The trial of Atlanta rapper Young Thug finally began yesterday in Fulton County, Georgia, more than a year after District Attorney Fani Willis indicted the artist for allegedly leading a criminal street gang via his record label, YSL. The case could have big implications for the use of rap lyrics in court and…Donald Trump.

Along with five codefendants, the rap icon, whose legal name is Jeffery Lamar Williams, is charged with violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, participating in gang activity, and committing drug and firearm crimes. Williams has pleaded not guilty to all counts.

Sound familiar? Trump and his codefendants are also facing RICO charges brought by Willis in Fulton County for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 election. Legal experts are watching Williams’s trial to understand how Trump’s day in court could go.

Here’s how Williams’s words could be used against him

This month, the judge presiding over the YSL trial made the controversial decision to allow prosecutors to use some Young Thug song lyrics, including, “I never killed anybody, but I got something to do with that body,” as evidence that Williams directed his alleged gang to commit murder and other felonies. Williams claims the lyrics are fictional. And critics believe introducing them as evidence is a racist violation of his freedoms of speech and expression since experts say rap lyrics are most often used against defendants of color.

Defense attorneys for both Williams and Trump maintain that statements and behaviors from the accused—including in social media posts—are protected under the First Amendment. Williams’s lawyer sought to distinguish between Young Thug songs and Trump’s tweets, arguing pretrial that, unlike the former president’s words, Williams’s lyrics did not incite violence.

Big names on the docket: The YSL trial is expected to last up to a year and could call high-profile witnesses to the stand, including rappers Lil Wayne, T.I., and Killer Mike.—ML

Lithium is essential for batteries in electric cars, renewable energy storage, and even smartphones. That’s why demand for lithium is projected to grow 20x by 2040.

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Israel and Hamas agreed to extend their cease-fire two more days. Yesterday, on what would have been the final day of the cease-fire, Israel and Hamas decided to keep their truce in place for another two days, during which Hamas is expected to release an additional 20 hostages while Israel frees more Palestinian prisoners. So far, 69 of the 240 hostages Hamas captured in its Oct. 7 attack have been freed, including 11 women and children yesterday, and 117 people have been released from Israeli prisons. Though Israel says it remains dedicated to ending Hamas’s rule in Gaza, the extension has raised hopes for a longer break in the fighting that allows more aid into the area.

Shein files to go public. You might be able to get a whole new kind of Shein haul soon, as the Chinese fast-fashion company has reportedly filed confidential paperwork with US regulators for an IPO that could happen next year. The company known for all things cheap and trendy was most recently valued at $64 billion, but it might be seeking a valuation of as much as $90 billion when it goes public. Though Shein’s digital commerce game is on point, the company is not without liabilities: It’s been plagued by allegations of stealing designs and using questionable labor and environmental practices.

Tesla can come get its license plates, Swedish court rules. Gird your meatballs because Elon Musk is coming for Sweden: Tesla filed lawsuits yesterday against Sweden’s transportation agency and its postal service after workers refused to deliver its license plates in solidarity with striking Tesla mechanics. And the carmaker quickly scored a victory with a court ruling that the transportation agency, which has an exclusive deal with the postal service for its mail, must allow Tesla to pick up the plates directly from its offices within the next week. Tesla said the court’s decision will allow it to continue delivering new cars to Swedish customers.

The Gulf country hosting COP28 this week reportedly wanted to kill two birds with one climate summit: advancing environmental goals and selling fossil fuels.

COP28 President Sultan Al Jaber, who’s also the head of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), allegedly planned to propose energy deals to international leaders involved in the UN conference, according to leaked docs seen by the Centre for Climate Reporting (CCR) and the BBC. His critics are flabbergasted by what seems to be a brazen conflict of interest.

Saving the planet…and oil rigs

The leaked briefing notes for Al Jaber’s pre-summit meetings with officials from at least 15 countries mention fossil fuel deals. The proposed talking points show that he might’ve planned to...

• Tell China’s representative that Adnoc wants to expand its $15 billion natural gas partnership with the country.
• Lobby Adnoc’s interests in Brazil and signal to Egypt that it can count on the company to keep supplying petrochemicals.

CCR confirmed that Adnoc’s business was discussed with at least one country. COP28 staff deny any UAE oil industry influence on the summit.

Zoom out: COP28 attendees will assess how far humanity is from hitting goals to slash carbon emissions. Organizers hope to boost the clean energy transition and create some consensus on the role of fossil fuels going forward, all while persuading rich countries to finance climate-change-related relief efforts.—SK

It turns out that many of our nation’s lawmakers are as exhausted by being a part of the chaos in Washington, DC, as we are reading about it.

So far this month, 13 members of Congress have announced that they will not be seeking another term, the highest number in over a decade, per Axios.

Last month’s speaker of the House saga sent lawmakers looking for exits like Hogwarts students after the Triwizard Tournament.

• Many retiring lawmakers cited dysfunction and lack of efficacy in governing as reasons for leaving their roles.
• Of the 20 Democratic lawmakers leaving their House seats, nine are running for the Senate.

It could shift the balance of power in 2025: Most departing lawmakers will likely be replaced by members of their own party, but a handful of seats could flip. Virginia Rep. Abigail Spanberger’s spot in the House seems poised to turn from blue to red, as does Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia’s seat.

Quitting is just another way lawmakers are out of step with the public…in the year since the pandemic-fueled “Great Resignation,” workers over in the private sector have been staying put, forcing companies to adjust hiring plans and budgets, per the Wall Street Journal.—CC

Stat: If seeing the Amazon van approaching gives you a thrill because you’ve ordered so much that you don’t remember what’s coming and it’s like a little surprise every time, you’re probably not alone. Last year, the company delivered more packages to US homes than UPS, which it surpassed for the first time, and FedEx, which it has beat since 2020. Amazon expects to deliver even more boxes this year—it’s estimating 5.9 billion, up from last year’s 5.2 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal. But the US Postal Service still carries the most packages, in part because the OG handles hundreds of millions of parcels for UPS, FedEx, and Amazon.

Quote: “I know I’m going to get expelled when this expulsion resolution goes to the floor. I’ve done the math over and over, and it doesn’t look really good.”

Rep. George Santos, Congress’s biggest fan of Hermès and its top prevaricator, predicted during a three-hour X Spaces event in which he swore a lot and called himself the “Mary Magdalene of the United States Congress” that he’s unlikely to keep his position when the House votes on his expulsion, which could happen this week. Given the federal indictments against him and the scathing House Ethics Committee report that says he spent donor cash on himself, it’s probably safe to believe him this time. If he’s correct, he’ll be the sixth member of Congress ever to be kicked out.

Read: What will Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang do next after powering the AI revolution? (The New Yorker)

Go bigger: People are asking AI image generators to make things more…like this spicy ramen that’s hotter than the sun.

Tech tip: Here’s how to save your old data before Google deletes unused accounts this week.

Read: Paul Lynch’s dystopian novel, Prophet Song, won the Booker Prize (one judge called it “soul-shattering and true”). These books were also considered.

Give back: Why your Giving Tuesday donations matter even more this year, and where the day came from.

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