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| Today's newsletter covers: - 🐘 A Super PAC backing GOP presidential candidate Ron DeSantis released documents detailing his debate strategy
- 💊 Nonprofit health insurer Blue Shield of California has dropped CVS and named Amazon Pharmacy and a startup backed by Mark Cuban as preferred network providers
- 🦎 Researchers have identified a new gecko species in Madagascar
And much more! If you find this newsletter useful, please share it with your friends and colleagues. Thank you. Your faithful IDB writer, Daniel
p/Dan-Smith | |
| 1 | | A consulting firm working for a pro-Ron DeSantis super PAC posted hundreds of pages of campaign materials online. The documents, which were likely published to comply with rules that prevent super PACs from strategizing for political campaigns in private, feature debate advice, research, and internal polling. More: - A "Debate Memo" lists four strategies for DeSantis to pursue in the Republican primary debate:
- Attacking Joe Biden and the media repeatedly.
- Stating DeSantis' "positive vision" repeatedly.
- Attacking fellow GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
- Defending Donald Trump if Chris Christie attacks him.
- The memo urges DeSantis to question the conservative credentials of Ramaswamy and suggests giving him the moniker of "Fake Vivek" or "Vivek the Fake."
- Internal polling documents show that Ramaswamy's support in New Hampshire grew from 1% in April to 11% in early August.
- The memo outlines a strategy for DeSantis to distance himself from Trump without condemning the former president.
- It suggests that if Christie attacks Trump, DeSantis should say that the former New Jersey Governor is "auditioning for a show on [liberal television network] MSNBC."
Zoom Out: - Axiom Strategies, the consultancy that posted the documents, removed the "Debate Memo" from its website after the New York Times reached out for comment.
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| 2 | | Walmart stock lost 1.6% on Thursday despite a positive Q2 earnings report showing growing sales and profits. 
What the numbers say: Walmart reported that Q2 in-store sales grew 6.4% from a year ago, online sales surged 24%, and profits increased by 6.7%. Relevance: Walmart said that its grocery store business saw growing sales and market share. Roughly half of the company's sales come from groceries and non-discretionary products, compared to just a quarter of overall sales for Target. Walmart CFO John David Rainey said that the company's efforts to target high-income consumers were paying off and that "this is not your grandfather's Walmart." Q: Do you think Walmart will succeed in its mission to reinvent itself and appeal to a broader swath of consumers? Let us know here. | | | |
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| 3 | | Pakistani authorities arrested 129 people overnight after mobs of Muslims attacked churches and the homes of minority Christians in the city of Karanwala. The attacks, which targeted five churches and two dozen homes, was reportedly in response to the alleged desecration of the Quran by Christians in the area. More: - At least one church was fully burned, and four others were damaged.
- One of the victims said that members of the mob brought vehicles to loot items from the burned homes.
- Muslim clerics arrived in the area to calm the local Muslim population, while schools and businesses shut down.
- Local authorities banned rallies for a week to prevent further violence.
- Police are looking for the man who allegedly damaged the Quran to determine what happened to spark the riots.
Zoom Out: - Under Pakistan's blasphemy laws, individuals who are convicted of insulting Islam can be sentenced to death.
- There has never been a death sentence issued for blasphemy in Pakistan, but instances of alleged blasphemy in the Muslim-majority country often provoke riots and mob violence.
- Amnesty International called for Pakistan to repeal the blasphemy laws in response to the violence.
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| 4 | | GOOD NEWS: More than 20 years after it was first discovered in Madagascar, a team of researchers confirmed that a rare leaf-tailed gecko is part of a previously unknown species. The gecko, which is closely related to another species found in Madagascar, will be called "Uroplatus garamaso." More: - Leaf-tailed geckos are known to spend their days resting on tree trunks, where their skin flaps camouflage them.
- During the night, they hunt for prey on tree branches.
- The Uroplatus garamaso has two key differences separating it from the Uroplatus henkeli species: a slightly smaller size and a tongue that is pink instead of black.
Zoom Out: - Scientists identified eight new species of gecko in Madagascar last year.
- Jörn Köhler, a co-author of the study describing the new species, said that identifying new reptile species in Madagascar can be an arduous process since different species can have very similar features.
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| 5 | | Nonprofit health insurer Blue Shield of California will partner with Mark Cuban's Cost Plus Drug and Amazon Pharmacy. The decision to drop CVS and name the online retailers as preferred pharmacy networks will lead to $500M in savings per year, said Blue Shield CEO Paul Markovich. More: - The transition will begin with Blue Shield's own employees in 2024, while members are expected to gain access to Amazon Pharmacy and Cost Plus in 2025.
- Blue Shield, which has 4.8 million members, will continue to use CVS Caremark for specialty drugs.
- CVS, which had been Blue Shield's pharmacy benefits partner for more than 15 years, saw its stock price fall by over 10% after trading opened on Thursday.
- Blue Shield is the second insurer to sign with Cost Plus, which sells drugs at 15% above wholesale prices, since it launched in January 2022 ― the first one was Capital Blue Cross, based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
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| 6 | | H&M told Reuters this week that it will stop sourcing clothing from Myanmar after reports of labor abuses in the country's garment industry. Zara, Primark, and Marks & Spencer have also stopped sourcing garments from manufacturers in Myanmar. More: - H&M, the world's second-biggest fashion retailer after Zara owner Inditex, said it is probing 20 alleged instances of labor abuse at some of its garment suppliers.
- A human rights advocacy group highlighted 156 instances of alleged worker abuse between February 2022 and February 2023 at factories in Myanmar, up from 56 in the previous year.
- Activists say workers' protections have weakened since a military junta seized power in February 2021.
- The group found allegations of wage reduction, wage theft, unfair dismissal, and forced overtime.
Zoom Out: - Some retailers, like Danish fashion firm Bestseller, have expanded their staff in Myanmar to better monitor suppliers.
- Adidas said it plans to continue sourcing goods from Myanmar despite "human rights and labor rights risks."
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| 7 | | QUICK HITS - The AWS Cookbook — packed with practical insights and hands-on examples — is a must-have for your cloud toolkit.*
- BAE Systems agreed to buy Ball Corp's aerospace business for ~$5.55B. Ball Corp, the world's largest supplier of beer cans, will sell off units that manufacture spacecraft and high-tech instruments.
- The U.S. Interior Department announced a new program to bring electricity into more Native American homes. A 2022 report from the Energy Department found that nearly 17,000 Native American homes, most of which were in the Southwestern U.S. and Alaska, didn't have electricity.
- Sir Michael Parkinson, a British television fixture who interviewed celebrities on his chat show over a seven-decade-long career, died at the age of 88.
- The Anderson Economic Group estimates that a potential strike by nearly 150,000 UAW auto workers at GM, Ford, and Stellantis plants would cause an economic loss of $5B over ten days.
- This AI company, backed by top VCs, is eliminating a $1T problem in hospitality. Invest and learn more about Jurny and learn how to invest in Jurny today!*
*This is a sponsored post. | | | |
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INSIDE DAILY BRIEF LEADERBOARD (30 DAYS) |
 | Writer | | Dr. Daniel Smith is an Inside writer with a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Cambridge. Follow him on Twitter @DJS12321 or email him at Daniel@inside.com. | | This newsletter was edited by NO ACCOUNT ASSOCIATED WITH THE EDITOR | |
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