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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
British PM Theresa May and EU agree on Brexit text - but there’s no guarantee deal will survive
British Prime Minister Theresa May has reached an agreement with the European Union on the text of a Brexit deal, but it’s still far from certain the deal will survive, Paul Waldie writes. (for subscribers)
Ms. May has called a special cabinet meeting for tomorrow afternoon to review the proposed deal. But it already seems doomed. It has been fiercely attacked by hard-Brexit backers in Ms. May’s Conservative Party caucus and her key allies in the British Parliament.
The main sticking point in the talks has been the fate of the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland. Reports say the agreed text includes Ms. May’s proposal for all of the U.K. to remain in the EU’s customs union, but also has provisions that would keep Northern Ireland tied closer to the single market. Even if she can win over her cabinet, Ms. May will still face huge obstacles getting the required approval from Parliament for that kind of deal.
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CNN sues Trump administration, President blasts Macron on Twitter
CNN has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the revocation of press credentials for White House correspondent Jim Acosta, a frequent target of President Donald Trump. It has demanded the return of Mr. Acosta’s credentials, and said the White House violated the First Amendment right to free speech.
In a punchy press conference last week after the U.S. midterm elections, Mr. Trump lashed out as a White House intern attempted to take the microphone away from Mr. Acosta: “You are a rude, terrible person.” The White House suspended his credentials, alleging he had put his hands on the intern. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted a video in support of that claim, which is thought to be doctored (the President disputes this). Videos of the encounter from news services showed Mr. Acosta pulling pulling back as the intern moved to take the microphone.
Meanwhile, Mr. Trump took to Twitter today to target French President Emmanuel Macron. He rejected Mr. Macron’s warnings against the threat of nationalism, and blasted the key U.S. ally over its near defeat to Germany in two world wars, its wine industry and Mr. Macron’s approval ratings.
Toronto left on sidelines as Amazon splits HQ2 between New York and Virginia
Amazon.com will set up massive new offices in New York and a suburb of Washington, ending 14 months of global speculation over where it would locate its second headquarters – and leaving lone Canadian contender Toronto in the dust (Josh O’Kane and Jeff Gray, for subscribers). Amazon plans to spend US$5-billion on the two new developments and expects to get more than US$2-billion in tax credits and incentives.
Given the Amazon effect in its native Seattle, Matt Lundy looks at what New York and Washington can expect.
The latest on the California wildfires
At least 42 people are dead in Northern California and more than 200 are still missing in what’s become the deadliest and most destructive fire on record in the state. Authorities moved to set up a rapid DNA-analysis system and bring in cadaver dogs, mobile morgues and more search teams in an intensified effort to find and identify victims. Fires have also killed two people in Southern California.
As of today, more than 8,000 firefighters statewide were battling wildfires that destroyed more than 7,000 structures and scorched more than 840 square kilometres. President Donald Trump has approved a major disaster declaration for California at the request of Governor Jerry Brown.
We have to treat wildfires like actual fires, Glenn McGillivray argues, and that starts by talking to the right people: “Once the fire hits town, it becomes a different fire, feeding on different fuels (such as structures and vehicles). A fire ecologist, for example, has no expertise in the mechanisms that lead to structural ignition and spread of fire in an urban setting.”
MARKET WATCH
North American stock prices shed earlier gains today while oil prices plunged on persistent concerns of weakening global demand. The TSX and U.S. benchmark S&P 500 stock index turned negative after energy stocks were depressed by falling Brent and U.S. crude futures. Oil prices tumbled 7 per cent, with U.S. crude touching its lowest level in a year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 100.69 points to 25,286.49, the S&P 500 dropped 4.04 points to 2,722.18 and the Nasdaq Composite closed flat at 7,200.87. In Toronto, the S&P/TSX composite index finished down 24.62 point at 15,131.78, as energy stocks dropped 2.8 per cent.
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ALSO ON OUR RADAR
McGill University students vote overwhelmingly to ditch Redmen team name
Pressure is growing on McGill University to shed its sports teams’ Redmen nickname after students voted overwhelmingly in favour of the change in a referendum. Indigenous staff and students campaigned to drop a name they consider derogatory.
The Redmen name, originally written as Red Men, dates back to the 1920s. The school says it is a tribute to the team’s red uniforms and possibly a nod to university founder James McGill’s Celtic origins, in reference to red hair.
But in the 1950s, the name took on a different sense, with men’s and women’s teams colloquially referred to as the “Indians” or the “Squaws.” In the 1980s, several McGill teams used a stylized logo with an Indigenous man wearing a headdress.
TALKING POINTS
Maxime Bernier goes to a dark place
“No credible voice in this country seeks to undermine the values and beliefs embedded in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and in the fabric of Canadian society. Immigrants and refugees come here in search of a future protected by those values and beliefs. Mr. Bernier is simply stoking irrational fears of a threat that does not exist. It is pure Trumpism.” - John Ibbitson
Netflix’s The Kominsky Method is wry, dry and recommended
“The series – there are eight episodes, it’s serialized and ideal for a binge-watch – is really about the two older men. Their conversations are sometimes testy, difficult and they can be grouches. But neither is powerful or rich. They’re just guys trying not to be selfish old men and hoping to adapt as the world around them changes yet again. ... There is a lot here that will feel familiar. And a lot that feels unusually perceptive and astutely funny. It’s gentle and blessedly outside several orthodoxies. Appreciating it will date you, but never mind that.” - John Doyle
LIVING BETTER
In the sky, flight attendants are the guardians of the galaxy, Heather Greenwood Davis writes. So who better to ask for tips on how families can travel better? They suggest picking your seats together ahead of time, preregistering for in-flight kids’-club perks and choosing flights that work with your child’s sleep schedule. A checklist will help you remember necessities (such as diapers and formula), special toys, snacks and entertainment options. A restroom break right before boarding is always a good idea. And don’t feel that everyone needs to board for the early family boarding call. Have one adult board, store luggage and set up car seats while kids burn off energy at the gate.
LONG READS FOR A LONG COMMUTE
Following your gut: The Eating Instinct explores why food choices are so fraught
In her new book The Eating Instinct: Food Culture, Body Image, and Guilt in America, Virginia Sole-Smith takes readers into the kitchens of parents of picky eaters, those with orthorexia and avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), families facing food insecurity and individuals who have undergone gastric bypass surgery to explore why our food choices have become so fraught with tension. She explains to Wency Leung that most of us actually know how best to feed ourselves – we just need to cut out the external noise.
"Food is not an inherently moral substance. It doesn’t reflect on your worth as a person if you think chocolate chip cookies are more delicious than kale, or McDonald’s is tastier than something you can get at the farmer’s market.
“But we’ve gotten to the place now with food where it’s all broken down into good or bad. Especially with kids, who are really concrete thinkers, they are going to hear, “Oh, that’s good for me, so I’m good if I eat it.” Once you’ve internalized that message, it’s so difficult to undo it. Taking the nutritional value of food and extrapolating that into how we feel about our bodies and about our worth as people is a really, really dicey game.”
Dragons’ Den star raises $70-million for startup that finances e-commerce retailers
Michele Romanow started to notice a pattern as she sat through pitch after pitch as a star of TV’s Dragons' Den earlier this decade, Sean Silcoff writes. While she didn’t want to invest in many of the e-commerce businesses appealing for her money, she did think she could provide them with capital in a more effective way by temporarily underwriting their online advertising in exchange for a cut of revenues.
After doing about 10 such deals with her life partner, Andrew D’Souza, the two successful serial entrepreneurs had a business idea of their own to pitch. Their company, Clear Finance Technology Corp. (operating as Clearbanc), has raised US$70-million to offer a new financing alternative for young e-commerce businesses.
Clearbanc fronts companies' online advertising on Google and Facebook in exchange for a small percentage of revenues – typically 5 per cent to 10 per cent – that spending generates until they are repaid, plus a 6-per-cent premium. Customers don’t have to provide personal guarantees, give up equity or even submit to credit checks.
Partners Andrew D'Souza and Michele Romanow in the Clearbanc office space. (Christopher Katsarov/The Globe and Mail)Christopher Katsarov/The Globe and Mail
Evening Update is written by S.R. Slobodian. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.