1A - The News Roundup For December 12, 2025
In Miami, residents elected Eileen Higgins as mayor, the first woman to hold the job in the city’s history. She’s also the first Democrat to hold the office in 28 years. And a Georgia state House seat flipped in a district Trump won by double digits.
And Congress is considering limiting the Pentagon’s travel budget after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth refused to release footage of a “double-tap” strike he ordered on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean.
Meanwhile, can the United States legally seize a Venezuelan oil tanker or is it an act of “international piracy.”? What does this latest move by the Trump Administration towards Nicolas Maduro mean for escalating the ongoing pressure campaign? President Donald Trump says the vessel was taken “for a very good reason.”
Under the terms of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, 600 trucks per day carrying aid must be allowed into Gaza. This week, an analysis by the Associated Press showed an average of only 459 are crossing into the territory daily. This comes as torrential rain from Storm Byron swept across the Strip flooding overcrowded tents sheltering tens of thousands of families displaced by the war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is sounding the alarm about the role China is playing in helping Russia beef up its military industry.
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The Gist - Shadi Hamid: The Left Should Learn to Love American Power
Shadi Hamid joins to discuss his new book, The Case for American Power, arguing that progressives' retreat from global engagement is a mistake. He contends that while the Left often views U.S. hegemony as intrinsically immoral—citing the legacy of Iraq and the tragedy in Gaza—the alternative of withdrawal often leads to greater atrocities, such as the unchecked devastation in Syria. Hamid makes the case that moral righteousness without power is toothless, and that ceding the global stage to bad actors or rival superpowers creates a more dangerous world. Plus, Mike critiques the Sunday show trend of grilling Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on the price of bananas and Tonka trucks, arguing that "gotcha" questions about specific items ignore the reality of inflation as a composite number.
Produced by Corey Wara
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Consider This from NPR - Afghan CIA fighters face stark reality in the U.S.
They survived some of the Afghanistan War's most grueling and treacherous missions.
But once they evacuated to the U.S., many Afghan fighters who served in "Zero Units" found themselves spiraling.
Among their ranks was Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the man charged with killing one National Guard member and seriously injuring a second after opening fire on them in Washington, D.C. on Thanksgiving Eve.
NPR's Brian Mann spoke to people involved in Zero Units and learned some have struggled with mental health since coming to the U.S. At least four soldiers have died by suicide.
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This episode was produced by Erika Ryan and Karen Zamora. It was edited by Alina Hartounian and Courtney Dorning.
Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.
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Newshour - 12/12/2025 21:06 GMT
Interviews, news and analysis of the day’s global events.
WSJ Minute Briefing - U.S. Stocks Finish Lower Amid Concerns About AI Spending
Plus: Broadcom slid after its latest earnings report. And Bank of America hit an all-time stock price for the first time in 19 years. Danny Lewis hosts.
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An artificial-intelligence tool assisted in the making of this episode by creating summaries that were based on Wall Street Journal reporting and reviewed and adapted by an editor.
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WSJ What’s News - What’s Behind Wall Street’s Bumper Year
P.M. Edition for Dec. 12. Leaders of JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup shared numbers that show that their banks’ Wall Street operations are on track to have one of their best years ever. WSJ Wall Street editor David Benoit discusses what’s driving it. Plus, in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, President Trump says he’s considering Kevin Warsh or Kevin Hassett to lead the Federal Reserve starting next year. And why have politicians, who just a few years ago were sounding the alarm about climate change, softened their warnings? We hear from WSJ chief economics commentator Greg Ip about what’s behind the shift. Alex Ossola hosts.
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The Bulwark Podcast - Alyssa Farah: Trump’s Big L in Indiana
Alyssa Farah Griffin joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod.
show notes
Motley Fool Money - Did Disney Win or Lose the OpenAI Deal?
Disney agreed to let its characters be used in OpenAI’s Sora videos, so is this a visionary move, or is Disney giving away its IP to AI? We discuss media in AI, Oracle’s recent earnings report, and ask what executive would be the dream free agent pickup for some beaten-up stocks.
Travis Hoium, Dan Caplinger, and Jon Quast discuss:
- Disney’s licensing deal with OpenAI
- Oracle’s earnings and AI buildout
- Lululemon earnings recap
- CEO free agent picks
Companies discussed: Nike (NKE), The Trade Desk (TTD), Disney (DIS), Block (XYZ), Oracle (ORCL), Alphabet (GOOG).
Host: Travis Hoium
Guests: Dan Caplinger, Jon Quast
Engineer: Dan Boyd
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Big Technology Podcast - OpenAI’s 2026 Priority, Disney’s AI Play, Datacenter Buildout Trouble
Ranjan Roy from Margins is back for our weekly discussion of the latest tech news. We cover: 1) OpenAI to prioritize enterprise in 2026 2) Is the AGI dream over? 3) Could OpenAI's enterprise push help it fund infrastructure? 4) Alex is on team product? 5) Can OpenAI design for consumer and enterprise at the same time? 6) Erotic ChatGPT is coming in Q1 7) Disney and OpenAI ink a groundbreaking deal 8) Why Disney wins from giving up some control 9) The AI infrastructure trade is wobbling 10) Discord at Meta... or not?
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From Big Technology on Substack: Enterprise Will Be a Top OpenAI Priority In 2026, Sam Altman Tells Editors at NYC Lunch https://www.bigtechnology.com/p/enterprise-will-be-a-top-openai-priority
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