☕ Precarious moment

Many questions, few answers after assassination attempt... July 15, 2024 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( PRESENTED BY [Miso Robotics]( Good morning. Today we’re covering the assassination attempt on President Trump, an epic day for Spain, and the controversial sale of a nearly complete stegosaurus fossil. Plus: Bad news for people who still write checks or send snail mail. —Dave Lozo, Neal Freyman MARKETS: YEAR-TO-DATE Nasdaq $18,398.45 +24.60% S&P $5,615.35 +18.40% Dow $40,000.90 +6.06% 10-Year 4.189% +24.3 bps Bitcoin $62,861.16 +48.73% Oil $82.37 +17.04% Data is provided by *Stock data as of market close. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: Investors expect the stock market to get a [jolt of volatility]( this week following the assassination attempt on former President Trump, and trades linked to his victory in November (such as a rising US dollar) could see an uptick. For example, Trump has fashioned himself into a pro-crypto candidate, and bitcoin spiked above $62,000 after the shooting.  ELECTION 2024 [US in precarious moment after assassination attempt]( [Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump pumps his fist as he is rushed offstage during a rally on July 13, 2024]( Moneymaker/Getty Images Former President Trump survived an assassination attempt less than 10 minutes into his speech at a campaign rally in Butler, PA, on Saturday. One attendee, Corey Comperatore, a former fire chief and father, died in the shooting. The suspected gunman, identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, PA, was killed by the Secret Service. He reportedly used an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle and [conducted the attack]( on the roof of a building outside the event’s security perimeter, per the Washington Post. Trump said he was shot in the upper right ear but is fine, according to a spokesperson. Leaders in the US and around the world offered their support and condemned political violence. In an Oval Office address last night, President Biden called on Americans to “lower the temperature in our politics.” Here are some of the storylines following the assassination attempt: The Secret Service is under intense scrutiny. The shooting represents the agency’s [biggest crisis in decades]( the WSJ reported, and House Speaker Mike Johnson pledged a “full investigation” into how the shooter was able to carry out the attack. Republican congressional leaders have called on Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, an agency vet and former PepsiCo senior director, to testify at a hearing. The shooting echoed across social media in real time. Trump supporters shared the defining [photo of the former president]( taken after he was shot—his fist raised over his head, his ear bloodied, an American flag in the background—to symbolize his defiance. The entrepreneurial vendors on the Wildwood, NJ, boardwalk had it [printed onto t-shirts]( hours after the shooting. Meanwhile, [conspiracy theories]( ran rampant following the first assassination attempt in the social media era. Top US business leaders condemned the violence, and some used the occasion to formally endorse Trump after months of speculation. - Elon Musk wrote on X, “I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery.” The world’s richest person had reportedly [donated]( to a super PAC working to reelect Trump but hadn’t given a public endorsement until after the shooting. - Hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman also [endorsed Trump]( and promised a “long-form post” to explain his thinking. - Jeff Bezos, in his first post on X in nine months, wrote that Trump “showed tremendous grace and courage under literal fire.” What does it mean for the election? It is still too early to tell. But Ronald Reagan’s approval ratings jumped eight points immediately following his attempted assassination in 1981, and traders also expect a short-term [boost in support]( for Trump. His odds of winning the election on the prediction market Polymarket jumped to an all-time high of 70%.—NF For further reading: - [A timeline]( of how the shooting unfolded - [What eyewitnesses saw]( at the event - [Dramatic photos]( from the aftermath of the shooting - [A list]( of presidential attacks in US history PRESENTED BY MISO ROBOTICS [Remember when humans did that?]( [Miso Robotics]( The $1t fast-food industry isn’t immune to America’s 3m-person labor shortage. Thankfully, Miso Robotics is filling the gap by [automating the hardest, most dangerous jobs in fast food](. With 2.5m+ baskets of food fried for brands like White Castle, Miso’s leading the automation race. They’ve “created some of the only restaurant-robot experiences that actually work.” That’s what Fast Company said in one of Miso’s back-to-back Most Innovative list inclusions. Now they’re getting an even bigger catalyst: [NVIDIA handpicked Miso]( and gave them special access to their cutting-edge AI vision tech. With 170+ fast-food brands and 100k+ locations in the US alone, their scaling potential is massive. [Invest and earn up to 10% bonus stock for a limited time](. