💰 The Senate clashes over foreign war funding

It’s Friday, December 8 — people are talking about the Senate’s clash over war funding, Taylor Swift as Time’s Person of the Year, and more.

As always, we’ve summarized and organized the different shades of perspective, so you can see the big picture quickly. Here at Shades we believe that seeing multiple points of view is the best way to stay informed.

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- Jeff (co-founder of Shades)

💰 The Senate clashes over foreign war funding

War aid is a hot topic right now, with Republicans and Democrats clashing over Ukraine and Israel funds because of border policy demands.

💰 The Senate hit a wall on a bill to fund Israel and Ukraine. The Guardian says Republicans threaten Kyiv's defense against Russia.

💰 According to Politico, Democrats said the GOP had a “hostage-taking” strategy of linking US border policies to Ukraine aid, and this plan was doomed to fail from the start.

💰 But the WSJ thinks it’s actually Democrats’ fault — they’re the ones playing politics with war aid. Blocking $110.5b of aid for Ukraine and allies was just political theater by Democrats.

💰 In any case, some Democrats like Sen. Dick Durbin are still hopeful a deal can be reached by the end of the year.

📰 Was Taylor Swift the right choice for Person of the Year?

Taylor Swift’s award sparked debate — some say she deserves it for reshaping culture and inspiring change, but others think the pick is just virtue signaling.

📰 Taylor Swift is Time's 2023 Person of the Year. Read her interview here.

📰 Inc. Magazine says Swift is obviously deserving. She’s had an unmatched cultural impact, especially this year.

📰 But The Federalist wasn't happy with the pick. Taylor’s music is bad, and she's a flaming “narcissist”. She only won because Democrats love her.

📰 OutKick thinks the win is not a big deal. It's more of a pop culture triumph than anything substantial.

📰 Poynter disagreed: Taylor's win proves that Time's award still holds huge cultural significance, and shows the continued relevance of Time Magazine.

Quick hits

🎶 Nicki Minaj released her fifth album, "Pink Friday 2". It features 22 tracks, and collaborations with Drake and Lil Wayne. (AP News)

🏀 The Pacers and Lakers will face off in the NBA's inaugural in-season tournament final. (CBS Sports)

🏛️ Hunter Biden, the son of US president Joe Biden, was indicted on 9 tax charges. (AP News)

🧑‍💻 US employers added 199k jobs in November. The unemployment rate dipped to 3.7%. (NYT)