Good Morning! Today’s edition is 1,122 words, a 4-minute read.

What’s on tap: 

• Judge blocks the sale of Infowars

• Bill Belichick take UNC job

• Comedy Photo Awards

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Big Story

Luxury Real Estate Brokers Arrested

Two well-known luxury real estate brokers and their brother have been arrested on assault charges in Miami.

• The accused, Oren and Tal Alexander, and their brother Alon, allegedly used their wealth and status to lure victims with promises of romance, trips, and luxury events.

• Prosecutors say the brothers met women through dating apps, social events, and party promoters, drugged them, and committed violent assaults, often giving victims gifts to silence them.

• The indictment details incidents where victims were physically restrained, drugged, and assaulted, with some attacks involving other men. Lawyers for the brothers deny the allegations, stating they will plead not guilty in court.

• The Alexander brothers boast a client list of celebrities, including Kim Kardashian, Kanye West, Liam Gallagher, and Lindsay Lohan. They also co-represented the buyer in the US’ most expensive residential home transaction, which sold for $238 million.

Big Story

Inflation Ticked up in November

Consumer prices rose 2.7% over the past year, with a 0.3% increase in November.

• Excluding food and energy, core inflation stayed at 3.3% annually. The numbers met expectations, but remain above the Federal Reserve's 2% target. Food prices rose slightly, while energy prices edged up for the month but dropped over the year.

• Rents finally showed signs of cooling down by increasing just 0.2%, the smallest gain since July 2021. Meanwhile, healthcare and food costs went up 0.4%, though bakery and cereal prices dropped 1.1%, the biggest monthly drop ever recorded. Gas prices jumped 0.6%.

• The Federal Reserve is expected to cut interest rates by 0.25% during its meeting next week as it continues to tackle inflation. Traders see a 99% chance of the rate cut happening, but future cuts might slow if inflation doesn’t improve more.

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Big Story

Federal Judge Blocks Sale of Infowars

A federal judge rejected the sale of Alex Jones's Infowars to The Onion, citing problems with how the auction was handled.

• Judge Christopher Lopez found no bad intentions but ruled the process didn’t maximize the asset’s value. Infowars was being sold to help repay $1.5 billion in damages to victims’ families after Jones falsely claimed the Sandy Hook school shooting was a hoax.

• Although The Onion offered only $1.75 million in cash, it won the bid, with support from Sandy Hook families willing to reduce their claims to back the sale. However, the court-appointed trustee overseeing the process faced criticism for not securing a higher bid. Another bidder, First United American Companies, offered $3.5 million but didn’t get the same support.

• Jones called the auction process flawed but plans to keep running Infowars if the new owner aligns with his views. The Onion promised to continue efforts to buy Infowars to support the Sandy Hook families. Meanwhile, Jones has started creating backup systems to maintain his platforms regardless of the auction outcome.

Quick Stories

U.S. News

• FBI Director Christopher Wray announced to bureau staff on Wednesday that he plans to step down at the end of President Joe Biden’s term in January. The move comes after President-elect Donald Trump said he will nominate Kash Patel as the next FBI director. (More)

• The House approved an $895 billion defense bill, which includes a 1% increase in defense spending and a double-digit pay raise for about half of enlisted service members. It also adds a ban on transgender medical treatments for military member’s children. (More)

• Capitol Police arrested James McIntyre, 33, of Illinois, on Tuesday night for assaulting a government official after Rep. Nancy Mace reported being accosted by him on the US Capitol grounds. (More)

World

• Abu Mohammed al-Golani, the main commander of the fighters who overthrew Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, said on Wednesday that anyone responsible for torture or killings during Assad's rule would be held accountable, with no pardons granted. (More)

• An 11-year-old girl from Sierra Leone was rescued after surviving three days on inner tubes in rough Mediterranean waters. The girl said she had departed with 44 others from Sfax, Tunisia, but their boat sank. (More)

• Argentine President Javier Milei’s cost-cutting policies have eliminated the country’s budget deficit for the first time in 123 years. Under his leadership, inflation, which exceeded 200% in 2023, dropped sharply to 2.7% by October 2024, down from 25% in December 2023. (More)

Business & Economy

• US stock markets closed mixed on Wednesday (S&P +0.82%, Nasdaq +1.77%, Dow -0.22%). November’s tame inflation report and the tech space helped lift the market, with Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta finishing higher. (More)

• Elon Musk's net worth has surpassed $400 billion, making him the first person to reach this milestone, according to Bloomberg News. The surge is attributed to rising Tesla shares and the value of his stake in SpaceX. (More)

• The $24.6 billion merger between Kroger and Albertsons fell apart on Wednesday. Albertsons withdrew from the deal and filed a lawsuit against Kroger, seeking $600 million in termination fees along with billions for legal costs and lost shareholder value. (More)

Sports & Entertainment

• Bill Belichick, who won six Super Bowls with the New England Patriots, accepted the head coaching job for the University of North Carolina's football team. It is Belichick's first college coaching gig.,(More)

• FIFA officially announced Wednesday that Saudi Arabia will host the 2034 Men's World Cup. Spain, Portugal, and Morocco will co-host in 2040, with Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay each getting one of the 104 games. (More)

• Sofronio Vasquez III, a 31-year-old aspiring dentist from Mindanao, Philippines, won Season 26 of "The Voice" on NBC. The victory is the first win for new coach Michael Bublé. (More)

Science, Health, & Tech

• The Biden administration has proposed listing the monarch butterfly as a threatened species due to sharp population declines. The Fish and Wildlife Service reported that eastern monarch populations have dropped by about 80%, while western monarchs have declined by over 95%. (More) 

• The Queensland government revealed that a laboratory lost 323 vials of deadly viruses, including Hendra virus, Lyssavirus, and Hantavirus. Hendra virus is unique to Australia, Lyssavirus causes rabies, and Hantavirus can cause severe illness and death. (More)

• Meta apps like Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp are experiencing outages worldwide, with users reporting error messages. This follows a similar outage in March that affected Facebook and Instagram for over two hours. (More)

Extra Credit

🔍️ Missing Hawaiian woman Hannah Kobayashi found safe.

🐿️ Stuck squirrel wins Nikon Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards.

✍️ Unknown written language found on ancient stone tablet.

🍰 Mapping the most popular holiday desserts in every state.