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The conflict began with a tweet. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the start of “Operation Peace Spring,” a strangely named military invasion of northeastern Syria. Turkey’s attack followed a dramatic reversal of American policy by President Donald Trump, who after a call with Erdogan, decided to order the retreat of U.S. forces from the area. The move cleared the way for Erdogan’s assault on the Kurds, who up until that moment were a U.S. ally. Trump reportedly said, in response to a question about his decision, that the Kurds didn’t side with the allies in World War II and that ISIS fighters who may escape will likely flee to Europe.
Here are today’s top stories
Trump spun his decision to retreat as a win for the U.S. while members of Congress called it a gift to terrorists, Iran and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The conflict could reshape the balance of power in a volatile region.
China is still open to reaching a partial trade deal with the U.S., signaling that Beijing is focused on limiting the damage to its economy. U.S. stocks gained on the news.
Trump enlisted former Representative Trey Gowdy to join White House staff trying to defend Trump against Congress’s impeachment inquiry.
House Democrats aren’t the only ones investigating Trump. The Manhattan District Attorney recently questioned Trump’s former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, who is currently in prison.
FEMA has bought 44,000 houses in flood-prone areas over the last 30 years. As climate change intensifies, they may have to buy millions more.
PG&E preemptively shut off power to millions of people in California in an attempt to prevent wildfires as high winds were forecast for the state.
What’s Luke Kawa thinking about? The Bloomberg cross-asset reporter is weighing the potential economic ramifications of an Elizabeth Warren presidency. Drawing on the work of Keynes, his colleague Joe Weisenthal flags that one of the big things markets have to fear is fear of a business-unfriendly president itself.
What you’ll need to know tomorrow
- The world’s biggest pork producers warn of bacon shortage.
- The NBA lost almost all of its major Chinese sponsors.
- Fed minutes show officials debating when to halt easing.
- The U.S. is no longer the world’s most competitive economy.
- The Navy’s new $7.8 billion destroyer is running six years late.
- Airline seatback screens may be an endangered species.
- The puffy winter jacket doesn’t always have to be puffy.
What you’ll want to read in Businessweek
Customers adore Tesla’s autopilot software, and the company considers it a crucial first step toward building the world’s first truly autonomous vehicle. Most of the time, Autopilot gets drivers where they’re going even if they’re reading books, napping or strumming a ukulele. But the software sometimes fails to spot hazards, and appears to have played a role in four fatalities. Eventually, the technology could save the lives of millions of people. But it’s going to kill some people first.
To contact the author of this story: Josh Petri in Portland at jpetri4@bloomberg.net
©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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