Two National Guard Members Shot in Washington, D.C.

Summary

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WSJ What’s News: Two National Guard Members Shot in Washington, D.C.

Date: November 26, 2025
Host: Alex Osola
Producer: Pierre Bienaimé
Notable Guests: Will Parker (WSJ Reporter), Caroline Kimeiu (WSJ Africa Correspondent)

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Episode Overview

This episode covers breaking national and global news:

• The shooting of two National Guard members near the White House in Washington, D.C.
• A Georgia judge dismissing the election interference case against former President Trump.
• Atlanta's opening of its first government-backed grocery store in 20 years.
• The Maasai's lawsuit against Ritz-Carlton/Marriott over a luxury safari camp in Kenya.
• Key updates from business, finance, and international stories.

The show maintains its fast-paced, factual tone, delivering concise news with occasional in-depth reporting.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Shooting of National Guard Members in Washington, D.C.

[00:44–01:38]

• Two West Virginia National Guard members were shot near the White House while deployed in D.C.
• A suspect was also shot and is in custody.
• National Guard deployed to aid law enforcement; President Trump was not in D.C. at the time (he was in Florida for Thanksgiving).
• U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth condemned the attack:
  • Quote:
    “We will secure our capital. We will secure our cities. In fact, this happened just steps away from the White House. It will not stand. And that's why President Trump has asked me and I will ask the Secretary of the Army to the National Guard to add 500 additional troops National Guardsmen.”
    —Pete Hegseth [01:21]
• Listeners are directed to WSJ.com for updates.

2. Georgia Judge Drops Election Interference Case Against Trump

[01:38–03:27]

• The long-running case against Trump and his associates, accusing them of criminal racketeering to overturn the 2020 election, was dropped at the prosecutor’s request.
• New prosecutor Peter Scandalakis cited insufficient evidence and the unlikelihood of compelling a sitting president to stand trial.
• Four co-defendants had already reached plea deals; all others pleaded not guilty.
• Trump’s lawyer welcomed the dismissal.
• This is part of a trend of high-profile cases against Trump being dropped.

3. Fatal Fire in Hong Kong

[03:27–04:07]

• At least 36 people killed, hundreds injured or unaccounted for after a fire tore through a high-rise housing complex.
• The blaze began in a 2,000-apartment unit complex from the 1980s.
• A firefighter died at the scene; officials still investigating the cause.

4. Campbell's Exec Fired Over Controversial Comments

[04:07–04:24]

• Campbell’s VP of IT, Martin Bally, was fired after being caught on tape saying the company made “highly processed food for poor people.”
• The company confirmed the voice was his; Bally did not comment for the story.

5. Atlanta Launches First City-Backed Grocery Store in Downtown

[04:24–06:54]

• The $8 million Azalea Fresh Market is the first full-service grocery in downtown Atlanta in two decades.
• Addressing food deserts and providing access to affordable, fresh groceries are the main goals.
• Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens explained the motivation:
  • Quote:
    “They have to eat. They live somewhere where they eat every day. So you're okay with them spending more time trying to get to food than other people. And that just burned me up. It totally burned me up. And I was like, screw it, we're going to do it ourselves.”
    —Andre Dickens [04:07]
• Reporter Will Parker highlighted past failures of city-backed stores and what Atlanta is doing differently:
  • Partnering with Savi Provisions, a grocery operator with private-sector expertise, aiming for profitability within three years.
• Other cities (New York, Madison, WI) plan similar initiatives. New York’s mayor-elect Zoran Mamdani wants government stores to compete on price with private grocers.

6. Business & Financial News Roundup

[07:47–09:47]

• U.S. markets extended gains, with NASDAQ up 0.8%, assisted by rate-cut expectations.
• Robinhood stock surged 11% after announcing a futures and derivative exchange.
• The SEC rejected Dream Exchange’s application to run a stock exchange, citing undisclosed ties to the Church of Scientology and possible securities law violations.

