BREW WITH HEADLINES

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Good morning. Got any plans for your lunch break? Join us on Twitter Spaces at 12:30pm ET for an interview with WSJ reporter Eliot Brown, one of the authors of an excellent new book on WeWork. We'll be asking him softball questions like, "How did WeWork’s branding tap into millennials' desire for spiritual connection amid the vapidness of corporate America?"  See ya then!

MARKETS Nasdaq 14,498.88 +1.57% S&P 4,323.06 +1.52% Dow 34,511.99 +1.62% Bitcoin $29,922.21 -2.86% 10-Year 1.223% +2.9 bps Chipotle $1,574.35 +1.50% *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 4:00pm ET. Here's what these numbers mean. Markets: For further evidence that you shouldn’t get too caught up in single-day market swings, stocks surged yesterday after a steep fall on Monday. Chipotle stock got a big bump in after-hours trading when the company said that in-person diners had flocked back to stores last quarter. Covid: The highly contagious Delta variant now accounts for 83% of US cases, up from 50% in early July, per the CDC.

SPACE So the Billionaires Went to Space. Now What? Joe Raedle/Getty Images After Blue Origin’s New Shepard crew returned safely following an 11-minute flight to space, Jeff Bezos said he wanted to “thank every Amazon employee, and every Amazon customer because you guys paid for all this.” You’re welcome. Wait—what exactly did we pay for? Now that Bezos and Richard Branson have both completed their flights, what’s next for the space tourism industry?  By the numbers The suborbital space tourism market could be worth $8 billion by 2030, according to analysts at Canaccord Genuity. That would require over 1 million potential customers wealthy enough to afford the ticket and be interested in going to space. After he landed yesterday, Bezos said sales for private seats on Blue Origin flights (two more of which are planned for this year) are already approaching $100 million. “The demand is very, very high,” Bezos said. 7,600 people participated in the auction for a seat on yesterday’s Blue Origin mission; the winning bid was $28 million, which “stunned” execs, according to the NYT. For now, space tourism companies are courting the Saint-Tropez crowd. Virgin Galactic, the company that launched founder Richard Branson to space earlier this month, promised that its astronauts would be outfitted in spaceflight suits tailored by Under Armour and served post-flight drinks, such as the “Beyond the Clouds Cocktail.” Reality check: While space tourism news has gotten the recent buzz, it’s just a small slice of the overall space market, which is currently dominated by SpaceX. In its big report on the space industry, Morgan Stanley identified the 10 drivers of a space economy that could grow to $1 trillion by 2040. Space tourism is just one of those drivers.  Bottom line: More than anything else, these launches have been great marketing vehicles for the industry. Space-tech startups have raised $3.6 billion across 94 deals in the first six months of this year, and fundraising is on track to shatter last year’s record.

STREAMING Netflix’s Growth Is Like a Motel 6 Mattress Lumpy. In its Q2 earnings report yesterday, the company said "COVID has created some lumpiness in our membership growth" as it struggled to churn out hit shows this spring. Here's what it meant by that:   Netflix added 1.5 million new subscribers, better than its (meager) estimate of 1 million. But that’s a drop in the sea when compared to its current total of 209 million.  Due to Covid-19 production delays, Netflix had a smaller number of releases this spring, while Disney+ managed to capture eyeballs with The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. In the US and Canada, the company lost 400,000 subscribers—the first time it’s lost subs in those markets since the second quarter of 2019. So where could growth come from? Netflix confirmed rumors it’s jumping into the gaming industry. “We view gaming as a new content category for us,” the company said. Bottom line: Heated competition from Disney+ and a lack of popular new shows is causing Netflix to sweat. It needs another Stranger Things ASAP.

CONSUMER GOODS Battle Brews Over Ice Cream Ahmad Gharabli/Getty Images Israeli politicians responded angrily to to an announcement from Ben & Jerry’s that it would stop selling its ice cream in Israeli-occupied territories, accusing the ice cream brand and its parent company, Unilever, of taking a “clearly anti-Israel step.”  Prime Minister Naftali Bennett got on the phone with Unilever’s CEO and told him the move would have “serious consequences, legal and otherwise.”  What happened: Ben & Jerry’s said on Monday it wouldn’t renew its contract with its licensee in Israel that distributes ice cream in Israeli-occupied territories because it was “inconsistent with our values.” But it will continue to sell in Israel going forward under a different arrangement.  Big picture: Unilever, a consumer goods conglomerate, bought the quirky ice cream brand in 2000. It’s been the opposite of a helicopter parent, giving Ben & Jerry’s the independence to speak up for various social causes, including Black Lives Matter and Occupy Wall Street.  The brand had recently come under increased pressure by activists to take a stand on behalf of Palestinians. In a statement, Unilever reiterated Ben & Jerry’s right “to take decisions about its social mission.”

