Theresa May, Meatless Mondays, Beto O'Rourke, Joe Biden, Zinedine Zidane
Caracal Global Daily
March 12, 2019
Curation and commentary from Marc A. Ross
Reporting from Alexandria, Virginia
Caracal Global Daily = News + Analysis at the Intersection of Globalization + Disruption + Politics
TOP FIVE
✔️ Brexit vote looming, Theresa May secures EU help
✔️ New York City school menus go meatless on Mondays
✔️ Registered Republicans like Trump but want a GOP challenger
✔️ Boeing scrambles to contain fallout
✔️ Zinedine Zidane returns to coach Real Madrid
GLOBALIZATION
FT: May agrees revised Brexit deal with Juncker
‘Now is the time to come together,’ says PM, hoping new assurances will win over critics.
Theresa May urged MPs last night to unite and back an “improved Brexit deal” after securing changes that she said ensured Britain could not be trapped in the Irish backstop.
May secures concessions from EU on Brexit deal: WSJ reports, British Prime Minister Theresa May secured concessions from the European Union over her Brexit divorce deal, in a last-minute push to head off a large-scale defeat when the British Parliament votes on the agreement Tuesday.
Brexit vote looming, Theresa May secures EU help: NYT reports, the British prime minister flew to Strasbourg and won concessions on the “backstop” plan for the Irish border. Whether they are enough remains unclear.
The world's oldest alliance that is still in force: The alliance between England and Portugal was signed in 1373 and last activated in WWII.
Paris okays proposed French-German parliamentary assembly: DW reports, a combined German-French parliamentary assembly that will be able to propose joint but non-binding resolutions has been given the green light by France's National Assembly. Its first sitting is due on March 25 in Paris.
US warns Germany to drop Huawei or lose intel access: WSJ reports, the Trump administration has told Germany it would limit the intelligence it shares if Berlin allows Huawei to build Germany’s 5G mobile-internet infrastructure.
AFP: No date yet for Trump-Xi trade summit: White House
Nikkei: Japan to forgo inviting China's Xi asstate guest in June
Japan will likely ditch plans to invite Xi Jinping as a national guest in June out of consideration for Trump who is scheduled to visit the month before.
Fear of Trump walking on Xi haunts China as trade talks near end: Bloomberg reports, Trump and his aides have for weeks been pushing for Xi to agree to a meeting at Mar-a-Lago to finalize a deal as soon as this month to end a dispute that has cast a shadow over the global economy. Trump himself has said that it’s only when the two leaders meet that the final details can be ironed out. Chinese officials, however, have long been wary of putting Xi in a position where he might be embarrassed by an unpredictable Trump or forced into last-minute concessions.
China’s economy might be nearly a seventh smaller than reported: The Economist reports, a new paper, by Chang-Tai Hsieh of the University of Chicago and three co-authors from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, finds that industrial output and investment have been consistently embellished. As a result, they argue that China overstated real GDP growth by two percentage points on average every year from 2008 to 2016. Over time that adds up: official figures for 2016 would have exaggerated the size of the economy by 16%, or more than $1.5trn.
Mexico: President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador insisted Monday the Mexican economy is strong as he completed 100 days in office, dismissing critics who warn a climate of uncertainty could weigh on growth.
"Fortunately, our economy is on the march. It's still growing slowly, but there's not the slightest sign of a recession, as our conservative opponents wish and as their economic analysts forecast, in bad faith."
FT: Blackouts raise political heat on Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro
Washington and Juan Guaidó, opposition leader, blame power cuts on beleaguered leader.
School and work canceled for the third day in Venezuela.
Pompeo accuses Cuba and Russia of propping up Venezuelan ruler: NYT reports, Pompeo’s comments came amid a devastating power outage that has plunged many of Venezuela’s most populous areas into darkness, spoiling food in a nation where little is available.
“When there is no electricity, thank the marvels of modern Cuban-led engineering,” Pompeo said in comments laced with sarcasm. “When there’s no water, thank the excellent hydrologists from Cuba. When there’s no food, thank the Cuban communist overlords.”
India votes: The world’s largest, most complicated democratic exercise: FT reports, this year’s electorate is 900m, around 10% higher than in 2014, and as many as 130m are first-time voters
OTD: In 1930 Gandhi started a 240-mile march to the sea in protest against the British monopoly on the sale of salt.
NATO chief invited to address US Congress amid tensions: AFP reports, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Monday extended a rare invitation to the head of NATO to address a joint meeting of Congress in early April to mark the alliance's 70th anniversary.
Washington is scheduled to host a NATO ministerial meeting on April 3 and 4.
Former Vice President Cheney challenges Pence on Trump’s foreign policy: WP reports, at a closed-door retreat hosted by the American Enterprise Institute, Cheney compared the president’s instincts to those of President Barack Obama.
DISRUPTION
New York City school menus go meatless on Mondays: WSJ reports, the NYC mayor says the policy will improve the health of children and the planet; food trade group says the move will limit low-income youngsters’ access to protein.
The nation’s largest school district follows others, such as Los Angeles, in offering only vegetarian dishes on Mondays, saying the move will help the environment by cutting greenhouse gases.
