Death Toll Grows, Nearly 200K Evacuated In LA Fires
Plus, TikTok’s fate in front of the Supreme Court today & past Presidents gather for Jimmy Carter
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Good morning,
Jimmy Carter’s state funeral in Washington on Thursday was a solemn gathering honoring the former president, praised by his family and friends for his humility and strong character.
Cameras also captured some interesting — and unexpected — dynamics between the former leaders of the free world and their spouses.
President-elect Donald Trump greeted his former vice president, Mike Pence, despite tension between the two after the Jan. 6 riots.
Karen Pence, on the other hand, appeared to give Trump the cold shoulder.
Obama, who was alone due to Michelle having an apparent scheduling conflict in Hawaii, was seen laughing with Trump. The NY Post had a lip reader try to figure out what they spoke about. As he was sitting down, former President George W. Bush gave Obama a light tap on the stomach to say hi.😃
Presidents... they’re just like us. Have a good one!
Mosheh, Jill, Sari, & Lauren
PS: Don’t forget to refer friends & family to subscribe to the Mo Newsletter… you could get free Mo News merch — DETAILS at the bottom of this newsletter!
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📌 LOOTING, WATER ISSUES, AND FINGER-POINTING AS LOS ANGELES FIRES GROW
Nearly 180,000 people have been forced to evacuate as five major wildfires continue to burn across California.
Among the most concerning are the Eaton and Palisades fires, both of which remain 0% contained as of Thursday evening. There have been 10 deaths so far related to those two fires.
Winds were calmer on Thursday, but gusts are expected to strengthen this morning and strong winds could arrive again early next week.
On Thursday evening, a new brush fire in west San Fernando Valley, called the Kenneth Fire, popped up and grew to almost 800 acres, leading to more evacuation orders, though it seemed to be slowing down hours later. That fire is now being investigated as arson, with one arrest.
With 27,000+ acres either burned or still burning, and thousands of homes, businesses, schools, and worship centers reduced to rubble, the Los Angeles community is fighting for what remains. On Thursday, President Biden announced that “the federal government will cover 100% of the cost for 180 days” for things like debris removal, temporary shelters, and salaries for first responders.
A LOOK AT THE $
AccuWeather estimates losses could reach $52 to $57 billion — making it the costliest fire disaster in U.S. history. That’s because of the extent of the fires, how densely populated the space is, and how expensive homes are in these areas.
For comparison, the Camp Fire in 2018, the deadliest and most destructive in the state's history, totaled about $15 billion in losses, according to a J.P. Morgan report.
Not making things better: L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna said at least 20 people have been arrested on suspicion of looting impacted homes, and “unfortunately, I do expect that number to go up.”
Officials warned residents that looters will be prosecuted and face arrest for ignoring evacuation orders.
COULD THIS HAVE BEEN PREVENTED?
Following reports that the LA Fire Department’s budget was cut by about 2% this year, LA Mayor Karen Bass said on Thursday that it is “important to understand that we were in tough budgetary times... but that the impact of our budget really did not impact what we’ve been going through over the last few days.”
She attributed the wildfire devastation primarily to unprecedented winds, and not the city’s ability to control it.
But, just weeks ago, LA Fire Chief Kristin Crowley wrote in a memo that budget cuts have “severely limited the department's capacity to prepare for, train for, and respond to large-scale emergencies, including wildfires."
There were also problems with some fire hydrants running out of water. On Thursday, Biden attributed that to a lack of power — caused by intentional power outages to prevent more fires — which officials are working to address.
President-elect Trump continues to argue that water in Northern California should be rerouted south.
But he’s referencing a program that would move water to Central Valley farms, not LA.
“At no time was water scarcity in general an issue. Rather, there were local shortages of water during the firefight, principally due to infrastructure constraints. But Southern California has plenty of water in storage right now, so this was not a limiting factor,” Jeffrey Mount, a senior fellow in the Water Policy Center at the Public Policy Institute of California said.
Larger CA problem: Prior to the recent wildfires, both residents and lawmakers in the Pacific Palisades area had been actively advocating for enhanced fire safety measures.
The Pacific Palisades Community Council was set to discuss a fire safety fair and wildfire protection plan at their regularly scheduled meeting Thursday.
📌 SPEECH VERSUS SECURITY: THE BATTLE OVER TIKTOK’S FUTURE IN THE U.S.
The future of TikTok in the U.S. is at stake as the Supreme Court hears arguments today on whether the government can ban the Chinese-owned platform over national security concerns. Listen here to the arguments.
According to the bipartisan law under the Court’s consideration, ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, must sell its U.S. operations by January 19 — the day before the presidential inauguration — or face removal from app stores.
The law claims ByteDance is controlled by the Chinese government, which could use the app to obtain Americans’ private information and spread disinformation.
