Author: openjargon

• Ron DeSantis supported Trump and slammed Biden during his Republican National Convention speech.
• "America cannot afford four more years of a 'Weekend at Bernie's' presidency," DeSantis said.
• Despite past tensions, DeSantis and Trump appear to have reconciled ahead of the 2024 race.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has joined the chorus of conservatives backing former President Donald Trump and slamming President Joe Biden ahead of the November elections.

Speaking on the second day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, he said: "Our enemies do not confine their designs to between 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., we need a commander in chief who can lead 24 hours a day and seven days a week."

This point from DeSantis appeared to reference Biden saying — after his disastrous CNN debate versus Trump — that he just needs more rest and should stop holding events after 8 p.m.

"America cannot afford four more years of a 'Weekend at Bernie's' presidency," DeSantis said, drawing loud cheers from the audience and making Trump crack a smile.

"Weekend at Bernie's" is a 1989 dark comedy about two insurance employees who try to conceal that their boss, Bernie, is dead while on a weekend retreat at his beach house in the Hamptons.

This joke from DeSantis was a clear jab at Biden's health and fitness. There have been concerns, however — from Democratic lawmakers and donors alike — that Biden, who has had more than his fair share of gaffes in recent weeks, may not be the party's best pick for 2024.

But Biden is hanging in there despite at least 18 House Democrats and one Democratic senator calling on him to step aside. Biden has also said he only plans to quit if he gets "hit by a train."

While DeSantis is now voicing full-throated support for Trump, the two share a complicated history.

He started out as Trump's protege and clinched a win for Florida governor in 2018 with Trump's endorsement. Trump has credited himself with DeSantis' win.

But their relationship soured after DeSantis embarked on a 2024 presidential run, posing a challenge to Trump.

Trump told reporters in November 2022: "I don't think it's nice."

"I'm a very loyal person. So, I don't understand disloyalty. I really don't. But you see it. You do see disloyalty in politics," he said.

Trump also gave DeSantis several nicknames, including "Ron DeSanctimonious."

DeSantis quit the race in January after losing key support in early-voting states.

The two men may since have buried the hatchet. The Washington Post reported in April that they met in Florida at Miami's Shell Bay Clu, where Trump sought DeSantis' help with his presidential campaign fundraising. DeSantis said he was open to it, per The Post.

Representatives for DeSantis, Trump and Biden did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.

• Trump complained to Bloomberg Businessweek that Taiwan has taken away the US' chip manufacturing business.
• Trump wants Taiwan, which China claims as its territory, to pay US for protection.
• Taiwan is the world's chip powerhouse. It produces about 90% of all advanced microchips globally.

The US' relationship with Taiwan is likely to be a sore point should former President Donald Trump secure a second term in office.

Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, complained to Bloomberg Businessweek about Taiwan's dominance in the chip industry that made the island rich.

"Taiwan took our chip business from us," he told Businessweek in an interview before the failed assassination attempt on Saturday. "I mean, how stupid are we? They took all of our chip business. They're immensely wealthy."

Taiwan is a semiconductor chip powerhouse. It produces 92% of the world's most advanced microchips, according to the US-based Semiconductor Industry Association.

In 2021, Taiwan's chip industry generated $137 billion in output and accounted for nearly 25% of total global chip sales, according to the US International Trade Commission in a November report.

Taiwan's chipmakers benefit US companies. TSMC is the world's largest contract chipmaker: The company supplies chips to end users in America like Apple, which uses them in their consumer products. AI chipmaker Nvidia is also a big TSMC customer.

However, Beijing claims self-governed Taiwan as its own territory and has been stepping up military activity around the island in recent years. That has sparked fears of a Chinese invasion of the island that could majorly impact the global economy and chip supply.

The US is ramping up chip manufacturing at home to diversify some of its chip supply from Taiwan with the $52 billion CHIPS for America Act that was signed into law by President Joe Biden in August 2022.

The US is still obliged by law to protect Taiwan by providing the island with military means to defend itself.

"I think, Taiwan should pay us for defense," Trump told Bloomberg. "You know, we're no different than an insurance company. Taiwan doesn't give us anything."

Taiwan-listed shares of chip powerhouse Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company stock fell as much as 3% on Thursday following Trump's complaints.

In response to Trump's statement, Taiwanese Premier Cho Jung-tai said on Thursday that the US and Taiwan maintain a good relationship and that Taipei has strengthened its defense budget.

"We are willing to take on more responsibility to defend ourselves and ensure our security," Cho said at a scheduled press conference.

