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| Presented By Bank of America |
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| Axios AM |
| By Mike Allen · Nov 03, 2022 |
| Happy Thursday. Smart Brevity™ count: 1,482 words ... 5½ minutes. Edited by Noah Bressner. 🏥 If you're a Hill staffer or lawmaker — or your business relies on Congress and health care policy — sign up here for a 14-day free trial of Axios Pro: Health Care Policy, coming Nov. 14. Later today, you'll get a preview Deep Dive revealing the big wallets the Hill plans to target next year. |
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| 1 big thing: Business is far off "net zero" pace |
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| Illustration: Gabriella Turrisi/Axios |
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| As a global climate summit begins in Egypt this weekend, new data show corporate emissions cuts still lag far behind the rhetoric of their pledges, Ben Geman writes in Axios Generate. - Accenture finds that one-third of the world's largest 2,000 companies by revenue have net zero emissions targets. But very few are on pace to reach those long-term goals — which typically have a mid-century deadline, with interim benchmarks.
- "Unless they accelerate progress, 93% of companies with net zero commitments will miss their targets," Accenture says.
The backdrop: Delegates from nearly 200 countries will gather in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, beginning Sunday for the two-week UN climate summit COP27. Accenture finds that 93% of companies with long-term net zero targets would need to double the pace of emissions cuts by 2030 to get on track. - But the report doesn't dismiss those efforts as greenwashing: Companies that have targets have been cutting emissions more than those that don't.
A "Net-Zero Tracker" by the investment research firm MSCI finds public companies' emissions are way out of step with global targets. - "Sixteen percent of listed companies align with keeping global warming at or below 1.5°C," MSCI said.
💡 Between the lines: That reality creates opportunity for companies to "turn the carbon and energy transition into a competitive advantage," Bain & Co. concludes in a report out this morning. - Bain's term: "Visionary Pragmatism."
Go deeper: Accenture deck ... Net-Zero Tracker ... Bain report. |
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| 2. Biden closing argument: "Democracy is on the ballot" |
| President Biden speaks last evening at the Columbus Club in Union Station, near the U.S. Capitol. Photo: Andrew Harnik/AP President Biden used his closing address ahead of next Tuesday's midterms to warn of a straight line from election denial to last week's attack on Paul Pelosi, Axios' Hans Nichols writes. - Speaking at Union Station, blocks from the Capitol dome, Biden argued that Trump's "big lie that the election of 2020 had been stolen" was the driving force behind both the attack on Pelosi and the Capitol.
Biden preemptively denounced any Republicans who don't accept the results. - "I appeal to all Americans, regardless of party, to meet this moment of national and generational importance."
Cutting straight to an issue that has terrified senior White House officials and Democratic candidates, the president repeated the reported words of Pelosi's assailant — "Where's Nancy? Where's Nancy?" - "Those are the very same words used by the mob when they stormed the United States Capitol," Biden added.
🧠 Between the lines: Biden is trying to energize his base while also appealing to the independent voters who rejected Trump in 2020 and helped install him in the White House. The bottom line: Biden is trying to turn the election into a choice between him and Trumpism — instead of a referendum on his first two years in office: "What we're doing now is going to determine whether democracy will long endure." |
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| 3. 📊 Poll of the day: 3-step dance |
| Screenshot: Fox News, "The Story with Martha MacCallum" A new Wall Street Journal poll, conducted by Trump pollster Tony Fabrizio and Biden pollster John Anzalone, finds 19% of Americans — in the teens! — say the economy is on the right track. - Why it matters: The poll adds to a raft of signs that a disillusioned, anxious electorate is ready to use the midterms (5 days away!) to punish the party in power, Axios' Josh Kraushaar writes.
🕺 The poll illustrates a three-step dance: - If you don't follow politics obsessively, you're probably voting on pocketbook issues.
- If you're voting your pocketbook, you're worried about inflation.
- If you're worried about inflation, you're trending Republican.
🔎 Between the lines: In fresh evidence that economic and personal security (crime) surpass abortion as a top issue, the poll finds white suburban women favor Republicans by 15 points. - In August, that swing constituency backed Democrats by double-digits.
- Over one-third of white suburban women rated rising prices as the top issue motivating them. Only 16% named abortion rights as their top concern.
One more finding: The poll tested a hypothetical rematch between President Biden and former President Trump in 2024. It found them tied at 46% — an exactly divided America. |
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| A message from Bank of America |
| Honoring community leaders advancing racial equality efforts |
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| Bank of America's Neighborhood Builders: Racial Equality Award recognizes individuals making extraordinary contributions to break down barriers and create economic opportunities for communities of color nationwide. Learn more about Bank of America's award and the latest honorees. |
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| 4. Charted: How the Fed moves markets |
 Data: FactSet. Chart: Axios Visuals Markets whipsawed in the aftermath of the Fed's 0.75 percentage point rate hike yesterday — the sixth hike of the year, Axios Markets co-author Matt Phillips writes. - Stocks first rose on the statement — then flopped during Fed chair Jerome Powell's post-announcement press conference.
