Neural Newscast

[00:00] Evelyn Hartwell: From Neural Newscast, I'm Evelyn Hartwell.
[00:03] Frederick Moore: And I'm Frederick Moore.
[00:05] Frederick Moore: Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will attend oral arguments at the Supreme Court this
[00:10] Frederick Moore: Wednesday.
[00:11] Frederick Moore: He plans to observe a case challenging President Trump's power to fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook.
[00:18] Evelyn Hartwell: President Trump dismissed Cook in late August.
[00:21] Evelyn Hartwell: He cited claims of mortgage fraud involving two homes she owns.
[00:25] Evelyn Hartwell: Cook denies any wrongdoing and has not been charged with a crime.
[00:29] Frederick Moore: This attendance is highly unusual.
[00:32] Frederick Moore: It signals the gravity of the legal threat to central bank independence.
[00:37] Frederick Moore: Powell himself is currently under investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Washington.
[00:43] Evelyn Hartwell: That probe involves a multi-billion dollar renovation of the central bank headquarters
[00:48] Evelyn Hartwell: and Powell's previous congressional testimony.
[00:51] Evelyn Hartwell: Powell calls the investigation a pretext for his refusal to lower interest rates.
[00:56] Frederick Moore: The Department of Justice argues that lower court orders are an improper interference with executive power.
[01:03] Frederick Moore: They claim the president has the authority to remove Federal Reserve Board members for cause.
[01:09] Evelyn Hartwell: Powell countered this in a public statement released earlier this month.
[01:13] Evelyn Hartwell: He stated that criminal threats are a consequence of setting rates based on data rather than politics.
[01:19] Frederick Moore: In other news, President Trump is set to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos for the first time since 2020.
[01:27] Frederick Moore: He is bringing the largest U.S. delegation in the history of the event.
[01:33] Evelyn Hartwell: The delegation includes Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bassan.
[01:39] Evelyn Hartwell: They arrive amidst a major diplomatic dispute between the United States and Denmark.
[01:46] Frederick Moore: Danish representatives are skipping the summit after Trump announced new tariffs on European nations.
[01:52] Frederick Moore: These tariffs specifically target countries resisting his attempt to purchase the island of Greenland.
[02:01] Evelyn Hartwell: UK Prime Minister Kierre Starmmer has not confirmed his attendance after the latest tariff escalations.
[02:07] Evelyn Hartwell: Starmmer held an emergency press conference this week to address the economic impact on Britain.
[02:14] Frederick Moore: The World Economic Forum is also adjusting its leadership after the departure of founder Klaus Schwab.
[02:21] Frederick Moore: Interim co-chairs from BlackRock and Roche are now steering the organization toward a renewed economic focus.
[02:30] Evelyn Hartwell: Several other world leaders are also absent from the 2026 attendance list.
[02:35] Evelyn Hartwell: Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not attend the forum this year.
[02:41] Frederick Moore: Next, Microsoft is preparing to expand access to its cloud gaming service for players without a subscription.
[02:48] Frederick Moore: New reports suggest the company will offer game streams supported by advertising.
[02:54] Evelyn Hartwell: Currently, the service is limited to players who pay for a monthly Game Pass subscription.
[02:59] Evelyn Hartwell: This shift would allow users to access premium titles in exchange for watching commercials.
[03:06] Frederick Moore: Industry analysts see this as a way to diversify revenue while the gaming market faces slowing hardware sales.
[03:13] Frederick Moore: Microsoft has not yet announced a specific launch date for the ad-supported tier.
[03:17] Evelyn Hartwell: I'm Evelyn Hartwell.
[03:19] Frederick Moore: And I'm Frederick Moore.
[03:21] Frederick Moore: For more in these stories, visit our website.
[03:24] Frederick Moore: Neural Newscast is AI-assisted, human-reviewed.
[03:28] Frederick Moore: View our AI transparency policy at neuralnewscast.com.