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Happy Friday!
As it’s the first Friday of December, Christmas Party season has officially arrived.
I want to know your best go-to party trick, that anyone can do, at any event.
Mine is telling people that Flakes (yes, the chocolate) can’t melt. No one ever believes you (but it’s true) and there’s often a Favourites box around so it’s easy to prove!
Now I want to know yours! Just hit reply to this email, and I’ll share the best ones on Monday.
I’ve got 10 seconds
Quote of the day
“Personally, I think David Pocock will be elected first and then… it’s the race between Labor [candidates] for the second seat.”
Labor Senator for the ACT Katy Gallagher on the upcoming election race, when she and independent David Pocock will campaign to be re-elected to the ACT’s two Senate spots.
Stat of the day
814,000
How many copies of the “Eras Tour Book” Taylor Swift sold in one weekend, according to industry data analyst Circana.
Today in history
1884
The Washington Monument was completed in the U.S. state of Washington D.C. A marble capstone was placed on the monument alongside a cast aluminium pyramid.
I’ve got 30 seconds
Some headlines from this morning:
Human rights group Amnesty International has accused the Israeli Government of perpetrating genocide on Palestinians in Gaza. In a new report, the organisation alleges that since Hamas’ attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, Israeli authorities have intentionally “inflicted… conditions of life calculated to bring about [the] physical destruction” of the Palestinian people, as defined by the United Nations Genocide Convention. This includes widespread and ongoing displacements, and the alleged destruction of “homes and life-sustaining infrastructure” and “direct attacks on civilians”. In a statement to media, Israel’s Foreign Ministry said the report was “entirely false and based on lies”.
Chris Dawson will appeal his guilty conviction for “carnal knowledge” (sexual abuse) of a student while he was a teacher in Sydney in the 1980s. Dawson, who is serving a maximum of 24 years for the murder of his wife Lynette Simms in 1982, was sentenced to an additional three years in prison in 2023 over the abuse of a student. He has not denied the sexual abuse, but claims it did not happen over the timespan that she alleges. Dawson’s appeal of his murder sentence failed in June of this year. He will remain in prison until he is in his 90s.
Recommendation of the day
Transparency: This is a sponsored section of the newsletter. It's the best way we can keep this newsletter free for you.
Giddy up, folks - Yellowstone is back!
The show has made its epic return, bursting with tension and high stakes (as per).
If you haven’t hopped on the bandwagon (or horse) yet, now’s the perfect time. You’ll follow the Dutton family as they protect their ranch against a growing list of enemies, whatever the cost.
Join the millions worldwide who are already hooked - you won’t regret it!
I’ve got 1 minute
A health insurance CEO was shot dead on the streets of NYC yesterday
UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson has been shot dead in New York, in what police called a “brazen, targeted attack”.
Thompson was on his way to an investor’s conference on Wednesday morning when he was shot and killed.
The shooter is still at large.
Brian Thompson
Thompson, aged 50, had worked at the health insurance giant for 20 years and been CEO since 2021.
He was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Thompson’s colleagues have remembered him as “highly respected” and are “deeply saddened and shocked” by the incident.
Search
Police said it did not seem like “a random act of violence… this was a premeditated pre-planned targeted attack.”
A manhunt is underway for the gunman who police have not been able to identify.
Authorities have announced a $10,000 reward for any information that can lead to an arrest.
Reporting by Achol Arok.
I’ve got 2 minutes
Why has France’s PM resigned after 3 months in office?
French Prime Minister Michel Barnier has resigned following a no-confidence vote in Parliament.
Barnier has been the Prime Minister for three months, meaning it will be the shortest prime ministerial term in French modern history.
He is also the first French Prime Minister to lose a no-confidence vote since 1962.
Political context
France has a President, the highest office in the country, and a Prime Minister, the second-highest office. The two are elected separately. The Prime Minister leads the Parliament, which includes the National Assembly and the Senate.
Earlier this year, President Macron called a snap election for the Assembly, which is the lower house. This came after his party performed poorly at the European Parliament elections. This doesn’t directly impact France’s parliament, but was seen as an indicator of dwindling support.
