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<keyword id="19895142" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Shah-Rukh-Khan" source="keywords">Shah Rukh Khan</keyword> is "a connoisseur of art and a good actor", said veteran star <keyword id="19929172" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Kamal-Haasan" source="keywords">Kamal Haasan</keyword> and revealed the superstar didn't charge a single penny for his 2000 bilingual film "<keyword id="21044414" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Hey-Ram" source="keywords">Hey Ram</keyword>". "Hey Ram" is a period drama written, directed, and produced by Kamal, which also starred him and Shah Rukh in the lead. In the Tamil-Hindi movie, Kamal and Shah Rukh played friends Saket Ram and Amjad Ali Khan, respectively. At the trailer launch of his upcoming movie "<keyword id="21727589" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Hindustani-2" source="keywords">Hindustani 2</keyword>", the multihyphenate said titles like 'star' or 'superstar' don't matter while working on a film. "When we work together, we are all just people. I don't see a superstar. He doesn't see a super director. We are friends. Shah Rukh sahib made that film for free... That cannot be done by a superstar. That can be done only by a fan. A connoisseur of art and a good actor. I'm ever thankful to him. Later on, you give us those titles and we very shyly accept it," Kamal told reporters here on Tuesday night. The 69-year-old also spoke about how he wanted screen icon <keyword id="19923448" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dilip-Kumar" source="keywords">Dilip Kumar</keyword> to star in the Hindi remake of the 1992 Tamil film "<keyword id="22180547" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Thevar-Magan" source="keywords">Thevar Magan</keyword>". Directed by <keyword id="22187094" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bharathan" source="keywords">Bharathan</keyword>, "Thevar Magan" was written and produced by Haasan. It starred Sivaji Ganesan and Kamal as a father-son duo. Unfortunately, Dilip Kumar had decided to retire from cinema by the time he reached out to him. "I wanted to do it only with Yusuf sahib (Dilip Kumar's real name). When he said I'm not going to do any more films. Then, I sold the rights to somebody because I didn't want to and I couldn't think of anybody else. And so that was a dream that didn't come through," Kamal recalled. Eventually, Amrish Puri played the father to Anil Kapoor in "Virasat", the 1997 Hindi remake of "Thevar Magan". Kamal said he used to come to Mumbai to wish the late star on his birthday on December 11. "I'm a great fan and a student of Yusuf saab. I don't know how many people know because it was a secret fact. I used to come here whenever I could on December 11 on his birthday and kneel before him to kiss his hand," he added. "Hindustani 2: Zero Tolerance" is a sequel to Kamal's hit 1996 film "<keyword id="19927125" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian" source="keywords">Indian</keyword>", which featured him in a dual role and also starred Manisha Koirala, Urmila Matondkar and Kasthuri Shankar. The movie was directed by S. Shankar, who is returning for the sequel, slated to be released on July 12. Besides Kamal, the sequel stars Kajal Aggarwal, Siddharth, and Rakul Preet Singh in key roles. It is produced by Subaskaran Allirajah's Lyca Productions and Udhayanidhi Stalin's Red Giant Movies.

