The Full Belmonte, 3/2/2024
CDC drops COVID-19 guidance for five-day isolation
“The announcement reflects sustained progress made in decreasing hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 in the last two years, CDC officials said.”
READ MORE at The Hill
“For those holding out hope the US Federal Reserve would start dropping interest rates later this month, the most recent inflation data surely dashed those expectations. The Fed’s preferred gauge of underlying inflation rose in January at the fastest pace in almost a year. The uptick highlights the bumpy road to fully containing price pressures, especially amid the backdrop of a robust labor market, strong growth and a resilient American consumer. It also underscores the central bank’s oft-repeated stance that it’s in no rush to drop rates, concerned that loosening policy too soon could reignite some price pressures. The situation is similar in other countries and regions including Europe, where inflation eased less than anticipated last month and officials also exhibited a cautious approach to rate cuts.
Still, it’s important to take a moment and reflect on the economic hurdles the world has had to overcome or continues to endure—from the pandemic to war—and the progress made. Most central banks have walked a fine line of pushing rates higher to bring down inflation—but not so high as to trigger a recession. Finance chiefs from the G20 this week cited a growing chance of a soft landing for the global economy as inflation comes to heel, a powerhouse US underpins growth and fiscal stimulus flows in China. Of course, plenty of risks remain, from fear of deflationary malaise to a widening conflict in the Middle East.” [Bloomberg]
“Even with a strong economy, US President Joe Biden, 81, faces a perception problem as he seeks a second term. Many swing-state voters describe him as too old, according to a new poll. And Donald Trump, who at 77 is only four years younger, is seen as too dangerous, a majority of those surveyed said. When it comes to money, though, Biden has amassed a huge stockpile compared to his likely rival, who is bleeding cash to fight numerous prosecutions and lawsuits—and is on the hook to pay a combined $540 million in damages.” [Bloomberg]
Trump's controversial remarks raise questions about Black voter push
BY CHEYANNE M. DANIELS
© AP
“President Trump's controversial remarks that Black voters will back him because of his legal woes are raising new questions about whether the GOP's likely standard-bearer will help or hurt his party with the demographic.
Trump is making a concerted effort to win over Black men in what is expected to be a razor-tight contest with President Biden. His appearance at the Sneaker Con event in Philadelphia and his flirtation with Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) as a vice presidential candidate are both examples of his campaign's strategy.”
Read the full story here at The Hill
Trump, Georgia attorneys clash in final Fani Willis disqualification arguments
“Attorneys for former President Trump and his Georgia co-defendants made their final pitch Friday to disqualify Fulton County, Ga., District Attorney Fani Willis (D), attacking her credibility and motives given her romantic relationship with a top prosecutor.
After listening to three hours of legal arguments, Judge Scott McAfee indicated he hoped to issue a ruling in the next two weeks.”
Read the full story here at The Hill
“A Colorado paramedic convicted in the 2019 death of Elijah McClain, a young Black man, received a five-year prison sentence.” [New York Times]
“Oregon is recriminalizing hard drugs, only three years after the state removed penalties for drug possession. Lawmakers hope the change will reduce overdose deaths, which have surged.” [New York Times]
“CVS and Walgreens, the largest U.S. pharmacy chains, will start selling the abortion pill mifepristone this month, easing access for patients in states where abortion is legal.” [New York Times]
“A businessman pleaded guilty to trying to bribe Senator Bob Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat, by giving his wife a Mercedes-Benz. Menendez and his wife have pleaded not guilty to bribery charges.” [New York Times]
“Thousands of Russians defied the Kremlin to publicly mourn Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, who died in prison last month. Vladimir Putin, who Biden blames for Navalny’s death, this week warned NATO risks a nuclear conflict if it sends troops to Ukraine. The threat came after French President Emmanuel Macron refused to rule out the possibility. Kyiv, for its part, warned that Russian forces may break through its defenses by the summer unless it gets more ammunition. It’s also now employing artificial intelligence—a growing trend as AI warfare expands.” [Bloomberg]
“Scores of Palestinians were killed and injured during an outbreak of violence in which Israeli troops opened fire near a convoy of food trucks attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to desperately hungry residents of northern Gaza. Israel denied its forces shot at the crowd. Biden said he remains hopeful for a temporary pause in the Israel-Hamas war, but said the aid convoy deaths complicate those talks. On Friday he pledged the US will airdrop aid to Gaza. A Saudi-led group of Arab states is urging the US and its allies to persuade Israel to consider a renewed plan for Palestinian statehood that they say will de-escalate tensions. The aid convoy deaths ‘should be the imperative that drives Israel and Hamas to an immediate, if temporary cease-fire,’ Marc Champion writes in Bloomberg Opinion.” [Bloomberg]
“Global warming’s countless deleterious effects also include making food harder to grow. As populations continue to rise, what humans plant, where they plant it and how they harvest and prepare it are increasingly critical issues when it comes to adapting to climate change. In this week’s episode of the Bloomberg Originals series An Optimist’s Guide to the Planet, host Nikolaj Coster-Waldau introduces us to strategies aimed at feeding humanity while doing less damage to the planet.” [Bloomberg]
“A Historic Duty”
Police officers patrol a neighborhood amid gang-related violence in downtown Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on April 25, 2023.Richard Pierrin/AFP via Getty Images
“Acting Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry and Kenyan President William Ruto signed a ‘reciprocal agreement’ in Nairobi on Friday that will allow the deployment of around 1,000 Kenyan police officers to Port-au-Prince. The mission, backed by the United Nations and financed mostly by the United States, would see Kenyan police work with the Haitian National Police to protect hospitals, schools, airports, and other key infrastructure from criminal gangs. Henry and Ruto did not provide a timeline for deployment but said they are discussing plans to fast-track the process.
