The Daily Valet. - 11/8/23, Wednesday
✔️ Lessons From Yesterday
Wednesday, November 8th Edition
By Cory Ohlendorf, Valet. Editor
If you’re worried about your credit card debt, you’re not alone. But at least it’s not as bad as WeWork’s debt.
Today’s Big Story
Election Day Lessons
These contests could provide clues about what to expect in next year’s crucial elections
Did you vote yesterday? Even though we're in what political analysts call an off-year—with neither a presidential election nor midterm congressional elections—a steady stream of voters still showed up at polling stations. That was nice to see, considering there were a handful of particularly competitive races in several states that gave signals about what voters are thinking and where the national political environment stands ahead of 2024.Perhaps the biggest news was that Ohio voters said “yes” to enshrining the right to an abortion in the state constitution, the Associated Press projected. The ballot measure would establish in the state constitution an “individual right to one's own reproductive medical treatment, including but not limited to abortion.” It was called a major victory for abortion-rights supporters which suggests the continued political potency of the fight. That's the seventh state where voters have protected abortion access since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year. Ohio also became the 24th state in the country to legalize recreational marijuana usage.Abortion rights were at the heart of Gov. Andy Beshear's (Democrat) campaign for reelection in deeply red Kentucky, where he is projected to win handily, according to the AP, after he championed access to abortion in the state. According to the New York Times, his win is a possible indication that the political circumstances that helped his party in last year's midterm elections still resonate with voters. His Republican opponent lost his race despite an endorsement from former President Trump, the front-runner in the party's presidential primary. In victory remarks delivered in Louisville on Tuesday night, Beshear said his win is a “clear statement that angry politics should end right here and right now.”There were also several firsts, as political candidates broke barriers in a handful of wins. Former Biden White House aide Gabe Amo will become the first Black member of Congress from Rhode Island after winning the special election in that state's first congressional district. Cherelle Parker, a Democrat and a former City Council member, has been elected Philadelphia's mayor, according to the AP. She will become the first woman to lead the city. And exonerated “Central Park Five” member Yusef Salaam won a seat Tuesday on the New York City Council, marking a stunning reversal of fortune for a political newcomer who was wrongly imprisoned as a teenager.All in all, voting appeared to go smoothly in most places, but some snags were reported. In Hinds County, Miss., home to Jackson, the state capital, and to a large amount of Democratic voters, a number of precincts ran out of ballots. A judge extended voting hours in the county as a result. In Northampton County, Pa., machines incorrectly recorded some votes, and election officials had to help voters with workarounds as they addressed the problem. As the one-year countdown to the 2024 general election begins, candidates are looking to the youth vote as a means to grow support. Building off of 2020 voter turnout, college campuses are doing everything they can to engage young people in the political process. Which, I'm sure, isn't always easy when it gets this messy. But if one cliche was ever true, it's that ever vote matters.
Meanwhile:
President Joe Biden's popularity slipped this month to its lowest level since April, a Reuters/Ipsos poll showed.
Arab States Intensify Pleas for Cease-Fire
Biden tells Bibi 3-day fighting pause could help secure release of some hostages
It's now officially been a month since the surprise Hamas terrorist attack that Israel says killed 1,400 people and left 240 hostage still held in the Gaza Strip. More than 1.5 million people have been displaced in Gaza and Hamas government health officials say more than 10,000 have been killed as Israel bombs the Palestinian enclave from the air and assaults it on the ground. As unrest in the region spills into the streets and fear spreads that Iran-backed militias will enter more directly into the conflict, some Arab leaders are worrying for their own security.Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt have all implored American officials, including Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, to get Israel to halt its military assault, if only temporarily. “The whole region is sinking in a sea of hatred that will define generations to come,” the Jordanian foreign minister warned at a recent news conference.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dismissed earlier calls for a cease-fire but on Tuesday said his country was open to “little pauses” in the fighting. President Joe Biden's administration continues to push the idea. According to a proposal that is being discussed between the U.S., Israel and Qatar, Hamas would release 10-15 hostages and use the three-day pause to verify the identities of all the hostages and deliver a list of names of the people it is holding, the U.S. official said.
FYI:
Netanyahu says that Israel plans to manage Gaza’s security indefinitely after the war.
Our Credit Cards Are in Trouble
Delinquencies are up as credit-card debt hits a record $1.08 trillion
By many indicators, the American consumer is thriving and spending. But a new data point, however, offers a warning sign: More and more Americans are falling behind on their bills as credit card debt hit a record high in the third quarter.Credit card balances rose by $48 billion in July through September, up 4.7% compared to the previous quarter, according to the latest report on household debt from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. That puts Americans' total credit card debt at a record high of $1.08 trillion, up $154 billion from a year ago—the biggest yearly increase on record since the New York Fed started tracking that data in 1999. The upswing was perhaps inevitable, considering the end of generous government aid and debt forbearance.But now, a growing number of households are having difficulty wrangling that debt, which is increasingly more costly amid an environment of persistent inflation and high interest rates. The latest data also showed that the rate of households becoming delinquent or entering serious delinquency (behind by 90 days or more) on their credit cards was the highest since the end of 2011. That's a clear sign that consumers are pinched despite the so-called healthy economy.
Flights to Europe Are Becoming Cheap Again
Deals are possible now that enough fliers have gotten revenge travel out of their systems
Here's some good news: After a long stretch of pricey airfare, it sounds like flying to Europe in 2024 without spending a fortune will actually be possible. The Wall Street Journal reports that airlines have added new routes between the U.S. and Europe and announced plans to increase flights on some routes next spring and summer. The added capacity means travelers can get a break from the run of high airfares in the past couple of years.Some airfares stand at or below prepandemic levels, according to a recent analysis of flight prices by Thrifty Traveler. A nonstop basic economy flight in early March from Boston to Dublin can cost as little as $433. You can find basic economy prices for flights from the U.S. to major cities such as Paris, Rome and Amsterdam for around $500 during that same period.Also, both Delta and American announced new routes to European cities this fall, which is helping account for the falling prices, Hopper's lead economist told the Journal. Delta added a new service to Naples, Ireland, Zurich and more. American also added a Naples route, and others including Copenhagen and Nice. In addition to adding destinations, carriers are expanding the number of flights they operate across the Atlantic, which not only makes it easier to book, but cheaper, too.
Before You Fly:
Since you're saving money on airfare, now would be the time to upgrade your toiletry bag. Thankfully, our team has some suggestions for you to try.
In Other News
The Justice Dept. says it helps protect people from partners who courts think are dangerous.
Scientists Say They’ve Finally Found Remnants of Theia, an Ancient Planet That Collided With Earth to Form the Moon
Have you heard about ...
The Long Read
Greenland’s northern ice shelves have lost more than a third of their volume since 1978
Imagine if you started chipping off the concrete from the face of a dam, bit by bit. As it gets thinner, it weakens, until it can no longer hold water and collapses. Same goes for these ice shelves that act like floating dams, only they’re thinning from the ocean below.”
- By Matt Simon
Read It:
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Morning Motto
Think of rules as “suggestions”
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