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☆ Red Lobster brought seafood to the masses. Now it’s on the verge of bankruptcy
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

While it was a delicious deal for customers, it was terrible for the company: Red Lobster lost $3.3 million in seven weeks. The deal was once again too popular, and Red Lobster was unprepared for its customers’ insatiable lust for discounted shellfish. Red Lobster is now reportedly considering filing for bankruptcy protection to restructure its debt and shed some of its 650 US locations. Red Lobster stallsBut Red Lobster fell behind its sister brand Olive Garden under Darden. In 2021 and 2022, Red Lobster brought on a new CEO, chief marketing officer, chief financial officer and chief information officer.

Persons: Lobster, “, ”, John Gordon, Michael Nagle, Alex Susskind, General Mills, Bill Darden, Charley Woodsby, Darden, ” Woodsby, Jonathan Maze, Betty Crocker, Red, Glen Martin, Mills, ” Joe Lee, Olive, Red Lobster’s, “ Darden, ” Les Foreman, Justin Sullivan, they’ve, Les Foreman, Thiraphong Chansiri, ” “, ” Chansiri Organizations: New, New York CNN, Lobster, Thai Union, Bloomberg, Getty, Red Lobster, CNN, Cornell University, Baby Boomers, General, Howard, Restaurant Business, Darden, Denver Post, Harvard Business School, Longhorn, Darden Restaurants, Gate, ‘, Thai, “, ” Thai Locations: New York, United States, Bangkok, Thai, underinvestment, Lakeland , Florida, Orlando, America, Olive, Sale, Thai Union, Thailand

☆ Biden cannot afford a boiling summer of protest
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —President Joe Biden can ill afford a long, hot summer of protest that comes to a boil in time for the Democratic National Convention in August and then bleeds into the final weeks of an already venomous clash with Donald Trump. The nationwide campus protests are not as pervasive as mass civil rights and anti-Vietnam War protests that raged in the 1960s and 1970s. This has been especially testing for Biden — a staunch supporter of Israel dating back to 1970s Prime Minister Golda Meir. More than 3 million Americans served in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. This may also help explain why Biden had not addressed the campus protests in detail before Thursday.

Persons: Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Biden, “, ” Biden, ”, Trump’s, Trump, James Traub, Hubert Humphrey, Biden “, ” Traub, Isa Soares, Traub, He’s, Mary McGrory, that’s, Biden’s, afer, Biden —, Golda Meir, he’d, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, Sen, Bernie Sanders, Lyndon Johnson, LBJ, …, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, ” Sanders, can’t, Netanyahu, shelve, Sanders Organizations: CNN, Democratic National Convention, White, Foreign, Democratic, CNN International, Republicans, Trump, Electoral, Gaza Health Ministry, American, National Guard Locations: Gaza, Vietnam, America, Israel, Vermont, Gazan, Rafah, Southeast Asia

☆ Nicola Peltz Beckham's directorial debut is being slammed by critics who are calling it 'poverty porn'
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-16 | by ( Olivia Singh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Nicola Peltz Beckham wrote, directed, and stars in the indie film "Lola" about a teen living in poverty. Peltz Beckham is the daughter of billionaire Nelson Peltz and is married to Brooklyn Beckham. AdvertisementNicola Peltz Beckham's directorial debut about a teen struggling to make ends meet in middle America is getting lambasted by critics. AdvertisementBrooklyn Beckham and Nicola Peltz Beckham have been married since 2022. Business Insider reached out to Peltz Beckham and the film's distributor Vertical Entertainment, but did not receive a response.

Persons: Nicola Peltz Beckham, Peltz Beckham, Nelson Peltz, Brooklyn Beckham, —, Nicola Peltz Beckham's, Lola, Lola James, Arlo, Luke David Blumm, Peltz, She's, David, Victoria Beckham's, Serena Williams, Kevin Winter, who's, Bates, WWD, Babina, Raven Goodwin, Angela, Will Peltz, Brooklyn, Kady Ruth Ashcraft, it's, Ashcraft, Andrew Burton Organizations: Service, Brooklyn, Anonymous, The Guardian, Spectrum, Business, Entertainment Locations: America, Palm Beach