China probably hasn't decided if it prefers Trump or Biden

It's not the first time Trump has complained about Taiwan's dominance in the chip business. Last July, he also griped to Fox News about the same issue.

"Remember this, Taiwan took our business away. We should have stopped them, we should have taxed them, tariffed them," he said at the time.

China earlier highlighted the US' potential turnaround from Biden's stance that the US would come to the defense of Taiwan if it's attacked.

"The United States always pursues 'America First,' and Taiwan may change from a 'chess piece' to a 'discarded piece' at any time," said Chen Binhua, a spokesman for China's Taiwan Affairs Office in January.

But it's likely China has not decided whether it would prefer a Biden or Trump presidency, wrote Yun Sun, a nonresident fellow at the Brookings Institution, on May 31.

After all, Trump's first term saw his administration lifting US government rules restricting interactions between American and Taiwanese officials — a deepening of their relationship.

"China doesn't believe Trump wanted a war with China over Taiwan, but they do see his indulgence of his team on Taiwan as the result of his overall 'maximum pressure' campaign to force China to cave on other fronts, such as trade," wrote Sun.

• The UK and the Netherlands will see a decline in millionaires by 2028, per a new UBS report.
• Both countries saw an influx of millionaires from people choosing to move there.
• The millionaire decline continues a larger trend of nomadic wealth around the globe, per UBS

Most developed countries are set to gain more wealthy people in the next five years — with two big outliers.

UBS tracked 56 countries for its annual wealth report, released last week. The financial services firm found that 52 of them will add millionaires by 2028. Some countries, like Taiwan, will gain as many as 50% more millionaires during that time.

But the United Kingdom and the Netherlands make "notable exceptions" on this list, per UBS, because both are forecasted to lose millionaires.

The UK and the Netherlands had attracted "nomadic wealth" — people who chose to move to those countries, rather than those who made their money locally — wrote Paul Donovan, chief economist at UBS Global Wealth Management, in an email to Business Insider.

"Wealth has become more mobile in several parts of the world, as a function of numerous push and pull factors," Donovan said. "If more millionaires are changing location, then those economies which are disproportionately attractive for nomadic wealth are also more vulnerable to movements in that nomadic wealth."

The UK's three million millionaires put it third among countries with the highest number of millionaires last year, as measured in US dollars, per UBS.

That's "more millionaires than there should be, given the size of the economy," Donovan said at a media event on July 10.

However, UBS forecasts this number to decline by 17% by 2028. The loss continues a trend: The UK lost 16,500 millionaires between 2017 and 2023, per immigration consultancy Henley & Partners. Some millionaires have been leaving the UK in search of better taxes and more stable, business-friendly politics, while others were hit by sanctions against Russia.

The UK is changing a longtime millionaire-friendly tax policy that effectively allowed foreign wealth to be earned tax free. The tens of thousands of UK residents who qualify as "non-dom" filers are now set to eventually pay taxes on their foreign earnings, a major disruption for the wealthy elite. Alternative ports of call for this group of millionaires will likely include Paris, Dubai, Sydney, and the Italian Riviera, per Henley & Partners.

The Netherlands also similarly holds an outsize number of wealthy residents: over 1.2 million millionaires, which is about the same as Italy and Spain but with a smaller economy than its peers. UBS forecasts the country's millionaire count will go down 4% by 2028.

From 2013 to 2023, the Netherlands' millionaire number jumped 32%, according to data provided to BI by Andrew Amoils, head of research at New World Wealth.

The "growth rate there has been good, especially compared to [the] UK," Amoils told BI.

Geopolitical instability in Europe, marked by the rise of far-right parties and potential conflicts, has made wealthy individuals seek alternative residence options through investment migration programs. In recent months, applications have spiked nearly 60% for such programs, a spokesperson for Henley and Partners told Business Insider. These programs offer residence rights or citizenship in exchange for significant financial contributions.

• Biden is heaping praise on his deputy, Kamala Harris, even as calls for him to step aside grow.
• "She's not only a great vice president, she could be president of the United States," he said.
• Biden has not indicated that he plans to step aside and give up on the 2024 race.

President Joe Biden is heaping praise on Vice President Kamala Harris, saying she "could be the president of the United States."

Speaking at a National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) event, he started by slamming former President Donald Trump for his claim that immigrants are "taking black jobs" during the presidential debate last month.

"I know what a black job is. It's the vice president of the United States," he said.

