Good morning. It's Tuesday, July 7, and we'd like to thank the Supreme Court for upholding a ban on robocalls. Have feedback? Let us know at [email protected].

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NEED TO KNOW

Faithless Electors Fall in Court

States are allowed to remove electors who cast votes that don't align with their state's popular vote, the Supreme Court ruled yesterday. While faithless electors are relatively rare, the unanimous decision means results of the Electoral College will tie to the results of state-level popular votes. 

By law, US presidential elections rely on an indirect vote made by 538 electors. In practice, these electors are chosen by the winning party and rarely violate their pledge. There have been 165 instances of faithless electors in US history, 63 of which occurred in 1872 when presidential candidate Horace Greeley (R) died after the election. The two cases in question centered on a handful of such electors who refused to support the Clinton-Kaine ticket in 2016 (see background), despite Democrats winning the respective states. 

The Electoral College comes under criticism every four years; see arguments for and against the institution. 

Separately, the Supreme Court upheld a ban on robocalls. The rule extends to political polling groups that typically rely on autodialing to reach voters.

Payday in Kansas City

Superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs agreed to a 10-year deal worth more than $450M, sources revealed yesterday. The extension includes a $140M injury guarantee and begins after the 2021 season, meaning Mahomes appears likely to stay in Kansas City through 2031. Counting the next two seasons, the young QB will have the richest contract in American sports, exceeding $475M.

At 24 years old, Mahomes has dominated the NFL since entering the league three seasons ago. Over the past two years, including the playoffs, he has led all QBs in touchdowns (89), passing yards (10,602), and wins (27). On track for one of the worst games of his career in last year's Super Bowl LIV, he led the Chiefs to three scores in the final seven minutes. The comeback sealed the franchise's first championship in 50 years, with Mahomes winning the game's MVP trophy. 

The Chiefs are also slated to kick off the NFL season—barring any coronavirus-induced changes—when they host the Houston Texans Thursday, Sept. 10 (8:20pm ET, NBC). 

Uber Buys Postmates

Ride-sharing giant Uber will buy food delivery service Postmates for $2.65B in stock, the companies announced yesterday. The move marries the third- and fourth-largest food delivery services in the country, giving Uber an estimated 30% market share—rivaling that of DoorDash (33%) and Grubhub (32%). Uber previously tried to acquire Grubhub in early June before the deal reportedly fell apart over details; Grubhub was eventually bought by Europe's Just Eat Takeaway.

The burgeoning industry is estimated to pass $26B in revenue this year, with more than 110 million users in the US. While use of the apps was already seeing double-digit growth, the pandemic has accelerated the trend, with many restaurants closed for indoor service and patrons choosing to remain at home. Postmates said orders in the second quarter were up 50% from the previous year. Uber stock was up 6% on the news. 

Meanwhile, gig economy delivery workers have seen competition soar as laid-off workers join the apps. 

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THE CABLE-KILLER?

Notice how everyone seems to be cutting cable lately in favor of streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, HBO, and Hulu? The shift is happening without a doubt, and things could look pretty bleak for cable. But who do you pick to be the biggest winner? With so many programs and offerings, it seems daunting to predict who's coming out on top in the Netflix-versus-all battle royale.

Our friends at The Motley Fool have been scouring the investment world for the stock most likely to capitalize on this shift, and shockingly, both of The Motley Fool’s cofounders, David and Tom, independently arrived at the same company. This has only happened 25 times over the entire history of The Motley Fool Stock Advisor, and when it does, the average return has been an astounding 931%!

The company they’re featuring could stand to grow immensely within the multitrillion-dollar media and entertainment industry, sitting nicely in the middle of the advertising market. And the best part is most investors have never even heard of it. Check out the report now.