The company has said it will shut down TikTok in the U.S. by the deadline, unless the Supreme Court strikes down the law or delays it.
FREE SPEECH VS NATIONAL SECURITY
ByteDance has refused to divest from TikTok, which has 170 million U.S. users, and is challenging the law on First Amendment grounds. A lower court previously sided with the U.S. government, prioritizing its national security concerns.
Jameel Jaffer, the executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, is on TikTok’s side.
He told the New York Times that “It is not the government’s role to tell us which ideas are worth listening to… [or] to cleanse the marketplace of ideas or information that the government disagrees with.”
With the rise of new-age technologies and algorithms, defining “speech” has become even more complex.
The federal government insists TikTok’s relationship with the Chinese government poses a national security risk, though much of the evidence to support this argument remains classified.
During today's arguments, those details will not be made public, but the justices — like lawmakers — will have full access to the classified information.
HOW THE COURT HAS RULED BEFORE
Past Supreme Court decisions — like granting the publication of the Pentagon Papers, allowing Nazis to march through a Chicago suburb, or prohibiting government interception of foreign mail that the U.S. government deemed “communist political propaganda” — have upheld the Americans’ right to the free flow of speech, even from foreign adversaries when national security risks were cited. Opponents of the ban argue it is a form of digital censorship.
However, in a 2010 case, the Court ruled in favor of Congress’s authority to limit certain speech and actions in the interest of combatting terrorism, setting a precedent for national security-related speech restrictions.
Bottom line: The ruling could have broad implications for the future of online speech and government regulation of foreign-owned apps. With the deadline fast approaching, the Supreme Court is expected to act quickly.
✔︎ Mo News Reality Check: Then there are some wild card options… Trump’s Justice Department could not enforce the law. He’s asked the Court not to allow the law to go into effect. That being said, one of the reasons he opposed TikTok’s ban was to prevent Meta from growing — could the elimination of the company’s fact-checking policies change that?
Or, ByteDance could sell TikTok (though they claim they don’t plan to) — ‘Shark Tank’s’ Kevin O’Leary and billionaire Frank McCourt say they have the funds needed.
⏳ SPEED READ
🚨NATION
📌 Fani Willis appeals disqualification from Trump's election interference case (AXIOS)
📌 Judge scraps Biden’s Title IX rules, reversing expansion of protections for LGBTQ+ students (AP)
📌 Senate advances Laken Riley Act to crack down on illegal immigration in bipartisan vote (NBC)
📌 Potent winter storm strengthening as it treks across the South, threatening extreme impacts (CNN)
🌎 AROUND THE WORLD
📌 Lebanon's US-backed army chief elected president, ending years-long stalemate and showing regional shifts (CNN)
📌 Polish president said to urge not to have Netanyahu arrested under ICC warrant if he attends Auschwitz memorial event (TIMES OF ISRAEL)
📌 Mozambique opposition leader returns from self-imposed exile as police fire tear gas at supporters (AP)
📌 Russia's Kremlin says it's watching Trump's pursuit of Greenland closely (CNBC)
📱BUSINESS, SCIENCE & TECH
📌 Scientists drill nearly 2 miles down to pull 1.2 million-year-old ice core from Antarctic (NBC)
📌 Drinking coffee at a certain time of day could reduce death risk, study finds (FOX)
📌 Google and Microsoft donate $1 million apiece to Trump’s inauguration (VERGE)
📌 Striking ski patrollers at the biggest US resort return to work claiming victory (AP)
📌 Gen Z is ditching booze for sober-centric hubs in NYC: ‘Shocked people are in here having fun without alcohol’ (NY POST)
🎬 SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT
📌 Everything to know about Hoda Kotb's final Today Show today (E!)
📌 US swimmer Gary Hall Jr loses Olympic gold medals in California wildfires: ‘Something I can live without’ (FOX)
📌 Prince William celebrates 'strength' of Princess Kate in 43rd birthday post (USA TODAY)
📌 Brooke Shields accuses doctor of performing unwanted vaginal surgery on her (HUFFPOST)
📌 Allison Holker speaks out amid criticism over her decision to share personal details about her late husband Stephen “tWitch” Boss in memoir (CNN)
🎉 CHEERS TO THE FREAKIN’ WKND
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING: Mosh: The Menendez Brothers ~ Netflix (we will have a Mo News Premium workshop on the case later this month!); Jill: 2025 Cotton Bowl, Texas vs. Ohio State.
WHAT WE’RE READING: Mosh: The Power Pause ~ Neha Ruch; Jill: Raising Parents Podcast ~ Emily Oster.
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WHAT WE’RE EATING: Mosh: Hoexter's in New York City; Jill: Apple cake.