"Folks, because of you, I am president, and Kamala Harris is vice president," he said before adding: "And by the way, she's not only a great vice president, she could be president of the United States."

This appeared to be a more articulate version of his praise for Harris at a press conference on July 11, during which he mixed up Harris and Trump's names.

"Look, I wouldn't have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president if I didn't think she was not qualified to be vice president," Biden said during the press conference.

To be sure, Biden has consistently maintained that he does not intend to drop out of the race, despite mounting pressure from Democratic lawmakers, donors, and political commentators to step aside in favor of a more viable candidate.

In a recorded interview on Friday, Complex Networks' Speedy Morman asked Biden if he was committed to continue in the race.

He responded: "Unless I get hit by a train, yeah."

He is hanging on despite at least 20 House Democrats calling on him to quit.

In a letter to House Democrats on July 8, he said: "I wouldn't be running again if I did not absolutely believe I was the best person to beat Donald Trump in 2024."

However, an Ipsos poll conducted for ABC News and The Washington Post on July 11 showed that if Harris ran for the top job instead of Biden, she would have a two-percentage-point edge over former President Donald Trump.

The poll surveyed 2,431 adults and found that Harris would have a lead over Trump of 49% to 47% among registered voters.

In contrast, RealClearPolitics' polling averages show that Biden trails behind Trump in six key swing states.

Biden's campaign manager has also said that if Biden quits, most of his campaign's sizable war chest will go to Harris.

While Harris has backed Biden, she has been stepping up her game at events and appeared increasingly presidential after the debate.

For instance, while Biden fumbled during the NATO summit speech, Harris was putting on a much stronger show while on a campaign trail in North Carolina.

Her staff also changed her schedule after the June CNN debate, having her appear beside Biden for the Fourth of July fireworks and picnic at the White House, something she has not done before, per The New York Times.

Representatives for the Biden-Harris campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.

• Donald Trump says Jamie Dimon "is somebody that I would consider" as Treasury Secretary.
• Trump told Bloomberg Businessweek he has "a lot of respect" for the JPMorgan CEO.
• Trump previously called Dimon a "highly overrated globalist" for supporting his GOP rival, Nikki Haley.

It looks like Jamie Dimon could have a spot on former President Donald Trump's Cabinet if the GOP nominee wins this November.

Trump was effusive in his praise for the JPMorgan chief in a Bloomberg Businessweek interview published Tuesday.

"I have a lot of respect for Jamie Dimon," Trump told the outlet.

"He is somebody that I would consider, sure," he added when asked if Dimon could be his next Treasury Secretary.

The remarks are surprising, considering how scathing Trump was when Dimon supported his rival Nikki Haley's presidential campaign.

"Even if you're a very liberal Democrat, I urge you, help Nikki Haley, too," Dimon told attendees at The New York Times' DealBook Summit in November. "Get a choice on the Republican side that might be better than Trump."

Dimon's call for Haley donations quickly drew Trump's ire. The former president called Dimon a "highly overrated globalist" in a November Truth Social post.

"I've never been a big Jamie Dimon fan, but had to live with this guy when he came begging to the White House. I guess I don't have to live with him anymore, and that's a really good thing!" Trump wrote in November.

Right-wing figures use the word "globalist" to refer to a fringe conspiracy theory about a cabal of elite individuals secretly controlling the world. Trump has been known to use the term as an insult — he called his former protégé, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, a "RINO globalist."

But it looks like Trump may be feeling differently about Dimon now.

For one, Haley is no longer a threat to Trump's presidential ambitions. The former South Carolina governor ended her presidential campaign in March and endorsed Trump at the Republican National Convention on Tuesday.

Dimon also softened his stance on Trump and praised the former president's policy record in January.

"He's kind of right about NATO. Kind of right about immigration," Dimon told CNBC at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos. "He grew the economy quite well. Tax reform worked. He was right about some of China."

To be sure, Dimon hasn't indicated that he plans to leave JPMorgan anytime soon. During the bank's investor day in May, Dimon said he intends to stay on for another three-and-a-half years, per Reuters.

That said, Dimon hasn't ruled out a career in politics entirely.

"Obviously, it's crossed my mind because people mention things to you and stuff like that. I love my country, and maybe one day I'll serve my country in one capacity or another," Dimon told Bloomberg TV in May.

Representatives for Trump and Dimon didn't immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.

• Dick Van Dyke, 98, credits regular exercise for his longevity.
• "Most people at 98 years old don't really feel like working out, and they seize up, you know?" he told ET.
• Experts say making simple lifestyle changes can significantly boost longevity.

