Happy Monday, Daily Brief Readers!
We wanted to wish our Muslim readers an "Eid Mubarak!"
Sincerely, Dan & Eduardo | |  Daniel |  |
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 President Biden made fun of former President Trump — and himself — in the first White House Correspondents' dinner since 2019. The event was hosted by Daily Show anchor Trevor Noah, who took the opportunity to lambast leading members of the American political elite. More: - It was the first time since 2016 that the President attended the gala, in part because Trump refused to attend the event during his presidency but also because the 2020 and 2021 events were canceled due to the pandemic.
- Biden made light of the "Let's Go Brandon" slogan that has become popular with conservatives, saying:
- "Republicans seem to support one fella, some guy named Brandon. He’s having a really good year. I’m happy for him."
- Biden mocked Trump and joked about the Jan. 6 insurrection, saying:
- "Just imagine if my predecessor came to this dinner this year ... Now, that would really have been a real coup."
- Noah opened by saying that it was a "great honor to be speaking at the nation’s most distinguished superspreader event."
- He went on to say:
- "You spent the last two years telling everyone the importance of wearing masks and avoiding large indoor gatherings. Then the second someone offers you a free dinner, you turn into Joe Rogan."
- The event featured pre-recorded sketches from comedians James Corden and Billy Eichner.
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 May Day protests took place across Europe on Sunday, with violence erupting in Paris as anarchists attacked a McDonald's restaurant and several businesses. More than 250 protests took place in France, the vast majority of which were peaceful. More: - ~116,500 people demonstrated across France, including 24,000 in Paris.
- 54 people were arrested and eight police officers were injured in Paris.
- Protesters demanded wage hikes and urged newly re-elected President Emmanuel Macron to drop his plan to raise the retirement age from 62 to 65.
Zoom Out: - May Day, also known as International Workers' Day, typically sees marches by trade unionists, leftist politicians, and (more recently) climate activists.
- Protests also took place in Germany, Italy, Turkey, North Macedonia, and elsewhere across Europe.
- In Russia, antiwar protestors and bystanders were arrested at May Day celebrations.
- In South Africa, striking mineworkers stormed a stage where South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was giving a speech.
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 The number of COVID-19 cases is rising in the U.S. amid the spread of Omicron BA.2 subvariant, which has become the dominant strain in the country. Although the highly infectious subvariant appears to be less likely to cause hospitalization or death, hospitalizations have crept up in recent weeks. More: - The national seven-day average for new COVID-19 cases is now at 53,000, a 25.2% increase from the previous week.
- 1,889 additional people were hospitalized for COVID-19 over the past seven days, an increase of 18.5% over the previous week.
- Dr. Megan Ranney of Boston University's School of Public Health said the current wave "is not dangerous in a way that prior waves" were.
- Doctors have warned that the new subvariant can still cause Long COVID.
Zoom Out: - A new subvariant called BA.4 has been identified in South Africa amid a surge in cases in the country.
- A public health expert at South Africa's University of KwaZulu-Natal said that it is unclear if BA.4 will cause a fully-fledged wave.
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 GOOD NEWS: Renewables met 100% of California's electricity demand for a 15-minute period on Saturday afternoon. According to the California Independent System Operator (CAISO), solar panels produced two-thirds of the power consumed in the state during that time. More: - At 2:45 P.M. on Saturday, the statewide demand for energy was 18,762 megawatts.
- 37,172 megawatts of energy were available, and 100% of the energy used came from renewable sources.
- After the 15 minutes, the renewable energy share decreased to 97%.
- Dan Jacobson, an advisor to the Environment California group, tweeted: "California busts past 100% on this historic day for clean energy!"
- Under a 2018 law, California plans to produce 100% of its power from zero-carbon energy resources, including renewables and nuclear, by 2045.
- The law also created the first statewide mandate in the U.S. requiring most new homes to have rooftop solar panels.