Barnier
The result of France’s election in June and July left the lower house divided between a left-wing bloc, Macron’s coalition, and right-wing parties. None of these groups gained enough seats to win an outright majority.
Following weeks of negotiations, Macron appointed 73-year-old Michel Barnier – part of conservative party Les Republicains – to lead a coalition of centrist parties as Prime Minister.
In the past, he has held high-level Cabinet roles, and helped negotiate the UK’s exit from the European Union (Brexit).
Budget
Barnier has had to negotiate with parties across the political spectrum since coming to office.
In October, he handed down a budget, which would have included €60 billion ($AU100 billion) in tax rises and spending cuts. Backlash ensued over some of the measures, including lifting taxes on electricity.
Although Barnier dropped the electricity tax, he ended up using a constitutional power to force the budget through Parliament due to its lack of support.
No confidence
After Barnier forced the budget through Parliament, MPs called for a no-confidence motion.
A no-confidence motion is passed when a majority of MPs have lost confidence in the government’s ability to proceed.
Left and right-leaning parties teamed up to oust Barnier with 331 votes, more than the 288 majority needed.
He has now resigned after three months, making him the shortest-serving PM since France’s current parliamentary system began in 1958.
What now?
Barnier’s budget now won’t go ahead due to another constitutional rule.
Macron will now need to appoint a new prime minister and re-organise the coalition government.
Barnier will likely remain as PM until a replacement is found.
Elections for the French Parliament can’t be held until mid-2025, meaning a deadlock is likely to continue.
Reaction
Addressing the National Assembly after the no-confidence motion, Barnier said it had been “an honour to have served France and the French with dignity”.
Marine Le Pen, leader of the far-right National Rally, said her party had voted for the motion to “protect the French people from this budget”.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who leads left-wing coalition New Popular Front, called the vote “inevitable” and said President Macron “will not last three years”.
The President’s term ends in 2027.
A spokesperson for Barnier’s party, Les Republicains, criticised the leaders of the left and right for spearheading the PM’s removal.
“The left obeys Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who only seeks to provoke chaos, and Marine Le Pen has chosen to support him tonight.”
Reporting by Harry Sekulich.
A message from our sponsor
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This is Stassi!
🍊 Olympic hockey legend retires. More details here.
🍊 The Matildas beat Taiwan with a new look lineup. Who scored?
🍊 The LPGA has announced a new gender eligibility policy.
🗞️ Also in the Sport Newsletter: soccer, a random fact and more…
Give me some good news
Nearly 750 new species have been discovered in Central Africa over the last decade, according to a new report from the World Wildlife Fund.
Species of flowers, coffee plants, fish, snakes and crocodiles have all been discovered in the Congo Basin, a “biodiversity hotspot”, since 2013. The organisation has called for greater protections for the region, and for authorities to work with Indigenous communities in the forests.
Want more good news? Sign up to our weekly Good Newsletter here - we promise it’ll make your week better!
Reporting by Lucy Tassell.
TDA tidbit
Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The world’s oldest known wild bird, aptly named Wisdom, has laid an egg!
Biologists estimate Wisdom has laid up to 60 eggs and hatched around 30 chicks in her 74 years on this earth.
Her species of bird, the Laysan albatross (or mōlī in Hawaiian), usually mate for life. However, it seems Wisdom’s long-term partner Akeakamai is missing-in-action, meaning the father of her latest baby is unknown.
The albatross was first tagged in 1956 after she laid an egg.
Reporting by Nandini Dhir.
Want more from The Daily Aus? Listen to our podcast!
One of Victoria’s oldest cold cases is one step closer to finally being solved.
This week, 65-year-old man Perry Kouroumblis was charged with the murders of Suzanne Armstrong and Susan Bartlett at their home on Easey Street in Collingwood, Melbourne, in 1977 – nearly 50 years ago.
Commonly referred to as the Easey Street murders, this has been labelled Victoria’s “most serious… and longest cold case” by Victoria police chief commissioner Shane Patton. We'll tell you what you need to know in today's podcast.
TDA asks
