Good morning. It's Tuesday, Nov. 25, and we're covering dismissed charges against James Comey and Letitia James, a groundbreaking gene therapy, and much more. First time reading? Join over 4.5 million insatiably curious readers. Sign up here.
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A federal judge has dismissed criminal indictments against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James without prejudice, ruling the prosecutor who brought the cases was unlawfully appointed. The Justice Department is expected to appeal.
US Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Lindsey Halligan as interim US attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Sept. 22 after the previous interim US attorney—who had declined to charge Comey—resigned. (Comey was indicted Sept. 25; James was indicted Oct. 9.) The judge ruled Halligan's appointment violated federal law and the Constitution, noting Bondi's 120-day interim-appointment authority had lapsed, and only the district court could fill the latest vacancy. The judge said such a move could circumvent Senate confirmation by stacking temporary appointments.
The DOJ could still seek a new indictment through a properly appointed prosecutor, although the five-year statute of limitations for Comey expired in September. Comey and James have argued that their cases were politically motivated. Read the judge's dismissal here and here. |
Gene Therapy Breakthrough |
A 3-year-old boy appears to have fully recovered after receiving the first-ever gene therapy to treat Hunter syndrome earlier this year, researchers revealed yesterday.
The rare, inherited disease affects roughly 2,000 people worldwide, with boys having a higher risk of carrying the disease. Children born with Hunter syndrome have a faulty gene that prevents them from producing the enzyme needed to break down complex sugar molecules. Without treatment, the molecules accumulate in their tissues and organs, leading to physical and mental decline in a process resembling dementia. Life expectancy is between 10 and 20 years. Standard treatment is a three-hour-per-week enzyme replacement therapy costing nearly $500K per year. While it can reduce organ problems, the therapy cannot slow mental decline.
The latest treatment for the 3-year-old boy, however, involved removing his stem cells and replacing the gene before reinjecting the cells. Unlike prior treatments, the latest intervention can reach the brain, preventing mental decline. See more here. |
Pioneering Jamaican singer and actor Jimmy Cliff has died at age 81. His wife, Latifa, shared yesterday that he suffered a seizure followed by pneumonia.
Cliff, born James Chambers, grew up singing in a rural Jamaican church choir. He moved to Kingston in his early teens with musical ambitions, adopting the surname "Cliff" to express the heights he aspired to reach. His song "Hurricane Hattie" topped Jamaican charts in 1962, and he represented the island at New York City’s 1964 World’s Fair. His 1969 song "Wonderful World, Beautiful People" became a global hit, reaching No. 6 in the UK and No. 25 in the US. Cliff further introduced reggae to international audiences with his 1972 acting debut in Jamaica's first major film, "The Harder They Come." Read his reflections on the movie here.
Cliff released over 30 albums, won two Grammys, and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2010. |
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Sports, Entertainment, & Culture |
> Bollywood star Dharmendra, whose career spanned over six decades and more than 250 films, dies at age 89 (More) |
> Chance the Rapper and Julianne Hough to cohost ABC’s “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” alongside returning hosts Ryan Seacrest, Rita Ora, and Rob Gronkowski (More) |
> Caitlin Clark to make USA Basketball senior national team camp debut next month after missing second half of WNBA season due to groin injury (More) |
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> Anthropic unveils Claude Opus 4.5 for software developers and knowledge workers, marking the startup's third major AI model launch in two months (More) |
> NASA trims Boeing Starliner contract and indefinitely delays crewed Starliner flights, eight months after technical issues left astronauts stranded on the International Space Station (More) |
> Novo Nordisk's semaglutide pill fails to slow Alzheimer's disease in clinical trials (More) | Neuroscientists identify rare gene mutation that may protect brain immune cells from Alzheimer's, pointing to potential preventative treatments (More) |
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> US stock markets close higher (S&P 500 +1.6%, Dow +0.4%, Nasdaq +2.7%) as Alphabet (+6.3%), Tesla (+6.8%) lead tech rally (More) |
> Amazon to spend up to $50B on AI infrastructure to support US government agencies; project to break ground in 2026 (More) |
> Kohl's names Michael Bender as permanent CEO; Bender is fourth executive to lead the department store in four years after former CEO Ashley Buchanan was fired for misconduct (More) |
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> Pentagon opens investigation into Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) over participation in a video calling on military members not to follow any illegal orders (More) |
> State Department designates Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and Cartel de los Soles as foreign terrorists over alleged drug trafficking to the US (More) |
> Ethiopia's Hayli Gubbi volcano erupts for the first time in at least 10,000 years; no casualties were reported as of this writing (More) |
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> How to Fix Your Typewriter (and Your Life)
NY Times | Kurt Streeter. In his mid-50s, Paul Lundy decided to drop his career and apprentice under a 92-year-old man who fixed typewriters for a living. (Read) |
> Why Don't Jet Engines Melt?
Veritasium | Staff. The most powerful jet engine runs at a temperature 250 degrees Celsius hotter than the melting point of the materials that make it up. How? (Watch) |
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Get Ahead of Your New Year’s Goals |
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Clickbait: Cardi B turns umbilical cord into gold.
Historybook: Businessman Andrew Carnegie born (1835); Agatha Christie’s “The Mousetrap” opens, becomes longest-running play in history (1952); John F. Kennedy Jr. born (1960); Author Upton Sinclair dies (1968); Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies (2016). |
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