☆ Nicola Peltz Beckham, a billionaire's daughter, made an indie film where she plays a poor stripper. It didn't go well.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-16 | by ( Olivia Singh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Nicola Peltz Beckham wrote, directed, and stars in the indie film "Lola" about a teen living in poverty. Peltz Beckham is the daughter of billionaire Nelson Peltz and is married to Brooklyn Beckham. AdvertisementNicola Peltz Beckham's directorial debut about a teen struggling to make ends meet in middle America is getting lambasted by critics. "Lola," released in limited theaters on February 9, is written and directed by Peltz Beckham, who plays the titular character. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: Nicola Peltz Beckham, Peltz Beckham, Nelson Peltz, Brooklyn Beckham, —, Nicola Peltz Beckham's, Lola, Lola James, Arlo, Luke David Blumm Organizations: Service, Business Locations: America

☆ Who's going to pay $50 a month for a sports streamer that doesn't have all the sports?
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Peter Kafka | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

What we still don't know: Why would someone pay $50 a month for this? AdvertisementAfter all, if you like paying for streaming TV, you can pay $73 a month for YouTube TV. So, again: If you're a big enough sports fan that you want to pay for streaming TV, don't you also want all of the sports on streaming TV? And, yes: Spending $50 a month on something instead of $73 a month on something is meaningfully cheaper. Now he's asking them to pay an extra $50 a month — and not get everything they want.

Persons: Lachlan Murdoch, it's, —, Here's, Murdoch, Brendan McDermid, they're, They're, he'll Organizations: Service, Fox Corp, Disney, Warner Bros, Comcast, YouTube, REUTERS, NFL, CBS, league's AFC, NBC, Amazon, Media Locations: America

☆ Meet the 'forgotten middle' of Americans over 75 about to face a rocky retirement
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The 'Forgotten Middle' group might face difficulties affording necessary housing and care. AdvertisementA crisis is ballooning for middle Americans of retirement age. ”They focused on the potentially bleak financial futures of what they term the "Forgotten Middle." AdvertisementThat “Forgotten Middle” group is only expected to get bigger and more diverse. A University of Southern California and Columbia University analysis found that homeownership rates for lower-income “Forgotten Middle” Americans have fallen by 31% from 1994 to 2018.

Persons: —, ” Sarah Rayel, they’re, ” Rayel, There’s, Sen, John Hickenlooper, won’t Organizations: Service, University of Chicago, Health, University of Michigan, Medicaid, University of Southern, Columbia University, Consumer Finances, National Council, Aging, AARP, Democrat, Savings Locations: NORC, University of Southern California, Colorado

Fran Horowitz, Abercrombie & Fitch CEO: The future of retail is small, efficient, omni stores, and they're located where the customer tells us. I get really, really excited about what this means in the operations of the business, using predictive analytics to help us forecast demand. They're worldwide, a zillion stores, and their operations and execution, aside from their merchandising, I think they're always on top of the game. I think you're going to see an interaction with someone in a setting that doesn't look like retail, but looks like a fantastic experience. Nicholas of Sam's Club: Another retail standard that is really going to be important beyond the customer is energy.

Persons: Christina Locopo, Fran Horowitz, Abercrombie, Patrick MacLeod, WWD, Michelle Gass, Levi Strauss, they're, Jens Grede, Geoffroy van Raemdonck, Neiman Marcus, there'll, Trina, Patrick T, Fallon, Chris Nicholas, Kara Trent, Levi's Gass, Tom Ward, Erin Black, CNBC Abercrombie's Horowitz, Marc Lore, Mickey Drexler, TikTok, Adam Jeffery, Dave Kimbell, It's, Scott Mlyn, CNBC Neiman's van, you've, Yael Cosset, —, Ulta's, Arturo Holmes, Trent, That's, we've, Kroger's, Abercrombie's Horowitz, I've, Dia Dipasupil, Neiman's van, who's, Lulu, Drexler, Armour's, Dior, Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Armour Levi's Gass, Emma Grede, Kardashian, Kim, Geoffroy van Raemdonck Patrick Mckleod, Nicholas of Organizations: CNBC, Abercrombie, Fitch, Abercrombie & Fitch Co, Penske Media, Getty, Milken Institute Global Conference, AFP, Sam's, Technology, Walmart U.S, Walmart, New York Times, Navy, WWD, Young, Nike, TJX, Zara, Armour's Trent, Americas, Nicholas of Sam's, Sam's Club Locations: they're, Beverly Hills , California, New York City, America, New York, U.S, Skims, Inditex, Kara, Walmart's

