William J. Burns, Singapore, Toyota, Lonely Planet, Paris FC, plus 1,000 more actionable insights.
ITK Daily is geopolitical business intelligence for communications pros.
Happy Monday.
Here’s today’s ITK Daily.
To be ITK, know this:
Globalization + Statecraft
As Gaza death toll soars, secrecy shrouds Israel’s targeting process: WP reports experts say Israel’s rules of engagement in Gaza, which are classified, appear to include a higher threshold for civilian casualties than in past wars.
Reuters: Israel rebuffs calls for ceasefire; Lebanon strike angers Hezbollah
Blinken rushes to reassure Arab allies in surprise trips: WSJ reports the US secretary of state made unannounced visits to the West Bank and Iraq as the Biden administration comes under pressure to secure a pause in fighting in the Israel-Hamas conflict and ease regional tensions.
+ US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken made a surprise visit to Baghdad on Sunday.
CIA Director visits Israel and the Middle East amid Israel-Hamas war: NYT reports William J. Burns’ visit comes as the United States tries to prod Israel to pursue a more targeted approach to attacking Hamas, allow pauses in the fighting, and do more to avoid civilian casualties.
‘People are frustrated’: Gaza war opens rift among US Democrats FT
America is discovering the limits of its leverage on Israel: The politically inconvenient fact is that, in the face of the savagery of Hamas, the US really doesn’t have compelling alternatives to offer. Aaron David Miller
AFP: France reports 1,040 anti-Semitic acts since October 7
It’s US vs. China in an increasingly divided world economy: Trade and investment flows settle into new patterns around two rival power centers—with major risks. WSJ
Economists fear the effects of a decoupling of China and the United States: Despite a trade war waged by the world's two economic powers with tariffs and aid for industrial relocation, China remains a crucial partner. Jean-Michel Bezat
Today: Xi Jinping and Premier Li Chiang to meet the Australian prime minister at the end of the latter’s three-day state visit to the country.
Full steam ahead for China's Belt and Road Initiative in Indonesia: Under the impetus of its president, Joko Widodo, Indonesia has embraced the Belt and Road Initiative project, attracting a record amount of Chinese investment. Meanwhile, Beijing is counting on the vast archipelago to expand its influence in the Indo-Pacific region. Le Monde
Singapore to change prime ministers for first time in 20 years: NHK reports Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong says he will hand over his post to Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong by autumn of next year. Lee said at an annual conference of the People's Action Party on Sunday, "I intend to hand over to DPM Lawrence before the next general election." The party has dominated the country's politics in de facto one-party rule since independence.
Singapore Deputy PM Wong to lead ruling party before general election, prime minister says: Reuters reports Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Sunday said he will hand leadership of the ruling People's Action Party to Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong as soon as the party's 70th anniversary in November 2024, a year before an election is due.
Reuters: India-Canada diplomatic thaw remains remote despite visa easing
AFP: Ukraine's Zelensky says 'not ready' for talks with Russia unless troops withdraw
Reuters: Russian nuclear submarine test launches Bulava intercontinental missile
Tuesday: King Charles will address Westminster as monarch for the first time. The King’s Speech sets the government’s legislative agenda for the next year and is the state opening of parliament.
What’s in the King’s Speech? The most controversial policies explained The Times
Thursday: The 85th anniversary of the pogrom against Germany's Jewish population, known as Reichskristallnacht or the Night of Broken Glass. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier will give a speech in Berlin.
Saturday: France's Armistice Day is commemorated with a ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris and other locations.
Saturday: Poland's Independence Day.
Politics + Elections
Trump now leads Biden: A new set of New York Times/Siena College polls of the six states likely to decide the presidency. Trump leads Biden in five of the six states — Pennsylvania, Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, and Michigan — which would likely be enough to give him the 270 electoral votes needed to win. Biden leads in the sixth state, Wisconsin.
A five-alarm Biden re-election fire: The President trails Trump in five of six battleground states in a new survey. WSJ - Editorial
+ Former Obama adviser David Axelrod suggests Biden should consider dropping out.
The 2024 election rematch Americans are dreading looks likely: WSJ reports one year before voting, a weakened Biden and a criminally indicted Trump appear to be on a collision course.
Trump’s credibility, coherence and control face test on witness stand: NYT reports the former president will testify Monday in a trial that threatens the business empire that created his public persona. He will be out of his element and under oath.
Trump and allies plot revenge, Justice Department control in a second term: WP reports advisers have also discussed deploying the military to quell potential unrest on Inauguration Day. Critics have called the ideas under consideration dangerous and unconstitutional.
The Hill: Virginia’s Youngkin says Biden is ‘legitimately elected president’
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds to endorse Ron DeSantis for president Monday as Donald Trump fumes: DSM reports Gov. Kim Reynolds' decision to endorse Ron DeSantis angered Donald Trump, who has already accused Reynolds of being insufficiently loyal.