7. Maasai Lawsuit Against Ritz-Carlton/Marriott in Kenya

[09:47–12:24]

• Maasai elders allege a new Ritz-Carlton luxury safari camp blocks a critical wildlife migration corridor in the Masai Mara Game Reserve.
• Reporter Caroline Kimeiu described the camp:
  • “It's very high end. The whole camp is essentially suspended on wooden platforms and has bridges and some animals can pass underneath... It has absolutely fantastic views. So, yeah, it's a pretty cool safari camp, I'd say that.” [09:47]
• Maasai elder Menime Olol Dapash is seeking removal of the camp and replanting of indigenous trees.
• The camp received an exemption from a ban on new developments in the reserve.
• Marriott declined to comment; local county officials say concerns are unfounded, emphasizing jobs and revenue.
• Camp is open but below expected occupancy due to the controversy. The case is highly watched within Kenya.

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Notable Quotes

• Pete Hegseth (on D.C. shooting):
  “We will secure our capital. We will secure our cities... It will not stand.” [01:21]
• Andre Dickens (on food access in Atlanta):
  “They have to eat... And that just burned me up. It totally burned me up. And I was like, screw it, we're going to do it ourselves.” [04:07]
• Will Parker (on Atlanta’s approach):
  “They think in partnering with someone whose expertise is in running grocery stores that they can be more successful than perhaps some other experiments with publicly backed or funded grocery stores in the past.” [05:16]
• Caroline Kimeiu (on the Maasai lawsuit):
  "Essentially they are saying that the Ritz Carlton is blocking this dramatic event." [10:25]

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Noteworthy Segments & Timestamps

• [00:44] Shooting and National Guard deployment in D.C.
• [01:38] Election interference case dropped in Georgia.
• [04:07] Mayor Dickens on food deserts and city grocery stores.
• [05:16] Will Parker outlines private-public partnership.
• [09:47] Caroline Kimeiu on the Maasai lawsuit and the luxury camp.
• [10:25] Reasons and demands behind the Maasai legal action.
• [11:03] Government and corporate responses to the lawsuit.

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Tone and Style

• Factual, brisk, and news-driven with moments of personal insight from interviewees.
• Quotes are direct and maintain speakers’ original urgency or emotion.

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This episode serves as a comprehensive roundup of urgent national events, global legal battles, and urban policy developments, delivering concise yet informative analysis suitable for business-minded listeners and the general public alike.

Transcript

[Podcast Host]

Exchanges on navigating macro uncertainty Exchanges on the forces shaping global markets for the sharpest analysis on finance, business and the economy, count on exchanges. The Goldman Sachs Podcast Listen now.

[Alex Osola]

Two members of the National Guard have been shot in Washington, D.C. plus, a Georgia judge drops the election interference case against President Trump and why Atlanta thinks its first government backed grocery store can turn a profit.

[Will Parker]

They think in partnering with someone whose expertise is in running grocery stores that they can be more successful than perhaps some other experiments with publicly backed or funded grocery stores in the past.

[Alex Osola]

It's Wednesday, November 26th. I'm Alex Osola for the Wall Street Journal. This is the PM edition of what's the top headlines and business stories that move the world. Two members of the West Virginia National Guard have been shot in Washington, D.C. near the White House. That's according to West Virginia's governor. U.S. officials say a suspect was also shot and is in custody. The National Guard has been deployed to Washington to support law enforcement in the city. In remarks to reporters, U.S. defense Secretary Pete Hegseth condemned the shooting.

[Pete Hegseth]

We will secure our capital. We will secure our cities. In fact, this happened just steps away from the White House. It will not stand. And that's why President Trump has asked me and I will ask the Secretary of the army to the national guard to add 500 additional troops National Guardsmen.

