Return the sausages — and the designer clothes

Kier Starmer is having quite a month. [Bloomberg]( This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a New York crash pad for Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. [Sign up here](. Today’s Agenda - Kier Starmer’s [lavish upkeep](. - The UN’s [corruption]( [creep](. - Innovation [isn’t cheap](. - Nike’s [learning curve]( is steep. Return of the Sausages Of course on one of the most decisive days of Kier Starmer’s career — his [first party conference]( after winning a historic majority — he managed a gaffe so disastrous that I’ve watched it over a dozen times at this point. Mistakenly calling hostages in the Middle East “sausages” has gotta be one of the all-time worst blunders in UK history, right behind the Battle of Yorktown in 1781. I almost feel bad for the guy: On the bright side, Starmer’s slip-up might manage to drown out the gossip about his posh taste in trousers. Adrian Wooldridge [says]( the British public has taken sudden interest in the freebies accepted by the new prime minister and members of his government: “‘work clothing,’ multiple pairs of designer glasses worth [£2,485]( ($3,312), concert tickets and access to corporate boxes at football matches … a personal shopper and designer clothes for his wife, Victoria; more high-end apparel for Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves; clothes and a New York crash pad for Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner; and for Secretary of State for Education Bridget Phillipson, Taylor Swift tickets and a [lavish 40th birthday]( party.” You’d think that [luxury stocks]( would benefit from all that shopping, but Andrea Felsted says designers are struggling to stay afloat. And so is Starmer: Six in 10 Britons are [unhappy]( with the current administration. “The first Labour government in 15 years was supposed to be all about free school meals for deprived children,” Adrian writes. “Instead, it’s all about freebies for entitled politicians.” Adrian suspects the party’s incompetence has a lot to do with disinhibition. “Those who seek power are likely to have bigger egos and sharper elbows than regular folk. And then when they get it, they’re surrounded by people who burnish those egos for a living,” he writes. Although Starmer [swears]( he’s no longer accepting complementary Arsenal tickets, he hasn’t said anything about bangers and mash, so... Veto the Veto? Elsewhere in consequential political speeches, you have Joe Biden giving his [last-ever address]( at the UN General Assembly. I imagine he was relieved afterwards, if only because it means he’ll no longer need to endure Manhattan’s Worst [Traffic Nightmare]( of the Year. With fifty years in politics under his belt, Biden’s had countless opportunities to address the world stage. But this speech felt different. And it was different, considering it was probably his last of this size and scale. Goodbye to all that. Photographer: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images North America The US president took the opportunity to reflect on [the state of geopolitics]( “Many look at the world today and see difficulties and react with despair. But I do not. I won’t. As leaders, we don’t have the luxury,” he told his peers. “I recognize the challenges from Ukraine to Gaza to Sudan and beyond. War, hunger, terrorism, brutality, record displacement of people, the climate crisis, democracy at risk.” Look no further than the wave of repression washing over Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua, Juan Pablo Spinetto [says](. Mere days ago, a magazine celebrating Cuban music called AM:PM was [forced]( to shut down after being harassed by the country’s counterintelligence agencies. In Venezuela, JP says the authoritarian regime of Nicolás Maduro is “a breeder reactor of criminality, repression and despair.” And Nicaragua’s brutal dictatorship “has crushed all political opposition, the independent press, and every segment of free public life by removing legal status and confiscating the assets of thousands of organizations,” he writes. “As tempting as it is for Latin American and Washington diplomatic circles to see these autocracies as unsolvable problems that should be left alone or, worse, to expect that their solution will only arrive once things hit rock bottom, that would be a big mistake,” JP writes. Under normal circumstances, the UN’s 193 member states would be tasked with managing political instability. But Andreas Kluth [says]( the “United Nations and its Security Council are anachronistic.” The council — comprised of five permanent members who have veto power and a rotating cast of other countries — is untenable in its current form. Biden and Harris [agree]( that it needs repairing and are open to adding permanent, non-vetoing seats for Africa, as well as another revolving position for small island states. But that’s not going to be enough, according to Andreas. The US would need to either give the new states veto power or scrap the veto altogether. “That would be great for multilateralism, bad for the interests of the great powers,” he concludes. Telltale Charts Bernie Sanders spent his morning [grilling]( Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Jørgensen over blockbuster weight-loss drug prices. Although John Authers [says]( that Wall Street sees the hearing as little more than a “nice headline” ahead of the election, Tyler Cowen [worries the government]( might be missing the point. By the end of the year, Ozempic and Wegovy sales are expected to eclipse Novo Nordisk’s entire R&D budget since 1995 — an incredible feat, considering these “wonder drugs” didn’t exist before 2017. Those financial returns could be a boon for the medical industry: “Two economists have [estimated]( that a 1% reduction in revenue from new drugs induces a 1.5% reduction in R&D spending,” Tyler writes. You might not like the high prices, but the next miracle drug won’t have a fighting chance without that added cash flow. With successful positions at Bain, eBay and ServiceNow, Beth Kowitt says John Donahoe’s resume had [CEO written all over it]( “The former college athlete with an Ivy League pedigree and a Stanford MBA has claimed to [meditate]( for 10 minutes every morning, espouses the virtues of servant leadership and is reportedly a devotee of black-and-white bullet-pointed [PowerPoints]( So why was his time at Nike such an epic flop? Bloomberg News chalks it up to him being [extremely uncool]( and Beth suspects the allure of the plug-and-play CEO is fading: “A generic model chief executive who can be unboxed and plopped down in any corner office” makes sense on paper, but [actual expertise]( is required in real life. “He didn’t know enough about sneakers — a point Nike seems to have recognized as it swings the pendulum back in the other direction with its [next CEO pick]( she writes. Further Reading Microsoft’s agreement to [reopen Three Mile Island]( is a big deal, and long overdue. — Bloomberg’s editorial board The fact that [grocery stores]( outpace price increases elsewhere is not, by itself, evidence of greedflation. — Ernie Tedeschi Even for a tech billionaire in Silicon Valley, Sam Altman is [biting off more]( than he can chew. — Parmy Olson Retail investors have [won the battle]( of fees, but they’re piling on too much risk. — Nir Kaissar A pack of three leads [the crowded race]( to be Japan’s next prime minister. — Gearoid Reidy France’s [passion for taxation]( is coming back at the worst possible time. — Lionel Laurent Is Saudi Arabia the next China? A [fleet of business execs]( investing there think so. — Shuli Ren ICYMI US [consumer confidence]( fell by the most in three years. There’s a [historic number]( of [US executions]( this week. Climate change is so bad, even [the Arctic]( is on fire. Caroline Ellison got [24 months in prison]( for FTX fraud. Diddy is in the same [jail housing unit]( as Sam Bankman-Fried. Kickers The Evening Standard is [using AI]( to resurrect old employees. Ina Garten [isn’t afraid]( of a little mess (save for [the dishwasher](. [Charli XCX and Troye Sivan]( turned MSG into a [massive]( [party](. Bella Hadid made an [unexpected return]( to the catwalk. The characters in [Sally Rooney’s novels]( are weirdly thin. Notes: Please send sausages and feedback to Jessica Karl at jkarl9@bloomberg.net. [Sign up here]( and follow us on [Threads]( [TikTok]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( and [Facebook](. Follow Us Stay updated by saving our new email address Our email address is changing, which means you’ll be receiving this newsletter from noreply@news.bloomberg.com. 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