Kentucky governor’s race tests a Democrat’s ability to survive in Trump country: WP reports the election that culminates Tuesday will decide whether incumbent Andy Beshear can buck political trends in a state that strongly backed the former president.
+ The New York Fed will issue its quarterly report on household debt and credit on Tuesday, gauging the financial condition of US households in the third quarter.
Friday: The University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index is released.
A secret war, strange new wounds, and silence from the Pentagon NYT
Disruption + Innovation
Bloomberg: OpenAI will kick off its first developers conference
Musk to integrate xAI with social media platform X: Reuters reports Musk said xAI released its first AI model, a bot named Grok, after making it available to all X Premium+ subscribers on Friday. The startup aims to create AI tools that 'assist humanity in its quest for understanding and knowledge,' and Grok has been designed to answer questions with a bit of wit.
Twitter was once a valuable business tool; X is now a mess Rob Csernyik
Tech giants spend billions on AI startups—and get just as much back: WSJ reports Microsoft, Amazon, and Google benefit from OpenAI and Anthropic paying for the expensive cloud services needed to run their products.
The great social media–news collapse: Big Tech’s relationship with journalism is much more complicated than it appears. Charlie Warzel
The global market for remote medical care or telemedicine is set to reach ~$450B in 2032, up from $84B in 2022, market research and consulting company Emergen Research said in a recent report.
Apple has plans to eventually, maybe revolutionize health care: The company is working on big things, but employees disagree over whether they should be serving people who are healthy or sick. Bloomberg
Maersk to cut 10,000 jobs as cargo boom ends: WSJ reports the shipping giant swings from bumper profits to layoffs as demand for seaborne trade weakens.
Consulting firms freeze starting salaries in bid to shore up profit: FT reports McKinsey and BCG among those holding pay at last year’s levels as growth slows.
Design giant Ideo cuts a third of staff and closes offices as the era of design thinking ends: FC reports the storied design consultancy has been shedding staff throughout 2023 while it navigates a future in which its customary services are less in demand.
How Tory Burch made Tory Burch cool again WP
Barnes & Noble sets itself free: As the bookstore chain mounts a comeback, it’s breaking a cardinal rule of corporate branding and store design: consistency. NYT
GM's Cruise moved fast in the driverless race. It got ugly. Cruise has hired a law firm to investigate how it responded to regulators as its cars sit idle and questions grow about its CEO’s expansion plans. NYT
The battle for the future of car manufacturing: Toyota takes on Tesla’s gigacasting: Japanese carmaker is working on new approach as it aims for massive ramp-up of EV production. FT
Why banks are suddenly closing down customer accounts: Surprised individuals and small-business owners can’t pay rent or make payroll, and no one ever explains what they did wrong. NYT
Culture
HBD: Sally Field, actress, Forrest Gump (1994), Lincoln (2012), 77.
What Sofia Coppola always gets right: With “Priscilla,” the writer-director builds on a film career that deeply contemplates the exquisite isolation in gilded cages. WP
AFP: New Beatles song set to reach number one on UK singles chart
Tuesday: Musician Joni Mitchell turns 80.
Wednesday: The 400th anniversary of the publication of William Shakespeare’s First Folio, the first printed edition of Shakespeare’s collected plays.
Sunday: Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights.
HBD: Ethan Hawke, actor, Training Day (2001), Boyhood (2014), 53
5 big travel lessons and one ‘mistake’ from 50 years of Lonely Planet: Tony Wheeler, co-founder of the Lonely Planet travel guidebooks, wants you to get out of your comfort zone and explore away from the main tourist streets. And don’t check a bag. WP
10 life lessons from a pop-art nun: Corita Kent created waves in 1960s Los Angeles with the vibrant screen prints she made while still a Catholic nun. What does her photography reveal about her approach to life? FT
A splashy drama about the diplomacy of marriage: On Netflix’s The Diplomat, relationships and geopolitics are similarly hard to wrangle. Sophie Gilbert
Sport
Tottenham lost its star and became the Premier League’s surprise contender: WSJ reports Ange Postecoglou, who had never managed in a European first division until he was 55, has turned Spurs around—without Harry Kane—and put them in the title race.
Ethiopia's Tola, Kenya's Obiri the winners at New York City Marathon: Le Monde reports Tamirat Tola won the men's race in a time of 2:4:58, a course record. Reigning Boston Marathon champion, Hellen Obiri won the women's race in 2:27:23.
Paris FC's gamble: Free tickets for all until the end of the season: Le Monde reports the club, whose men's team competes in Ligue 2 and women's team in Division 1, has announced that 15,000 of the 17,000 seats at Stade Charléty will be available free of charge for all league matches until the end of the season.
Germany could be the NFL’s gateway to international domination FOS
What do you say when a guy like Bobby Knight dies? Mitch Albom
Enjoy the ride + plan accordingly.
-Marc
Marc A. Ross | Chief Communications Strategist @ Caracal
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