🌊 Puff the Tragic Mogul

A full circle moment for Roca.

The Reuters Institute — the top research center for the news industry — just released a new piece titled, “How these new platform-driven news outlets are attracting young audiences.” Their lead example among all news outlets in the US was RocaNews. It’s a full circle moment for us because we would read the Reuters Institute’s research religiously before launching Roca. Let’s keep growing the Roca Wave — unplug your friends from Big News and have them sign up today!

Separately, our thoughts and prayers go to President Biden and his family after his cancer diagnosis. We wish him a speedy recovery.

–Max and Max

KEY STORY

One Big Beautiful Bill Blocked… Then Passed

Fiscal hawk republicans in the House Budget Committee joined with Democrats to tank Trump’s “Big Beautiful” tax-and-spending bill, before a last-minute Sunday night vote saved the bill

• The bill, central to Trump’s agenda, aims to extend the 2017 tax cuts, eliminate taxes on overtime and tips, boost border funding, and cut some spending

• Dissenting Republicans said the bill does not do enough to reduce spending; Trump called them “GRANDSTANDERS” and said, “GET IT DONE”

• After the bill failed to advance, House Speaker Mike Johnson held a second vote late Sunday night. In that one, the Budget Committee voted to advance the bill, after the dissenting Republicans said progress was made on budget cuts

Dig Deeper

• The conservative congressmen in opposition said the bill contained too much spending and demanded deeper spending cuts, immediate Medicaid work requirements, and a faster repeal of clean-energy tax credits. They essentially argued the bill would stall spending cuts for too long, contributing too much to the deficit in the short term

• Strengthening the fiscal hawks’ hand was a move on Friday by Moody’s — a credit-rating agency — to downgrade the US’ credit rating over concerns about large spending deficits

KEY STORY

Gene-Editing Breakthrough

Doctors used personalized gene-editing therapy to cure a nine-month-old baby of a rare liver disease

• CRISPR gene-editing lets scientists modify the DNA of living organisms. It’s been used for common health problems, but never for rare genetic conditions which require personalized treatments

• Last week, researchers in Philadelphia announced that they had successfully used CRISPR to cure a baby who was born with a rare, potentially fatal genetic disorder. It was the first time CRISPR was tailored to treat a single patient, potentially heralding a new era of gene-editing therapies

Dig Deeper 

• Nine-month-old KJ was born with CPS1 deficiency, a genetic disorder that affects a person’s liver function. The condition is rare, affecting about 1 in 1.3M babies. Most who are affected eventually require a liver transplant

• A team at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and Penn Medicine created a custom treatment, though, and, per a new paper published in the New England Journal of Medicine, it worked, curing KJ of the disorder

• In announcing the successful treatment, one CHOP official said, “While KJ is just one patient, we hope he is the first of many to benefit from a methodology that can be scaled to fit an individual patient’s needs”

QUOTE OF THE DAY

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KEY STORY

Romanian and Polish Elections

Poland and Romania held presidential elections with pro-EU and right-wing candidates facing off

• Romania’s election was a redo after one scheduled for December was canceled over controversial allegations of Russian interference. The right-wing candidate was subsequently disqualified, and his successor, George Simion went head-to-head with a centrist, Nicusor Dan

• After Simion won a landslide victory in the first round, he lost in a landslide Sunday, with the pro-EU Dan winning 53.6-44.6. Simion denied that result, declaring victory “in the name of the Romanian people” and saying, “I am the new president of Romania”

• Meanwhile in Poland, the centrist mayor of Warsaw appeared to narrowly defeat the right-wing candidate and place first among 13 people on the ballot, setting up a run-off

Dig Deeper 

• Initial results from Poland suggest the centrist beat the conservative, 30.8%-29.1%, and placed first among the field. Those two candidates will now head to a run-off on June 1

• Romania at first appeared headed to a period of political uncertainty, with Simion claiming the election was “stolen,” although on Monday he conceded defeat, saying, “We were alone against everyone. I am proud of you and congratulate my opponent for winning”

KEY STORY

Diddy Trial First Week

The first week of Sean “Diddy” Combs’ criminal trial concluded with a key witness’ testimony

• Cassie Ventura, a singer and Diddy’s ex, was the star witness in the first of what is expected to be an eight-week trial

• She testified that Diddy subjected her to years of physical and mental abuse, including forced participation in drug-fueled sex parties known as "freak offs"

