Plus: Thousands Storm Controversial U.S.-Israeli Aid Distribution Center In Gaza

Good afternoon,

It was the best Memorial Day weekend in history at the box office with cinemas raking in more than $322 million - good news for those of us who still like to go to the theater. 🍿🎬

The debut of Disney’s live action remake of Lilo & Stitch took in $193 million domestically and $361 million at the global box office.
- Disney’s live action remakes are profitable, but controversial. Some critics say these remakes are unnecessary and suggest Disney should focus on producing more original films.
Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning, Tom Cruise’s final performance as field agent Ethan Hunt, premiered to $79 million domestically and $191 million globally — a series-best for the 29-year-old franchise.
The holiday weekend smashed the previous Memorial Day record set back in 2013 when Fast and Furious 6 and The Hangover Part III each grossed over $50 million domestically.

As for me, I have tickets to see Sinners next Tuesday to take advantage of AMC 50%-off discount days, which now extend to Wednesdays, too. It’s one of the many ways cinemas are working to convince more people to make the schlep to the silver screen.

Sam,
Associate Producer

🚨 ONE IMPORTANT THING

CDC Drops Routine COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendation For Healthy Kids, Pregnant Women

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will stop recommending routine COVID-19 vaccination for healthy children and pregnant women, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Tuesday in a video announcement.

STAT reports that neither the CDC nor the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices was consulted on nor alerted to the announcement.

The announcement reverses policy set by the Biden administration’s CDC, which had recommended annual COVID-19 vaccines for nearly everyone 6 months and older. Kennedy’s move appears to bypass the CDC’s advisory panel, which updates vaccination guidelines which are tied to what vaccines insurers will cover. The advisory panel had been expected to vote on the issue at a meeting in June.

INSIDE THE ANNOUNCEMENT
Secretary Kennedy made the announcement flanked by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Marty Makary and National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Jay Bhattacharya.

The FDA typically approves vaccines and the CDC guides vaccine distribution. The HHS Secretary is typically not involved directly in these matters, but the CDC does not currently have an acting director.
- As of Tuesday afternoon, the CDC has not published any information on the vaccination guideline changes nor updated the pediatric vaccination schedule.

The new policy follows last week’s decision by the FDA to require new data before approving the COVID vaccine for children. It appears to contradict previous FDA guidance that pregnant women are at high risk for COVID-19. The FDA is also now announcing a plan to limit access to future COVID-19 vaccines to people over 65 or those with underlying medical conditions. Their argument: the annual booster is not worth the risk for otherwise healthy people.

*CDC pediatric vaccination schedule still has COVID shots as of late Tuesday afternoon.*

LOOKING AT THE NUMBERS
The overall number of children who have become seriously ill from COVID-19 is low, but children under the age of four remain at high risk from the virus. Last year, the CDC reported 150 pediatric deaths from COVID-19, which is comparable to the number of kids that die in a typical flu season. The CDC had previously recommended nearly everyone 6 months and older get a COVID-19 vaccine every season, just as they recommend everyone get an annual flu shot.

COVID-19 infection during pregnancy is associated with a higher risk of pre-eclampsia, preterm birth, and stillbirth, according to the CDC.
- Some U.S. public health experts have recommended vaccinating pregnant women against COVID-19 as they are believed to “pass” some protection from the vaccine to their unborn babies who are especially vulnerable to complications from the virus through the age of 6 months.

Before today, the CDC estimated that 13 percent of eligible children and more than 14 percent of eligible pregnant women received the latest version of the coronavirus vaccine.

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🚨 ONE THING WE’RE MONITORING

Chaotic Scenes In Gaza As Crowds Storm Controversial New U.S.-Israeli Aid Center

Thousands of Palestinians on Tuesday stormed a newly-opened, controversial aid distribution site in Gaza.

The U.S.- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) took over aid distribution in Gaza this week. Chaotic scenes unfolded at the group’s site in the southern city of Rafah after an 11-week Israeli aid blockade that was recently eased.

The U.N. and other humanitarian groups have warned that the plan would “weaponize aid” and force further displacement of Palestinians.

ON THE GROUND
Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said they fired “warning shots in the area outside the compound” and established “control over the situation” with food distribution operations expected to continue as planned.