Dick Van Dyke, 98, says regular exercise helps him live a long life.

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight alongside his wife, Arlene Silver, 52, the "Mary Poppins" actor spoke about staying active in body and spirit at his age.

"I've often tried to think, 'What did I do to live this long?' and I can't figure out," Van Dyke told ET. "The only thing is I've always exercised. We still go to the gym three days a week and work out."

Keeping active, he says, is "the secret" to longevity.

"Most people at 98 years old don't really feel like working out, and they seize up, you know? You get stiff, and I still, you know, move pretty well," he said. "And I think that must be the secret because I don't really watch my diet or anything. Stayed skinny. That helps."

It doesn't hurt that he also has a positive attitude toward life, Van Dyke said: "I was fortunate that I didn't grow up."

And Silver concurs.

"He's always happy and just positive," Silver told ET. "He's just the most joyful person."

According to the Centers for Disease Control, the average life expectancy in the US is 74.8 years for males and 80.2 years for females.

While immortality is still a subject of science fiction, there's been a growing interest in longevity and the idea of reversing one's "biological age."

Other antiaging trends — including IV treatments and red light therapy — are also gaining popularity.

However, longevity researchers say that even making simple changes to lifestyles can lead to a longer life.

Something as quick as incorporating a five-minute workout into your day or reaching out to two people you care about can help boost longevity, Dr. Kien Vuu, a physician specializing in antiaging and regenerative medicine, told BI previously.

A representative for Van Dyke declined BI's request for comment.

• Teamsters President Sean O'Brien spoke at the RNC — a first for the union.
• O'Brien's message aimed to foster bipartisan cooperation toward labor goals.
• Critics argued that O'Brien's speech legitimized Trump's anti-union record.

Even before Teamsters President Sean O'Brien made a historic move on Monday by being the first president of the union to speak at the Republican National Convention, fellow members were upset by him getting cozy with Donald Trump.

In a scathing op-ed published July 10, Teamsters Vice President at Large John Palmer said O'Brien's appearance "regardless of the message, only normalizes and makes the most anti-union party and President I've seen in my lifetime seem palatable."

And in January, when O'Brien met with Trump, James Curbeam, the national chairman of the Teamsters National Black Caucus, called the former president a "scab masquerading as a pro-union advocate," The New York Times reported.

Amid scrutiny from his union members and some right-wing anti-union groups at the RNC, O'Brien made it clear his goal of speaking at the convention was to invite bipartisan cooperation in achieving the labor movement's goals.

"The Teamsters are here to say we are not beholden to anyone or any party," O'Brien declared onstage in front of hundreds of delegates and the former president himself.

Although O'Brien may have had good intentions in trying to uphold his union's interests, nationally syndicated radio host and Teamster member Rick Smith said O'Brien was the Republican Party's "dancing show pony that they're gonna ride to the election."

Smith told Business Insider that he agreed with much of what O'Brien said onstage: In a room full of conservatives, the union boss railed against the US Chamber of Commerce and The Business Roundtable, "corporatists," and "greedy employers." But O'Brien also applauded Trump, calling the former president "a candidate who is not afraid of hearing from new, loud and often critical voices."

"The problem is none of those people in that room care," Smith said. "They knew why O'Brien was there. He was there to legitimize Trump's horrible record."

Smith said O'Brien also sent a message that "both sides suck for workers," which Smith said is untrue. He pointed out, for example, Biden putting billions toward bailing out the Teamster's pension fund in 2022.

"Going into the RNC and saying 'everybody sucks and it's all bad' was of kind of a slap in the face, considering Joe Biden bailed out the Teamsters pension fund, considering that Donald Trump's record was so bad, and Joe Biden's has been very good," Smith said.

O'Brien and the Teamsters have continued to defend his decision to speak at the right-wing convention.

"The Teamsters have never been afraid of democracy, but self-interested ideologues — on the left and the right, within and outside the union — are terrified of democracy," Teamsters spokeswoman Kara Deniz previously told the Times.

Smith said that in the case of bipartisanship, "every time we have some bipartisanship, it's working people who take it on the chin." Instead, he said, O'Brien's appeal to the Republican Party will divide workers.

"In a time when we have unprecedented interest in people joining and forming unions, this kind of division in the labor movement, I don't think it's helpful. This kind of platforming of someone destructive is not helpful," Smith said.

The Teamsters did not immediately respond to a request for comment.