Rallies: Syrian citizens joined in massive rallies today to celebrate the ouster of dictator al-Assad. Rebel leader Ahmed al-Sharaa said his interim government would go after officials who worked for al-Assad and engaged in torture of his opponents. al-Sharaa has asked the U.N. Refugee Agency to continue its work in Syria. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Turkey today for talks on the future of Syria.
Flight: American Airlines flight 1722 had a bird strike shortly after taking off from LaGuardia Airport for Charlotte, North Carolina, last night. One of the engines failed. The Airbus A321 diverted to Kennedy Airport where a safe landing was made. The airline reported there were no injuries among the 190 passengers and six crew onboard the airplane.
Tesla: The news agency Reuters reported today that Donald Trump’s transition team wants the federal government to drop a requirement that car makers report to the government accidents involving vehicles equipped with automatic driving systems. Elon Musk, who is trying to win acceptance for his Tesla cars that can drive autonomously, has opposed the requirement. Reuters reported that Tesla has had more than 1,500 crashes of cars equipped with its autonomous driving systems. Musk spent an estimated $250 million to help Trump get elected this year.
Trump’s ability: A poll by the Associated Press and NORC at the University of Chicago reveals that only 27% of Americans are extremely or very confident in Donald Trump’s ability to assembly a qualified cabinet. Many of Trump’s nominees for top cabinet positions have no experience for the jobs and some have personal issues such as allegations of sexual misconduct and heavy use of alcohol. The poll found that only 4% of Democrats are extremely confident in Trump’s ability to properly manage the White House, as are 22% of independents. Among Republicans, 62% believe Trump can effectively manage the White House.
Electricity: The premier of Ontario, which is Canada’s largest province, has threatened to cut off the flow of electricity to the U.S. if Donald Trump imposes tariffs on Canadian goods. Electricity generated by hydroelectric power plants in Canada is imported into the U.S. Last year the U.S. bought $3.2 billion worth of electricity from Canada. Doug Ford said that if Trump starts a tariff trade war with Canada, Canada will retaliate by cutting off electricity it supplies to the U.S.
Drones: Drones were sighted flying over Brooklyn and Queens last night, following ongoing reports of unidentified drones flying over New Jersey in recent weeks. CNN reported that the U.S. Coast Guard had a drone sighting. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is among the officials asking federal officials to do more to investigate. Some drones were reported to have been the size of a car.