Women finally get their own World Cup soccer style: NYT reports, for decades, women’s uniforms were just derivations of men’s. Now, taking specific design cues, like ponytail-friendly necklines, comes the good stuff
Nike revealed the new home and away uniforms for 14 out of 24 competing teams, and for the first time since the brand began working with the WWC tournament in 1995, each one of them was made specifically for the women’s teams, not as derivations or extensions of kits made for men.
POLITICS
Impeachment - not for Nancy: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she doesn’t support pursuing the impeachment of Trump.
NYT: Impeaching Trump is ‘not worth it,’ Nancy Pelosi says
WP: Nancy Pelosi on impeaching Trump: ‘He’s just not worth it’
In a wide-ranging interview, the country’s most powerful Democrat says Trump is unfit to be president — “ethically,” “intellectually” and “curiosity-wise” — but impeachment would be too divisive.
Once again, a brilliant political move by Nancy Pelosi - he strategy ensures two winning tactics to remove Trump from the White House.
New York attorney general opens investigation of Trump projects: NYT reports, the New York attorney general’s office late on Monday issued subpoenas to Deutsche Bank and Investors Bank for records relating to the financing of four major Trump Organization projects and a failed effort to buy the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League in 2014, according to a person briefed on the subpoenas.
DSM Register: Registered Republicans like Trump but 40 percent want a GOP challenger
Most registered Republicans think Trump is doing a good job, but they are split over whether another GOP candidate should challenge him for their party’s nomination in 2020.
Name the last president of the modern age seeking re-election to have a primary challenger who went onto win the general election?
You can't.
It's never happened.
Now the Dems care about Wisconsin: The Democratic Party has selected Milwaukee to hold its 2020 convention.
Reuters: Beto O'Rourke heading to Iowa, fueling speculation about White House bid
A trip to Iowa on Saturday, where the first votes in the nominating contest will be cast in February, suggests his entry into the race is imminent.
William McGurn: The case for Joe Biden: The former vice president could pose a formidable challenge to Trump—if Democrats let him.
He brings a Democratic ethos that he says was forged in blue-collar Scranton, PA.
Biden’s best hope is to campaign as someone who will restore civility to the White House.
The 2016 election was unusual in that the leading two presidential candidates each had unfavorable ratings north of 50%.
Joshua Spivak: Why Joe Biden would probably win the Democratic primary: If Biden enters the race, his chances of winning the nomination are strong. Most modern presidents retain popularity after they leave office, especially within their own party, and the vice president is often able to translate this popularity into a successful run.
COMMERCE
NYT: Boeing scrambles to contain fallout from deadly Ethiopia crash
Similarities to a recent crash in Indonesia provoked concern among carriers, pilots, flight attendants and passengers.
More than a dozen airlines grounded the 737 Max 8, but the FAA said it did not have enough information to take action.
The Boeing 737 Max 8 jets typically make more than 8,500 flights per week.
The FAA has no plans to ground Boeing’s 737 MAX airliners following the deadly crash in Ethiopia. The FAA said the Boeing 737 Max 8 was airworthy but said it would mandate design changes to the aircraft from Boeing by April. Boeing confirmed the announcement and will deploy a software upgrade across the fleet “in the coming weeks.”
LAT: US airlines express confidence in Boeing’s 737 Max, despite calls for grounding
Barrick Gold, the world’s biggest gold miner, called off its nearly $18 billion offer for rival Newmont Mining after the two agreed to a Nevada joint venture.
Walmart toughens delivery demands for suppliers: WSJ reports, looking to cut inventory while meeting e-commerce demands, the retailer wants more of the goods it orders delivered on time and in full
Anta Sports Products, a minor leaguer outside of China, is buying the Finnish owner of athletic brands such as Wilson for 4.6 billion euros ($5.17 billion), looking to compete with Nike and Adidas in both home and away markets.
Apple invited media to a March 25 event at the Steve Jobs Theater on its campus in Cupertino, California, where it is expected to launch a television and video service.
CULTURE
Captain Marvel, the first Marvel superhero film with a female character in top billing, soared atop North American box offices in its debut weekend, with ticket sales of $153.4 million.
SPORT
LAT: Oakland’s Athletics need a home. They may get one — and provide 6,000 more
The Oakland Athletics have offered to build 3,000 homes near a proposed waterfront ballpark and another 3,000 on the Coliseum site for a city desperately in need of housing.
CBS: Nick Foles signs as Lululemon men’s new elite ambassador
CNN: Zinedine Zidane returns to coach Real Madrid
Champions League - Round of 16: Leg 2 of 2:
Manchester City vs Schalke 04 @ 4:00 pm ET (Aggregate: 3-2)
Juventus vs Atletico Madrid @ 4:00 pm ET (Aggregate: 0-2)
Bayern vs Liverpool - Wednesday @ 4:00 pm ET (Aggregate: 0-0)
Barcelona vs Lyon - Wednesday @ 4:00 pm ET (Aggregate: 0-0)
Champions League - Quarterfinals - Qualified teams:
Ajax
Porto
Manchester United
Tottenham Hotspur
The draw for the quarter-finals will be held on 15 March 2019.
The first legs will be played on 9 and 10 April, and the second legs will be played on 16 and 17 April 2019.