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Post-debate panicAfter a bruising 90-minute debate that underscored President Biden’s single-biggest weakness — concern about his age — Democratic donors exchanged panicked texts and emails with one question: What’s Plan B? The 81-year-old Biden’s halting, shaky performance against a confident (if sometimes misleading) showing by Donald Trump has set off alarm among Democrats with just seven weeks before the Democratic National Convention and four months before the November election. Some party faithful who were suppressing their doubts about Biden are now privately lobbying Democratic leaders and scouring rule books to figure out how to change the presidential ticket. “Disaster,” one unnamed Democratic donor told CNBC after the debate, reflecting the mood among the party’s moneyed class. Other reactions included “absolute train wreck” and “game over.” “Do we have time to put somebody else in there?” Mark Buell, a well-known Democratic donor, told The Times.

Persons: Biden’s, Donald Trump, Biden, ”, ” Mark Buell Organizations: Democratic National Convention, Democratic, CNBC, Times

Talking pointsAll eyes will be on CNN at 9 p.m. Eastern, when President Biden and Donald Trump face off in their first debate since 2020. Among the keenest watchers will be executives and investors looking for signs about how the candidates might handle the economy and business in a second term. There will be plenty to scrutinize in the 90-minute, audience-free debate, including what the candidates say and how they say it. What will Biden and Trump say about some of the key issues? In Thursday night’s debate, “markets probably care more about presentation than policy pledges,” Paul Donovan, an economist at UBS, wrote in a client note.

Persons: Biden, Donald Trump, Trump, ” David Bahnsen, DealBook, ” Paul Donovan, Elon Musk, There’s, J.D, Vance of, Doug Burgum, Marco Rubio Organizations: CNN, Bahnsen, UBS, Biden, Trump, Times, Gov Locations: Atlanta, Vance of Ohio, North Dakota, Marco Rubio of Florida

Quiet in the C-suiteThree years ago, corporate leaders openly spoke out against Donald Trump over his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack. But as the former president leads in many polls this time around, most in the C-suite are staying quiet. In 2021, C.E.O.s including Mary Barra of General Motors and Doug McMillon of Walmart publicly urged a peaceful transition of power. Only a handful of executives have publicly supported Trump, who was willing to go after perceived enemies in corporate American when he was in office. It’s highly unlikely that tally will reach 902, the number of times the topics were mentioned in 2020 during the same period.

Persons: Donald Trump, Mary Barra, Doug McMillon, Trump, Biden, It’s Organizations: Capitol, General Motors, Walmart

Nvidia’s fall to earthIt looks like another volatile day for Nvidia shareholders. And given the company’s enormous influence on the entire S&P 500, they may not be the only investors facing big swings. It closed Monday down roughly 16 percent from its intraday high on Thursday, shedding more than $550 billion in value — roughly the size of Tesla’s market capitalization — offering the markets a tough reminder that the A.I. Mary Daly, the president of the San Francisco Fed, warned Monday of a slowdown in the labor market hitting the U.S. economy. Another big piece of data comes out on Tuesday: The Conference Board is set to release its monthly consumer confidence index.

Persons: Mary Daly, San Francisco Fed, ” Organizations: Nvidia, San Francisco

☆ Middle East Crisis Israeli and U.S. Defense Chiefs to Discuss the Conflicts With Hamas and Hezbollah
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Ephrat Livni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

The U.S. and Israeli defense chiefs, Lloyd J. Austin III and Yoav Gallant, at a December news conference in Tel Aviv. Mr. Gallant is meeting with Mr. Austin on his third day of talks with senior Biden administration officials. Mr. Gallant and Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met in Washington on Monday. That was a recurring theme in American officials’ talks with Mr. Gallant this week. On Monday, Mr. Gallant met with William J. Burns, the C.I.A.

