Good Morning. Today's top stories all hinge on the past refusing to stay buried. We break down the reckonings.
Plus, an AI-proof career plan, a $300 billion telecom deal, parents charged over e-bikes, and Sorkin's Facebook sequel (forwarded this email? Join 523k readers).
TOP STORY TODAY
Bill Gates Affairs
Bill Gates told a House committee Wednesday that Jeffrey Epstein learned of his extramarital affairs and tried to use them as leverage. Gates voluntarily sat for a closed-door deposition in the committee's investigation into Epstein.
Gates said the affairs had nothing to do with Epstein but were painful for his family, and that the pressure campaign failed. The released Justice Department files included more than 1,000 emails tied to Gates, his foundation, or his staff.
Gates called meeting Epstein a grave error and insisted he never victimized anyone or visited Epstein's properties. To prepare, his team reportedly built a full replica of the hearing room near his California home, complete with gold curtains and cameras.
Barrel Bounces Back
Cracker Barrel stunned Wall Street Tuesday with a surprise quarterly profit and a brighter full-year outlook, and shares spiked as much as 35%. A year after a logo redesign exploded into a culture-war fight, the chain is clawing back.
CEO Julie Masino survived by scrapping her own modernization plan after the backlash and refocusing on loyal diners. The quarter brought a $42.8 million profit, up from $12.6 million a year earlier, aided by deep cost cuts and steadier branding.
One surprise driver: patriotic merchandise for America's 250th birthday flew off shelves, from Constitution T-shirts to flag pillows. Still, restaurant traffic fell 6.7%, and the company warned its recovery stays fragile as lower-income diners pull back.
History On Trial
The Supreme Court is grinding through its busiest month, and the docket keeps drifting backward in time. To settle modern fights over guns, voting, and citizenship, the justices are leaning hard on centuries-old history (WSJ).
The engine is originalism, the idea that the Constitution's words should not shift meaning over the years. A 2022 ruling decreed that gun laws only survive if they match early American tradition, sending lawyers digging for precedent.
One pending case asks whether drug users can own firearms. Since addiction barely registered as a concept in the 1800s, justices pivoted to founding-era drinking, noting Adams reportedly downed hard cider at breakfast and Madison a daily pint of whiskey.
TOGETHER WITH COLLAGEN CO.
Want to Feel Like Yourself Again?
Most plans she's tried fizzled out by week two, because there was no structure to follow.
The Collagen Co.'s Shake & Glow Challenge gives her one: a free 28-day plan that swaps one or two meals a day for a Glow Shake that tastes more like dessert than a diet.
Clear rules, daily check-ins, and 35,000-plus in it together. Louise, 55, dropped nearly 20 pounds of stubborn menopausal weight in four weeks and says she finally got her energy, sleep, and confidence back.
It costs nothing to start.
Please support our sponsors!
GET 1% BETTER
AI-proof career playbook we're studying this week
Most career advice about AI is either panic or hype. The clearest signal comes from the 16 economists the WSJ just surveyed, including a Nobel winner.
They disagree on whether AI destroys jobs on net, but they agree almost completely on how you personally survive it:
Stop being the person who executes a task a machine can copy, and become the one who exercises judgment and is the most AI-fluent person in the room. MIT's David Autor frames it as the difference between AI amplifying your expertise or commodifying it, and which one happens to you is not up to the technology.
Watch him explain it: David Autor's full talk on AI and the work of the future
The big-name version: Jon Stewart sits down with Autor and fellow MIT economist Daron Acemoglu on AI and jobs
Go deeper: Autor's "jobs are bundles of tasks" idea, and why a $2,000 tool can gut a skilled trade
New movie we’re already obsessed about
Sixteen years ago, David Fincher's The Social Network earned eight Oscar nominations and put Mark Zuckerberg's origin story on screen. The man who won for writing it, Aaron Sorkin, just dropped the trailer for the follow-up. This time he's directing too.
The Social Reckoning follows whistleblower Frances Haugen, the engineer who leaked the files that exposed Facebook from the inside. Mikey Madison plays her, Jeremy Strong takes over as Zuckerberg, and Sorkin says it's time to say more.
TRENDING
5 Stories
▲ Fidelity launches 401(k) funds with built-in annuities that turn savings into pension-like income by 2027
▲ Amazon trucking expansion sinks freight rivals as FedEx Freight, Old Dominion shares drop up to 7%
▲ E-bike crackdown charges parents as California injuries surge 300% and teen riders hit 50 mph
▲ T-Mobile parent plots $300 billion merger that would be largest public-company deal in history
▲ Evotrex raises $30M to build hybrid RV that recharges itself with onboard gas, no charging needed
The Rewards Credit Card Made Just for Pet Parents
A Single Vet Emergency Can Outrun Your Savings. This Card Won't Let It…
With vet costs rising 60% over the past decade, pets and pet parents both deserve a little relief.
Nibbles is the first credit card that comes with pet insurance and 3x rewards at pet stores, pet services, and the vet. Plus, use the card anywhere else Mastercard is accepted for 1x rewards.
Protect your pet and your wallet in one move. All those rewards mean more treats too!
Nibbles is not a bank. The Nibbles Card is issued by Lead Bank. Other fees and T&Cs apply. Rewards & pet insurance offered by Nibbles, not Lead Bank. Base pet insurance policy paid for one eligible pet by Nibbles. See nibbles.com for details.
Fun Links
Free 28-day weight loss plan [Partner*]
The safest swimsuit colors for kids [Blog]
The Buzz Lightyear Porsche [Photos]
Dan Martell’s favorite biz book [Post]
Best bars in America, 2026 edition [List]
Strange hidden rule of human nature [Blog]
Inside the White House Epstein debate [Blog]
Grow your audience and revenue: Join brands like AG1, Hims, BetterHelp. Reach +500K ambitious professionals who open 1% Better every morning. Apply here.