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Mike Baker (7:55)

Welcome back to the PDB. All right, turning to Europe, the French government has been toppled after lawmakers voted to oust Prime Minister Michel Barnier in an historic no confidence vote on Wednesday. Factions across France's political spectrum joined forces to take down the government, throwing the European Union's second largest economic power into an unprecedented political crisis. Barnier, who will now resign, had served just 91 days as prime minister, marking the shortest tenure of any prime minister in the history of France's republic, after being tapped for the position in September by President Macron. His appointment to the post followed snap elections over the summer that did not yield a clear legislative majority for any single party. Now France is left without an elected prime minister, and national law stipulates that a new vote cannot be held until next summer. In the meantime, an increasingly unpopular Macron, who has vowed to serve through the end of his term in 2027, will have to quickly tap a replacement to temporarily fill the void. The no confidence motion passed on Wednesday in the National Assembly, France's lower house of parliament, with its support of 331lawmakers from both the left wing New Popular Front alliance and the right wing National Rally, far exceeding the necessary threshold of 288 votes. The vote was triggered after Barnier invoked special constitutional powers on Monday to force a controversial budget bill through Parliament without a vote in the lower chamber. After surviving an earlier no confidence vote back in October, Barnier has led weeks of intense negotiations to bridge the divide between the opposition parties. His budget called for some $63 billion worth of unpopular tax hikes and spending cuts, which he argued was necessary to address France's ballooning budget deficit. Apparently, well, nobody was buying it. This was the first successful no confidence vote in France in more than 60 years. Zeus D'Amore the vote leaves the French government in a precarious position. Well, to say the least. The country now has no clear path to a new budget, which threatens to send a jolt through financial markets at a time when the country is already struggling with high debt and flat economic growth. If Macron cannot appoint a new prime minister with the approval of Parliament before the 1st of January and secure the passage of a budget, well, the government will be unable to meet their financial obligations come the new year. The chaos is good news for Russian President Putin, as it also jeopardizes Macron's plan to ramp up financial support for Ukraine. The nation already fell short of their $3 billion euro pledge to Ukraine for the 2024 fiscal year before the no confidence vote was initiated. Without a fresh budget, the French military will face an estimated loss of some 3.3 billion euros. France's Defense Ministry warned that loss will significantly slow the army's ability to order new military equipment, which will in turn slow down deliveries to the Ukrainian military. The vote also has broader implications for the stability of the European Union, particularly as the bloc's largest economy, Germany, faces their own political and economic turmoil in early November, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's three party coalition government, formed back in 2021, collapsed after he fired the country's finance minister over disagreements on how to revive their shrinking economy. He subsequently scheduled a confidence vote for December 16, one that he is expected to lose now. That would force the German president to dissolve parliament within 21 days and set the path for new parliamentary elections scheduled to be held by February 23rd. OK, shifting to South Korea, opposition parties launched an historic impeachment motion against President Yoon Suk Yeol following his short lived declaration of martial law that plunged the country into political turmoil, setting the stage for a high stakes showdown in Parliament. The impeachment motion, submitted jointly by the opposition Democratic Party and five smaller parties, could be voted on as early as Friday. Now for it to pass, the motion requires a 2/3 majority in the 300 seat parliament, meaning at least eight lawmakers from the president's ruling People Power Party must support it. If passed there, then six of the nine justices on the Constitutional Court would have up to 180 days to determine whether to uphold it. That's a decision that could strip the president of his powers and elevate the Prime Minister as acting president. For background, President Yun's martial law declaration on Tuesday night stunned the nation and of course it was short lived, bringing heavily armed troops to encircle the national assembly and triggering chaos in the streets of Seoul. As we reported on the pdb, lawmakers scaled walls to re enter the building and swiftly voted unanimously to nullify the order, calling it unconstitutional. The vote forced President Yun to rescind the declaration that lasted, well, almost six hours by early Wednesday morning. In his defense, the