SPONSORED BY PAYCOM Payroll to the People Want to see an HR pro sweat, run away, or simply sigh with frustration? All it takes is one word: Payroll. But while payroll has historically been a time-consuming, tedious, and stressful process for HR, things are changing. Well, it’s time to put payroll in the hands of the people. Paycom can help make that dream a reality with their new employee-driven payroll process, Beti. It gives employees more oversight and confidence that their paycheck is accurate. By giving employees these powers, it actually results in improved accuracy, reduced employer liability, and greater confidence in their paycheck. So let Paycom and Beti streamline the payroll process for your company by empowering employees to do their own payroll—which can increase efficiencies and reduce errors. Learn more about the industry-first Beti here.

GRAB BAG Key Performance Indicators Feature China/Barcroft Media via Getty Images Stat: China’s new maglev train, revealed for the first time yesterday, can achieve a top speed of 373 mph, making it the fastest ground vehicle in the world. With that speed, it would take just over two hours to travel from New York City to Chicago. Sounds dreamy, but maglev trains, which “levitate” above the rail using electromagnetism, have achieved only limited scale so far.  Quote: “We got it wrong. We lost relevance with the modern woman.” Victoria’s Secret CEO Martin Waters discussed the company’s shortcomings as it plans to split from parent L Brands on August 3. The brand will change its focus “from how people look to how people feel—from being about what he wants, to being about what she wants,” Martin said. Read: Learning to love GMOs. (NYT Magazine)

FINTECH Venmo Makes “Checking In” On Exes Harder Venmo The payments app that killed, “Don’t worry, I got it next time,” announced a privacy-centric update yesterday. Venmo is getting rid of its public feed as part of a larger app redesign that’ll roll out over the next few weeks.  Users can still post publicly, but without the feed available, they’ll need to head to people’s profiles to stalk view non-friends’ transactions. The backstory: Venmo has historically billed itself as a social network, but showcasing a running list of everyone's purchases may be one step too far for financial regulators. The FTC cited that feature, among others, in a complaint against Venmo that was settled back in 2018.  In addition to expanding privacy controls, the app redesign will emphasize two new sections: Cards, for people who own Venmo’s credit or debit cards  Crypto, a space to view trends, then buy, sell, or hodl bitcoin, ethereum, litecoin, and bitcoin cash Bottom line: Venmo’s app redesign is a visual nudge to its users that it’s moving beyond social payments, as it diversifies its business model in the face of privacy concerns.

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING The Milwaukee Bucks are NBA champions after beating the Phoenix Suns in six games. Morning Brew Brew City. Apple is delaying its return to the office by at least a month due to the spread of the Delta variant. Jonathan Kanter, a Google critic, will be nominated by President Biden to lead the DOJ’s antitrust division. Tom Barrack, the prominent real estate investor who chaired former President Trump’s 2017 inaugural fund, was arrested and charged as an unregistered foreign agent for the United Arab Emirates.  Peloton is launching a fitness video game that looks a lot like Guitar Hero, but with a wheel.

BREW'S BETS Soil good. GEO makes organic soil for the cannabis and hemp industry. And there’s a lot of green to be had, with growth projected to be $38 billion by 2025. Invest in the green wave today, but only if you act before 7/23 (aka TWO DAYS).* Dogs don’t know what’s in their kibble, and tbh, most humans don’t either. With The Farmer's Dog, what you see is what you get—real, fresh meat and veggies—delivered directly to your door. Get 50% off your first box today.* Treat your eyeballs: The 2021 Audubon Photography Awards features some stunning pictures of birds. Hydrate: Wirecutter rated the 8 best water bottles, in case you lost your last one at the airport.  Sound off on the Olympics: We want to know your thoughts on the upcoming Tokyo Games. Take our 1-minute survey here.  *This is sponsored advertising content

GAMES The Puzzle Section Word Search: All you need to know about this week's Word Search is that it's called "Cake Fails." Play it here. Train Dreams Writing about the Chinese maglev train has us thinking about the US’ train system, Amtrak. Amtrak runs through all 50 states except four: Can you name them?