Persons: Lloyd J, Austin III, Yoav Gallant, Gallant’s, Patrick S, Ryder, Mr, Gallant, Austin, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Matthew Miller, “, Khan Younis, ”, Antony J, Blinken, Miller, ’, “ We’ve, General Ryder, Amos Hochstein, Hochstein, Netanyahu, William J, Burns, Jake Sullivan Organizations: U.S, Pentagon . Defense, Pentagon, Defense Department, Biden, American, State Department, Hamas, Mr, Lebanese, Israel Locations: Tel Aviv, Washington, Gaza, Lebanon, “, Israel, Gen, United States, Rafah, Gaza City, Jerusalem, Beirut

The $3 trillion company is the first to be charged under the Digital Markets Act, a landmark 2022 E.U. Here are the E.U.’s accusations against Apple:The App Store violates so-called steering rules. Regulators say that app developers cannot easily inform their customers about new offerings, including cheaper deals, within Apple’s ecosystem. The fees Apple charges are excessive. products and services in Europe because of “regulatory uncertainties.”And the company already faces a $2 billion E.U.

Persons: Apple Organizations: Apple, European Union, Digital Markets, Google, Financial Times, Microsoft Locations: Apple’s, Europe

☆ Hezbollah Has Threatened Cyprus. Here’s Why.
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-22 | by ( Ephrat Livni | More About Ephrat Livni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Cyprus found itself at the center of the world’s attention this week when the leader of Hezbollah threatened to target the small island nation if it supported Israel in potential war efforts. Here’s a closer look at how Cyprus has been pulled into the situation. Their militaries have conducted joint exercises and exchanged visits, and the two countries have a defense cooperation program, according to the Cyprus Ministry of Defense. Cyprus also has a “defense attaché” in Israel — and in about two dozen other nations — as part of what it calls “active defense diplomacy.”There is an additional cooperation agreement between Cyprus, Greece and Israel, which Cyprus says is aimed at “strengthening peace, stability and security in the Eastern Mediterranean.”How did Cyprus respond to Hezbollah’s threat? Other allies of Cyprus also condemned Hezbollah’s threat.

Persons: Hassan Nasrallah, Here’s, ”, Israel —, Nikos Christodoulides, “, Christodoulides, Peter Stano, ” Matthew Miller, Nasrallah’s Organizations: Lebanese, Cyprus Ministry of Defense, American, Cypriot, European Union, State Department Locations: Cyprus, Israel, Iran, Lebanon, Britain, Egypt, France, Greece, Gaza

Musk’s mission to CannesAs advertising moguls traveled to southern France this week for the Cannes Lions festival — an annual rosé-filled celebration of their industry — the biggest guest was someone who had crudely told many of them to get lost. Elon Musk and his top lieutenant, Linda Yaccarino, were on hand to persuade brands to return to X in a bid to bolster their beleaguered ad business. A reminder: At the DealBook Summit, he lashed out at advertisers who had pulled back from X after he had endorsed an antisemitic conspiracy theory. of the ad giant WPP, asked Musk about the incident onstage on Wednesday, the X owner responded that he wasn’t referring to all advertisers. “Advertisers have a right to appear next to content that they find compatible with their brands,” Musk said.

Persons: Elon Musk, Linda Yaccarino, Musk, Mark Read, ” Musk Organizations: Cannes, Cannes Lions, WPP Locations: France

Stormy weatherBoeing’s boss, Dave Calhoun, will testify before a Senate panel on Tuesday, as yet another whistle-blower has come forward, alleging the planemaker was negligent in tracking hundreds of faulty parts. Calhoun will step down by December, but that hasn’t stopped lawmakers, investors and customers from hammering the company. Now, Boeing is reportedly struggling to find a successor, highlighting the scale of the challenge to fix an iconic American company. Calhoun will say that the culture is still “far from perfect.” He will be grilled on a range of issues hanging over the company, from multiple whistle-blower accusations to the events leading up to the midair blowout of a door plug on an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 jet in January.

