A number of businesses are cutting ties with the National Rifle Association in the days following the Parkland school shooting. The First National Bank of Omaha announced that it will no longer offer an NRA-branded Visa card to customers. After customer feedback, the bank decided to cut ties. In another blow to the NRA, Enterprises Holdings, the parent company of Enterprise, Alamo, and National car rental brands, said it will no longer work with the organization. That change is expected to take place at the end of next month.
Cheddar speaks with David Hogg, a student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, about the tragic shooting in Parkland and the #NeverAgain movement. Hogg says he is disappointed with President Trump's reaction to the shooting and does not believe in arming teachers. Hogg believes in the second amendment but says it needs to be limited. In the aftermath of the shooting, a number of conspiracy theorists called students, including Hogg, "crisis actors." Since he was attacked online, Hogg says his Twitter following has quadrupled and it's only helped him push the #NeverAgain movement forward.
In other news, General Mills is buying natural pet food maker Blue Buffalo for $8 billion in cash. Shares of Blue Buffalo surged more than 15% on the news. This marks the first time General Mills has broken into the pet food industry. The deal is expected to be finalized at the end of this year.
And Chris Tung, Chief Marketing Officer at Alibaba, discusses the company's first official partnership with the International Olympic Committee. This year, Alibaba is the exclusive worldwide partner of the Olympic Games for cloud computing and e-commerce. Tung says it's been a "fantastic" first experience for Alibaba at the Olympics. The Chinese tech giant has been able to showcase its cloud computing power at the games.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
Elon Musk on Monday targeted Apple and OpenAI in an antitrust lawsuit alleging that the iPhone maker and the ChatGPT maker are teaming up to thwart competition in artificial intelligence.
Hear from Gabino & Stephen Roche on Saphyre’s institutional AI platform that centralizes pre‑ and post‑trade data, redefining settlement speed and accuracy.
Elon Musk’s X has reached a tentative settlement with former employees of the company then known as Twitter who’d sued for $500 million in severance pay.