SHARE THE BREW When you share the Brew with your network, you earn free swag like our classic Morning Brew t-shirt. Are you one of those people who is always going places? Then you probably need a shirt. Might as well be this bad boy with the Morning Brew logo plastered across the chest. Hit the button below to learn more and access your rewards hub. Click to Share Or copy & paste your referral link to others: morningbrew.com/daily/r/?kid=a17a7110

ANSWER Alaska, Hawaii, Wyoming, South Dakota

FEATURED BIOGRAPHY Born On This Day Ernest Hemingway American writer READ MORE

READ MORE

FEATURED EVENT 1798 Egyptians defeated in the Battle of the Pyramids

July 21

MORE EVENTS ON THIS DAY

2011: The U.S. space shuttle program ended, after 135 missions, as the orbiter Atlantis landed at NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about space exploration.]

2007: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the final book in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, was released. [Take our quiz about children's authors.]

1987: American heavy metal band Guns N' Roses released the landmark album Appetite for Destruction, which sold more than 17 million copies. [Test your knowledge of musical forms and styles.]

1960: Politician Sirimavo Bandaranaike became the world's first woman prime minister when she took office in Ceylon (later Sri Lanka). [Take our quiz about female leaders.]

1925: The trial of high-school teacher John T. Scopes ended with his conviction in Tennessee; he had taught Charles Darwin's theory of evolution in violation of a state law. [Read more about this and nine other “trials of the century.”]

1861: The First Battle of Bull Run (called First Manassas by the South) was fought during the American Civil War. [How much do you know about the American Civil War?]

SEE ALL EVENTS ON THIS DAY

ALSO BORN ON THIS DAY

1899 Ernest Hemingway American writer

1951 Robin Williams American comedian and actor

1911 Marshall McLuhan Canadian educator

1938 Janet Reno United States attorney general

1414 Sixtus IV pope

1926	Norman Jewison Canadian director and producer

Critical Race Theory is Marxist.
Its real target is Christianity and the Bible.
The far left wants it in our schools.
The war on Christians is in full gear, says a most famous Jewish thinker.

Navratilova Calls Megyn An ‘A**hole’ For Slamming Osaka. Megyn Takes Her To Court.

Read now >>

Staind Singer Aaron Lewis Angers Left with Conservative-Themed Song, Record Label Refuses to Cancel Him Read now >> WATCH: Tom Brady Makes ‘Sleepy Tom’ Joke To Biden, Cracks Election Joke Read now >> 1A Win: Court Says Law Mandating Trans Pronoun Use A Violation Of Free Speech Read now >> AOC Dragged For Claiming She’s Not Using Capitalism, While Describing Capitalism Read now >>

🦌 Happy Wednesday — the Milwaukee Bucks are NBA world champions.

• Smart Brevity™ count: 1,188 words ... 4½ minutes. Edited by Zachary Basu.

    1 big thing: The new C-suite job

Illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios

 

Big companies are dedicating entire departments to societal problems, giving rise to the "chief purpose officer," Axios' Erica Pandey reports.

• Employees, customers and shareholders are all demanding that businesses do more to confront systemic racism, income inequality and climate change.

A company's purpose or mission statement used to be about "what's within our four walls," says Shannon Schuyler, chief purpose and inclusion officer at the consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers. "But more and more it's about what's outside of our four walls."

• Employees, especially younger ones, will quit if they don't feel a sense of purpose at work.

Every day, firms are making new promises to cut emissions or hire and promote women and people of color.

• "But they [often] don't have a singular person focusing on that," notes Kwasi Mitchell, Deloitte's chief purpose officer — which can mean those commitments aren't followed up on or met.

Keep reading.

    2. Sneak peek: Schumer to argue infrastructure deters inflation

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer last week. Photo: J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer today will release a report by Moody’s chief economist Mark Zandi to push back on GOP attacks, arguing that the infrastructure deal and reconciliation package would help the economy.

• Zandi writes, in excerpts provided to Axios: "Greater investments in public infrastruc­ture and social programs will lift productivity and labor force growth, and the attention on climate change will help forestall its increas­ingly corrosive economic effects."

Failing to pass the legislation, Zandi says, "would certainly diminish the economy’s prospects."

• Keep reading.

    3. Ina's Tokyo diary: Empty Olympic stadiums

Photo: Ina Fried/Axios

 

It's not the start that organizers once imagined. But the delayed 2020 Olympics are under way with softball and women's soccer, ahead of Friday's opening ceremonies, Axios' Ina Fried writes from Tokyo:

Sweden stunned the USA women's soccer team this morning with a resounding 3-0 victory, ending a 44-match, two-year unbeaten streak.