The firm upgraded shares to neutral from sell in a Wednesday note, and slightly increased its target price to $5.50 from $5. The firm upgraded the offshore drilling company to overweight from equal weight in a Thursday note and raised its price target to $106 from $84. The bank reiterated a buy rating on Disney with a $120 per share price target, or about 42% upside from Wednesday's $84.50 close. Bank of America's Jessica Reif Ehrlich also reiterated a buy rating on Disney, albeit with a $110 per share price target, which implies more than 30% upside. The bank initiated coverage of the electric vehicle giant with a reduce rating accompanied by a $146 per share price target.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Ygal Arounian, — Brian Evans, Bud Light, Carlos Laboy, BUD, Brian Evans, EBITDA, Stephanie Yee, Parker, Banks, Parker Hannifin, Nicole DeBlase, Eddie Kim, Brett Feldman, Bank of America's Jessica Reif Ehrlich, Bob Iger's, Michael Montani, Greg Melich, — Fred Imbert, Tesla, Michael Tyndall Organizations: CNBC, Tesla, HSBC, ISI, Analysts, Citi, Anheuser, Busch InBev HSBC, Busch InBev, Middle America, InBev, BUD, JPMorgan, Montrose Environmental, Deutsche Bank, Barclays, Disney, Bank of America's Locations: China, U.S, North America, Montrose, 3Q23, EBITDA, Valaris

LONDON/COPENHAGEN, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Global brewers AB InBev (ABI.BR) and Carlsberg (CARLb.CO) this week played down concerns among some investors that demand for weight-loss drugs may lead to a sharp drop in beer drinking. But AB InBev Chief Executive Michel Doukeris likened the concerns to others, such as how cannabis could disrupt various sectors, which he said were often short-lived. Some clinical trials on rodents have found treatment with GLP-1 agonists reduces alcohol consumption, eases symptoms of alcohol withdrawal and more. AB InBev has a big U.S. business, but earns more revenue in the Middle Americas and has a large footprint in countries like Brazil. Such emerging markets often have lower obesity rates, while weight-loss drugs are unlikely to be available or affordable there any time soon.

Persons: Nordisk's Wegovy, Michel Doukeris, Jacob Aarup, Andersen, Moritz Kronenberger, Janus Henderson, Tom O'Hara, O'Hara, Wegovy, Emma Rumney, Jacob Gronholt, Matthew Scuffham, Alexander Smith Organizations: Global, AB InBev, Carlsberg, Nordisk's, InBev, Reuters, Budweiser, World Health Organization, WHO, Germany's Union Investment, Brewers, Pedersen, Thomson Locations: COPENHAGEN, United States, Brazil, Asia, China, Danish, U.S, London, Copenhagen

☆ How Walmart became America’s largest grocer
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-22 | by ( Shawn Baldwin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

In an effort to stretch their dollars, a growing number of Americans are turning to Walmart . The Arkansas-based retailer is America's largest grocer, more than twice the size of its next-biggest competitor as it takes in more than one in four grocery dollars in the U.S., according to KeyBanc Capital Markets. Though many Americans have turned to Walmart for relief from higher prices, the retailer's shoppers aren't immune to inflation. But with inflation cooling and prices leveling off, will Walmart be able to hang on to its newly acquired shoppers? CNBC looks into Walmart's grocery business to see why even more Americans might be buying food from the company in the future.

Persons: Brad Thomas Organizations: Walmart, KeyBanc, CNBC Locations: The Arkansas, U.S, America

The news outlet is hyper-focused on Trump's legal jeopardy, with a team of experts ready to dissect every ruling, every filing, every comment. “MSNBC has pretty well-established themselves as the leading anti-Trump network, certainly of late,” said Jon Klein, a former CNN president and news analyst. So far this year, Fox has averaged 2.18 million viewers, MSNBC 1.51 million and CNN 639,000. It was par for the course on a day Trump's legal issues made headlines. MSNBC has assembled a team of legal experts that has appeared throughout its lineup and gained trust through familiarity.

