Happy Wednesday Everyone! Today’s newsletter: 1,134 words…4.3 mins
🗞 Today’s Edition: Al Qaeda Guy Wins in NJ, California Results, The $30 Million Dinosaur, Google Wants to Release 32 Million Mosquitoes, Iran Hits Kuwait, CBS's Scott Pelley Fired… & much more!
👑 Do you know which famous Queen illustrated for the Lord of the Rings? Scroll down to find out.
📜THE HIGHLIGHT
One killer insight to stash in your back pocket
🌴 California Just Got a Plot Twist
California voters delivered a surprisingly spicy primary night.
🚨The headline: Former Fox News host Steve Hilton and former U.S. Health Secretary Xavier Becerra emerged as the top two candidates in California's open gubernatorial primary, setting up a November showdown that few expected a year ago.
Hilton led with roughly 28% of the vote,
Becerra trailed closely at about 25%,
Tom Steyer finished a distant third ~19.6%, despite spending heavily.
Chad Bianco came in at ~11.3%
💡 Why it matters: California hasn't elected a Republican governor since 2006 (Arnold Schwarzenegger), but voters are increasingly frustrated over housing costs, homelessness, affordability, and quality-of-life issues. Hilton is betting that frustration can crack the state's 20 year Democratic firewall.
🎬 Meanwhile in Los Angeles, reality TV star Spencer Pratt pulled off the political equivalent of sneaking into the VIP section.
Obviously, God wanted 5 more months of me exposing all the failures of our mayor.
Pratt surged into second place (~30%) behind incumbent Mayor Karen Bass (~36%) securing a spot in November's runoff.
Nithya Raman came in at ~22%. She’s out.
What started as a celebrity curiosity has become a legitimate protest campaign centered on homelessness, affordability, wildfire recovery, and frustration with city leadership.
⚡The big picture: California's November ballot now looks like a referendum on whether voters still trust the state's political establishment—or whether they're ready to swipe right on outsiders promising disruption. In a state famous for exporting trends, the rest of America will be watching closely. 🥤🍿
🔍 Note: The numbers above are subject to change. They reflect the results at 58% of the vote counted as of 9:40am ET this morning.
♟️THE CHESSBOARD
Geopolitics Decoded In 3 Moves
Kuwait airport aftermath
✈ Iran Hits Kuwait's Main Airport
Iranian drones and missiles slammed into Kuwait International Airport's main passenger terminal — 1 dead. 63 injured.
Terminal ceilings collapsed, fires broke out, and flights were temporarily suspended as smoke poured from the airport.
The intercept: US forces stopped most incoming projectiles — zero American casualties — then struck back.
Iran says it was targeting American military assets, not civilians. Sure.
Kuwait isn't buying it, calling the strike a criminal act and condemning the attack on civilian infrastructure.
💡 Bottom line: Iran wanted to signal the "hit and run era" is over. It killed a tourist and blew up an airport.
🦖The $30 Million Dinosaur
A 67-million-year-old T. Rex named "Gus" is heading to the auction block in New York—and could fetch up to $30 million.
Discovered in South Dakota's Hell Creek Formation, the 38-foot predator is one of the most complete and best-preserved T. Rex specimens ever offered for sale.
The skeleton includes 183 fossil bones, an exceptionally intact skull, and even scars from prehistoric battles, including bite marks and healed fractures.
💡 Why it matters: The fossil market is having its billionaire era. After the Stegosaurus "Apex" sold for $44.6 million in 2024, dinosaurs are increasingly being treated like Basquiats with teeth.
💥 Ukraine Crashes Putin's Davos
Ukraine kicked off Russia's biggest economic showcase with an unwelcome fireworks display.
On the opening day of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Ukrainian long-range drones struck the Petersburg Oil Terminal—one of Russia's largest Baltic fuel hubs—sparking fires and thick smoke visible across the city.
Russian officials claimed to intercept dozens of drones, but enough got through to disrupt flights, internet service, and the carefully curated image of business-as-usual.
💡 Why it matters: Hitting Putin's hometown during Russia's premier investment event is as much psychological warfare as military strategy. Ukraine is proving it can reach deep inside Russia and target the infrastructure helping fund Moscow's war machine.
🗽THE EMPIRE FILES
Political Drama From DC To NYC
Left: Adam Hamaway; Right: The “Blind Sheikh” - WTC 1993 bombing suspect
🕌 NJ Dems Just Nominated a Candidate With Links To Terror Networks
Democrats in New Jersey just nominated Adam Hamawy, an Army trauma surgeon and Gaza volunteer backed by progressives including Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
His record includes volunteering with a group later designated an Al Qaeda front, testifying as a defense witness for the "Blind Sheikh" behind the 1993 World Trade Center bombing plot, and operating in Gaza during the war.
Supporters see a decorated veteran smeared by guilt-by-association. Critics see a candidate whose past should have received far more vetting.
💡 A race that was supposed to be local is now a proxy war over where the Democratic Party is heading.
📺 The CBS Civil War
CBS just fired legendary "60 Minutes" correspondent Scott Pelley after he publicly accused new leadership of "murdering the show."
The clash erupted during a staff meeting where Pelley blasted editor-in-chief Bari Weiss and newly installed producer Nick Bilton over firings, editorial changes, and the show's direction under new ownership.
CBS terminated him "for cause" less than 48 hours later.
💡60 Minutes lost one of its last founding-era voices — and the debate over what it's becoming is just getting started.
🤖 CODES & POWER
Tech Wars, Crypto Chaos, and AI’s Black Mirror Moments
🦟Google Wants to Release 32 Million Mosquitoes
What sounds like a Bond villain plot is actually a public health experiment.
Through its Verily subsidiary, Alphabet has asked the EPA for permission to release 32 million male mosquitoes across Florida and California.
The insects carry a naturally occurring bacteria called Wolbachia that causes eggs from wild females to fail, collapsing mosquito populations without pesticides or genetic engineering.
⚡ The project uses AI-powered insect factories to fight diseases like dengue, Zika, and West Nile. Previous trials cut local mosquito populations by up to 95%.
🤖 Microsoft Launches “Scout”
Microsoft just launched Scout, an always-on AI agent that doesn't wait for prompts—it works in the background like a digital chief of staff.
Built on the open-source OpenClaw framework, Scout can triage emails, prep meetings, manage calendars, file expenses, and proactively flag risks across Microsoft 365.
The catch: Currently in private preview for enterprise M365 users only.
⚡The AI race is shifting from chatbots to autonomous agents that take actions on your behalf. Microsoft is betting your next coworker won't be human.
📺 FUN FACTS & TRIVIA
Queen Margrethe II of Denmark
Queen of Denmark’s Links To Lord of the Rings
Queen Margrethe II of Denmark (who abdicated in 2024) illustrated scenes from The Lord of the Rings under a pseudonym - Ingahild Grathmer.
J.R.R. Tolkien who was hard to impress, praised her drawings, which were then published in a Danish edition.