• As a credentialed reporter, I was one of only a couple dozen reporters in a nearly empty Tokyo Stadium designed to hold tens of thousands. It was an utterly surreal experience.
• Both teams took a knee before the game began, in what is expected to be the first of many political statements by Olympic athletes.

🇦🇺 Breaking: The IOC has awarded the 2032 Olympics to Brisbane, bringing the Summer Games back to Australia for a third time.

   

A message from Amazon

Why Amazon supports raising the federal minimum wage  
 

Since raising their starting wage to at least $15 an hour in 2018, Amazon has seen firsthand the impact on its employees, their families and their communities.

Why it’s important: The federal minimum wage has been stuck at $7.25 an hour since 2009. Learn more about the impact they have seen.

    4. Milley to Trump: "I don't expect you to understand"

Screenshot: MSNBC

 

The new book by The Wall Street Journal's Michael Bender — "Frankly, We Did Win This Election: The Inside Story of How Trump Lost" — pinpoints the moment that the relationship between former President Trump and Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley began to disintegrate.

• It came last year during a fiery Oval Office confrontation over Milley's public apology for appearing in a photo op with Trump at St. John's Church:

"Why did you apologize?" Trump asked him. "That’s weak."

"Not where I come from," Milley said. "It had nothing to do with you. It had to do with me and the uniform and the apolitical tradition of the United States military."

"I don’t understand that," Trump said. "It sounds like you're ashamed of your president."

"I don’t expect you to understand," Milley said.

Flashback ... Bender reports that former White House chief of staff John Kelly warned Milley not to accept Trump's offer to become Joint Chiefs chairman in December 2018: "I would get as far away from this f------ place as I f------ could."

    5. Bezos: "How fast can you refuel that thing?"

Photo: Joe Skipper/Reuters

Above: At a press conference after yesterday's flight, Jeff Bezos donned aviation goggles owned by Amelia Earhart, which he carried into space.

• "I'm going to split my time between Blue Origin and the Bezos Earth Fund," Bezos said. "There's going to be a third thing and maybe a fourth thing, but I don’t know what those are yet. I’m not very good at doing one thing."

A reporter asked Bezos if he'll be flying again soon.

• "Hell, yes," Bezos said. "How fast can you refuel that thing?"

Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Blue Origin's New Shepard crew (from left): Oliver Daemen of the Netherlands, age 18 ... Jeff Bezos, 57 ... Wally Funk, 82 ... Mark Bezos, 53.

    6. "Right to repair" has its moment

Illustration: Megan Robinson/Axios

 

A movement is gaining ground to curtail manufacturers' repair restrictions on smartphones, making it possible for consumers to fix devices rather than replace them, Axios' Margaret Harding McGill writes.

• The FTC takes up the question today.

Manufacturers say the restrictions protect customers' safety and the companies' intellectual property rights.

• Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak recently spoke in favor of the right to repair movement, saying: "We wouldn't have had an Apple had I not grown up in a very open technology world."

Keep reading.

    7. Netflix tries new tricks

Data: FactSet, company filings. Chart: Sara Wise/Axios

Netflix opened up about its gaming plans, telling shareholders that games will soon be added to members' subscription plans at no additional charge, Axios Media Trends expert Sara Fischer reports.

• Why it matters: Netflix named gaming and mobile video companies (YouTube, TikTok, Fortnite parent Epic Games) — rather than other streamers — as the biggest competitors for users' time.

The company calls gaming "another new content category," similar to Netflix's foray into original films, animation and unscripted TV.

• Keep reading.

    8. Biden picks tough antitrust cop

Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios

 

President Biden's nomination of veteran antitrust attorney Jonathan Kanter to lead DOJ's antitrust division — the government's most powerful competition watchdog — shows how serious the White House is about getting tough on tech, Axios' Kim Hart writes.

• Why it matters: Kanter, known for his strong view that the feds should do more to rein in the power of large corporations, has been a favorite of progressives.

His appointment will be the third leg of the administration's antitrust stool, along with FTC chief Lina Khan and White House adviser Tim Wu — prominent tech critics who also want the government to lean in hard on competition issues.

• Keep reading.

    9. Most Olympic sports ever

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

 

The Tokyo Olympics will feature six new or returning sports, giving this year's Games a record 41 disciplines and 339 gold medals, Axios Sports reporter Jeff Tracy writes.

• Returning: Baseball, softball.
• New: Surfing, skateboarding, sport climbing, karate.

Between the lines: It's no accident that many of these new Olympic sports have audiences that skew younger.

• Meet the sports.

    10. 1 hoop thing: Fear the deer!