president described the declaration as essential to protect the nation from ruin and eradicate anti state forces, criticizing the Democratic Party's efforts to impeach government officials and senior prosecutors and urging the public to place trust in his leadership. It's important to note that South Korea's constitution allows the president to declare martial law in wartime warlike situations or comparable national emergencies, permitting military restrictions to maintain order. However, many South Koreans and international observers question whether such conditions currently exist. The fallout has been swift and severe, with opposition leaders denouncing the president's actions as a grave act of rebellion and demanding his immediate resignation. Critics have likened the move to South Korea's authoritarian past, marking the first instance of martial law since the country transitioned to democracy in the late 1980s. Meanwhile, President Yun's People Power Party remains divided. While the party leadership pledged to block the impeachment motion, 18 members joined the unanimous vote to overturn the martial law decree, signaling, well, potential fractures. Opposition leaders are counting on these divisions to secure the necessary votes to pass the motion. Adding to the chaos, President Yun's senior policy advisors and defense minister offered to resign. The Democratic Party has also filed a separate impeachment motion against the defense minister, accusing him of recommending the martial law declaration. A parliamentary lawyer has called for the president's immediate suspension, arguing that the public needs stability during the crisis. If the impeachment motion succeeds and is upheld by the Constitutional Court, President Yun would become the second South Korean president removed from office in less than a decade. In that case, a new election would need to be held within 60 days. As the world watches this dramatic political standoff unfolding, questions loom about whether South Korea's democratic institutions can withstand the strain or whether President Yun's presidency will survive the mounting backlash. All right, coming up next in the back of the Brief, a murder mystery in Manhattan where The CEO of UnitedHealthcare was gunned down by a masked gunman. I'll have the details when we come back in today's Back in the Brief, a shocking shooting in midtown Manhattan Wednesday as Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealth's insurance division, was gunned down outside a hotel in what NYPD is calling a, quote, targeted attack. Now, the shooting happened just before 7 in the morning when a masked gunman lying in wait near the Hilton Hotel ambushed Thompson as he approached the entrance where the United Health Group was holding its annual investors conference. The NYPD commissioner confirmed that the suspect ignored other pedestrians, focusing solely on Thompson before firing multiple shots. The gunman then fled the scene on an Electric City bike, vanishing into Central Park. Investigators are treating the killing as a calculated assassination. NYPD Chief of Detectives Joe Kenney described the suspect as highly proficient with firearms, noting that a brief weapon malfunction was swiftly cleared before more shots were fired. Thompson was struck in the back and calf, and he was pronounced dead shortly after being rushed to Roosevelt Hospital. And shortly after the shooting, Thompson's wife, Paulette, told reporters that her husband said that he'd received threats in the weeks leading up to the assassination, but she didn't disclose specific details. She told NBC News, quote, I just know that he said there were some people that had been threatening him, adding that the NYPD confirmed to her that they believed it was a, quote, targeted attack. Now, Mayor Eric Adams sought to reassure New Yorkers, emphasizing that this was not a random act of violence, adding to the NYPD's confirmation, quote, it appears as though this was a targeted murder, adding that the public safety remains a top priority. Well, that's nice. The suspect is described as a white male wearing a dark jacket, a black face mask, black and white sneakers, and carrying a backpack. Detectives are working with Citibike to trace the assailants movements using the GPS trackers equipped on the bikes. The investigation also includes extensive reviews of social media, of course, interviews with Thompson's family and colleagues, and the exploration of possible motives as the manhunt continues. No arrests have been made and questions linger about the circumstances that led to the high profile killing of one of the healthcare industry's most prominent executives. All right. And that, my friends, is the President's Daily brief for Thursday 5th December. Now if you have any questions or comments or maybe even humorous anecdotes, well, just reach out to me@pdbthefirsttv.com and of course to listen to the show ad free. Should you be inclined, become a premium member of the President's Daily brief by visiting pdbpremium.com I'm Mike Baker. I'll be back later today with the PDB afternoon bulletin. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool.