Greetings! Happy National Hospitalist Day to those celebrating.

Let’s get into today’s top stories.

The WSJ just reported the highest price ever paid for modern art at auction.

While equities, gold, bitcoin hover near highs, the art market is showing signs of early recovery after one of the longest downturns since the 1990s.

Here’s where it gets interesting→

Each investing environment is unique, but after the dot com crash, contemporary and post-war art grew ~24% a year for a decade, and after 2008, it grew ~11% annually for 12 years.*

Overall, the segment has outpaced the S&P by 15 percent with near-zero correlation from 1995 to 2025.

Now, Masterworks lets you invest in shares of artworks featuring legends like Banksy, Basquiat, and Picasso. Since 2019, investors have deployed $1.25 billion across 500+ artworks.

Masterworks has sold 25 works with net annualized returns like 14.6%, 17.6%, and 17.8%.

Shares can sell quickly, but my subscribers skip the waitlist:

Skip waitlist

_{*Per Masterworks data. Investing involves risk. Past performance not indicative of future returns. Important Reg A disclosures: masterworks.com/cd}

🇻🇪 United States and Venezuela restore ties after Maduro’s ouster. The State Department said Thursday the two countries will reestablish diplomatic relations. The shift follows a January military operation that deposed former President Nicolás Maduro. American officials have since pressed Maduro loyalists still running parts of the state to accept reforms. Relations snapped in 2019 after Maduro cut ties and both countries shut embassies. The break deepened when President Donald Trump backed opposition lawmaker Juan Guaidó as interim president. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum wrapped a two-day Caracas visit focused on mining, while Energy Secretary Chris Wright visited in February with an oil-heavy investment pitch. Venezuela’s Acting President Delcy Rodríguez said an amnesty law has freed politicians, activists and others held for political reasons. Opposition leader María Corina Machado, the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize winner, says she will return soon and elections will follow.

🇮🇷 Kurds weigh a risky Iran role as war redraws borders. Kurdish officials in northern Iraq said thousands of fighters are preparing for a possible cross-border move into Iran. They said the US discussed the idea with leaders of Iraq’s two main Kurdish parties. Analysts say involvement could strain Iranian defenses and drag Iraq deeper into the conflict. The Kurds are a stateless people of roughly 30M across Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria. Iran alone has about 9M Kurds concentrated along its western borderlands. Five Iranian Kurdish groups formed a coalition to overthrow the Islamic Republic, then a sixth joined. Komala Party secretary general Abdullah Mohtadi called the coalition a historic step, but unity is brittle. Turkey, a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member, warned against weapons transfers to Kurdish guerrillas. Ankara labels the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK) a terrorist group and says it threatens regional stability. A Kurdish government spokesperson called the allegations unfounded.

🚨 Trump fires Kristi Noem as homeland security backlash erupts. President Donald Trump removed Kristi Noem on March 5th after bipartisan criticism. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) sits at the center of immigration enforcement and disaster response. Lawmakers grilled Noem for two days, including over the Minneapolis shooting deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Critics said her portrayal of the pair clashed with widely circulated videos. Republicans also questioned DHS spending and a $220M ad campaign urging people in the country illegally to leave voluntarily. Noem told lawmakers Trump knew, but Trump disputed approving it in a Reuters interview. Trump said he will nominate Senator Markwayne Mullin to run DHS. Mullin could serve as acting secretary while the Senate considers his nomination under vacancy law. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey posted “good riddance,” capturing the mood of her loudest critics. Noem did not address the firing while speaking at an event.

🧾 More Epstein files drop, including an unverified Trump allegation. The Department of Justice (DOJ) said Thursday it published additional Jeffrey Epstein files online. Officials said the material had been mistakenly withheld during an earlier review. The newly posted records include an uncorroborated accusation involving President Donald Trump. DOJ noted in January that some submissions contain “untrue and sensationalist” claims filed right before the 2020 election. Trump has repeatedly denied wrongdoing connected to Epstein. In one report, a woman told agents she was about 13 when a man named “Jeff” raped her in the 1980s. She later alleged Epstein abused her and that Trump tried to sexually assault her, without corroboration. Agents said she declined to provide more detail when asked and then broke off contact. Attorney General Pam Bondi faces intensifying scrutiny after a House Oversight vote to subpoena her. The rollout has also drawn criticism over redactions and privacy errors, including accidental releases of identifying information.

🏢 911 calls from an ICE mega-camp sketch a grim daily rhythm. Staff at Camp East Montana called 911 nearly one time a day for five months, records show. The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) site sits at Fort Bliss outside El Paso. Reports describe assaults, self-harm fears, medical distress and fights inside the tents. Federal data show 80% held there had no criminal record. Former detainee Owen Ramsingh said the camp was “1,000% worse than a prison.” The facility averaged about 3,000 people per day in loud, unsanitary quarters, detainees said. Representative Veronica Escobar said visitors are barred until at least March 19th because of a measles outbreak. Detainees described limited sunlight, leaking ceilings, and brief recreation outings once or twice a week. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) rejected claims of substandard conditions and said detainees receive food, water and medical care. The Washington Post reported ICE is considering closing the camp.

🚪 Texas Representative Tony Gonzales drops reelection bid after scandal. Republican Representative Tony Gonzales said late Thursday he will not seek reelection. He acknowledged an affair with former aide Regina Ann Santos-Aviles, 35. Santos-Aviles died by suicide in September 2025 after setting herself on fire in Uvalde, officials said. House Speaker Mike Johnson and party leaders urged Gonzales to withdraw, but stopped short of demanding resignation. The House Ethics Committee announced an investigation into Gonzales’ conduct. Republican Representative Anna Paulina Luna filed resolutions to strip his committee posts and censure him. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said he would support expulsion, a rare move requiring a two-thirds vote. Leaders are wary because Republicans hold only a handful-seat majority in the House. Gonzales, a Navy veteran and father of six, was heading to a May runoff against gun manufacturer and YouTube influencer Brandon Herrera. Gonzales said he takes responsibility, but the party decided the damage was already priced in.

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That’s all for today!

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See you tomorrow!