What's happening: What first moved the markets was the bit of the Fed's monetary policy statement — released at 2 p.m. ET — that hinted the bank may want to pause and assess the effects of this year's fast, steep rate increases before carrying on. - Then came the Fed's press conference — at 2:30 p.m. E.T. — in which Powell pretty clearly quashed the idea that the central bank would pause rate hikes any time soon.
💭 Our thought bubble: The Fed was able to raise the idea of a pivot — putting it on the market's radar — while not committing to any particular course of action. - That's a nifty trick — and will make it easier to bring up the topic again if the bank actually needs to change course.
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| 5. 🐦 Musk's Trumpian management style |
| Photo illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Photo: Christian Marquardt/Pool via Getty Images Elon Musk's chaotic first few days as Twitter CEO carry echoes of former President Trump's White House, Axios managing editor Scott Rosenberg writes. - Why it matters: Musk's shoot-from-the-hip tweeting style has always had lots in common with Trump. Now, it turns out they have commonalities in management style.
The hallmarks: - Rely on an inner circle chosen for loyalty more than expertise.
- Seize and hold public attention by rolling out new proposals and ideas on Twitter before they've been widely vetted internally.
- Keep the existing organization in a state of uncertainty and fear.
🥊 Reality check: Musk is a veteran leader in business with success running companies like Tesla and SpaceX. Trump took over the government with zero government experience. - Unlike Trump, Musk actually replies to other users on Twitter and seems to enjoy the site.
🔎 Between the lines: Tweets are fast. Actual change to products and organizations happen more slowly. - Musk fans who expected a Twitter free-for-all in the hours after Musk tweeted "the bird is freed" last Thursday were disappointed by his announcement this week that he won't change content moderation policies until he has formed a new council.
The bottom line: When the tweeting stops, you need managers and employees who understand your plan — not just maniacal improvisation — to make things happen. |
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| 6. 💰 Axios-AJC investigation: Kemp's messy rollout |
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| Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images |
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| The rollout of Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp's cash payments to millions of low-income residents and families has been a mess for many from the beginning, Axios' Emma Hurt and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Katherine Landergan found. - For nearly two months, Georgians have reported they've had transactions declined, cards suspended and even the money stolen before it could be spent.
Why it matters: Kemp's office said the plan — which uses federal COVID aid dollars — was designed to help people "cope" with the pandemic and record inflation. - But nearly a dozen recipients have said the state has struggled with the rollout, leaving many resorting to giving each other advice on social media.
The intrigue: Some recipients have complained that the rollout appeared rushed for political gain. The money was released in the months ahead of Kemp's reelection race Tuesday. Axios and the AJC, both owned by Cox Enterprises, collaborated on this story. |
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| 7. Lingo: "Tripledemic" |
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| Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios |
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| Authorities are warning of a "tripledemic" this winter: - COVID.
- Flu.
- Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).
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| 8. 🧈 1 churn thing: Butter sales boom |
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| Butter board by Leslie Hobbs of Seattle. Photo: Leslie Hobbs via AP |
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| The viral TikTok butter board craze appears to be boosting sales, writes Torey Van Oot of Axios Twin Cities: - Land O'Lakes — based in Arden Hills, Minn. — says its total U.S. volume sales for sticks of butter rose 7.6% in the four weeks following the mid-September social media clip that made butter boards a thing.
- Demand spread even more last month, with monthly sales up 18.2% over Oct. 2021.
Reality check: Fall is the unofficial start of the baking season. So it's impossible to say for sure what's really driving the dairy demand. What's happening: A "butter board" is like a stylized charcuterie board, but with ... butter. - You slather softened spread on a serving dish, sprinkle it with herbs, edible flowers or other toppings — and scoop it up with your carb of choice.
- TikTok videos with the hashtag #Butterboard have been viewed more than 332 million times.
👀 What we're watching: Now there are brownie boards, cream-cheese boards, buttercream-frosting boards and smoked-salmon boards. |
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| A message from Bank of America |
| Honoring community leaders advancing racial equality efforts |
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| Meet the honorees who are creating opportunities for people of color across the country. Bank of America's Neighborhood Builders: Racial Equality Award is an extension of its philanthropic program that provides funding to nonprofits, advancing economic mobility in underserved neighborhoods. |
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| 📬 Thanks for starting November with us. Please invite your friends to sign up to get their daily essentials — Axios AM, PM and Finish Line. |
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