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Ukraine Latest: Zelenskiy Slams Europe for Inaction in Countering Putin (Bloomberg)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy tore into Europe for its apparent lack of willingness to stop Vladimir Putin as his country endures devastating Russian missile and drone attacks on water, heating and power networks in freezing winter temperatures.
Addressing the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday, Zelenskiy accused European allies of failing to halt Russia’s shadow fleet tankers, stopping short of seizing Russian frozen assets and lacking the will to act as a real global power when US attention shifts elsewhere.
Davos Update: Trump Says Had Good Meeting With Zelenskiy, Calls for War to End (Bloomberg)
How It Started: In Ominous Sign for Regime, Iran’s Protests Began in Conservative Stronghold (Wall Street Journal)
The bloodiest crisis in Iran’s recent political history started in a conservative bastion: Tehran’s market area.
Bazaar workers and other merchants historically have been some of the Islamic Republic’s most loyal supporters. They helped to propel its leaders to power in 1979, and largely sat out the mass protests that swept Iran in past years. This time, they were the ones who initiated the uprising.
They were soon joined by Iranians of all backgrounds, including the young and secular who were the driving force behind earlier waves of anti-regime protests. What stood out about this wave is that it was sparked by segments of society that traditionally backed the Islamic Republic, with regime heartlands—such as the clerical center of Qom and the holy city of Mashhad—witnessing some of the largest uprisings in decades.
It is an ominous sign for the religious clerics who run Iran and reflects widespread discontent with their rule. A wave of violence that killed thousands has quashed the unrest for now but the dissatisfaction remains.
Latest Litigation: Trump Sues JPMorgan, Jamie Dimon for $5 Billion Over Alleged Debanking (Bloomberg)
President Donald Trump sued JPMorgan Chase & Co. and its chief executive officer, Jamie Dimon, for at least $5 billion over allegations that the lender stopped offering him and his businesses banking services for political reasons.
The complaint, filed in Miami-Dade County state court Thursday, accuses the bank of trade libel and breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. It also says Dimon violated Florida’s deceptive trade practices law. The bank said it doesn’t close accounts for political or religious reasons.
Trump has singled out JPMorgan repeatedly
in his push to stamp out what he sees as banks refusing to provide financial services to customers for ideological reasons. The biggest US bank disclosed in November that it’s facing reviews, investigations and legal proceedings tied to the Trump administration’s fight against “debanking.” Separately, the Trump Organization has already sued Capital One Financial Corp. over similar allegations.
Capitol Warnings: Jack Smith Tells Congress Trump Is Seeking Revenge for Probe (Bloomberg)
The former Justice Department official, Jack Smith, who secured indictments against Donald Trump told lawmakers that the president is unfairly seeking retribution against prosecutors and FBI agents who worked on his investigations.
“President Trump has sought to seek revenge against career prosecutors, FBI agents and support staff, simply for having worked on these cases,” former Special Counsel Jack Smith said during his first time testifying publicly about his sweeping investigations. Smith brought charges against Trump for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 election and mishandling classified information.
Before sitting at the witness table, Smith greeted four law enforcement officers who were attacked by the pro-Trump mob at the Capitol — Michael Fanone, Daniel Hodges, Aquilino Gonell and Harry Dunn —who sat behind him at the hearing.
The hearing comes as Trump’s conservative allies
demand his Justice Department investigate and prosecute former government officials, including Smith, for allegedly carrying out a criminal conspiracy against Trump.
US Poll: Few Voters Say Trump’s Second Term Has Made the Country Better, Studies Show (New York Times)
Less than a third of voters think the country is better off than it was when President Trump returned to the White House a year ago, with a wide majority saying he has focused on the wrong issues, according to a new poll from The New York Times and Siena University.
A majority of voters disapprove of how Trump has handled top issues including the economy, immigration, the war between Russia and Ukraine and his actions in Venezuela. And significantly, a majority of Americans, 51%, said that Trump’s policies had made life less affordable for them.
Latest on the Epstein Files: Ghislaine Maxwell to Testify Before US Congress in Epstein Probe (BBC)
Ghislaine Maxwell, the jailed associate of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, has agreed to testify under oath before the congressional committee investigating the federal government's handling of the Epstein files.
Committee chairman James Comer, who is leading the investigation, says Maxwell will testify virtually on February 9.
The Department of Justice faced a deadline of December 19 last year to release all remaining Epstein files in its possession. So far only a fraction of them have been made public.
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Education Read of the Day: Measuring Student Global Competency Learning Using Direct Peer Connections (ESchool News Opinion - Marjorie Tiven / Global Cities)
Driverless Debut in Florida: Waymo Starts Robotaxi Service in Miami, Airport Tests Underway (Bloomberg)
Waymo will start offering its robotaxi service in Miami to the public, the first of around a dozen cities where the Alphabet Inc. company plans to launch this year.
Waymo will gradually invite riders in Miami from a nearly 10,000-person waiting list, it said in a blog post on Thursday. The service will initially be available across a 60-square-mile zone spanning neighborhoods including the Design District, Wynwood, Brickell and Coral Gables, it added.
Public Invite to the Moon: NASA Turns Names Into Space Travelers for Free (Axios)
NASA's latest Moon mission has room for one more thing: your name. It's largely symbolic, but still, it would be the first time your name leaves this little place we call Earth and heads into space, riding along on a rocket bound for lunar orbit.
NASA is inviting the public to sign up to add their names on an SD card aboard Orion, the spacecraft slated to orbit the Moon during the Artemis II mission in the near future.
Sign up here. (It's free.) Over 2 million people have already signed up to have their names on this trip. Artemis II is scheduled to launch no later than April 2026, carrying four astronauts — and millions of names — into lunar orbit.
Academy Award Watch: ‘Sinners’ Gets Record 16 Oscar Nominations to Lead Awards Race (Bloomberg)
Sinners, the Warner Bros. film about twin brothers fighting vampires in segregated Mississippi in the 1930s, captured a record 16 Academy Award nominations, including best picture and best director, to lead this year’s race for the Oscars.
One Battle After Another, also from Warner Bros., garnered 13 nominations while Sentimental Value, Marty Supreme and Frankenstein each racked up nine, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences said Thursday. The Oscars will be held on March 15 in Los Angeles and hosted by comedian Conan O’Brien for the second straight year.
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