Shame Billionaire oil heiress Ivy Getty pulls out all the stops for her wedding Due to the wealth gained by his oil empire, Ivy Getty’s late great grandfather, J. Paul Getty, was once named the richest living American. It perhaps then comes as no surprise that Ivy Getty’s wedding ceremony was a testament to that wealth, with no expense spared. Getty and her photographer husband, Tobias Engel, were married on the steps of San Francisco’s City Hall in a ceremony that was officiated by U.S. Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi. Dressed in a gorgeous gray-lilac satin Maison Margiela gown, Anya Taylor-Joy, the breakout star of The Queen’s Gambit, was maid of honor. Other notable attendees included California Governor Gavin Newsom and pop sensation Olivia Rodrigo. (Source: [CNN]() 4 - Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is Avocados come under fire for their hefty carbon footprint Chefs around the world are taking avocados off the menu in favor of more ecologically friendly alternatives like beans and seeds. Avocados take up an inordinate amount of water in farming, requiring 60 gallons to grow a single fruit. Since they need to be transported a long way from the tropical climates where they are usually farmed, they require temperature-controlled, energy-intensive shipping containers to ensure they don’t go bad on the way to the grocery store. The global demand for avocados is so high that locals can’t afford the avocados being grown on their own farms. Anti-avocado chefs are hoping to start a global trend away from avocados, which would be great not just for the environment but also for our pocketbooks. Avocado toast is getting expensive, y’all. (Source: [TheHill]() 5 - Hayford Out Seattle University basketball coach Jim Hayford officially resigns Hayford, who has been at Seattle for four seasons, had been on paid administrative leave since last Friday for using a racial slur during a scrimmage. The school’s athletic director, Shaney Fink, released a statement saying that the school will take steps to ensure that players’ concerns about the basketball program are addressed. “It is clear to me that Coach Hayford is no longer able to effectively lead the team,” Fink wrote. Associate head coach Chris Victor will coach in the interim. (Source: [AP]() OZY COMMUNITY Grace and Gratitude As we enter the holiday season, we’d love to hear what you’re grateful for or what makes you smile. We’ll be sharing your thoughts in our Grace and Gratitude Corner. Here’s what one of our OZY Community members is learning about gratefulness: “Most of all I am grateful for learning how to be happy, joyful and at peace. Once you understand the simplicity of life is no more than choices. Every single minute of everyday is no more than choices. When you choose to be grateful and live in positive choices life becomes so much more fun.” - Betty What do you think? Want to share your thoughts on what makes you grateful this season in a 15-20 second video? Please share your video or email with us at OzyCommunity@Ozy.com. ABOUT OZY OZY is a diverse, global and forward-looking media and entertainment company focused on “the New and the Next.” OZY creates space for fresh perspectives and offers new takes on everything from news and culture to technology, business, learning and entertainment. [www.ozy.com]( / #OZY Welcome to the New + the Next! [OZY]() [TV]( | [PODCASTS]( | [NEWS]( | [FESTIVALS]( A Modern Media Company OZY Media, 800 West El Camino Mountain View, California 94040 This email was sent to {EMAIL} [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Read Online](