[Alex Osola]

To Washington, D.C. the president is in Florida for the Thanksgiving holiday and wasn't at the White House at the time of the shooting. For more on this developing story, visit WSJ.com and in Georgia, a judge has dismissed the election interference case against Trump and his inner circle after a request from the prosecutor ending a long running and contentious legal battle. Prosecutors had alleged that Trump and 18 other defendants operated a criminal enterprise aimed at overturning former President Joe Biden's 2020 electoral victory. The defendants all pleaded not guilty, though four CO defendants later reached plea deals. Georgia prosecutor Peter Scandalakis, who took over the case after Atlanta District Attorney Fani Willis was removed last year, said today that he didn't find enough evidence to support racketeering charges. He said it was unrealistic that a sitting president would be compelled to appear in Georgia to stand trial. This is the latest in a series of high profile cases against Trump to be dropped, and Trump's lawyer today applauded the move. In Hong Kong, at least 36 people were killed, more were injured, and over 270 people were unaccounted for after a fire ripped through several high rise buildings in a housing complex today. One fireman has died after collapsing on the scene. The blaze started shortly before 3pm local time in the complex of about 2,000 apartment units built in the 1980s. Officials are investigating the cause of the fire, which was still burning early Thursday morning in Hong Kong. On this morning's show, we told you about a Campbell's executive who was put on leave after he was allegedly caught on tape saying the company made, quote, highly processed food for, quote, poor people. Well, today Campbell said that it fired that executive, vice president of information Technology Martin Bally, and after the company determined that the voice on the recording was his. Bally didn't immediately return a request for comment. This summer, the Azalea Fresh Market grocery store opened in downtown Atlanta. In many ways, it's a typical grocery store. It's got fresh produce, baked goods, two for one deals, a sandwich and sushi counter and wine and beer. But it's the first supermarket to operate in Atlanta's downtown in two decades, and it cost the city $8 million to launch it. And a second store that's in the works. Will Parker, who covers the housing and residential rental market for the Wall Street Journal, interviewed Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens earlier this month about why the community needed this grocery store.

[Andre Dickens]

They have to eat. They live somewhere where they eat every day. So you're okay with them spending more time trying to get to food than other people. And that just burned me up. It totally burned me up. And I was like, screw it, we're going to do it ourselves.

[Alex Osola]

Will joins me now to discuss the latest experiment in government grocery stores. Will, this is not the first attempt at a grocery store funded by a city, and they haven't always succeeded. What has gone wrong in the past and what is this store in Atlanta trying to do differently?

[Will Parker]

Oftentimes when cities get interested in doing this, it's because they have so called food deserts, which are areas where there isn't a supermarket or fresh. That's because of social problems such as concentrated poverty that make the prospect of a supermarket unattractive to a private company. They don't see the possibility for acceptable profits due to the low income residents. And so even if you have government funding to get a store started, they may still struggle with some of the same issues.

[Alex Osola]

And what is this store trying to do differently?

[Will Parker]

So they think in partnering with someone whose expertise is in running grocery stores that they can be more successful than perhaps some other experiments with publicly backed or funded grocery stores in the past. The private operator is a grocery store company called Savi Provisions. What Savi says is that for any store to get to a comfortable level of profitability takes a certain amount of time and they think within three years is achievable.

[Alex Osola]

What has the response been from other grocery chains in the city?

[Will Parker]

There are cases where it may technically compete, may draw shoppers away from other stores that are a mile or more away. But I don't think there's been, you know, any outcry from industry leaders in.

[Alex Osola]

Other cities are talking about wanting to do something similar. New York City Mayor Elect Zoran Mamdani campaigned on starting government backed grocery stores. And Madison, Wisconsin is slated to soon begin construction on a publicly owned supermarket there. What can these other city officials learn from this example in Atlanta?

[Will Parker]

Well, we'll have to see. We'll have to see how well Atlanta does this. Atlanta's main ambition is to just provide grocery stores where there aren't any. They want the stores to be no more expensive than other stores. I think Mamdani's ambition is broader than that. And Mamdani has spoken about competing directly in price and offering much cheaper groceries than competing stores. I think he's been more provocative with this idea about beating out private operators who in his view are overcharging residents of the city. The ethos of that is quite different, I think from Atlanta's.

[Alex Osola]

That was WSJ reporter Will Parker. Thank you, Will.

[Will Parker]

Thank you.

[Alex Osola]

Coming up, why leaders of the Maasai ethnic group in East Africa are suing the world's largest hotel chain. That's after the break.

