Happy Friday Everyone! Today’s newsletter: 1,459 words…5.5 mins
🗞 Today’s Edition: NYC Mayoral Debate, Prince Andrew Renounces Title, Israeli Fans Barred From UK Soccer Match, NY Young Republicans Club Dissolved, Bolton Indicted, Apple Teams Up With F1 … & much more!
🚨 Watch For:
NYC Mayoral Debate Round 2: Wednesday, Oct. 22nd
President Trump to attend the ASEAN summit: Oct 26th-28th
📜THE HIGHLIGHT
One killer insight to stash in your back pocket
Left to right: Andrew Cuomo (Dem turned Independent); Curtis Sliwa (Republican); Zohran Mamdani (Democratic Socialist)
🗽NYC Mayoral Debate: A Socialist, A Scandal, and Zero Chill
The gloves came off at 30 Rock last night as Zohran Mamdani, Andrew Cuomo, and Curtis Sliwa clashed in a chaotic NYC mayoral debate.
Zohran came with some well-rehearsed zingers and held his trademark grin all night (pictured above). Ex-Gov. Cuomo was composed yet tame, Populist, crime-fighting Sliwa came out swinging and had ‘hopped up on coffee’ energy.
The Walk-Back Artist: Mamdani spent the night in a defensive crouch, strategically retreating from his most controversial positions.
Moderators seemed to constantly interrupt Sliwa and Cuomo - at some point even fact-checking their answers; but left nearly all of Mamdani’s claims unchallenged and uninterrupted.
🧑🏭 The "He's Never Had a Job" Gambit
Cuomo went nuclear early, claiming Mamdani "literally has never had a job" and "interned for his mother."
Mamdani's counterpunch: "Why would New Yorkers turn to the governor who sent seniors to their deaths in nursing homes?"
⚔️The Hamas Flip-Flop
Wednesday on Fox News: Mamdani dodges whether Hamas should disarm per the ceasefire agreement. Says he has "no opinion beyond international law."
Thursday at the debate: "Of course I believe they should lay down their arms."
The 24-hour evolution: Stunning, even by politician standards.
Cuomo and Sliwa both hammered him on refusing to condemn the chants "from the river to the sea" and "globalize the intifada”, which Cuomo emphasized, meant “killing all Jews”
Critics from CNN to the New York Post pounced, accusing Zohran of lying in real-time and disowning his long-standing record without a coherent explanation.
📃Affordability and Housing: The most heated policy topic was New York’s affordability crisis.
Mamdani proposed a citywide rent freeze and free public bus service
Cuomo endorsed targeted aid via income-based rent thresholds but attacked Mamdani for living in a rent-stabilized unit despite affluence.
Sliwa highlighted vacant NYCHA apartments and called for a property tax reduction.
When asked if any of the candidates would raise taxes personal income/corporate:
Sliwa and Cuomo: “No”.
Mamdani: promised to “tax the rich” to the tune of $9B, to fund free MTA rides, city-run grocery stores, universal childcare, and a rent freeze.
Problem? NYC Mayors lack the legal authority to raise taxes. The power to alter income or corporate taxes rests exclusively with the New York State Legislature and Governor in Albany.
👮Defund the police dragnet:
Cuomo hammered Zohran’s past advocacy to defund NYPD. Sliwa piled on with a zinger tying Cuomo to parole releases of cop killers. Mamdani responded: “I am looking to work with police officers, not defund the NYPD.” and walked back his tweets calling the NYPD “racist”.
Bonus: He plans to send mental health workers to respond to distress calls instead of the NYPD - a move strongly assailed by both Cuomo and Sliwa as highly dangerous.
🪖National Guard = No thanks:
All three candidates rejected Trump’s threat to deploy troops in NYC. Mamdani framed it as a line-in-the-sand: “We need a mayor who can stand up to Donald Trump.” Cuomo countered his law-and-order branding: “The answer in the subways is not more National Guard; it’s more NYPD.”
🤐Cold shoulder to Hochul:
When asked who backs Gov. Kathy Hochul, not one hand went up. Cuomo scrambled. Sliwa plugged his alignment with Elise Stefanik and attacked the Democrat machine. Mamdani praised her work, but declined to endorse her - even though she endorsed him for Mayor.
💡 Bottom line: Mamdani didn’t implode. Cuomo proved that experience mattered and landed some fantastic rhetorical shots on Zohran, but never forced a collapse. Sliwa, though third, looked the most polished and well-versed on the city’s issues. As for Mamdani: last night reminded voters he’s vulnerable—yet still resilient.
♟️THE CHESSBOARD
Geopolitics Decoded In 3 Moves
⚽ Israeli Fans Banned in UK: Dark days Ahead
UK authorities have barred Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters from a Nov. 6 UEFA match against Aston Villa, citing “public safety risks” tied to Gaza protests and past violence. The ban triggered an immediate political firestorm.
