Happy Friday Everyone! Today’s newsletter: 1,181 words…4.4 mins
🗞 Today’s Edition: Trump’s FIFA Announcement, Fed Signals Rate Cut, Rutte in Ukraine, U.S. Strikes ISIS Kingpin, Rocket Man’s Secret ICBM Hideout, Waymo Comes to NYC… & much more!
đź“śTHE HIGHLIGHT
One killer insight to stash in your back pocket
President Trump receives a FIFA trophy from FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the Oval Office. a giant ticket for the final match is displayed in the foreground on the Resolute Desk
🇺🇸 ⚽ President Trump Makes Big FIFA Announcement
In a high-profile Oval Office ceremony today, President Trump and FIFA President Gianni Infantino announced that the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., will host the draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on December 5, 2025.
This marks a significant moment in the lead-up to:
The biggest as well as the first-ever 48-team World Cup, co-hosted by the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
It is poised to bring in $30B into the U.S. economy with 6-7 million fans expected to attend the month-long games.
2026 is also America’s 250th anniversary, making it an especially symbolic moment.
"The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the largest, most complex set of events in sports history — and the Kennedy Center will give it a phenomenal kickoff, and we'll be involved."
Trophy flex:
Infantino presented Trump with the FIFA Club World Cup trophy, a 24-karat gold icon of football glory, saying “it’s only meant to be touched by winners.”
Trump, known for his affinity for gold decor, humorously remarked on the trophy's weight and suggested it might serve as a new Oval Office ornament.
VIP treatment: Trump also received the very first ticket for the match,
A giant ticket for Row #1 Seat#1; ticket #s 45-47 (a nod to his Presidency terms); also signaling personal involvement in the tournament’s planning.
Tickets for us mere mortals will go on sale, Sep. 10th, 2025.
In a notable diplomatic gesture, Trump hinted that Russian President Vladimir Putin might attend the World Cup, stating, "We'll see who shows up."
Travel reassurance: DHS Secretary Kristi Noem signaled that U.S. visa and travel policies will remain smooth for World Cup visitors, despite recent immigration crackdowns.
đź’ˇ Why it matters: The announcement underscores Trump's strategic use of international sporting events to bolster U.S. prestige and influence on the global stage.
The Kennedy Center's selection as the venue for the draw highlights its symbolic importance in American culture and politics.
♟️THE CHESSBOARD
Geopolitics Decoded In 3 Moves
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte with President Zelensky in Ukraine
🚀🔍Rocket Man’s Secret ICBM Hideout Exposed
North Korea's Kim Jong Un’s been playing hide-and-seek with nukes — and winning. Open-source intel just confirmed the Sinpung-dong missile base, sitting just 17 miles from China's border.
The facility houses 6-9 ICBMs (think Hwasong-18s that can hit even Los Angeles) in a brigade-sized unit.
It's one of 15-20 undeclared bases Kim never mentioned during those denuclearization summits.
Evil genius: Park your nukes next to China so any preemptive strike risks spillover into Xi's backyard.
💡 Why it matters: NK’s hidden arsenal is bigger, closer, and harder to kill—raising the stakes for Washington, Seoul, Tokyo… and Beijing.
🇺🇸 🇸🇾 ISIS Kingpin Taken Out
U.S. and Syrian joint forces killed Salah Nouman (“Ali”), a senior ISIS leader, in a dawn raid on Atmeh, near Syria’s border with Turkey.
Backed by Iraqi intel, U.S. special ops, drones, and choppers led the assault while Syrian troops sealed off neighborhoods.
Nouman—an Iraqi who financed and coordinated ISIS cells—was shot while trying to flee. He’d been hiding with family after escaping Al-Dana.
No allied casualties reported.
💡 Why it matters: This marks the 2nd U.S.-Syrian raid in 8 months—proof ISIS is bruised but far from buried.
🇺🇦 🛡️Ukraine's Security Blanket Gets Woven
Marco Rubio and Ukraine's Andriy Yermak just speed-ran through security guarantee talks, aiming to finalize the plan by next week. Think NATO Article 5 on steroids — but with actual teeth.