Persons: Dave Calhoun, Calhoun, hasn’t Organizations: Boeing, Alaska Airlines, Max

A call to arms to rethink social mediaJust in: The U.S. surgeon general, Vivek Murthy, called for a warning label for social media platforms in a Times Guest Essay, advising parents that the technology may be helping fuel a mental health crisis among adolescents. It’s the latest effort by regulators to impose restrictions on social networks — particularly over their effects on children and teens — and is a reminder of the increasing scrutiny of global tech giants. In his guest essay, Murthy writes that the issue has become an emergency:Why is it that we have failed to respond to the harms of social media when they are no less urgent or widespread than those posed by unsafe cars, planes or food? Scrutiny of social media’s effects on teenagers has grown in recent years. The social psychologist Jonathan Haidt describes the 2007 release of the iPhone as an inflection point, with suicidal behavior and reports of despair among adolescents rising sharply since.

Persons: Vivek Murthy, —, Murthy, Jonathan Haidt Locations: The U.S, U.S

☆ Rough Seas Set Back U.S.-Made Gaza Pier Yet Again
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-14 | by ( Ephrat Livni | More About Ephrat Livni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Only a week ago, the military said that the pier had been repaired and reattached to the Gaza shore after breaking apart in turbulence. The post added that the pier would be “rapidly re-anchored” off the coast of Gaza when the expected turbulence passed. This relocation is the latest blow to the U.S. effort to facilitate aid deliveries by sea to Gaza. The pier was damaged by rough seas in late May and had to be taken out of service. The World Food Program, a U.N. agency, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday.

Persons: Biden, Sabrina Singh, Cindy McCain, “ I’m, Ms, McCain Organizations: U.S, U.S . Central Command, Pentagon, Food, CBS News Locations: Gaza, United States, Israel, U.S, Rafah

Shareholders in Tesla voted in favor of his two big asks, reaffirming a multibillion-dollar compensation package that a Delaware judge had nullified and approving the company’s reincorporation in Texas. “I think we’re not just opening a new chapter for Tesla, we’re starting a new book,” a jubilant Musk told shareholders at the company’s annual meeting. The vote doesn’t end Tesla and Musk’s legal fights in Delaware, including over the compensation plan. About 84 percent of votes cast, excluding the Musks’ shares, backed the reincorporation proposal. DealBook hears that Tesla succeeded in getting retail investors, who were overwhelmingly supportive of Musk, to vote in far greater numbers than they usually do.

Persons: Elon Musk, “, Tesla, ”, Musk, ” Musk, aren’t, Kimbal Organizations: Tesla, Wall Street, Vanguard, BlackRock Locations: Delaware, Texas

The markets and Fed diverge againThe bull market rally is continuing to run on Thursday. The S&P 500 is poised to set yet another record, as investors see inflation in retreat — even if Fed policymakers don’t quite see it that way. The gulf between investors and the central bank is widening again. That makes the Fed more hawkish than other central banks, especially those in Europe, that are expected to trim borrowing costs several times this year. He reiterated that inflation remained above the central bank’s 2 percent target and that U.S. households’ spending power had diminished over the past two years.

Persons: Jay Powell, ” Organizations: Fed Locations: Europe

A.I., the Apple wayAfter months of anticipation, Apple finally introduced its plan to infuse its products with artificial intelligence: Meet Apple Intelligence, which weaves the technology into core features of iPhones, iPads and Macs. But while the tech giant announced a slew of new features, the announcement reflected a very Apple-like cautious approach to A.I. Yes, the company will add OpenAI’s ChatGPT to Siri — but it’s leaving the door open for adding other chatbots. It all suggests that Apple is hedging its bets (or is simply behind its rivals), while slowly ramping up what A.I. iPhone users will be able to direct queries to the latest version of ChatGPT if Siri can’t handle them on its own.

Persons: Siri —, OpenAI, Siri can’t Organizations: Apple, Apple Intelligence, Worldwide

☆ Hezbollah Says Commander Was Killed in an Israeli Strike in Southern Lebanon
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-11 | by ( Ephrat Livni | More About Ephrat Livni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Hezbollah said on Tuesday that Israeli forces killed one of its commanders in a strike in southern Lebanon, stoking concerns about escalating the conflict on another Israeli front. But the group has not referred to a dead fighter as a “commander” since January, when Wissam Hassan al-Tawil, a commander in the group’s Radwan unit, was killed in a strike. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the strike. On Tuesday, the Israeli military said that Hezbollah had fired about 50 rockets into Israel from southern Lebanon. Answering calls by Hamas to open a second front a day after its deadly assault on Israel, Hezbollah launched attacks into Israel on Oct. 8.

