The Hill’s 12:30 Report — Scientific breakthrough in energy; Best ‘White Lotus’ reactions

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–> A midday take on what’s happening in politics and how to have a sense of humor about it.* 

*Ha. Haha. Hahah. Sniff. Haha. Sniff. Ha–breaks down crying hysterically. 

NEWS THIS MORNING 

We can catch a small break. Quick! Catch it!:

New consumer price index (CPI) data released on Tuesday shows that inflation has eased a bit in November.

The numbers: “The annual inflation rate fell to 7.1 percent in November, down from 7.7 percent in October and in line with economist estimates of a 7.3 percent annual inflation rate. Prices rose just 0.1 percent in November alone, down from a 0.4 percent monthly inflation rate in October.” 

Why this is welcomed news: The slowed pace of prices will allow Americans to catch a break — and could allow the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates at a slower pace.  

The Hill’s Sylvan Lane explains more about what this means for the economy 

So, are more interest rate increases expected?: Yes. Forbes explains 

This is a big deal: 

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm announced on Tuesday that scientists at a federal facility have successfully created energy using nuclear fusion (!)

Why this is big: “Granholm said the development moved the country significantly closer to the possibility of fusion energy, a carbon-free source, with officials calling the discovery a breakthrough.”  

Watch Granholm’s news conference this morning 

‘HOW LONG UNTIL THIS BREAKTHROUGH DISCOVERY CAN POWER YOUR HOUSE?’:

CNN’s Ella Nilsen and René Marsh explain

It’s Tuesday. I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Did someone forward this newsletter to you? Sign up here.

🔐 The FTX mess 

FTX, SBF, SEC, DOJ — so many acronyms: 

Crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas on Monday night. The Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged him with “wire fraud, securities fraud, commodities fraud, as well as conspiracy to violate campaign finance laws following the collapse of his crypto platform FTX in November.”  

The indictment: “The unsealed indictment signed by U.S. attorney Damian Williams and filed in the Southern District of New York alleges that Bankman-Fried used customer deposits at FTX to pay his own hedge fund, a privately held company called Alameda Research.”  

The full story, via The Hill’s Tobias Burns 

Timing: The House and Senate are holding separate hearings this week on the collapse of the crypto platform FTX.

Happening today: Livestream of the House Financial Services Committee hearing on FTX 

Happening tomorrow: Livestream of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee hearing on FTX 

FIVE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE FTX COLLAPSE: 

1. How much did Bankman-Fried know before FTX went bankrupt? 
2. Will Bankman-Fried be convicted of crimes? 
3. Where were the regulators? 
4. Could the collapse of FTX have been prevented? 
5. How will cryptocurrency rules change? 

Reasoning for each from The Hill’s Sylvan Lane

🕰 2024 

Is 2024 the new 1964?:  

“The rising animosity between pro-Trump and anti-Trump forces is creating the prospect of something no Republican wants: a GOP civil war that could split the party in two and leave the path clear for Democrats to win big in 2024.”  

The worry: “Former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) raised that possibility last week, saying his ‘greatest fear’ involves the possibility of a repeat of 1964, when the party split between Barry Goldwater and Nelson Rockefeller.”  

Gingrich told The New York Times: “I can imagine a Trump-anti-Trump war over the next two years that just guarantees Biden’s re-election in a landslide and guarantees that Democrats control everything.”  

^ Top Republicans aren’t ready to hit that panic button just yet though.  

How this could play out within the GOP, via The Hill’s Al Weaver

In Congress

‘I-n-d-e-p-e-n-d-e-n-t do you know what that mean?’: 

–> https://bit.ly/3YkypvN (yes I’m dating myself) 

Since Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.) announced last week that she is changing her party affiliation from Democrat to Independent, Dems are left to decide how to proceed. 

On one hand: Democrats need to keep her close for key votes in the next two years. 

On the other hand: Some want to oust her in her 2024 reelection. 

A plausible scenario: Sinema creates a three-way general election in Arizona, splitting Democratic voters and giving Republicans an easy win. 