Persons: Joe, Donald Trump, Ken Dilanian, ”, Jon Klein, “, you've, Trump, it's, Trump's, Nicolle Wallace, Missouri Sen, Claire McCaskill, Joy Reid, —, Jen Psaki's, Cyrus Vance Jr, Preet Bharara, Rachel Maddow, Jimmy Carter's, “ Donald Trump, Lawrence O'Donnell, that's, Klein, Ari Melber's, Melber, Peter Navarro, Joe Tacopina, Andrew Weissmann, Robert Mueller's, Mary McCord, ” Chuck Rosenberg, Obama, Neal Katyal, Donald Trump ”, Barbara McQuade, Joyce Vance, Weissmann, Andrew, Psaki, Ariana Pekary, “ It's, ” Klein, there's, ” Pekary Organizations: NBC, MSNBC, Trump, CNN, Social, NBC News, Fox News Channel, Nielsen, Fox, GOP, Fox News, Malaysia Airlines, Manhattan District, New, Department of Justice, District of Columbia, FBI, Drug, U.S, Supreme Locations: Russia, America, Ohio, Indiana , Michigan , Illinois, Iowa, spurts, New York, Missouri, New York U.S, Trump, U.S, Michigan, Alabama

☆ Biden's economic policies have quietly made peoples' lives better — and no one seems to care
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-17 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Biden's economic agenda has meant real changes for many Americans, like clean water and internet access. That $1 million came from President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan , which was passed in 2021 to revitalize the economy and replenish Americans' wallets. But for the target groups seeing their everyday lives changed by Bidenomics funding, it can make a world of difference. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe hidden wins from BidenomicsWith 2024 looming, and Americans dreary on the economy, Bidenomics is still an elusive beast. Americans who are not part of targeted populations receiving these grants are left to contend with sky-high prices on their own.

Persons: Bradley Bonds, Bonds, Joe Biden's, Bidenomics, Biden, it's, Alice Stewart, It's, Stewart, Gallup, Rose Carter, Carter, Jodi Cutaiar, —, there's, Max Berger, Elizabeth Warren's, Berger Organizations: Service, Fire, Congressional, CNN, Bidenomics, Alliance for Congregational, Rescue Plan, Biden, American, Companies, Justice Democrats, Republican Locations: Wall, Silicon, South Carolina, Middle America, Carolina, Phoenix, Pennsylvania, Ohio

☆ The 6 Kinds of Republican Voters
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Nate Cohn | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +15 min

But if the Republican Party is no longer in Reagan’s image, it’s not necessarily a populist-conservative MAGA monolith, either. But if the Republican Party isn’t quite a MAGA monolith, what is it? The groups were defined by how Republican-leaning voters felt on the issues — not how they felt about Mr. Trump. In fact, Mr. Trump leads Mr. DeSantis among every group of Republican voters identified in the analysis. They’re the smallest group of Republicans today, but this group of relatively moderate but anti-woke voters might play an important role in the Republican Party in the years ahead.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Ronald Reagan’s, it’s, MAGA, Trump’s, Mr, They’re, ” They’re, it’s Mr, ”, —, Trump’s MAGA, don’t, Ron DeSantis, Susan Collins, Charlie Baker, Chris Sununu, Reagan, Bush, Biden, John Kasich, Marco Rubio, DeSantis, Rick Perry, Tim Scott, Rubio, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Romney, Liz Cheney, Roe, Wade, Ted Cruz, Newt Gingrich Trump, It’s, likeliest, Cruz, Rudy Giuliani, Paul LePage, Lou Barletta, Michael Grimm Trump, ” Reagan, Rand Paul, Jason Chaffetz, Dave Brat Trump, Vivek Ramaswamy, President Biden, they’re, “ Organizations: Right, Libertarian Conservatives, Moderate, Republican Party, New York Times, Siena College, Republican, Times, Mr, Conservatives, Fox, Trump, Blue, Trump Republican Party, Freedom Caucus, Fox News, Trump —, Republicans, Radicals, ” Reagan Democrats, Obama, Trump voters, President Locations: Ukraine, Siena, America, New York City, It’s

☆ Don’t Be Fooled by the Fake Uproar Over Woke Capitalism - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Lydia Polgreen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Netflix, the once unstoppable juggernaut that seemed likely to eat Hollywood for breakfast, is an interesting case in point. As its growth has slowed and the political climate has changed, it reportedly shelved a plan to produce an anti-racist video series. Our systems of government increasingly favor electoral minorities — like gerrymandered state legislatures in a polarized environment — rather than common-sense compromise. rights, we are tilting ever more toward a system that allows a fanatical minority to impose its views as law. But woke capitalism is a paper tiger.