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 A message from AXONIUS Complexity is everywhere. So focus on what you can control. At least that's what Simone Biles says. When the noise and chaos of life creep in, she breathes deep, embraces the quiet, and remembers what really matters. “I've figured out how to push away the distractions and the doubt, and treat everything I do the same as I would in a practice session at the gym. Like I'm doing it just for me.” Complexity is everywhere, including cybersecurity asset management. Control it with Axonius. Axonius correlates asset data from existing solutions to provide an always up-to-date inventory, uncover policy gaps, and automate response actions — giving security and IT teams the confidence to control complexity. Want to learn more about how one of the greatest gymnasts of all time controls complexity? Watch the full video now. Presented by Axonius. Watch Now
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 The family of Paul Rusesabagina, the subject of the "Hotel Rwanda" film, filed a $400M lawsuit in the U.S. over his alleged abduction and torture by Rwandan government agents. Rusesabagina is credited with saving the lives of ~1,200 people during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. More: - Rusesabagina's family alleges that the Rwandan government and top officials conspired to "facilitate and execute an elaborate plot to lure" Rusesabagina back to Rwanda from his home in San Antonio, Texas.
- In 2020, Rusesabagina was arrested in the Rwandan capital of Kigali.
- Rusesabagina's supporters claim that Rusesabagina was misled into returning to his homeland, believing that the private jet he was flying on would take him to Burundi.
- Rusesabagina has been detained by the Rwandan government since his arrest.
- In September 2021, Rusesabagina was convicted on charges of supporting a rebel group that perpetrated deadly attacks in Rwanda in 2018 and 2019, and sentenced to 25 years in prison.
- In 2018 he posted a video calling for regime change in Rwanda.
- His family claims that the Rwandan government seeks to torture and illegally detain Rusesabagina "for the remainder of his life."
Zoom Out: - During the Rwandan genocide of 1994, ~800,000 people were killed in Rwanda by Hutu extremists.
- Rusesabagina was able to save ~1,200 people who sought refuge in the hotel that he managed.
- In 2004, the film "Hotel Rwanda" was made about Rusesabagina's experience.
- The following year, Rusesabagina was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by then-U.S. President George W Bush.
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 Men's tennis stars Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray denounced Wimbledon's decision to bar Russian and Belarusian players from this year's competition. The Association of Tennis Players (ATP) and Women's Tennis Association (WTA) have also criticized the ban. More: - On April 20, Wimbledon announced that it is banning Russian and Belarussian players from the competition.
- Prominent Russian players affected by the ban include Daniil Medvedev (the reigning U.S. Open champion), Andrey Rublev, and French Open runner-up Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
- Belarusians Aryna Sabalenka and Victoria Azarenka are also barred from competing.
- Nadal said that "it's not their fault what's happening in this moment with the war... Wimbledon just took their decision ... The government didn't force them to do it."
- Djokovic compared the bans to Australia's decision to prevent him from entering the country to play in the Australian Open because he was unvaccinated.
- Andy Murray said he was "not supportive" of the plan, but that there is no "right answer" for tennis in this situation.
- The Wimbledon tournament starts on June 27.
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- European energy ministers are holding emergency talks on Monday in response to Moscow's demand that European buyers pay for their gas in roubles.
- Israel's foreign ministry demanded an apology from Russian diplomats after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov falsely claimed that Adolf Hitler "had Jewish blood."
- First lady Jill Biden is set to visit Romania and Slovakia this week to show support for Ukrainian refugees.
- Iraqi police seized more than 6 million Captagon amphetamine tablets and 13 pounds of hashish, and arrested ten individuals in connection with the drugs. According to the Iraqi national security agency, all ten arrested individuals "admitted to links with international drug trafficking networks."
- SeedInvest launches a pitch competition for historically underrepresented founders. Over $40,000 in prizes. Pitch to Baron Davis and Jesse Draper. Learn More.*
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 The Place of the Twins by Paul Klee. 1929
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 |  | Daniel Smith is an Inside Analyst who currently resides in Miami, Florida. A native of Brooklyn, New York, Daniel spent the last four years as a PhD candidate in Politics and International Studies at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom. He is fascinated by tech, business, politics, venture capital, and everything in between. When he’s not writing for Inside he can be found kicking a ball on the nearest rugby pitch. Follow him on Twitter @DanSmithInside. | | | | Editor | Eduardo Garcia is a writer and editor based in New York. He is writing an illustrated book about climate change that will be published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Bylines in The New York Times, The Guardian, Slate, Scientific American, and others. In one of his previous lives, Eduardo worked as a Reuters correspondent in Latin America for nearly a decade. | |
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Controlling Complexity: a video featuring Simone Biles. Presented by Axonius. Watch now. | |
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