🌊 The OpenAI Files

Plus: Stock trading on X, Mexican Saul Goodman becomes judge, & 20 Questions!

June 20, 2025

Today’s gonna be a long day
 and you can’t tell me I’m wrong.

Today is technically the longest day of the year, though you’re probably calling it a 170-way tie for first place after the start of 2025. We’re now almost halfway through 2025 and with Dr. Phil participating in immigration raids and Caitlyn Jenner sipping chardonnay in a bomb shelter, we can’t in good faith make any predictions for what’s to come in the second half.

If you want a nice laugh (you certainly won’t get that in a Roca intro!), however, check out today’s 20 Questions where we give you 20 Rodney Dangerfield one-liners and you rate them on a scale of 1-10. Have a great weekend. Remember, life is beautiful outside the news!

😳 The OpenAI Files

đŸ‘šđŸ»â€âš–ïž Mexico's Saul Goodman becomes judge

🧐 20 Questions!

–Max and Max

KEY STORY

OpenAI Files

A newly released dossier titled The OpenAI Files traces OpenAI’s evolution from a nonprofit lab to a commercially driven entity, raising questions about governance, integrity, safety, and conflicts of interest

  • The report – published by two tech watchdogs that have been collecting information on OpenAI for the past year – raises questions about the company’s structure, transparency, safety, and conflicts on interest

  • The executive director of the project said that the initiative aims to show “the ways in which the vision that [OpenAI] had in the late 2010s departed from the way that they’re behaving today in 2025”

Dig Deeper 

  • The dossier focuses heavily on OpenAI’s proposed restructuring and its growing emphasis on investor returns. According to the report, OpenAI plans to remove existing limits on investor returns – originally capped at 100x so that excess profits would “go to humanity”

  • The report alleges the new structure would weaken the nonprofit board’s oversight powers, reducing its ability to ensure accountability and mission alignment

  • It also highlighted potential conflicts of interest involving CEO Sam Altman: “Altman’s $1.6B net worth is spread across investments in OpenAI partners including Retro Biosciences and Rewind AI, which stand to benefit from the company’s continued growth,” it said. Altman has long said his lack of a profit-incentive makes him a more responsible CEO

KEY STORY

X Financial Platform

X announced plans to let users pay, invest, and trade on the platform

  • This move comes as Elon Musk pursues his goal of turning X into an “everything app” that would offer many services including communication, commerce, and AI

  • X CEO Linda Yaccarino told the Financial Times that users will soon be able to conduct a full range of financial activities on the platform, including peer-to-peer payments, tipping creators, and executing trades

  • The announcement comes two months after Musk’s AI company, xAI, acquired X, and shortly after X partnered with Visa to launch the X Money digital wallet

Dig Deeper

  • Yaccarino said, “A whole commerce ecosystem and a financial ecosystem is going to emerge on the platform that does not exist today...You’ll be able to come to X and be able to transact your whole financial life on the platform”

  • This expansion would expose X to heightened regulatory scrutiny, particularly around licensing, compliance, and anti-money-laundering protocols. It sets X up to compete with established fintech players, including like PayPal, which owns Venmo, and Cash App

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Survival is one step on the path to living

Brent Friedman

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Dig Deeper

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KEY STORY

Mexican Saul Goodman Now Judge

Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán’s former lawyer was elected as a judge in Mexico

  • Mexico conducted its first-ever nationwide judicial elections on June 1, allowing citizens to vote for more than 2,600 judges, including Supreme Court justices. The reform was ostensibly intended to combat judicial corruption through direct voter accountability, but critics warned it could politicize the judiciary and open the doors to organized crime

  • Results released this week showed that Silvia Delgado GarcĂ­a – formerly a defense attorney for the El Chapo-led Sinaloa Cartel – won a seat as a criminal court judge in Ciudad JuĂĄrez, a major city on the US-Mexico border

Dig Deeper

  • During the election, GarcĂ­a campaigned on her almost 20 years of experience as a criminal defense attorney

  • Human rights organizations, including a litigation group called Defensorxs, had labeled Delgado GarcĂ­a as a “high risk” candidate before the election, warning that her ties to accused drug traffickers could undermine judicial credibility

  • In response, she said, “If they give me a client of that magnitude, in terms of resume that’s going to help me
 I am a citizen who believes in the law, and I am extremely prepared to carry out the job and I aim to be impartial in the decisions I hand down”