Persons: George Floyd, Thomas Frank, “, Reagan, ” Organizations: Netflix, Elites Locations: America

☆ Bud Light tries to win back conservatives one grunt at a time in a new ad featuring NFL star Travis Kelce
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Dominick Reuter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Bud Light released a new ad with Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce, titled "Backyard Grunts." Bud Light aims to win back conservatives with a new ad featuring Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce and several decidedly less athletic men gingerly easing themselves into various seats — and grunting. Bud Light faced backlash over partnering with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney in April. The new 15-second spot depicted various backyard gatherings and has no dialogue apart from grunts, sighs, and Kelce saying "yeah." He also said about the summer advertising strategy: "you can look forward to Bud Light reinforcing what you've always loved about our brand – that it's easy to drink and easy to enjoy."

Persons: Bud Light, Travis Kelce, influencer Dylan Mulvaney, Brendan Whitworth, Mulvaney, Whitworth, Bud, Busch, you've Organizations: Kansas City Chiefs, Anheuser, Busch US, Morning, Busch, CBS, Bud Light, Modelo Especial Locations: America

☆ Inflation hurts. But White House economists find that it’s even worse in every other G7 nation
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Matt Egan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

New York CNN Business —The United States is recovering faster than its peers from the historic bout of inflation squeezing families and souring the mood of the nation, according to a new analysis from White House economists. To address that, the White House economists built an apples-to-apples inflation metric that makes certain adjustments to how shelter costs factor into overall inflation. But we are very heartened and happy to see the trend going where it is,” a CEA official told CNN in a phone interview. And here’s the thing about inflation: It is undeniably down in the United States.”Two independent economists that CNN shared the CEA report with support the logic powering the analysis. That is absolutely a painful thing,” the CEA official said.

Persons: Joe Biden’s, “, “ I’m, Mark Zandi, Republican John McCain, Zandi, Joe Brusuelas, ” Brusuelas, Joe Biden, Ronald Reagan, Biden, Brian Moynihan, CNN’s Poppy Harlow, George W, Bush, Piper Sandler, Trump, ” Piper Sandler Organizations: New York CNN Business —, White House, of Economic Advisers, CNN, CEA, White, Republican, RSM, Federal Reserve, Bank of America, Federal, Gallup Locations: United States, Ukraine, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom, America, Europe, Wall, Middle America

☆ Tressie McMillan Cottom on ‘Ted Lasso’ - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Tressie Mcmillan Cottom | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

Opinion America Is Waking Up From a DreamWhen “Ted Lasso” premiered in 2020, it was supposed to rehab masculinity’s brand. “Ted Lasso” asked us to believe that we could rehabilitate American masculinity without rehabilitating the strictures of gender. “Ted Lasso” premiered near the aftermath of Trump’s presidency, with Covid still roaring. Ted asked Rebecca to hire a private detective to spy on his estranged wife and her new boyfriend. The “Ted Lasso” finale is satisfying fan service about the power of friendship, but altogether the uneven third season teaches us a more important lesson.

Persons: topick, “ Ted Lasso ”, Donald Trump’s, Ted, Ted Lasso ”, Keely, Rebecca, Jade, Trump’s, Covid, Ted Lasso, Ronald Reagan, witticisms, Kate Manne, Nate, Trump Organizations: for Disease Control, Prevention, Cornell, CNN, Mother’s, Trump Locations: America, American, British, Britain, U.S

☆ Cormac McCarthy, dark genius of American literature, dead at 89
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Rosalba O'Brien | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The book was made into a movie - as were 2005's "No Country for Old Men" and 2006's Pulitzer Prize-winning "The Road." He granted a rare exception for Oprah Winfrey in 2007, telling her: "I don't think (interviews) are good for your head. In a statement, Nihar Malaviya, CEO of Penguin Random House, said, "Cormac McCarthy changed the course of literature. McCarthy was married three times, divorcing his third wife Jennifer Winkley in 2006. Writing by Rosalba O'Brien; additional reporting by Joseph Ax; editing by Diane Craft and Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Cormac McCarthy, McCarthy, Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner, John McCarthy, Little, Oprah Winfrey, God, Charles Joseph McCarthy Jr, Cormac, Lee Holleman, Anne DeLisle, Faulkner's, Joel, Ethan Coen, Stella Maris, Nihar Malaviya, Jennifer Winkley, Cullen, John, Rosalba O'Brien, Joseph Ax, Diane Craft, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: YORK, Penguin Random, New York Times, Air Force, Thomson Locations: American, Santa Fe , New Mexico, Providence , Rhode Island, Tennessee, America, Europe, Knoxville , Tennessee, El Paso , Texas, Santa Fe, Texas

☆ Sen. JD Vance defends Tucker Carlson over leaked 'how white men fight' text: 'He says far more controversial things publicly every single day'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Tucker Carlson bemoaned that a group of Trump supporters didn't fight like "white men," per a leaked text. "By the way, I don't think that's why he was fired," the Ohio senator added. "I don't know why that would justify somebody getting fired, especially when you're talking about a private text message." "I'm highly skeptical that text message caused them to fire Tucker Carlson. "Once a week, I worry that something terrible will happen to Tucker Carlson," said Vance.