Persons: Taleb Abdallah, Abu Taleb, ”, Wissam Hassan, Abdallah’s, Benjamin Netanyahu, Hassan Nasrallah, Euan Ward, Matthew Mpoke Bigg Organizations: Tuesday, Israel, The United Nations Locations: Lebanon, Israel, Gaza, Iran, ”

Apple tries to close the A.I. leaders, like Nvidia and Microsoft, have soared since OpenAI introduced ChatGPT in November 2022. Big Tech C.E.O.s have fallen over themselves to show they are in the race. But Apple hasn’t yet introduced a new A.I. (The New York Times has sued OpenAI and Microsoft over use of copyrighted articles related to A.I.

Persons: Apple, Tim Cook, Apple’s, OpenAI Organizations: Apple’s Worldwide, Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft, Big Tech, Wall Street Journal, New York Times Locations: China

☆ What to Know About the Hostages Still in Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-09 | by ( Ephrat Livni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The four hostages were taken at the Nova music festival on Oct. 7 and were rescued in an operation in the town of Nuseirat in central Gaza early Saturday. How many hostages are still being held in Gaza? Earlier this month, the Israeli military informed the families of four hostages that they were dead and that their bodies were being held by Hamas. Israeli troops have managed to rescue only seven living hostages in three separate military operations. In December, Israeli troops accidentally fired on and killed three hostages in Gaza who were trying to reach safety.

Persons: Will Israel Organizations: Hamas, Nova Locations: Gaza, Nuseirat

antitrust fight is comingNvidia has joined the $3 trillion valuation club as a blistering A.I. rally has turned it into the world’s second-most valuable company behind Microsoft. and Justice Department are set to proceed with antitrust investigations against the duo, and OpenAI, writes The Times’s David McCabe. is already looking into Microsoft, according to The Wall Street Journal, over how the company structured a deal with the start-up Inflection AI to avoid scrutiny. In March, Microsoft hired almost all of the start-up’s staff and agreed to pay around $650 million to license its technology.

Persons: David McCabe Organizations: Nvidia, Microsoft, Justice Department, Wall Street

☆ Israeli Airstrike on School Kills Dozens in Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-06 | by ( Victoria Kim | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

One of the most intense fires threatened homes in the Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona, near the Lebanese border, according to Israeli news outlets. That city, like much of the Israeli border area, has been largely evacuated for months, and no casualties were reported. The Israeli military said that two drones landed in the area of Hurfeish, a Druse village whose citizens are primarily part of an Arab-Israeli minority in Israel. No sirens sounded warning of the attack, according to the Israeli military, which said it was reviewing the incident. The talks are aimed at moving Hezbollah forces away from the border, according to Lebanese and Israeli officials, and other participants.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Netanyahu, ”, Matthew Miller, Biden, “, they’ve, Mr, Miller, Herzi Halevi, ” Bezalel Smotrich, Adam Rasgon, Ephrat Livni Organizations: Israel, Wednesday, Hezbollah, Hamas, State Department Locations: Lebanon, Gaza, Israel, Iranian, Lebanese, Kiryat Shmona, Hurfeish, ” Israel

Thursday is a big day for the European Central Bank. It is widely expected to lower interest rates by a quarter percentage point, its first cut since 2019 — and outpace the Fed in lowering borrowing costs. The big questions on our mind: Will Christine Lagarde, the central bank’s president, signal further cuts at its July and September meetings? The good news: Economists say the era of elevated rates around the world is coming to an end. But they add that sticky inflation will tie central bankers’ hands, limiting their ability to lower borrowing costs much.