KEY STORY

State Department to Check Student Social Media

The Trump Administration announced it would resume screening of international student visa applicants but require them to make their social media accounts public for screening

  • In May, US embassies paused scheduling new student visa interviews, throwing foreign student enrollment into disarray

  • On Wednesday, the State Department announced it would resume interviews but require all applicants to make their social media profiles public so officials can screen for “any indications of hostility towards the citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles of the United States”

Dig Deeper 

  • The order continued: "The enhanced social media vetting will ensure we are properly screening every single person attempting to visit our country," adding, “A US visa is a privilege, not a right”

  • Critics said the policy risks politicizing the visa process and chilling free speech: “This policy makes a censor of every consular officer, and it will inevitably chill legitimate political speech both inside and outside the United States,” said a civil liberties attorney at Columbia

RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office

đŸ„ Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was discharged from the hospital

đŸ“± President Trump granted a third sale extension to TikTok, allowing the app to continue operating in the US for now

đŸ‡źđŸ‡· Diplomats from Britain, France, and Germany, along with the EU foreign policy chief, will meet with Iran’s foreign minister this Friday in Geneva, Switzerland

đŸ‡źđŸ‡· Regarding intervening in Iran, Trump said, “There’s a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks”

🚀 SpaceX’s Starship rocket exploded on Wednesday night during a static-fire test at the company’s Starbase facility in Texas

🏩 The Swiss National Bank lowered its benchmark interest rate to zero percent

What does Roca Nation think?

🌯 Yesterday’s Question: Should the US help Israel bomb Iran’s nuclear facility?

No, no, no. I don’t think it’s worth the possible repercussions of angering Iran’s larger, more powerful allies. Iran has been “months away from creating a nuclear bomb” for nearly 30 years now. At some point you have to wonder – who is pushing this narrative and what do they seek to gain from handcuffing Iran’s defenses. I am no military strategist (though I can hold my own in a game of Risk) but I think that with as powerful as Israel – even for such a small nation, they can handle Iran themselves. I’m not anti-Israel, I’d just like to see them handle one of their own problems for once, without any US involvement.

Sam from Alabama

Everyone who wants an end to “forever wars” needs to remember that Iran is the engine that’s powered all the proxies that have made the Middle East so chaotic and violent over the last 30 years and ruined all hopes of making peace in the region. If you want an end to the violence, the US absolutely must topple this regime which wants to DESTROY AMERICA. The “Death to America” clips aren’t deepfakes; they’re real. I don’t think many of us realize how evil the Iranian regime is. They despise America and if you’re America First you would want the regime out of the picture.

They are literally violating their UN nuclear requirements now. The UN is no far-left organization!! It’s so clear that they’re a major threat.

Danielle from NYC

Absolutely not. It could easily turn into another 20+ year war in the Middle East that we have no business being involved in. I also think it's imperative the US cut ties with Israel to avoid being in these situations to begin with. I can't think of a single thing they've done to help us but we're also giving them billions and helping them fight battles they start. We have enough issues in our own country: homelessness, drugs, inflation, jobs, politically driven tension, etc etc. We shouldn't give aid to any foreign country until everything is close to perfect here and no politician should prioritize another country over our own. I shouldn't have to say that but almost every day it feels like I live in the United States of Israel.

Zach from Virginia

I don’t think we should bomb Iran ourselves and get in the war but we should absolutely support Israel. Roca has done some reporting on this, but it is interesting to see how viciously anti-Israel (and often anti-Semitic much of the right has become. People like Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens genuinely believe Israel is evil. There’s so much misinformation about Israel right now. Would you rather be a gay person in Israel or Iran? How about an American? How about a woman? How about anyone? Iran is a threat to the entire world including the US. Of course we should help Israel bomb their nuclear facility.

Cliff from Pennsylvania

20 Questions!

I don't think we've ever had this much fun putting together a 20 Questions. This week we're doing the first-ever "Rate This Rodney Dangerfield One Liner" edition where we give you 20 of Rodney's most memorable one liners, and you rate them on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best). Can we finally show this man some respect?