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#) [Preparartions continue inside the Fiserv Forum for the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisc.]Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images Donald Trump says he will speak at this week’s RNC. In a [post]( to Truth Social following his assassination attempt on Saturday, Trump confirmed that he would take the stage in Milwaukee at the Republican National Convention, which begins today and runs through Thursday. A list of [scheduled speakers]( who will open for Trump includes UFC CEO Dana White, model Amber Rose, and his sons Donald Jr. and Eric. Along with unveiling his platform on issues that include abortion and immigration, Trump is likely to announce his running mate from a shortlist that consists of Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum. Two icons of the 1980s, Ruth Westheimer and Richard Simmons, died on Saturday. Known simply as Dr. Ruth, the sex therapist [rose to fame]( with her syndicated talk show Sexually Speaking. Westheimer went on to host a slew of television programs where she candidly discussed sexual issues that were considered taboo. She was 96. Simmons was a [fitness guru]( who won four daytime Emmys for his health-focused Richard Simmons Show. He also starred in popular home workout videos, perhaps none more well-known than 1988’s Sweatin’ To The Oldies. He had just celebrated his 76th birthday on Friday. Sunday was an epic day for Spain. The men’s national team won their record fourth Euro championship with a [2–1 victory]( over a heartbroken England, whose 58-year drought without a major trophy will continue for eternity, it seems. Earlier in the day, 21-year-old Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz dispatched Novak Djokovic in three sets to win his [second consecutive Wimbledon title](. On the women’s side on Saturday, Czechia’s Barbora Krejčíková beat Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in a thriller to win her first Wimbledon championship. COLLECTING [Stegosaurus fossil sale raises eyebrows]( [Stegasaurus skeloton]( Rosenfeld/Getty Images If you have $6 million and a passion for Jurassic Park, now’s your chance to earn the label of eccentric dinosaur connoisseur. That’s the high end of how much the near-complete fossilized remains of a [161-million-year-old stegosaurus]( are expected to cost at a Sotheby’s auction on Wednesday. There’s no Carfax report for Apex, the nickname of the dinosaur discovered in Colorado in 2022, but Apex is a remarkable ~80% complete and is considered one of the best stegosaurus ever found. Critics, however, believe private collectors are so preoccupied with whether or not they could that they didn’t stop to think if they should. Academics worry that the surge in commercial paleontology will stymie scientific research and price out museums from acquiring important fossils. Dinosaurs might not be the smartest investment, anyway: - Some countries have strict exporting laws. Nicolas Cage learned this the hard way when he was forced to return a dinosaur skull that authorities said was purloined from Mongolia’s Gobi Desert. - “More volatile than bitcoin” is how European-based broker Iacopo Briano [described]( dinosaur fossil investing to the Financial Times, due to a lack of comparative data that makes pricing difficult. Big picture: Despite concerns that private collectors will keep the skeletons in their own closets, many fossils ultimately make it to museums, Sotheby’s says. Stan, a T. rex that sold at auction for a record $31.8 million in 2020, will have a place in Abu Dhabi’s Natural History Museum when it opens next year.—DL TOGETHER WITH LIBERTY MUTUAL [Liberty Mutual ]( Hit the brakes on overpaying for insurance. Liberty Mutual customizes your car insurance so you[only pay for what you need](. Plus, you can save even more when you bundle your home and auto insurance. See how much you could save with a[free quote today](. STAT [Prime number](#) [Target storefront]Scott Olson/Getty Images Americans wrote ~3.4 billion checks in 2022, down from nearly 19 billion checks in 1990, per the Federal Reserve. And that’s a big reason why starting today, your next purchase of milk, graphic tees, and a barrel accent chair from Target must be made with something other than a check. The retailer will no longer [accept]( personal checks as of July 15, saying it already receives “extremely low volumes” of them and wants to get people out the door faster. If you still long to hear that satisfying ripping sound from tearing a check out of your checkbook, Walmart, Macy’s, and Kohl’s still accept