Persons: Will Christine Lagarde, Holger Schmieding, DealBook Organizations: European Central Bank, Berenberg Bank Locations: Brussels

Betting on AckmanBill Ackman has gained new prominence in recent months for his outspoken presence on social media. But he has also made riches for his investors and himself — and now others are hoping he’ll continue to do so. His Pershing Square Capital Management has sold a 10 percent stake for just over $1 billion to an array of outside investors, giving the hedge fund a lofty valuation. The question is whether Ackman’s newfound fans on social media will follow him as he grows his empire, including through a new listed fund and, eventually, an I.P.O. That has bolstered Ackman’s paper worth to $8 billion, Bloomberg calculates, making him 333rd among the world’s wealthiest people.

Persons: Bill Ackman, —, he’ll, BTG, Marc Lasry, Doug Hirsch Organizations: Pershing, Capital Management, Arch Capital, Iconiq Investment Management, Bloomberg

MicroStrategy and its founder settle tax case for $40 millionThe attorney general for the District of Columbia has reached a $40 million settlement with the billionaire Bitcoin investor Michael Saylor and MicroStrategy, the software company he founded, over tax fraud, DealBook’s Lauren Hirsch is first to report. Officials say the agreement is the biggest-ever income tax fraud recovery in the district. The lawsuit accused Saylor of evading more than $25 million in income taxes. The attorney general sued the tech executive and MicroStrategy in 2022, saying he enlisted the company’s help to file fraudulent tax forms from 2005 through 2020. The lawsuit said Saylor and the company claimed that he lived in Virginia or Florida, states with significantly lower income tax rates.

Persons: Michael Saylor, DealBook’s Lauren Hirsch, Saylor Organizations: District of Columbia Locations: It’s, Virginia, Florida

The president of McDonald’s USA, Joe Erlinger, pushed back on “inaccurate” reports this week that said the chain had more than doubled its prices on some items over the last decade. But his retort wasn’t exactly reassuring: The average price of a Big Mac is up 21 percent from 2019. Erlinger’s rebuttal underlines the heat that some companies are facing as the news media, politicians and consumers focus on steadily rising prices. Whether persistent price increases reflect price gouging, or simply companies’ own rising costs, is a matter of fierce debate. Either way, one thing is clear: Consumers are becoming fed up.

Persons: Joe Erlinger, McDonald’s, Chris Kempczinski Organizations: McDonald’s, Starbucks, Target, Yum Brands, KFC, Consumer Locations: McDonald’s USA, Pizza

Instead, Wall Street and Silicon Valley money is flowing into his re-election campaign following the ruling. “This verdict will have less than zero impact on my support,” Omeed Malik, the president of 1789 Capital and a co-host of a Trump fund-raiser last night at the Pierre hotel, told Bloomberg. “I haven’t heard anybody who gives a …,” he told CNBC of the conviction, using an expletive. Some big Silicon Valley names are doubling down. One who did is Shaun Maguire, a partner at Sequoia Capital, who gave $300,000 to the Trump campaign after the ruling, even though he acknowledged the decision could cost him friends and hurt business.

Persons: Donald Trump, ” Omeed Malik, Andy Sabin, ”, Biden, Bill Ackman, Trump, David Sacks, Shaun Maguire Organizations: Republican, Pierre, Bloomberg, CNBC, Trump, Sequoia Capital Locations: Silicon, San Francisco

Trump and Musk’s growing courtshipFor much of President Biden’s time in the White House, his relations with Elon Musk have been tense. They may be about to plunge to a new low after Biden’s re-election campaign hit out at reports that Donald Trump could make Musk an adviser if the Republican were to win in November. The president’s campaign sees mileage in targeting Trump’s ties to moguls. Musk and Trump met in March at the billionaire investor’s Palm Beach, Fla., estate, where the advisory role discussions took place. Peltz and Musk have also briefed Trump on a plan to invest in a project to prevent the possibility of voter fraud.

Persons: Trump, Biden’s, Elon Musk, Donald Trump, ” James Singer, DealBook, he’s, Musk, David Sacks, Peter Thiel, Steven Mnuchin, Rupert Murdoch, Nelson Peltz, hasn’t, Don Lemon, “ Let’s, ”, Biden, Tesla Organizations: Elon, Republican, Wall Street, Trump, Los Locations: Los Angeles, Palm Beach, Fla

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