Monday, 2 June - You belong with me

Good morning, it’s Monday, 2 June. In your Squiz Today…

• The US is calling on Australia to pump up our defence spending

• Oscar Piastri wins the Spanish Grand Prix

• And a Swift victory for Taylor…

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Said 21yo sprint sensation Lachlan Kennedy, who’s become the second Aussie to officially break the 10-second barrier in the men’s 100m. He ran 9.98 seconds in Nairobi, getting a time that can be recorded, unlike the efforts of his rival/mate Gout Gout. Go grease lightnin’…

The China challenge continues…

The Squiz

US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth is pushing for Oz to pump up its defence spending to counter Chinese moves in the Indo-Pacific. He took the opportunity during the Shangri-La Dialogue - aka Asia’s big security summit - to bring it up with our Defence Minister Richard Marles and urged other regional leaders to do the same. The big threat, according to Hegseth, is that China is building its military might, and he reckons they could be ready to invade Taiwan by 2027. He says that “would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world”.

What’s Australia’s view? 

It’s already happening… Our defence spending is on track to increase over the next decade, but the US wants us to put more into it sooner. Marles wouldn’t talk dollars but says he is open to the idea because “we want to calibrate our defence spending to meet the strategic moment that we all face”. He also agrees that those in the Indo-Pacific region need to do more to contribute to regional security and that we shouldn’t rely solely on the US, despite Hegseth making a point to say the US won’t abandon its allies. What’s making the relationship tricky for allies of the US, though, are President Donald Trump’s other actions, like on tariffs… Over the weekend, he raised the tariff on steel imports to 50% - that impacts Australia’s industry and will kick in on Wednesday. 

Collaboration can be hard… 

Yep - just ask Trump ally/now-former advisor Elon Musk... After announcing he was finishing up as the head of Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (aka DOGE) last week, Musk had an eventful Oval Office farewell… Rocking up with a black eye, which he says came from "horsing around" with his son, Musk pushed back on questions about a New York Times report that he regularly used ketamine, ecstasy and psychedelic mushrooms during his time in the White House. On Saturday, he posted on X that he was "NOT taking drugs". FYI - Ketamine can be legally prescribed in the US, but using it recreationally or mixing with other drugs is a federal workplace no-no, so Team Trump - which has dodged questions so far - is facing quite a few please-explains…

Plans that go to plan

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Squiz the Rest

Some promising progress in Gaza 

Ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas are coming along - commentators say more progress has been made in recent days than since March, when the last truce fell apart. Israel has signed off on a US-backed deal for a 60-day stop to the fighting that would see Hamas release 10 living hostages and the bodies of 18 others in exchange for 1,100 Palestinian prisoners. But Hamas wants a permanent ceasefire, the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza and more aid - demands US envoy Steve Witkoff said were “unacceptable”, so there’s some way to go… Meanwhile, officials from Ukraine and Russia are set to meet again in Istanbul tonight for more peace talks, but Russia has yet to send its proposals through, and Ukraine isn’t happy about it. 

Going down to the wire

After nearly a month of counting, Liberal Tim Wilson has been confirmed as the winner in the battle for Goldstein over Teal Zoe Daniel. In the end, he got up by 175 votes after a partial recount, and while Daniel has conceded she’s lost the Melbourne seat, she hinted she might be back for round 2 in 2028... In the other knife-edge seat of Bradfield in Sydney, the margin in the recount is even slimmer, with a single vote separating Liberal Gisele Kapterian and Teal Nicolette Boele when counting wrapped up on Friday afternoon. Strap yourself in for another week of counting there. As for surprises in the Senate, One Nation has had a surprise boost, picking up an extra seat. It gives the party its fourth spot in the upper house - the most it's held since 2016.  

A warm welcome to winter…

Getting dressed in the morning has been a bit of a gamble in recent months, with unseasonably warm temperatures felt across all states and territories. First, Oz notched its hottest March on record, and then April was warmer-than-average - a trend that meteorologists say is likely to continue across the country over the next 3 months. That’s particularly true in the south, with the Bureau of Meteorology saying the warmer weather could also bring a higher risk of unseasonal fire conditions in drought-stricken parts of South Oz and Victoria. But if you’re in central/interior Oz, you might like to get your wet weather gear ready - the BOM has forecast higher-than-average rainfall…

Another win for F1 speedster Oscar Piastri…

The Aussie clocked up his fifth win of the year overnight, taking out the Spanish Grand Prix in a dramatic race that saw reigning Dutch world champion Max Verstappen accused of deliberately crashing into Mercedes driver George Russell. Piastri’s McLaren rival/teammate Lando Norris nabbed 2nd place - but the win now puts Piastri 10 points ahead in the world rankings. Verstappen, who drives for Red Bull, came in 10th place after being hit with a 10-second time penalty for side-swiping Russell instead of allowing him to pass as instructed by his pit crew. After coming 3rd in Monaco the week before, Piastri qualified first in Spain and started from pole position to drive a “controlled, smart race” that one commentator said saw him “playing (with Norris) like a cat with a mouse at the end of its paw”.

A Swift victory

Taylor Swift has entered a new era - one where she owns her entire catalogue of music. The superstar announced she’s bought back the rights to her first mega-successful 6 albums, which she's been trying to get back since 2019. They were bought by music manager Scooter Braun after he took over her former record label. She said reclaiming her music was "a dream come true" and that she's "been bursting into tears of joy" since it happened. Reports online vary about how much she paid but the catalogue was last sold for $468 million in 2020, so it's likely to be a hefty sum… Proving karma is her boyfriend, she posted a single photo of herself on Instagram surrounded by the albums, with the words: “You belong with me.”

Apropos of Nothing

An area near the Canadian border in the US state of Washington was abuzz on Friday when millions of honeybees escaped after a lorry carrying their hives rolled on a sharp bend. The driver walked away with not so much as a sting, while locals were told to avoid the area and bee extra careful. 

A Chinese paraglider testing some equipment ended up being accidentally “cloud sucked” nearly 9km above sea level - that’s almost on par with Mount Everest’s summit. Peng Yujiang’s camera captured the ordeal, which left him with a frozen face and hands - and internet fame…

Speaking of which, a pair of Brazilian nuns worthy of Sister Act has gone viral after video footage of an impromptu beatboxing session found its way online. And while their tunes might need some divine intervention, there’s no denying they’ve got some moves…

Squiz the Day

6.00pm (AEST) - Cycling: Racers will begin the final stage of the Giro d’Italia, finishing early tomorrow - Rome, watch on SBS on demand

7.30pm (AEST) - Soccer: The Matildas will play Argentina in the 2nd Friendly - Canberra, catch it on 10 Play

Public holiday in WA for WA Day

Foundation of the Republic Day – Italy

Tourette Syndrome Awareness Week (until 8 June)

🍗 National Rotisserie Chicken Day

World Heart Rhythm Week (until 8 June) 

A birthday for Steve Smith (1989)

Anniversary of:

• Alexander Graham Bell making the first sound transmission (1875)

• Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in Westminster Abbey (1953)

• Timothy McVeigh being found guilty of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that killed 168 (1997)

• The birthdays of William Lawson (1774) and Thomas Hardy (1840)