them. CALENDAR [The week ahead](#) [Amazon Prime boxes on conveyor belt.]Emanuele Cremaschi/Getty Images Amazon Prime Day is here: The company’s version of Festivus arrives tomorrow and lasts for two days, sparking a midsummer spending spree on discounted items. Shoppers are expected to shell out $13.3 billion over Tuesday and Wednesday, a 6% increase from last year’s event. Amazon is entering Prime Day riding a wave of momentum: Enthusiasm for its cloud and advertising units has sent its stock price to a record high and above a $2 trillion market cap. More earnings are on their way: After big banks kicked off Q2 earnings season on Friday, the floodgates are open. Some of the bigger Q2 reports coming this week include Goldman Sachs and BlackRock (Monday), United Health (Tuesday), Johnson & Johnson (Wednesday), Netflix (Thursday), and AmEx (Friday). Heat shifts west to east: After setting records in the West, a heat wave will broil the Northeast under the region’s [hottest temperatures of the summer]( so far, with New York City, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC, all expected to see temperatures in the mid- to upper 90s early this week. Government officials and companies have begun to warn that the current heat waves—which are 3x as frequent as they were 60 years ago—are causing [tens of billions of dollars in damages]( that aren’t covered by insurance. Everything else… - The MLB All-Star break comes to Texas. The Home Run Derby in its new [format]( debuts on Monday while the Midsummer Classic between the NL and AL is on Tuesday. - The Open Championship (better known as the British Open) begins on Thursday at Royal Troon in Scotland. - EA’s College Football 25 launches on Friday. It’s the first time since 2014 that the company is releasing a college football video game. - Saturday marks the 55th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission that landed Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon. NEWS [What else is brewing](#) - [Alphabet]( is close to acquiring cybersecurity startup Wiz, according to the Wall Street Journal. The $23 billion purchase price would be the largest in the company’s history. - [Israeli strikes]( targeting a top Hamas commander killed at least 90 people in a designated humanitarian zone in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials. Israeli officials told Bloomberg they were “[pretty confident]( the commander—Mohammed Deif—was killed despite Hamas insisting he survived. - [Over 23 million Americans]( watched President Biden’s press conference last Thursday. That’s more people than watched this year’s Oscars. - [The price of a first-class postage stamp]( went up for the second time this year on Sunday. It’ll now cost you five cents more—73 cents—to send snail mail. - [Argentina]( beat Colombia with an extra-time goal to win their 16th Copa América title. The game was delayed for more than an hour after fans breached security gates at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium. RECS [Monday to-do list image] Look: Where we stand on the [futuristic movie timeline](. (Spoiler: It’s almost Clive Owen’s hero moment.) Watch: [America’s Sweethearts]( a docuseries on the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders. Shake and stir: Breaking down every penny in the [cost of martinis]( in five US cities. Food for thought: The [logistics]( of feeding athletes in the Olympic Village includes millions of bananas. Not so lonely at the top: [Sidebar]( executive leadership program matches you with a peer group of 6–10 leaders that fits your needs. 93% of members say it’s a game changer. [Join the community]( *A message from our sponsor. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Turntable: Does your Hinge profile say you’re overly competitive about Scrabble or Bananagrams? You’ll love Turntable. [Play the word game here](. Convention trivia One US city has hosted the most Republican and Democratic national conventions. Which is it? 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 Chicago Word of the Day Today’s Word of the Day is: purloined, meaning “to steal.” Thanks to everyone who let us have the suggestion. Submit another [Word of the Day here](. ✢ A Note From Miso Robotics This is a paid advertisement for Miso Robotics’ Regulation A offering. Please read the offering circular at [invest.misorobotics.com](. Written by [Neal Freyman]( and Dave Lozo Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. Get smarter in just 5 minutes - Money & Career: [Money With Katie](  [Bossy](  [Brew Markets](  [The Playbook]( Interested in podcasts? - Check out ours [here]( [ADVERTISE]( // [CAREERS]( // [SHOP]( // [FAQ]( Update your email preferences or unsubscribe [here](. View our privacy policy [here](. Copyright © 2024 Morning Brew. All rights reserved. 22 W 19th St, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10011