*Returns as of July 3, 2020

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IN THE KNOW

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture

> Harvard unveils plan for fall semester will include bringing up to 40% of students back on campus, but no change in tuition ($49,653 this year) despite all classes moving online (More)

> President Trump calls on Bubba Wallace to apologize for noose “hoax”; questions NASCAR’s decision to ban Confederate flag (More) | Colin Kaepernick signs production deal with Disney to produce series that highlights social justice issues (More)

> Charlie Daniels, whose songs include "The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” dies at 83 (More) | Ennio Morricone, Oscar- and Grammy-winning composer, dies at 91 (More)

Science & Technology

> Federal court orders closure of the Dakota Access Pipeline, saying environmental assessments were not properly followed before construction; line carries more than 500,000 barrels of crude oil per day from North Dakota's Bakken shale basin (More)

> Researchers pinpoint a specific type of collagen protein that limits scar tissue from heart attacks, leading to stronger, healthier recovery (More)

> Deep brain stimulation localized along a specific nerve fiber tract shown to treat severe cases of obsessive-compulsive disorder (More) | How does DBS work? (More)

Business & Markets

Brought to you by The Ascent

> Details of Trump Administration's Paycheck Protection Program loans released, including names of companies receiving loans of $150K or more; analysis estimates the program protected up to 51 million jobs (More)

> US stock markets climb (S&P 500 +1.6%, Dow +1.8%, Nasdaq +2.2%) after Chinese markets surge to highest level since early 2018 (More)

> Global venture capital funding down 7% in the first half of the year over last year to $129B; the reduction was lower than expected amid pandemic (More)

Have credit card debt? Now’s a very good time to jump on a balance transfer. Get a 0% introductory APR for 18 months on balance transfers with this card. Give yourself a year and a half to pay off your balance for peace of mind (More) #Ad

Politics & World Affairs

> Amy Cooper, the New York City woman criticized for calling the police on a Black man bird-watching in Central Park, charged with filing a false police report (More) | Frederick Douglass statue vandalized in Rochester, New York; incident came on the anniversary of one of Douglass' most famous speeches, delivered in the city (More)

> Miami-Dade County pauses reopening plans, orders emergency restaurant closure as coronavirus cases spike (More) | US reports 2.94 million cases, with 130,306 deaths, as of this morning; see three-day moving average (More)

> Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman (R) loses in primary bid to retake his old office (More) | Release date for tell-all book by President Trump's niece, Mary Trump, moved up to July 14 (More)

IN-DEPTH

Is Anyone Watching Quibi?

Vulture | Benjamin Wallace. With deep pockets and an enormous stable of A-list talent, Quibi (rhymes with "Libby," we learned) was supposed to revolutionize how Hollywood content was consumed. Just three months after its launch, the platform isn't in the top 250 most downloaded apps and has gained more attention for flops than hits. (Read, $$)

China's Modern Genocide

UnHerd | Sarah Ditum. China's oppression of its Muslim minority Uighurs has been slowly making its way into Western public consciousness over the past few years. But the latest bombshell report—that Beijing is forcing contraceptive and sterilization on the population—echoes past ethnic genocides around the world. (Read)

EXCELLENT HISTORICAL RETURNS, NO JARGON

The Motley Fool was founded by brothers Tom and David Gardner out of their garage in Alexandria, VA. Since then, they’ve grown remarkably, thanks in part to some life-changing stock recommendations. Some highlights:
> Netflix in 2004 (25,618% returns)
> Amazon in 2002 (18,671% returns)
> Tom’s average recommendation: 216% returns
> David’s average recommendation: 699% returns

Today, we're featuring a recommendation that Tom and David both arrived at independently, which very rarely happens. Read the report now!

*Returns as of July 3, 2020

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ETCETERA

An interactive look at the impact of the pandemic by race. ($$, NYT)

How teachers feel about schools reopening.

The "Hamilton" premiere nearly doubled Disney Plus downloads (... and check out our guide to the show here).

From our partners: Now's your chance to enjoy a five-star resort in Orange County for as low as $299. Choose your dates with the peace of mind that your trip is fully refundable. Book now here. #Ad

How Big Tech makes its billions in a single chart.

Boxed wine sales have surged amid lockdown.

Need a pick-me-up? Try these touching animal comics.

... and relax with this library of the best soundscapes.

Fierce competitors win thousands for refusing to stop touching their phones.

Clickbait: Man flees in stolen car, crashes into a woman stealing a car.

Historybook: Construction of the Hoover Dam begins (1930); HBD Ringo Starr (1940); HBD basketball legend Lisa Leslie (1972); Sandra Day O’Connor nominated as first female US Supreme Court justice (1981); US women’s soccer team wins World Cup for record fourth time (2019).

"No one learns more about a problem than the person at the bottom."

- Sandra Day O'Connor

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