• The defense presented text messages, including affectionate exchanges between Ventura and Combs, to suggest her involvement was consensual

• The trial continues this week, with additional Diddy accusers expected to testify

Dig Deeper

• The defense argued that Ventura's continued contact with Combs undermined her claims of non-consensual encounters. Prosecutors contended that Ventura's actions were the result of manipulation and fear

• They emphasized that her participation in the "freak offs" was coerced and that she felt powerless to refuse Combs' demands

RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office

🩺 President Biden was diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has already spread to his bones

🚰 Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed a bill that made Florida the second US state to ban fluoride from drinking water

🇺🇸 Federal authorities are investigating former FBI director James Comey over a photo he posted of seashells arranged as “8647” – a number that critics claim could be interpreted as calling for President Trump’s assassination

🛬 A radio failure at Denver’s air traffic control center left up to 20 pilots unable to reach air traffic controllers for as long as six minutes

🪖 Israel launched a new ground offensive into Gaza following airstrikes that killed 100+ people, per local authorities

📱 Charter, the telecom company that owns Spectrum, announced a deal to acquire rival Cox, combining two of the US’ three largest cable companies

⚖️ The US Supreme Court rejected the Trump Administration’s attempt to deport Venezuelan migrants under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act

🌉 A Mexican Navy ship crashed into the Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday night, killing two crew members and injuring at least 19. The bridge sustained no major damage

What does Roca Nation think?

🧠 Today’s Question: Do you think AI will do more harm than good for society?

Reply to this email with your thoughts!

POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour

🏫 Kindergarten Shots: A Pennsylvania school launched an investigation after a kindergartener handed out alcoholic “Jell-O shots” to fellow students

🚶‍♀️ Melt and Ye Shall Find: After the snow melted, a lost hiker was found alive in a rental cabin in California after she had been missing for weeks

🇺🇸 President vs. The Boss: President Trump called Bruce Springsteen a “dried out ‘prune’ of a rocker” after Springsteen blasted him during a performance in England

🍔 Onion Me Once…: A Texas man has sued both Sonic and Whataburger after the fast-food chains allegedly put onions on his burgers despite his request to the contrary

🦩 Silly Eaters: Scientists studying the unique eating habits of flamingos found that the birds use fluid dynamics to help catch prey

ROCA WRAP
Jailbreak

New Orleans

Seven inmates remain on the run after a prison break in this city.

New Orleans, Louisiana's largest city and a major port on the Mississippi River, is known for its vibrant culture, music scene, and distinctive architecture. The city has long wrestled with crime and security challenges, though, including issues within its criminal justice system. The Orleans Parish Justice Center, the main jail facility in New Orleans, houses approximately 1,400 inmates and has recently faced staffing shortages and security concerns.

On Friday, 10 inmates escaped from the New Orleans jail after breaking out of a cell and scaling a fence using blankets to protect themselves from barbed wire. Video surveillance captured the group running across an interstate to a nearby neighborhood where they changed clothes. The escapees were not discovered missing until a routine headcount at 8:30 AM, hours after they had fled. The escapees have mostly been charged with violent felonies, including murder and attempted murder.

Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson has since said it's unlikely the inmates could have escaped without assistance. Authorities discovered a large rectangular hole behind a toilet in a first-floor jail cell, where inmates had written messages including "To Easy LOL" and "WE INNOCENT."

The chief of corrections said, "We know that this could not be removed from the inside, so we are investigating that to see exactly who entered these areas, what kind of work was done, if there was work being done and if this is an inside job.”

Officials have identified several security issues at the facility, including faulty cell doors and severe understaffing. The facility is operating at just 60% of needed staffing levels, and at the time of the escape, only four supervisors and 36 staff members were monitoring the entire jail population. One female civilian employee who was monitoring the pod reportedly "stepped away" to get food and missed the getaway, and the video feed was not being actively monitored.

Three of the escapees have been captured, including one who was apprehended after a foot chase through the French Quarter. Seven remain on the run, though, sparking a manhunt that currently involves ~200 officers from state and federal agencies.

Authorities say they have "strong" and "active" leads, but for now, the chase continues.

EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts

We hope you had a better weekend than the PR office of the Mexican Navy. The video of the crash is stunning. Apparently there was an equipment malfunction? We will continue to follow this situation — dubbed Sinko de Mayo — and see if there’s more to the story. Anyways have a great Monday, and thank you for reading Roca!

–Max and Max