Read into this how you will: “Democratic senators on Monday declined to say whether they would support a Democratic challenger against Sinema or comment on whether the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee or allied outside groups, such as Senate Majority PAC, should back her reelection.”  

How this could play out, via The Hill’s Alexander Bolton 

‘THE WORST JOB IN WASHINGTON? DEMS STRUGGLE TO FIND SENATE CAMPAIGN HEAD’:

From The Huffington Post’s Kevin Robillard 

NEWS THIS MORNING — BOEBERT WINS THE RECOUNT: 

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) has officially won reelection after a recount confirmed her unexpectedly close victory.

🦠 Latest with COVID-19

THROWBACK — THREE YEARS AGO NOW: 

On Dec. 12, 2019, “a cluster of patients in China’s Hubei Province, in the city of Wuhan, begin to experience the symptoms of an atypical pneumonia-like illness that does not respond well to standard treatments,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

THE COVID-19 NUMBERS 

Cases to date: 99.2 million 

Death toll: 1,080,472 

Current hospitalizations: 15,342 

Shots administered: 657 million 

Fully vaccinated: 68.9 percent of Americans 

CDC data here.

🍝 The talk of social media 

Skip this section if you have not seen the ‘White Lotus’ season finale. I repeat, SKIP THIS SECTION if you want to avoid spoilers!: 

Sunday night’s wild season finale of HBO’s “White Lotus” really riled up fans. My Twitter timeline has been inundated by reactions, so I figured I’d post a few of my favorites. 

The line from the finale that I keep seeing: Actress Jennifer Coolidge yelled at one point, “Please! These gays…they’re trying to murder me!” Watch the clip 

My absolute favorite scene in TV this year: “Jennifer Coolidge deserves an Emmy for this walk to run alone,” @sbstryker tweeted. Watch the clip 

Agreed: @sbstryker suggested that “Cities should have to bid to host the next season of The White Lotus like the Olympics.”  

Whoa, the resemblance is uncanny: @dynamofire recalled an earlier episode of the season when Jennifer Coolidge’s character tells her assistant Portia that “you remind me of a young me.” Well, look at this side-by-side comparison of Coolidge and the actress who plays Portia 

This is so true!: @ischafer tweeted, “HBO is still out here getting everyone to watch a scripted show together at exactly the same time.”  

I’ve seen *a lot* of comments on Portia’s outfit at the end of the episode: Photo if you need a refresher 

NO WAY: @jeysonpaez pointed out a clue from an earlier episode as to the season’s ending. The clue 

If you live in the DC-area, you’ll appreciate this: secret.washington.dc compared ‘White Lotus’ characters to neighborhoods of Washington, D.C. Check out the list — it’s pretty funny 

Yes! This!: @AshHess pointed out, “The biggest [White Lotus] finale plot hole is that $50k was a drop in the bucket but they’re flying [low-cost airline EasyJet].”

🐥Notable tweets 

This didn’t age well:

The New York Times’s Shane Goldmacher tweeted, “Cleaning out old New Yorkers always leads to gems.” Photos of an old FTX ad

⏱On tap 

The House and Senate are in. President Biden and Vice President Harris are in Washington, D.C. 

• 9 a.m.: Biden received his daily briefing. 
• Noon: The Senate holds a judicial confirmation vote. Today’s Senate agenda 
• 1:30 – 3 p.m.: First and last House votes for the day. Today’s House agenda 
• 2:15 p.m.: The Senate holds a confirmation vote for Jay Curtis Shambaugh as Under Secretary of the Treasury. 
• 7 p.m.: A Senate vote on Yemen.

All times Eastern.

📺What to watch

• This morning: Biden delivered remarks on inflation. Watch
• 1:20 p.m.: Harris speaks at the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit’s African and Diaspora Young Leaders Forum. Livestream Op-ed 
• 2:15 p.m.: White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre holds a press briefing. Livestream 
• 3:30 p.m.: Biden signs the Respect for Marriage Act. Harris, first lady Jill Biden and second gentleman Doug Emhoff attend. Livestream 

🍿 In lighter news 

Today is National Popcorn String Day. 

And to leave you in the holiday spirit this afternoon, here’s a dog who did absolutely nothing wrong.