By Tuesday afternoon, GHF said it had distributed 8,000 boxes of food, each containing enough food to feed 5.5 people for 3.5 days. GHF’s meals have been criticized for only provided 1,750 calories which is below the 2,100-calorie standard used by major aid organizations.
Under the plan, which aims to prevent Hamas terrorists from looting aid, Palestinians must pick up supplies from four guarded hubs located near Israeli military positions.

INSIDE THE CONTROVERSY
The Israeli government banned the UN’s humanitarian aid agency, UNRWA, from operating within Gaza over alleged ties to Hamas and the participation of some of its staff members in the October 7, 2023 Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel. GHF, which uses armed American security contractors, has been criticized by the U.N. and other humanitarian groups for its close ties to the Israeli military.

It’s unclear who is funding the GHF, which claims over $100 million from an unnamed foreign donor.
- Israeli Opposition Leader Yair Lapid accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday of secretly routing Gaza aid through “shell companies,” which Netanyahu's office denied.
- American Jake Wood, who was heading GHF, resigned in recent days over the aid distribution plan not aligning with “humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence.”

Meanwhile, Hamas warned Palestinians on Monday not to cooperate with the new aid system, citing concerns it would further displace Gaza’s population, 90 percent of whom have already been displaced. Hamas continues to reject a U.S. proposal for a new Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, despite reports it accepted one Monday.

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff who is working to broker a deal told CNN that a Gaza ceasefire-hostage deal is on the table that would release half of the living and deceased hostages in exchange for a temporary truce, followed by comprehensive peace talks.

⏳ SPEED READ

🚨NATION

📌 NPR sues Trump over cutting federal funding (MO NEWS)

📌 Trump administration moves to cancel remaining federal funds to Harvard (NPR); Harvard president: Cutting federal grants for research will hurt entire country (MO NEWS)

📌 Trump team pauses new student visa interviews as it weighs expanding social media vetting (POLITICO)

📌 Former NY Democratic Representative Charlie Rangel dead at 94 (FOX)

📌 Former Arkansas police chief sentenced for murder and rape escapes from prison (ABC)

📌 Supreme Court rejects appeal of Massachusetts student who wanted to wear ‘only two genders’ T-shirt (AP)

🌎 AROUND THE WORLD

📌 Trump slams Russian escalation in Ukraine (MO NEWS); Russia cites "emotional overload" after Trump calls Putin crazy (AXIOS)

📌 Suspect in Liverpool parade collision arrested on suspicion of attempted murder (NBC)

📌 King Charles III says Canada facing unprecedented challenges as Trump threatens annexation (AP)

📌 France’s National Assembly votes in favour of legalizing assisted dying (GUARDIAN)

📱BUSINESS, SCIENCE & TECH

📌 Poll: Most Americans want companies to slow down on AI development (MO NEWS)

📌 Consumer sentiment jumps after U.S.-China trade truce (AXIOS)

📌 New COVID strain from China that led to massive spike in hospitalizations has spread to the US (NY POST)

📌 World’s oldest fingerprint may be a clue that Neanderthals created art (GUARDIAN)

🎬 SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT

📌 Diddy trial: ex-assistant says Combs wanted to kill Kid Cudi over Cassie relationship (NBC)

📌 Lorde surprises fans by crashing Lorde club night in Sydney (GUARDIAN)

📌 Jennifer Lopez kisses multiple dancers at AMAs after divorce (NEW YORK DAILY NEWS)

📌 Jafar Panahi wins Palme d’Or for ‘It Was Just an Accident’ as Cannes draws curtains on a starry and divisive year (CNN)

ICYMI FROM THE 📲

In case you missed it… French president Emmanuel Macron’s wife, Brigitte, appeared to shove him in the face Sunday as the couple waited to disembark their plane upon arrival in Vietnam for an official visit. “We were squabbling, and, rather, joking,” Macron claimed. “Everyone needs to calm down.”

The couple are not strangers to scrutiny. Brigitte is 24 years older than Emmanuel. The pair first met when she was a married 39-year-old teacher with three children and he was a 15-year-old student at La Providence High School in France. The two later married in 2007.