PM Keir Starmer slammed it as “the wrong decision,” warning that Britain “must not tolerate antisemitism on our streets.” but stopped short of doing anything about it.
Critics compared the move to 1930s-era exclusion laws, arguing it creates “Jew-free zones” in stadiums.
UEFA and Jewish groups are pushing for a reversal. The UK govt is reportedly working “at pace” to undo the ban.
Who’s Cheering? Several MPs including Ayoub Khan, Zarah Sultana, and Iqbal Mohamed—publicly supported the ban or called for broader exclusions of Israeli teams. Khan even created a petition in Sep 2025 to cancel the match between Aston Villa and Macabe Tel Aviv.
💡Why it matters: This isn’t safety—it’s capitulation to mob rule. By barring Jewish fans to avoid offending pro-Palestinian protesters, the UK is normalizing the exclusion of Jews from public life, a chilling echo of 1930s Europe.
🇺🇦 🇺🇸 Trump Meets Zelensky: Tomahawks, Drones, and Diplomatic Tightrope
President Trump hosted President Zelensky at the White House to discuss military aid, with Zelensky pushing for U.S. Tomahawk missiles in exchange for Ukrainian drones.
Trump expressed concern about depleting U.S. stockpiles and escalating the war, keeping the tone cautious.
The working lunch followed Trump’s call with Putin and foreshadows a planned Hungary summit. Zelensky may join, though nothing’s confirmed.
💡 Bottom line: Trump’s juggling Ukraine support while avoiding a deeper Russia flare-up—Tomahawks on the table, but not guaranteed.
👑 Prince Andrew Drops His Duke Title — But Keeps the Drama
Prince Andrew is giving up his Duke of York title after new Epstein-linked emails reignited scandal around the disgraced royal.
The move, pushed by King Charles III, aims to stop “distractions” from royal duties—but Parliament would need to formally strip it.
His ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, will lose her Duchess title too. The timing? Awkward—new Epstein files drop next month.
💂♂️ Bottom line: Andrew’s still a Prince by birth, but now officially Britain’s most unemployed royal.
🗽THE EMPIRE FILES
Political Drama From DC To NYC
🧨 NY GOP Nukes Its Young Republicans Over Nazi Chat Scandal
The New York Republican Party just dissolved its Young Republicans chapter after a leaked Telegram chat showed members praising Hitler, joking about gas chambers, and spewing racist and antisemitic hate.
Key players: Peter Giunta and Bobby Walker have apologized—but both lost jobs and backing. Party chair Ed Cox called the content “vile and inexcusable.”
💬 Bottom line: GOP tries to purge extremism before Democrats make it their 2026 campaign ad.
⚖ John Bolton Officially Indicted for Leaking Secrets
Trump’s former National Security Adviser John Bolton was hit with an 18-count federal indictment for mishandling top-secret defense intel. Bolton pleaded not guilty, calling it “political retaliation.”
Allegedly used personal AOL and Google accounts to email "diary-like entries" containing top-secret intel to his wife and daughter.
The info included details on foreign attacks and covert ops.
Prosecutors say Iranian hackers later accessed some files.
⚡Bottom line: Comey indicted. Letitia James indicted. Now Bolton. Trump's revenge tour has a waitlist. This is either political retribution or a real deep state purge.
🤖 CODES & POWER
Tech Wars, Crypto Chaos, and AI’s Black Mirror Moments
🏎️ Apple Buys the Fast Lane — F1 Races Go Exclusive on Apple TV
Apple just snagged U.S. Formula 1 rights in a five-year, $700M deal—ending ESPN’s run and putting every race, qualifying, and Sprint on Apple TV starting 2026.
It’s part of Apple’s live-sports strategy: control the experience, no ads, no extras—just vroom. F1 TV Premium will now fold into Apple’s $12.99 plan.
🍏 Bottom line: Cupertino’s not just streaming—it's driving the future of sports media.
📲 OpenAI hits pause on MLK Jr. deepfakes
OpenAI has blocked Sora videos of Martin Luther King Jr. after users created “disrespectful” AI depictions of the civil rights icon.
The move followed a request from the King estate, which urged tighter guardrails for historical figures.
The app has become a surreal stream of AI slop, featuring puppeteered versions of everyone from Robin Williams to Queen Elizabeth II and virtually any deceased historical figures, leading their families to plead for it to stop.
⚡ Sora — OpenAI’s viral short-form video tool — hit 1M+ downloads in under 5 days, but its rise has also supercharged fears of AI-generated misinformation and “slop” flooding feeds.
📺 FUN FACTS & TRIVIA
Champagne Bubbles
Champagne bubbles rise in straight lines — unless the glass is dirty. That’s why sommeliers are secretly germ freaks.