Last Week’s Responses

Selected answers from last week’s “Favorite Things” edition of 20 Questions


Favorite dessert? - Chocolate chip cookie (most popular answer), Norwegian Rice Cream, blackberry cheesecake
Favorite day of the week? - Saturday (most popular answer), I’m retired so any day
Favorite vacation spot? - Italy, Upper Peninsula Michigan, Smoky Mountains
Favorite fast food item? - 12 piece nugs CFA, Beefy 5 layer burrito from TBell, mint oreo blizzard
Favorite living musician? - Bruce Springsteen, Phil Collins, Stevie Nicks
Favorite dead musician? - Prince, Tom Petty, Louis Armstrong
Favorite TV show of all time? - The Simpsons, The Sopranos, Phineas and Ferb (had to include it next to those two
)
Favorite actor? - Bruce Willis, Robert Duvall, Denzel Washington
Favorite actress? - Julie Andrews, Cate Blanchett, Zendaya
Favorite email sign-off? - Best, XOXOXO 😾, All panic no disco
Favorite fun fact? - Texas was its own nation from 1836-1845, It takes only 23 people for there to be a 50 % chance two share a birthday, Every time you shuffle a deck of cards, you create a new combination that has never existed before
Favorite sports team? - WVU Mountaineers, Any US Olympic team, White Sox
Favorite thing from your childhood? - stuffed dog Floppy, my Wii, no taxes
Favorite dog breed? - German Shepherd, Chesapeake Retriever, a cat
Favorite logo? - Lululemon, Coca-Cola, Apple
Favorite thing about dads? - Storytelling, their hugs, they're fun and goofy
Favorite cereal? - Cinnamon toast crunch, shredded wheat, honey nut cheerios
Favorite breakfast? - none, pancakes and bacon, chilaquiles
Favorite invention? - glasses, toilet, iPhone, A/C (I live in Florida)

POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour

đŸ‘°â€â™€ïž “I Do,” in Absentia: A 36-year-old Texas woman was arrested for marrying her ex-fiancĂ© without his knowledge

đŸ–Œïž Brothers in Arms, Reunited: A veteran surprised his brother in uniform by photobombing him at a restaurant, marking their first time together in over a decade

⭐ Star-Crossed Moths: A new study found that Australia’s Bogong moths use stars to navigate

đŸȘ Highway Hijinks: A visibly intoxicated man was filmed riding a camel down a high-speed expressway in Hyderabad, India

đŸ’Č Swiftie Donation Surge: Taylor Swift fans raised over $15,000 for a young girl with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy after the singer met her during a surprise hospital visit

ROCA WRAP
Hospital Warnings

Rio de Janeiro

This iconic beach city now requires public hospitals to display anti-abortion signs.

Rio de Janeiro – Brazil's second-largest city and former capital – is famous worldwide for its stunning beaches, like Copacabana and Ipanema, and parties, like its annual Carnival celebration. Yet the city and its politics remain deeply influenced by conservative Christian values, as a new law has made clear.

Per the legislation, Rio de Janeiro will now require all public hospitals and clinics run by the municipal government to display anti-abortion signs with messages such as "Did you know that the unborn child is discarded as hospital waste?" and "Abortion can lead to consequences such as infertility, psychological problems, infections, and even death."

The law was approved by Mayor Eduardo Paes, who is aligned with President Lula but is expected to run for state governor next year. His decision not to veto the legislation – proposed by three right-wing city councillors – is being viewed as a political calculation to avoid alienating conservative voters.

Abortion rights activists fear the Rio law reflects a growing trend across Brazil to further restrict abortion access, even in legally permitted cases. Politicians and judges aligned with former president Jair Bolsonaro have taken steps to prevent abortions, including SĂŁo Paulo's main abortion hospital stopping procedures and new bills proposing up to 20 years in prison for abortions after 22 weeks.

Abortion access is already limited in Brazil, with studies suggesting that only 4% of Brazilian cities have the facilities to perform safe, legal abortions. A public prosecutor has filed a lawsuit arguing that the law is unconstitutional and requesting that the city be barred from displaying the signs. The case awaits judicial review.

For now, in Rio, the hospital walls will preach against abortion.

EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts

If you noticed typos in the intro and subtitle of yesterday’s newsletter, it’s because our newsletter platform glitched and sent an earlier edition of the newsletter. Indeed, we are unlikely to nominate “Yesterday the LA Lakers selling for $10B as the league’s viewership craters?” to the Hall of Fame of RocaNews sentences.

We hope you have an amazing weekend.

–Max and Max