HE WENT TO JARED

Are Donald Trump and his ultra-rich friends making a move on CNN? Concerns are mounting that the president is seizing a rare opportunity.

• Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, wears two hats these days. He’s driving U.S. foreign policy, most notably in peace talks with Russia and Israel. And in his spare time, he runs a massive investment fund with overlapping ties to some of the same foreign powers involved in his diplomatic endeavors. In Kushner’s eyes, it’s simply good business. “What people call conflicts of interest… I call experience and trusted relationships,” he said in a recent interview.

• This flagrantly unethical mindset helps explain why people are freaking out about Paramount’s effort to buy Warner Bros. Discovery, which owns CNN. The concern: That a gang of Trump’s deep-pocketed pals could force a MAGA makeover on the broadcaster — and on much of Hollywood, while they’re at it.

• Paramount, controlled by billionaire Trump allies Larry and David Ellison, mounted a $108 billion hostile bid for the media conglomerate, days after Netflix announced a deal to buy Warner. Kushner’s private equity firm is backing Paramount’s bid, along with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE. On paper, Kushner and the Middle Eastern trio wouldn’t have any say in how Warner operates. Then again, since when does the Trump family care about what’s on paper?

• “I’m not sure that Larry Ellison needs a lot of money from Jared Kushner,” one lobbyist involved in the deal told Politico. Translation: Kushner is likely being brought in for his political clout to help seal the deal, rather than his money.

• This unprecedented mix of official diplomacy with profit-seeking is an ethical fiasco. “If you were teaching a class at business school on conflicts of interest, this would be Exhibit A,” one financial expert told Reuters. Another added: “The blurred line between running the government and the family’s business interests is expanding each day.”

What would happen to CNN if Paramount takes over?

• Consider what happened when the Ellison clan moved in on Paramount, owner of CBS. The corporate father-son tag team took steps that pleased Trump. The network canceled “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” supposedly for financial reasons. CBS News installed anti-woke crusader Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief. And so on.

• During a recent White House meeting, Ellison promised Trump that he’d make “sweeping changes” to CNN if Paramount buys Warner, according to the Wall Street Journal. Trump is famously obsessed with how he’s portrayed on the news, particularly CNN. He reportedly wants new ownership at the network, as well as changes to the programming.

• “A person close to Trump said the president will want Paramount and Netflix to compete for his approval of a deal,” the Journal writes. Having Trump’s son-in-law on your team puts you in a pretty good position!

• And what about the movies? At stake in this buyout is a legendary film and TV library that includes “Casablanca,” “The Sopranos,” “The Batman,” “Game of Thrones,” “Citizen Kane,” and so many more. Will future Hollywood blockbusters get America First endings?

• Some Trump critics are ringing alarm bells. “Americans shouldn’t have to worry about Trump’s friends and family currying favor for merger approval, or foreign governments getting control over people’s personal data,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) told What A Day. “The government’s review of any deal needs to be based on the law and facts — not who’s best at kissing the ring.”

There’s no telling whether Paramount or Netflix will walk away with the prize. Get ready for some unscripted drama.

THE HIGH SNORT

The Supreme Court may be about to hand Republicans another major win, right before the midterms.

Republican interests came before the court today to ask for the removal of campaign finance limits, in a change that would give big-money GOP donors a boost over Democrats’ traditional advantage in small donations. If that change happens, it would continue a two-decade trend in Chief Justice John Roberts’s court of chipping away at campaign finance laws.

And the consequences could be seismic: Depending on what the court decides, political parties may end up able to accept loads of cash from extremely wealthy donors — and spend an unprecedented amount boosting any candidate.

“In practical terms, a win for the Republicans could have an immediate impact on the midterm elections, shrinking one of the Democratic Party’s major financial advantages: lower costs for political candidates who directly buy broadcast advertising time,” the New York Times writes.

Republicans argue that limits on spending violate free speech, while Democrats argue that billionaires shouldn’t be able to directly inject cash into candidates’ campaigns.

A decision is expected by July — in time to have a major impact on November’s midterms.

WHAT ELSE?

Looks like Trump’s getting another batch of Epstein files for Christmas this year. A judge just granted his Department of Justice’s request to unseal more documents on Epstein confidante Ghislaine Maxwell, including grand jury transcripts. Legal experts had widely speculated that the original request was a phony attempt to look transparent, made with the knowledge that they are rarely granted. The documents will be released by next week, though the judge cautioned that they don’t contain much explosive info.