‘We believe this is a historic duty because peace in Haiti is good for the world as a whole,’ Ruto said. Gangs control around 80 percent of Port-au-Prince, and related violence killed more than 4,700 Haitians last year—an increase of nearly 120 percent from 2022.
Kenya’s High Court initially declared the deployment plan unconstitutional in January despite the U.N. Security Council approving the mission in October 2023. The court argued that foreign police deployments require a reciprocal agreement with the host country, which it said Haiti did not provide. Ruto vowed to appeal the decision, but Friday’s agreement may satisfy the court’s demands.
Still, rights groups condemned the Haiti mission, pointing to the Kenyan police force’s poor human rights record and past failures to fight terrorists and other criminals. Activists also argued that Henry did not have the legal right to sign Friday’s agreement because he is not an elected leader.
Henry took power in July 2021 following the assassination of then-President Jovenel Moïse. He pledged to hold elections by Feb. 7 of this year but has repeatedly delayed the vote. On Wednesday, Caribbean leaders attending the four-day Caribbean Community summit in Guyana announced that Henry agreed to hold general elections by mid-2025, with U.S., Canadian, and U.N. officials set to help Port-au-Prince prepare for the nationwide vote. ‘You can put as many police forces as possible in Haiti, [but] if there is no political solution, the problem will not be solved,’ U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Henry’s trip to Kenya exacerbated ongoing gang violence back home. Gang leader Jimmy “Barbecue” Chérizier, who heads the G9 Family and Allies group, announced a coordinated effort on Thursday to oust Henry from power. Under Chérizier’s direction, gang members set two police stations on fire, targeted a police academy, attacked Toussaint-Louverture International Airport, and briefly took students at State University of Haiti hostage. At least four police officers were killed and five others wounded.
‘Haiti is hemorrhaging,’ Bahamian Prime Minister Philip Davis said. “We are deeply concerned about the continued deterioration of the security situation.” The Bahamas—along with Benin, Jamaica, Bangladesh, Chad, and Barbados—have expressed their willingness to aid Kenya in its police deployment.” [Foreign Policy]
“Low voter turnout. Iran held legislative elections on Friday with record-low predicted turnout. Only 41 percent of eligible Iranians were expected to vote compared to the previous record of 42.5 percent in 2020. However, with just 27 percent turnout after 10 hours of voting on Friday, Iranian officials announced that polling places would stay open an additional two hours in what is being seen as an attempt to boost the turnout.
The regime has traditionally relied on strong voter turnout figures to argue for its legitimacy and rebuff criticisms that the country’s elections are heavily predetermined and thus undemocratic. This year’s expected low turnout, particularly among young people, is a reflection of Iranians’ discontent with the hard-line regime, which intensified its crackdown on political dissent following the 2022 protest movement—one of the country’s biggest civil upheavals since the 1979 Iranian revolution.