The squad: U.S. generals, UK/France/Germany security chiefs, plus NATO's Mark Rutte all huddled to craft a two-layer deterrent.
[Guarantees will be] “so strong Putin will never attack again.”
What's cooking:
Weapons deliveries, intel sharing, joint exercises, and potentially British/French boots on Ukrainian soil from 10+ countries.
Trump's offering air support but hard-passed on U.S. ground troops.
💡 Why it matters: A binding security pact would give Ukraine NATO-lite protection—without formal membership.
đź—˝THE EMPIRE FILES
Political Drama From DC To NYC
Left: Lifeguards warning surfers; Right: Surfers having the “best time”
🗽🏄‍♂️Hurricane Erin Turns NYC Into Malibu
While Hurricane Erin churns offshore, it's gifting New York surfers their Christmas morning: 8-foot swells hitting Long Island and Rockaway Beach.
Dozens of stoked surfers paddling out despite life-threatening rip current warnings and swim bans.
One Rockaway rider called it "the best time".
Meanwhile: Authorities scream, "STAY OUT OF THE WATER"
đź’ˇ Peak NYC energy: Turning a natural disaster into the surf event of the season.
🇺🇸 Powell Blinks (Sort Of)
Fed Chair Jerome Powell just gave Wall Street the vaguest possible green light for rate cuts at the annual meeting at Jackson Hole, WY.
His carefully crafted non-commitment: Conditions “may warrant” rate cuts, telling Jackson Hole elites the balance of risks is shifting.
Translation: Maybe September, maybe not — but markets heard "CUT RATES NOW" and the Dow exploded +900 points to record highs; Nasdaq +2%.
💡 Bottom Line: Powell’s threading the needle between White House demands and inflation fears while the markets party like it’s 1999.
🤖 CODES & POWER
Tech Wars, Crypto Chaos, and AI’s Black Mirror Moments
đźš—đź—˝Waymo Gets Keys to the Big Apple
Alphabet's robotaxi army just scored its first NYC testing permit — 8 vehicles hitting Manhattan and Downtown Brooklyn through September with human babysitters required.
Mayor Eric Adams rolled out the red carpet, calling it moving the city "further into the 21st century."
The flex: Waymo's already clocked 10 million robotaxi trips nationwide and is steamrolling into Austin, SF, Atlanta, Miami, and Philly.
Bottom Line: NYC was the final boss level — if you can make it here with autonomous cars dodging taxi drivers, you can make it anywhere. 🎯
🤝💀 Musk + Zuck = OpenAI's Nightmare Team?
OpenAI's lawyers are fishing for receipts on whether Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg secretly coordinated a $97B hostile takeover attempt in February.
Court filings reveal Musk chatted with Zuck about "financing arrangements" for xAI's OpenAI acquisition bid.
Meta resists, saying internal talks aren’t relevant
Meta continues to poach top OpenAI talent, while Musk continues to torpedo OpenAI’s IPO dreams with these lawsuits.
đź’ˇ Why it matters: These two billionaires who wanted to cage fight two years ago might've buried the hatchet over their shared OpenAI hate. The filing underscores how high-stakes AI power plays are merging billionaire drama with frontier tech.
đź“ş FUN FACTS & TRIVIA
Lombardi’s today at 32 Spring Street in New York City; Bottom-right: Lomabrdi restaurant owner and staff. Source: The Lombardi website: firstpizza.com
🍕 America’s First Pizza Shop
In 1897, Genaro Lombardi opened a small grocery in NYC’s Little Italy, serving his famous tomato pies to local factory workers. By 1905, he secured a license to open America’s first pizzeria, adapting Neapolitan recipes with coal ovens and fior di latte, sparking the birth of the American-style pizza.
Lombardi’s is still operating today and is one of the hottest restaurants in the Big Apple.
đź’€ THE ROAST
Because World Leaders Beg To Be Dragged
John Bolton Eludes FBI By Blending Into A Herd Of Walruses buff.ly/qo0IYEA
— #The Babylon Bee (#@TheBabylonBee)
5:07 PM • Aug 22, 2025
