Some officials cite shipping defense after Trump’s election comments
The Wall Street Journal’s Nov. 3 newsletter, The 10-Point, included a report on secret U.S. strikes against Iran, the dissolution of Weil Gotshal & Manges, pressure over Anthropic’s IPO valuation and an explainer on presbyopia. The Iran report came from Alexander Ward, Lara Seligman and Shelby Holliday and cited officials; the law-firm report came from Mariah Timms, Jasmine Li and Lindsay Ellis. People familiar with the Anthropic matter said institutional investors were urging the company to target a valuation of about $1.5 trillion to $1.6 trillion later in the month.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the latest attack was part of a series of limited strikes Washington had secretly carried out against Iran in recent weeks as Trump touted the possibility of a diplomatic deal. Officials said the United States had engaged in smaller-scale strikes for several weeks.
The latest attack came after Trump played down the possibility of a return to war with Iran following the election. Ward, Seligman and Holliday reported that some officials described the smaller-scale attacks as defensive in nature, intended to prevent Iran from attacking commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Madeleine Edwards, a second-year law student, received a series of upbeat emails from Weil Gotshal & Manges throughout October after landing a coveted job for next summer. A very different message arrived on Oct. 29, the day after the law firm announced it was dissolving: Weil’s recruiters said it would no longer be able to honor the 2027 job offers.
Timms, Li and Ellis described the demise of a large and respected law firm virtually overnight as without precedent and said it was sending shock waves through the legal job market. Weil’s roughly 600 associates and law students with future job offers were likely to be hardest hit, according to the report.
People familiar with the matter said institutional investors were urging Anthropic to target an initial public offering valuation of around $1.5 trillion to $1.6 trillion later in the month. The proposed range was well below figures closer to $2 trillion that had been discussed. Prospective buyers of the Claude maker’s shares cited choppy markets and growing concerns about overexposure to AI bets.
The briefing explained that presbyopia is the natural change in the eye’s lens as people age, making nearby objects harder to see. It said many people still encounter the condition as news, even though it is a rite of passage as old as humankind. The newsletter described the change as especially difficult for people who have embraced the idea that their 40s might be the new 30s, contrasting their lack of fear of Botox, GLPs and Pilates with their reluctance to admit a vision problem.
The election material supplied broader context. President Trump and Republicans entered Election Day seeking to maintain their trifecta — control of the House, Senate and presidency — while Democrats aimed to win majorities in both chambers. Election watchers rated Democrats as favored to win a House majority and as having a strong chance of taking back the chamber, where Republicans held a razor-thin majority.
The Senate picture was less settled. The GOP-controlled chamber was in play, and Democrats were pursuing a broader-than-expected battlefield while trying to fend off Republican efforts to flip Democratic-held seats. The majority depended on several high-profile races in states such as Texas, Michigan and Alaska.
For readers following the count, The Wall Street Journal pointed to a guide to the races and numbers to watch and an interactive map with poll-closing times in every county. It also offered forecaster projections for each chamber, a game for predicting winners and viewing an overall chamber split based on readers’ picks, and live coverage with real-time updates and analysis; Washington Coverage Chief Damian Paletta was scheduled to break down early bellwethers before the polls closed.
The 10-Point newsletter was curated and edited by Morgan Smith and Bryony Watson in collaboration with Editor in Chief Emma Tucker.