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[Alex Osola]

US Indexes were up for a fourth straight session, extending a recovery from last week's sell off. Rising expectations for an interest rate cut next month and lessening fears of an AI bubble have helped lift stocks. The NASDAQ led the gains, adding 0.8%. Meanwhile, retail brokerage Robinhood gained about 11% today after it announced that it's launching a futures and derivatives exchange with market maker Susquehanna that's meant to grow its business of prediction contracts or bets on events like sports and elections. And the securities and Exchange Commission has rejected an application from startup Dream Exchange to run a stock exchange. The move comes two months after the Wall Street Journal reported on Dream Exchange's undisclosed financial ties to the Church of Scientology. The SEC says its decision was based on non public information from an investigation into whether securities laws were broken, as well as press reports raising questions about the potential misuse of funds. DreamXchange has previously denied that it misappropriated investor funds, and a lawyer for the company didn't respond today to a request for comment. Every year in Tanzania and Kenya, there's an event like no other. Some 2 million wildebeest, zebra and other species migrate in search of fresh pasture and water in one of the largest mass movements of mammals in the world. Here's what that migration sounds like. But as tourists flock to see it by the hundreds of thousands, they risk disrupting the spectacle they're there to see now. Leaders of the Maasai ethnic group say a Ritz Carlton luxury safari camp that opened in August blocks a key route of the migration. And they're suing Marriott, the hotel chain behind Ritz Carlton. The court is expected to hear the case next month. WSJ Africa correspondent Caroline Kimeiu visited the camp in the Masai Mara Game Reserve and joins me now from Nairobi. Caroline, what is this camp like?

[Caroline Kimeiu]

It's very high end. The whole camp is essentially suspended on wooden platforms and has bridges and some animals can pass underneath. There's a group of Maasais who welcome you at the entrance with singing a traditional Maasai blessing, you know, mint drinks and wet towels, the whole nine yards. And it has absolutely fantastic views. So, yeah, it's a pretty cool safari camp, I'd say that.

[Alex Osola]

Let's get into the suit here. Menime Olol Dapash, the Maasai elder who filed the suit, says the camp sits on the path of migratory wildebeest and zebra. What is he asking the court to do?

[Caroline Kimeiu]

They're asking for the camp to be brought down and also for the indigenous trees that used to be in the area to have the Ritz Carlton and the operating company restore those back to the way they used to be. And so just some context is that this Ritz Carlton camp sits on a bend in the Sand River. It's a key crossing point for very dramatic crossings, you know, with the wildebeest trying to make it across the rivers without getting eaten by crocodiles. But essentially they are saying that the Ritz Carlton is blocking this dramatic event.

[Alex Osola]

What has the government said about this camp?

[Caroline Kimeiu]

The camp won an exemption to a directive that had been issued essentially blocking new developments in the Maasai Marah because there have been concerns that there's a lot of construction happening on wildlife corridors. I think this is sort of the straw that broke the camel's back.

[Alex Osola]

The lawsuit is against Marriott, which owns the Ritz Carlton and Lazizi Mara, the Kenyan company that owns and operates the camp. What have they said about this suit?

[Caroline Kimeiu]

Marriott declined to comment. And then the Narok county, which is the local county governing the Maasai Mara or managing it, they dismissed dipash's allegations that the camp endangers wildlife, saying that it was unfounded. And then, you know, also going on to say that the Ritz Carlton would be bringing in much needed employment and revenue to the area. As things stand, the camp is there and quite fully built right now. They're expecting to be welcoming in clients, but say they're at less than half of the occupancy that they expected because of the situation that's going on with the lawsuit. But on the other hand, we've seen a lot of public discontent from the Kenyan public that is around the development. It's very difficult to say what next. What's clear is that this is a highly watched case.

[Alex Osola]

That was WSJ reporter Caroline Kimeiu. Thanks, Caroline.

[Caroline Kimeiu]

Thanks, Alex.

[Alex Osola]

And that's what's news for this Wednesday afternoon. Heads up that we'll be off for Thanksgiving tomorrow and through the weekend will return with our morning show on Monday. Today's show is produced by Pierre Bienname with supervising producer Tali Arbel. I'm Alex Osola for the Wall Street Journal. We'll be back with a new show tomorrow morning. Thanks for listening.

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