Your Wednesday Briefing – The New York Times

Trump Organization found guilty of tax fraud scheme

Donald Trump’s real estate business is was convicted yesterday of 17 financial crimes, including tax fraudin a notable rebuke to the former president’s company and what prosecutors described as its “culture of fraud and deception.”

The verdict, delivered after more than a day of jury deliberation at the New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan, was the result of a long-term plan in which the Trump Organization spent off-the-book luxury perks. books, such as fancy apartments and luxury cars, for some executives. While the maximum penalty the company faces is $1.62 million — hardly a financial death knell — it’s a very public calculation for the Trump Organization.

While prosecutors stopped prosecuting the former president, they called him by name throughout the months-long trial, telling jurors that he had personally paid for certain privileges and even approved an important aspect of the plan.

Fall out: The company’s conviction — along with the prosecution’s claim that Trump “clearly penalizes tax fraud” — could resonate throughout the 2024 presidential race and could form the basis for a new one. broader criminal investigation into Trump’s business practices.

Ukraine attacks Russia

After 9 months of Russian bombardment of towns and cities, Ukraine has attack Russia three times in two days. Ukraine can now push deep into Russia and could theoretically attack Moscow if it so chooses.

Ukraine attacked air bases 300 miles from the nearest Ukrainian territory, demonstrating its ability to bypass Russian air defenses and strike with precision. Both the Russian government and a senior Ukrainian official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the attacks were carried out by Ukraine using drones.

The Ukrainian government has not publicly claimed responsibility for the strikes. But officials and civilians alike share the perception that, without nuclear escalation, Russia won’t be able to do more to Ukraine to retaliate for what it hasn’t done, with a wave of attacks on the energy grid. energy and other infrastructure in the country.

Details: The Russian Defense Ministry said the attacks used Soviet-era jet-powered drones. Weapons experts say the specific plane could be the Tupolev TU-141 Strizh, a spy drone first developed by the Soviet Union in the 1970s that analysts say could be flying at 600 miles per hour at low altitude.

In other news from the war:

• The United States took a cautious line in the strikes, saying only that it discourages Ukraine from attacking Russian targets outside its borders, a A spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said:.

• Russian political exiles are struggling to find a role in the conflict wrought by their nation, especially in the once controlled by Moscow.

Journalist Khashoggi’s murder dismissed

United States Federal Court Rejects lawsuit against Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia over the murder of Saudi journalist and dissident Jamal Khashoggi after the State Department determined that the prince had immunity as head of state or government. Khashoggi was killed while visiting the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018.

In September, Prince Mohammed’s father, King Salman, appointed the prince as prime minister of Saudi Arabia. The move formalized his role as ruler of the kingdom, although the king remained head of state. Several US officials and analysts said the king appeared to have made the decision to ensure that the prince would have immunity in the case.

The State Department asked the court for an extension to make a legal decision, and it then submitted a statement to the Justice Department on November 17 saying that Crown Prince Mohammed should be “immunity while in office.” “. The letter said the State Department had no position on the lawsuit and repeated its “clear condemnation of the heinous murder.”

Details: In the filing, the court said, “Despite the court’s concerns, then, with both the circumstances of bin Salman’s appointment and the credible allegations of his involvement in the murder of Khashoggi, the United States Ky has informed the court that he is exempt, and that bin Salman is therefore ‘entitled to the immunity of the head of state.’”

An American teenager, Hans Niemann, defeated the world’s best chess player Magnus Carlsen. Carlsen then accused his opponent of cheating. That is it overdue justice or paranoia?

“Here’s a warning: I really don’t like Hans at all, and I haven’t liked him for a long time,” said one grandmaster. “But obviously the truth is more important than whether you like someone or not.”

SPORTS NEWS FROM Ethics

Whatever Messi does, so does Ronaldo: The absurd timeline of How do superstars motivate each other? to break the record.

Teen prodigy stormed the World Cup: England has had prodigies before, but Jude Bellingham feels differently – he was built for the biggest stage.

Morocco beats Spain: Achraf Hakimi took his team to the quarterfinals of the World Cup for the first time with an ice-cold Panenka to end the penalty shootout. Morocco will face Portugal, who knocked out Switzerland when Ronaldo came on from the bench – his replacement scored a hat-trick.

ARTS AND IDEAS

Christmas music game

Holiday music has long been big business. In 2018, Billboard estimated it was worth $177 million a year in the United States alone. But streaming has supercharged it.

In the week before Christmas last year, holiday songs accounted for 10 percent of all music streams in the United States. And on Christmas Eve, Amazon’s Alexa smart speaker received 35 million voice requests around the world for seasonal music.

David Foster, a prolific producer who has made hit albums for the holiday season, shares three rules of the Christmas musical game:

• The public likes old classics and isn’t too interested in new songs.

• The singer should not stray too far from the melody.

• “You can’t be too silly at Christmas. You absolutely get a free ticket.

Foster emphasizes the importance of the first rule, noting that violating it could sink any holiday album. “Generally speaking, people want to listen to old songs,” he said. “They don’t want to hear a musician like me write about sitting by the fireplace, Santa coming down the chimney, it’s snowing outside…”

PLAY, WATCH, EAT

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