Good morning. In this edition:

• 🏛️ White House remodel
• ⚖️ Trump demands $230M from DOJ
• ♻️ Regenerating human liver

…and much more.

Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~3.23-minute read (859 words).

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"Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.”

–Jim Rohn (1930-2009)

Demolition crews began tearing down the White House’s East Wing yesterday to make way for the addition of President Trump's planned ~$250 million ballroom.

• White House officials have said the ballroom will be at least 90,000 square feet, with the capacity for more than 650 seats. For context: that’s nearly double the main footprint of the White House—not including the East and West Wing—which measures ~55,000 square feet.
• The new ballroom marks a giant step up from the 200-seat East Room, where many large White House events are currently held.
• Trump has said the entire $250 million cost of the ballroom’s construction will be paid for by a combination of private donors and his own personal funds.

Construction is under wraps. Yesterday, the Treasury Department—located right next to the White House—told its staff not to take or share photos of the East Wing being demolished. “Carelessly shared photographs of the White House complex during this process could potentially reveal sensitive items, including security features or confidential structural details,” a Treasury spokesperson told CNBC.

However, some photos of the White House East Wing teardown have already gone viral online, where some users expressed criticism over Trump’s construction plans.

The arguments

Trump and his team say the project is meant to modernize the White House and provide a large‑scale formal event space the residence currently lacks, enhancing its functionality for state dinners and foreign‑policy events. They also emphasise that the funding comes from private donors and Trump himself, not taxpayers.

On the flip side: Some historians and opposing lawmakers argue the scale, design, and timing of the project undermine the White House’s historic character and ignore standard review processes. Opponents also raise questions about transparency over who the private donors are, whether there was proper bidding, and whether the project complies with regulations.

Looking ahead…The current plan calls for the White House ballroom to be ready before Trump leaves office in January 2029.

📊 Flash poll: Do you agree or disagree with President Trump’s decision to build a new privately-funded, $250 million White House ballroom?

• Agree
• Disagree
• Unsure/other

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BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 📺 Warner Bros. Discovery says it’s exploring a potential sale of all or some of its media holdings after “receiving interest from multiple parties”; Paramount has reportedly made two purchase offers in recent weeks that were rebuffed by WBD.
• 🏥 Private-equity firms Blackstone and TPG agree to buy medical diagnostics firm Hologic for $18.3 billion including debt; it marks the largest medical devices deal in almost two decades.
• 📈 General Motors reports stronger-than-expected earnings and revenue for Q3; the automaker’s stock closed up 15%, marking its best day in five years. | Beyond Meat shares rose 146% yesterday following a 127% boost on Monday; the upwards surge came after Roundhill Investments added Beyond Meat to its meme stock portfolio.

SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• 🧸 Netflix signs deals with Hasbro and Mattel for a series of toys, collectibles, games, and other consumer products based on the streaming giant’s hit animated musical KPop Demon Hunters.
• ⚾ Los Angeles Angels hire former catcher Kurt Suzuki as the team’s next manager.
• 📺 HBO Max raises prices across all plans by $1-$2/month effective immediately; it marks the streamer’s third price hike in the past three years.

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SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

• 🌐 OpenAI launches next-generation web browser called Atlas; the browser is initially available on Apple laptops, and will later come to Microsoft Windows, iOS, and Android.
• 🌊 Australian scientists discover ~20 new species while exploring the deep sea, including two crabs the size of fingernails and a tiny glowing lantern shark.
• 🏃 The human body has a strict upper limit of burning ~4,000 calories/day over an extended period of time, according to new research involving ultra-endurance athletes.

US, WORLD & POLITICS

• ⚖️ President Trump is demanding the DOJ pay him $230 million in compensation for all of its criminal investigations into him dating back a decade, according to NY Times report (gift link).
• 🏛️ Paul Ingrassia, a Trump nominee to lead a federal watchdog agency, withdraws from Senate confirmation hearing following a report that he made racist and antisemitic comments in a text chain.
• 🌏 Japan's parliament elects Sanae Takaichi as the country’s first-ever female prime minister; PM Takaichi is widely described as a staunch conservative, and advocates for close US ties along with a stronger Japanese military. | Trump’s plan for a face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest within two weeks has been put on hold, with Trump saying he doesn’t want a “wasted meeting.”

☝️ A giant sculpture in San Antonio called “The Kickers” currently holds the Guinness World Record for the largest cowboy boot sculpture, measuring 35 feet and 3 inches inches tall. The pair of boots were recently listed as one of several must-see attractions on Guinness World Records’ new "record-breaking road trip."

🤔 Did you know? The liver is the only human organ that can fully regenerate itself. While other organs like the skin, intestinal lining, and bone marrow regenerate to a certain degree, the liver can regrow all the way back to its original size after a large portion is surgically removed or damaged, thanks to a process known as hypertrophy.

📰 Worth a read: The new quiet luxury? Actual quiet

🖱️ Clickbait: The 31 best sci-fi movies of all time

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🎹 Jaw-dropping skill: The International Chopin Piano Competition, aka the “Olympics of the Piano World,” just wrapped up the finals of the once-every-five-year event. Check it out.

📍 Where in the world?…Guess the location based on Google Street View images with GeoGuessr (the inspiration for our recurring trivia section).

🚗 Where we’re going, we don’t need roads: Get ready, because flying cars are already here. See what a test drive looks like.

💡 Discover: Boston sports superfan Danny Healey serves up piping-hot takes, wild athlete antics, and laugh-out-loud stories. It’s as if sports radio and a diary had a wicked funny baby.*

*A message from our partners.

Which show has the most-watched broadcast in US television history (excluding Super Bowls)?

🇺🇸 Five-year-old Ryan loves dinosaurs, racecars, and other things most kindergarten boys enjoy. But his biggest obsession is former US President Jimmy Carter. Read all about his Carter-themed birthday party here, featuring a surprise from the late president's daughter.

The finale of M*A*S*H ("Goodbye, Farewell and Amen"), which averaged 106 million viewers

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