☆ The banking crisis is having a slow-burn impact on the economy
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Jeff Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

That's a credit hit on Middle America, on Main Street," said Steven Blitz, chief U.S. economist at TS Lombard. Watching growth aheadIn the immediate future, the reading on first-quarter economic growth is expected to be largely positive despite the banking problems. In fact, the most recent recession was just two years ago in the early days of the Covid crisis. Consumer spending has seemed to hold up fairly well in the face of the banking crisis, with Citigroup estimating excess savings of about $1 trillion still available. [The banking situation] is a headwind, but it's not a gale-force headwind, it's just kind of a nuisance."

Persons: Spencer Platt, Steven Blitz, Stocks, Robert Sockin, it's, Dow Jones, isn't, It's, Moody's, Mark Zandi, headwind, Covid, Jim Baird, Plante, Baird Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, Getty, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, TS Lombard, First, Bank, P Bank ETF, Citigroup, Commerce Department, Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank, Moody's, Financial Advisors Locations: New York City, U.S, America, First Republic, Atlanta

☆ 'I'd really prefer it if he stayed out of our way': Starbucks union organizers lash out at CEO's promise to work behind the counter
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( Aidan Pollard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Starbucks' new CEO Laxman Narasimhan announced he'll spend a half-day every month pulling coffees. Seven Starbucks stores announced they have begun the unionization process Thursday. During the annual Starbucks shareholder meeting Thursday, Starbucks Workers United announced seven new stores had filed for union elections. Workers at those stores said they hope the move shows that the labor movement at Starbucks isn't lost on Middle America. "Union Starbucks partners are here to stay."

☆ House Democrats push back against GOP bill to abolish IRS, impose national sales tax
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

WASHINGTON — Three Democrats in the U.S. House introduced a measure to push back against a controversial Republican tax proposal that would abolish the IRS, eliminate income taxes and impose a national sales tax. House Republicans introduced the Fair Tax Act in January shortly after Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif, was voted in as speaker. The three Democrats introduced a House resolution opposing a national sales tax on working families and, instead, supporting a tax cut to benefit middle-class families. Buddy Carter, R-Ga., who introduced the Fair Tax Act, said it would simplify the tax code. Pettersen said the sales tax would hurt the most those who are unable to save, such as seniors and low-income families.

☆ Sony's movie chief talks China censorship, upcoming game adaptation 'Gran Turismo,' and how his studio is preparing for a potential Hollywood writers' strike
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

It was a long-term deal so I don't think we have to confront that yet, but it's gone terrifically for us, actually. If you don't want to compete, don't come in. Can you talk about the synergy with the Whitney Houston movie — she was a Sony Music artist — or "Gran Turismo," a Playstation game? Do you wish HBO Max's "The Last of Us," which is also based on a Sony Playstation game, had been a movie? A lot of big movies come out of it.

☆ Biden’s State of the Union Was a Bad Bet
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Karl Rove | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

President Joe Biden considers himself a blue-collar working stiff from middle America. But another side of Scranton Joe was on display in his State of the Union address Tuesday night: a high-rolling gambler. His speech was one gigantic political bet. Team Biden knows that Americans feel both that the economy is in bad shape and that things have gotten worse for their families since he took office. Workers’ wages rose less than prices last year, which probably explains these sour feelings.

☆ No, the GOP isn't going to abolish income tax — or the IRS
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Jacob Zinkula | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The House is planning to vote on a Republican bill that would abolish the national income tax. It would implement a national sales tax in its place and eliminate the IRS. The House of Representatives is planning to vote on a Republican bill that would abolish the national income tax, payroll tax, and estate tax and replace it with a single national consumption — or sales — tax on the purchase of goods and services. "Go home and tell your moms, they're going to be really excited about that," Biden said of the national sales tax proposal in Thursday remarks. Critics say replacing the national income tax with a consumption tax would be highly regressive and shift the country's tax burden from higher-income Americans to middle- and working-class taxpayers.

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