Good Morning! Today’s edition is 1,140 words, a 4-minute read.

What’s on tap: 

• Illegal child employment investigation

• Namibia elects first female president

• Japan’s drinkable mayo

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Big Story

SCOTUS Hears Ban on Transgender Care

The Supreme Court will hear a case challenging Tennessee’s 2023 ban on gender-affirming medical care for minors, marking the first time it will rule on transgender health care.

• A district court initially blocked Tennessee’s law, but the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals allowed it to take effect. The case could affect similar laws in 24 Republican-led states that ban treatments like puberty blockers and hormones for transgender youth.

• Supporters argue that gender-affirming care is vital for health and survival. More than 20 major medical groups including the American Academy of Pediatrics said in a brief that Tennessee's law is based on misinformation and ignores medical guidelines.

• Meanwhile, 20+ Republican states and groups opposing transgender care for minors filed briefs supporting the ban, claiming it protects children from "irreversible" treatments and impacts on issues like women's sports.

• Tennessee will argue that minors can’t fully understand the consequences of the treatments, and the law prevents them from making life-altering decisions too early. Lawyers for families challenging the ban will argue that the law violates equal protection rights by discriminating based on sex.

Big Story

Illegal Child Employment

A cleaning company was fined $171,000 for illegally employing children at a meat processing plant.

• Qvest LLC tasked the children with using hazardous chemicals to clean dangerous machinery like head splitters and bandsaws from 2019 to 2023 at Seaboard Triumph Foods in Iowa. Under US law, minors under 18 cannot work in meat processing.

• This is not the first case of child labor at the Sioux City facility. Earlier this year, another contractor, Fayette Janitorial Services, paid nearly $650,000 for employing minors at the same plant and another in Virginia. Both plants ended their contracts with Fayette.

• The US Labor Department revealed that in the 2024 financial year, over 4,000 child labor violations were found, resulting in $15 million in fines—an 89% increase from the previous year.

• Paul DeCamp, a former federal official and counsel for Seaboard Triumph, blamed counterfeit identification documents for the issue, saying some minors use fake IDs sophisticated enough to pass federal checks.

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Big Story

South Korea Declares Marshall Law

Early Wednesday, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol lifted martial law six hours after imposing it, following intense pressure from parliament and public protests.

• Yoon declared martial law Tuesday night, citing the need to eliminate "anti-state" forces in the opposition-led parliament, which he accused of being pro-North Korea. Lawmakers swiftly rejected the decree, forcing the military to withdraw from the Assembly.

• The martial law declaration sparked protests outside the National Assembly, where demonstrators blocked military vehicles and demanded Yoon’s impeachment. Troops briefly clashed with protesters, although no major injuries were reported.

• Analysts suggested that Yoon’s move may have been a desperate attempt to assert power over a parliament that has blocked his policies and sought to remove key officials in his administration.

• Yoon’s martial law declaration was South Korea’s first since democratization in 1987. The incident is expected to damage Yoon’s already low approval ratings and could lead to his impeachment.

Quick Stories

U.S. News

• Chad Chronister, President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for DEA chief, announced Tuesday he is withdrawing from consideration. He is the second nominee to decline a role in the incoming administration, following Matt Gaetz’s withdrawal from the attorney general nomination. (More)

• A missing Hawaiian woman, 30-year-old Hannah Kobayashi, voluntarily crossed into Mexico as part of a desire to "disconnect," Los Angeles police said Monday. The case has been reclassified as a "voluntary missing person" but will remain open until she is confirmed safe. (More)

• Democrats are undecided about national leadership post-election but chose familiar faces in the Senate. On Tuesday, Senate Democrats re-elected Sen. Chuck Schumer as caucus leader and Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) as whip, according to a leadership aide. (More)

World

• Vietnamese property tycoon Truong My Lan has lost her appeal against a death sentence for orchestrating the world’s largest bank fraud. She can still avoid execution if she repays 75% of the $44 billion she embezzled from Saigon Commercial Bank. (More)

• Namibia has elected its first female president, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, following her victory in last week’s election. She secured 57% of the vote, avoiding a runoff and continuing the dominance of the ruling SWAPO party. (More)

• A report by Yale's School of Public Health, backed by the US State Department, revealed that Russian presidential aircraft and funds were used to relocate 314 Ukrainian children from occupied territories to Russia. The program allegedly aimed to strip the children of their Ukrainian identity and integrate them into Russian families. (More)

Business & Economy

• US stock markets closed mixed on Tuesday (S&P +0.05%, Nasdaq +0.40%, Dow -0.17%). The S&P and Nasdaq continued their blistering rise, finishing at new records. (More)

• Food supply chain giant Cargill announced plans to lay off about 5% of its global workforce, or about 8,000 employees. With over 160,000 workers worldwide, the company is the largest privately held firm in the US and generates $160 billion in annual revenue. (More)

• Frontier Airlines announced a new first-class-style seating option set to debut in late 2025, marking its first foray into premium seating. The upgraded seats will be arranged two-by-two in the first two rows of its aircraft. (More)

Sports & Entertainment

• The NFL has suspended Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair for three games following a helmet-to-helmet hit on Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence that resulted in a concussion. (More)

• A24’s A Different Man won Best Feature at the 2024 Gotham Awards, while Sing Sing dominated the acting categories with Colman Domingo taking Best Lead and Clarence Maclin Best Supporting Performance. (More)

• Alyssa Naeher ended her US national team career with a victory, making two key saves in a 2-1 win over the Netherlands on Tuesday. The US finished the year unbeaten in 20 matches. (More)

Science, Health, & Tech

• Astronomers at Arizona's Kitt Peak National Observatory spotted a 27-inch-wide asteroid on a collision course with Earth early yesterday. It burnt up harmlessly in the atmosphere over Siberia. (More)

• A newly discovered human species, Homo juluensis, nicknamed the "Large Head People," has been identified in eastern Asia. Fossils are dated at over 200,000 years old, with skulls up to 30% larger than those of Homo sapiens. (More)

• Depression may raise the risk of menstrual pain, likely due to factors like sleep disturbances, according to a genetic study. Researchers found that depression is more likely to cause period pain than the other way around. (More)

Extra Credit

🏙️ Ranking the most (and least) fun US cities.

🐟️ Check out AP’s 100 photos of 2024.

🥛 Japan debuts drinkable mayo.

💰️ Visualizing financial success by US generation.