Photo: Kena Krutsinger/NBA via Getty Images

Milwaukee's Deer District (above) — the plaza outside Fiserv Forum, plus nearby bars — was packed with 65,000 ticketless but euphoric fans last night as the Bucks won their first NBA championship in 50 years, beating the Phoenix Suns, 105-98, in Game 6.

• Fans wore antlers and deer costumes, and brought drums and trumpets, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.

Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Above: The Deer District becomes a mosh pit.

• Real-estate agents use the Deer District as a selling point.

Photo: Paul Sancya/AP

Above: Milwaukee Bucks phenom forward Giannis Antetokounmpo cradles both the NBA Championship trophy (left) and MVP trophy.

• It was the performance of a lifetime for Antetokounmpo — one that improbably began on the streets of Athens, Greece, where a club coach spotted a lanky 13-year-old playing soccer and convinced him to try a different sport.

Giannis last night: 50 points (16-25 FG, 17-19 FT), 14 rebounds, 5 blocks, 2 assists in 42 minutes.

• Crazy stat: He had at least 40 points and 10 rebounds in three of the Finals' six games.

   

A message from Amazon

“Amazon has allowed me to live a comfortable life”  
 

When Luv-Luv joined Amazon, she was just looking for a job — any job — with health care. What she found was so much more.

Thanks to Amazon’s starting wage of at least $15 an hour and comprehensive benefits, she is able to live life on her own terms.

Watch her story.

 

Please invite your friends, family, colleagues to sign up here for Axios AM and Axios PM.

These seemingly safe GOP incumbents are now facing challenges from the party's right wing »		Big infrastructure bill in peril as GOP threatens filibuster »

 

July 21, 2021

“I Will be Sending a Letter to the DOJ Asking For a Criminal Referral” Into Fauci Senator Rand Paul Tuesday night said he is sending a letter to the Department of Justice asking for a criminal referral into Dr. Fauci. ... Read More ›

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Report: Trump Is Telling Dinner Guests He Will Run for President in 2024 Former President Donald Trump has reportedly told those close to him that he is planning on running for president again in 2024.Rolling Stone got the scoop from a senior official at the Republican... Read More ›

Guns factor in only small percentage of violent crimes, despite Biden rhetoric In response to sharp increases in violent crime, President Biden stressed again last week that his administration is focused on “stemming the flow of firearms used to commit violent crimes.” But critics warn that this “guns first” approach ignores a basi... Read More ›

If you see this plant in your backyard, burn it immediately!

You've probably already seen this in your backyard, but you didn't know how dangerous it was. But one man did know about this plant and many other plants he used for decades to treat and cure thousands of Americans... Read More ›

 

 DEMS: Pass the $4T ‘Infrastructure’ Bills to Know What’s In Them

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SPECIAL: getting the vaccine? here’s what to know:

COVID Derails Super-Spreading Texas Dems’ DC Agenda

Biden Close to Striking Pipeline Deal that May Benefit Burisma

Marjorie Taylor Greene Suspended From Twitter

Fact check: NPR caught blatantly lying about Daily Wire in hit piece on conservatives

Fauci Now Wants to Mask Your 3-Year-Old in School: ‘Reasonable Thing to Do’

Can Dems shed the ‘Defund the Police’ debacle?

Columnists Conservative Cancel Culture Isn’t Kurt Schlichter Administration Only Targets Misinformation from...Conservative Outlets? Brad Slager Woke Language John Stossel The 2020 Polling Disaster Byron York Biden's Wild Murder and Jim Crow Accusations Tim Graham The Perverse Agenda of Black Lives Matter Star Parker Biden's Focus on Gun Crime Ignores Almost All Violent Crime John R. Lott, Jr. Democrats are Sabotaging Cubans Betsy McCaughey What Type of Speech will Biden Ask Facebook to Suppress Next? Terry Jeffrey		Tipsheet Senate Dems' Budget Proposal Will Cost a Lot More Than the $3.5 Trillion We Already Know About Leah Barkoukis Rand Paul Seeks DOJ Criminal Referral to Hold That Lying Sack Fauci Accountable Matt Vespa Arizona Expected to Pass Colorado in Marijuana Sales Landon Mion Law Restricting Nearly All Abortions Blocked by Federal Judge Landon Mion FBI Sued for $100 Million by Former Drug Dealer Landon Mion CNN's Dana Bash Suggests Fox News is Killing People. Her Network Repeatedly Failed in Covering COVID. Landon Mion The Unhinged Fearmongering Over Kids and COVID Has Reached New and Absurd Levels Matt Vespa
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