Honduras issued an arrest warrant for former President Juan Orlando Hernández, a week after Donald Trump pardoned him. Hernández was sentenced to 45 years in prison last year for his role in trafficking hundreds of tons of cocaine into the United States.

Trump called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to start “accepting things” because “he’s losing.” Asked whether Ukraine has already lost the war, Trump gave Politico a garbled response: “You certainly wouldn’t say it’s a victory. I could show you a chart. It’s uh... it’s a lot of land they lost.”

More than 200 former DOJ employees blasted the Trump administration for its “destruction” of the agency’s Civil Rights Division. In years past, this division stopped discrimination, ensured children could attend accessible and integrated schools, fought mistreatment of people with disabilities, and defended the right to vote, the employees wrote in a letter. “We left because this administration turned the division’s core mission upside down, largely abandoning its duty to protect civil rights,” the letter reads.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. won’t run for president in 2028… at least according to his wife. “Gosh, he’s not going to run for president,” actress Cheryl Hines told NewsNation. Then again, you really never know what Doktor Brainworm is gonna do next. “[I] didn’t think he was going to go into politics — and the next thing you know he’s telling me he wants to run,” Hines cautioned.

Democratic operative Rahm Emanuel, who seems likely to launch a 2028 presidential bid, wants U.S. to follow Australia in enacting a ban on most social media for kids under 16 years old. “We’ve got to make a choice when it comes to our adolescents: Who’s going to be a kind of moral guiding light? I put my thumb on the scale for adults over algorithms,” Emanuel told Politico. Emanuel has been very passionate about Americans’ personal lives lately, also arguing that trans people don’t exist.

About 81 percent of structures in the Gaza Strip — nearly 200,000 — have been destroyed or damaged by Israel’s airstrikes, according to the United Nations. That has created 68 million tons of debris, according to the U.N.’s division tasked with removing the rubble, a task that’s expected to cost over a billion dollars and take years. That amount of debris is roughly equivalent to 162 Golden Gate bridges, or 186 Empire State buildings, the Wall Street Journal reports.

This year will go down as the second or third-hottest on record, according to European scientists. Yikes.

LIGHT AT THE END OF THE EMAIL…

Federal prosecutors admitted that a recent ruling blocking access to key evidence has essentially destroyed its attempts to reindict former FBI Director James Comey.

The mother of White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt’s nephew was released from ICE custody today. The White House has repeatedly claimed that Leavitt isn’t close with her sister-in-law, but that doesn’t seem to be true. “I asked Karoline to be godmother over my only sister,” the woman told the Washington Post last week. “I made a mistake there, in trusting.… Why they’re creating this narrative is beyond my wildest imagination.”

A federal judge paved the way for Tufts graduate student Rümeysa Öztürk to continue her research and teaching, after she was detained by ICE agents in broad daylight for writing an opinion article critical of Israel.

A federal judge struck down Trump’s directives that targeted wind energy projects. Trump has railed on windmills for years, dating back to when the massive metal turbines were installed within eyesight of his coastal Scottish golf course in 2011.

More women accessed abortion pills online in the first half of this year, compared to the end of 2024, according to new data. The uptick comes even as Republican politicians continue their attempts to restrict abortion medications across the country.

Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani was named The Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for the fourth time. He’s now tied with Lance Armstrong, LeBron James and Tiger Woods for the most honors. So… one of these four guys have been the winners for 16 years? Let’s give some other guys a shot!

Stunning desert views in New Mexico that inspired 20th century painter Georgia O’Keeffe will be preserved under a new conservation agreement.

Christmas almost came early for a group of prisoners in South Carolina… with a drone playing Santa Claus. Prison authorities confiscated steak, marijuana, crab legs, Old Bay seasoning, and cigarettes that were dropped by a drone into Lee Correctional Institution’s prison yard. “I’m guessing the inmates who were expecting the package are crabby,” quipped one prison spokesperson.

More than 2,300 golden retrievers coalesced in a Buenos Aires park yesterday, breaking the world record for largest gathering of the breed. How adorable! I really hope all the owners brought poop bags….

A Swedish musician saved an octopus from getting turned into food — and instead turned it into a piano player. After months of lessons, the octopus (named Takoyaki, an octopus-based snack) can now play “Under the Sea” and the “Jaws” theme. “It was probably the worst thing I’ve ever done, and maybe the coolest thing, but also the worst ever,” the musician told the Washington Post. “I never pushed myself to such limits.” Um, I don’t think Takoyaki has ever been pushed to such limits, either!