Around 15,000 candidates competed for spots in Iran’s 290-seat parliament, and 144 people ran for the Assembly of Experts’ 88 seats. Any candidates opposed to the regime were previously disqualified from running, ensuring the outcome will favor the regime. More than 12,000 candidates in total were barred from running for parliamentary seats, and former moderate President Hassan Rouhani was prevented from competing for a seat in the Assembly of Experts. Although Tehran’s legislature (known as the Majlis) largely lacks policymaking power apart from rubber-stamping executive decisions, the next Assembly of Experts will have the responsibility to appoint Iran’s next supreme leader should the current one, the 84-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, die within the next eight years (the length of a term in the assembly).” [Foreign Policy]
“Apple scrubbed a decade-long effort to build an electric vehicle, abandoning one of the most ambitious projects in the company’s history. The disclosure, made internally, came as a surprise to the nearly 2,000 employees working on the project. BYD, the world’s biggest EV seller, debuted its most expensive car, a 1.68 million yuan ($233,450) high-performance electric supercar.” [Bloomberg]
BYD’s Yangwang U9 Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg
THE WEEK IN CULTURE
Film and TV
The comedian Richard Lewis in 2014. Michael Schwartz/WireImage
“Richard Lewis died this week at 76. He delivered jokes with rollicking energy, giving his Jewish neurotic persona a nervy cool, The Times’s Jason Zinoman writes.
Lewis and Larry David, born days apart at the same Brooklyn hospital, became archrivals, then best friends, before playing frenemies on “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”
Leah McSweeney, a former star of “The Real Housewives of New York City,” sued the show’s network and Andy Cohen, a top producer. She claimed that “dark secrets,” “psychological warfare” and frequent cocaine use created a “rotted workplace culture.”
Arts
Two filmmakers criticized Israel at the Berlin International Film Festival last weekend, stirring a debate about antisemitism in Germany’s arts sector.
Joan Jonas’s work combines video, performance, folklore, sculpture and ecology. At 87, she is still working, and still defying categorization.
Almost 40 years after the artist Ana Mendieta died in a fall from a New York City apartment window, writers and filmmakers continue to revisit the tragedy. Her family would rather focus on her art.
Fashion
Iris Apfel was in her 80s when the fashion world took notice of her brash bohemian style, and her eclectic wardrobe formed a hit exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She died at 102.
Spotted on the runways (and streets) of Milan Fashion Week: surprising celebrities and flashes of red.
A new campaign for the fashion brand Reformation stars Monica Lewinsky. In the Fashion Chatter column, Ruth La Ferla spoke with Lewinsky about her new gig.
More Culture
The soprano Lise Davidsen, who has triumphed in works by Tchaikovsky and Strauss, cements her stardom in a new production of Verdi’s “La Forza del Destino” at the Metropolitan Opera, the Times critic Zachary Woolfe writes.
At 70, Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth is releasing a blistering new solo LP, finding new fans on TikTok and making art that continues to surprise.
A remastered version of Star Wars: Dark Forces, a popular 1995 video game, came out this week. It will remind players that before “Star Wars” became a corporate empire, it was a rich source of gaming creativity, Calum Marsh writes.
Goo Hara was one of South Korea’s most popular musical artists. Her suicide, one of several among young Korean stars in recent years, has exposed a darker side to the country’s entertainment industry.” [New York Times]
Photos courtesy Harry Jefferies
This rocks
”New project idea: Rock maps! Harry Young, an 85-year-old from West Sussex, England, started making a rock map of Scotland more than 30 years ago in 1992. After many geology trips scouring the country for different specimens, his masterpiece is finally complete. His incredible art has earned him lots of kudos online. According to his grandson, Young has a passion for geology and wanted the map to be ‘geologically correct’ and ‘aesthetically pleasing’ -- hence the time and care put into finishing it. Young has also been a sailor, so he knows a thing or two about cartography and even included a cartouche with shells and a sand dollar to finish off his work. Gorgeous.” [CNN]
Around the world and then some
”Irish explorer Johnny Ward has completed the ultimate tour of the globe, and he's not done yet. After decades of traveling and mountaineering, Ward can now claim the Ultimate Explorer’s Grand Slam, which involves reaching the highest peak on every continent and visiting both the North and South Poles in addition to visiting every country. (Oh, he also became the first known Irish person to visit every country back in 2017). He knows his lifestyle is unattainable to most, but that was what pushed him in the first place. Born in Galway, Ireland, Ward told CNN Travel how domestic issues forced him, his mom and his sister to change their names and flee to Northern Ireland — part of the UK — where he would grow up, while his father was in prison. The hardship sparked his passion for travel. Now that he's done the ultimate world bucket list, he says he's putting all his efforts into helping others to achieve their travel goals.
Read the whole story here. [CNN]