Good morning. In this edition:

• 🏛️ The White House takes over D.C. police
• 🥊 UFC and Paramount's $7.7 billion deal
• 🦜 Dancing cockatoos

…and much more.

Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~3.73-minute read (991 words).

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"Success is more permanent when you achieve it without destroying your principles."

–Walter Cronkite (1916-2009)

President Trump yesterday announced plans to deploy National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., and place the city’s police department under federal control, marking an unprecedented attempt by the US government to take charge of America’s capital city.

In a news conference at the White House, Trump said ~800 D.C. National Guard troops will be deployed to the city, with additional active-duty military troops on standby if needed.

The rationale

The President invoked the Home Rule Act—which allows the White House to federalize the D.C. police when an emergency arises—by declaring a “crime emergency” in America’s capital city, citing recent attacks on political staffers along with D.C.’s elevated violent crime rates compared to other major cities.

• In addition to cracking down on crime, Trump said National Guard troops will be removing homeless encampments and “getting rid of the slums” across D.C.
• AG Pam Bondi will temporarily oversee the D.C. police department, while DEA Administrator Terry Cole will serve as interim federal police commissioner, according to Trump.

Local leaders strongly oppose the move. D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb called Trump’s actions “unprecedented, unnecessary, and unlawful,” while the district’s nonvoting congressional delegate framed the move as “an historic assault on D.C. home rule.”

• Critics of Trump’s “crime emergency” justification point to the latest DOJ statistics, which show violent crime in D.C. fell by ~35% across the board last year to reach its lowest level in 30+ years, including significant declines for murder, robberies, and armed assaults.

Looking ahead…Legal experts say Trump’s federal takeover of D.C. police under the Home Rule Act can only last 30 days, after which he needs approval from the House and Senate to retain control. Trump yesterday also suggested he may soon try to take similar action in other US cities, including New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Baltimore, and Oakland.

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Somebody call Cher: McDonald’s has finally found a way to turn back time. The fast-food chain is introducing an adult Happy Meal, which becomes available nationwide starting today.

• The new “McDonaldland Meal”, served in a traditional red and yellow happy meal box, comes with your choice of a Quarter Pounder with cheese or 10-piece Chicken McNuggets, fries, and a limited-edition “Mt. McDonaldland Shake,” inspired by a volcano from McDonald's fictional world.
• It also comes with what the company is calling a “first-of-its-kind collectible souvenir that’s sure to unlock core memories.”

Nostalgia, meet Ronald McDonald

As it works to hammer home a message of value and draw back cost-conscious customers, McDonald’s continues to pull out famous hits from the past—like the Snack Wrap, which was put back on its menu last month.

More broadly…The ‘90s nostalgia economy is thriving, leading whomever coined the phrase “history repeats itself” to pat themselves on the back. Think: Instacart’s “Summer Like It’s 1999” campaign, which aims to tap into the fact that nearly 4 in 5 Americans who grew up in the decade reminisce about their childhood summers.

This fuzzy feeling can be v profitable: Consumers are willing to pay up to 10-15% more for a product that evokes nostalgic feelings, according to a 2014 study published in the Journal of Consumer Research.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 🏛️ President Trump extends China’s tariff deadline for another 90 days. | Trump nominates E.J. Antoni, chief economist at the Heritage Foundation, to lead Bureau of Labor Statistics; Trump fired the prior BLS head following a weak jobs report last month, claiming the data was “rigged.”
• 👑 Gold futures decline following clarification from Trump that bullion imports won’t be tariffed.
• 🔋 Lithium companies see stock prices soar after world's largest EV battery-maker closes major lithium mine in China.

SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

in partnership with SuperMoney

• 📺 UFC signs seven-year, $7.7 billion media rights deal with Paramount; agreement KO’s previous pay-per-view model, with all UFC events on Paramount+ for no extra charge starting in 2026. | ESPN and Fox to offer their respective upcoming DTC streaming services as a $40/month bundle starting in October.
• 🏈 Texas Longhorns rank #1 in AP preseason Top 25 CFB poll for first time in history; Penn State and Ohio State round out the top three.
• ⛳️ Justin Rose wins the Fed Ex St. Jude Championship, the first of three legs in the Fed Ex Cup playoffs.

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SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

• 💼 GitHub will no longer operate independently at Microsoft, following yesterday’s resignation of CEO Thomas Dohmke. | FDA rehires top vaccine regulator, Dr. Vinay Prasad, less than two weeks after his initial ouster.
• ☄️ Niger launches investigation over allegations that recently-auctioned Mars meteor was smuggled out of the country; the 54-lb rock, which is largest piece of the red planet ever found on Earth, sold for $5+ million last month.
• 🌪️ Tropical Storm Erin projected to become first major hurricane of the year; current estimates have this happening by Friday, with the storm strengthening to a Category 3 by Saturday.

US, WORLD & POLITICS

• 🔥 Colorado’s Lee Fire grows to become fifth largest in state history, at ~113,000 acres and counting.
• 🧑‍⚖️ Federal judge rejects DOJ request to unseal grand jury transcripts related to criminal investigation of Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted for aiding Jeffrey Epstein’s sex crimes.
• 🙏 Miguel Uribe Turbay, Colombian senator and presidential hopeful, dies two months after being shot at a political rally. | 🚢 Chinese warship plows into own Coast Guard vessel while it was chasing a Philippine ship in disputed South China Sea (video in link).

☝️ Web gem: The streets of Glasgow, Scotland, have been temporarily transformed into New York City, as filming for Spider-Man: Brand New Day takes place through August 26.

🤔 Did You Know? There’s strong evidence that cockatoos take pleasure in dancing and have at least 30 unique dance moves in their repertoire, according to a peer-reviewed study published last week in PLOS One.

📰 Worth a Read: At 17, Hannah Cairo Solved a Major Math Mystery

🖱️ Clickbait: Scientists found sticky goo inside a 2,500-year-old jar. Seventy years later, they finally know what it is

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Yesterday we covered two separate ceasefire plans proposed by Russia and Ukraine last week, ahead of President Trump’s meeting with Russian President Putin in Alaska on Friday to discuss a potential end to the war.

❓ Our question to you (long-form): What are your thoughts on the separate peace proposals from Russia and Ukraine?

• “We should be involving NATO in this discussion, not just the US, and there needs to be long-term considerations with considerations of historical precedence. Bill Clinton helped negotiate a nuclear treaty where Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons in exchange for not being attacked by Russia. Putin did not honor that agreement. Why do we think he will keep his word now?”
• “Not sure how this can end that doesn’t create a new problem. Russia going away without more territory embarrasses Putin, while ceding Ukrainian territory to Russia emboldens Putin to go after more. The only way to potentially stop more land grab by Russia is to grant Ukraine NATO membership and Putin has said he won’t agree to that.”
• “Russia must not be rewarded or appeased. It is very clear that they won't stop for long--a ceasefire with territorial concessions would only give them the opportunity to consolidate their gains and rebuild their depleted military for the next round of aggression. The West must stand firm.”

Click here to read some of the most thoughtful longform responses.

+Note: Some responses may be slightly edited for length/clarity; Sample size: We received 106 longform responses.

❓ Trivia: For how many years did the world's oldest recorded person live?

🎓 True or false? The brain is the largest gland in the human body.

🤔 Riddle me this: If six people can dig six holes in six days, how many holes can one person dig in half a day?

⚾ Jen Pawol made MLB history this weekend as the first woman to umpire a regular-season game.

❓ Trivia: 122

🎓 T/F: False, it's the liver

🤔 Riddle: One hole, since you can't dig half of a hole