Kamal Haasan says SRK worked in 'Hey Ram' for free: I'm ever thankful to him

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Trump threatened legal action over "The Apprentice" biopic that played at the Cannes Film Festival.</li><li>It depicts Trump's rise in New York under the tutelage of Roy Cohn.</li></ul>In the 1970s, the lawyer <a target="_blank" href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/former-mccarthy-aide-showed-trump-how-to-exploit-power-and-draw-attention/2016/06/16/e9f44f20-2bf3-11e6-9b37-42985f6a265c_story.html">Roy Cohn taught Donald Trump</a> a simple playbook for political fights: attack, counterattack, and never apologize.Trump is employing that strategy on "The Apprentice," an independently produced biopic about him that premiered this week at the Cannes Film Festival.In a cease-and-desist letter, one of Trump's attorneys threatened to sue over the movie's release, calling it "direct foreign interference in America's elections.""If you do not immediately cease and desist all distribution and marketing of this libelous farce, we will be forced to pursue all appropriate legal remedies," lawyer David Warrington wrote in the letter, obtained Friday by Business Insider.The movie depicts the rise of Trump as a New York real estate mogul in the 1970s and 1980s. Trump is played by Sebastian Stan, who is best known for his role in Marvel movies as an American soldier brainwashed by Russians. In the biopic, he rises as a New York power broker under the tutelage of Cohn (played by "Succession" actor Jeremy Strong), a colorful and controversial figure in American politics who made his name in the 1950s as a Senate lawyer rooting out Communist Party members with US Sen. Joseph McCarthy.According to critics who have seen it, the biopic depicts Trump undergoing liposuction, receiving surgery for hair loss, living with erectile dysfunction, and rejecting his brother, who suffered from alcohol addiction. It also shows Trump raping his first wife, Ivana."The Apprentice," produced by Dublin-based production company Tailored Films, is still seeking deals with distribution companies that would put it in American theaters and on streaming services. Although a lawsuit against the filmmakers may not be successful, the threat of litigation may chill those negotiations.The threat of a lawsuit may also work in the other direction, creating a Streisand Effect that draws more eyes to a movie that may have been otherwise relegated to the arthouse film market.Warrington works for Dhillon Law, a firm that has represented Trump in several other cases — <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trump-legal-fees-pac-donor-money-personal-cases-2024-2">it collected nearly $900,000 from Trump's donor-funded PACs last year</a> — and has <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/daily-beast-defamation-lawsuit-gawker-implosion-dismissed-2023-5">brought defamation lawsuits against journalists</a> in the past.The cease-and-desist letter is addressed to director Ali Abbasi and screenwriter Gabriel Sherman, who directed Business Insider to a statement attributed to the movie's producers."The film is a fair and balanced portrait of the former president," the producers. "We want everyone to see it and then decide."At a Cannes Film Festival press conference this week, Abbasi said the movie was really about "the way the system is built and the way the power runs through the system," <a target="_blank" href="https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2024-05-21/2024-cannes-film-festival-the-apprentice-sebastian-stan-jeremy-strong-ali-abbasi">according to the Los Angeles Times</a>, and seemed unconcerned about a potential lawsuit."Everybody talks about him suing a lot of people," he said. "They don't talk about his success rate, though."In a statement issued earlier this week, Strong compared Trump's attacks on journalism to rhetoric from Joseph Stalin and Mao Zedong — comparisons Warrington called "unhinged."Warrington also criticized Sherman, a Vanity Fair reporter, for making what he said were "racist, Marxist, and otherwise disparaging statements" about Trump in the past."The Apprentice" was partly funded by foreigners, according to Warrington's letter. The letter warns that the movie's release in the United States would amount to "foreign interference in our elections.""The Movie, released six months before the November 2024 election, is directed at influencing the 2024 election by falsely defaming President Trump," he wrote.Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, said the independently produced movie "doesn't even deserve a place in the straight-to-DVD section of a bargain bin at a soon-to-be-closed discount movie store" and "is election interference by Hollywood elites, who know that President Trump will retake the White House and beat their candidate of choice because nothing they have done has worked.""We sent a cease and desist letter to address the blatantly false assertions from these pretend filmmakers," he said in a statement. "This garbage is pure fiction which sensationalizes lies that have been long debunked.

Trump lawyer blasts 'The Apprentice' biopic in legal warning letter, calling it foreign election interference

<ul class="summary-list"><li>This post originally appeared in the Insider Today newsletter.</li></ul>Welcome back! It's crunch time if you're still looking for Christmas gifts, so <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/gifts/thoughtful-last-minute-gifts">here's our guide to 42 thoughtful last-minute gifts</a>. Or just head to Costco like one BI editor who <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/christmas-gift-shopping-at-costco-best-presents-2023">got everything she needed for under $250</a>. In today's big story, we're looking at <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/2024-stock-market-investment-outlooks-wall-street-prediction-roundup-sp500-2023-11">2024 market predictions from over a dozen Wall Street firms</a>.What's on deck: <ul><li>Markets: Pain is coming <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wall-street-private-equity-woes-debt-stock-market-interest-rates-2023-12">for private equity</a>.</li><li>Tech: This supercomputer launching next year could bring us <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/deepsouth-supercomputer-simulates-human-brain-go-online-next-year-2023-12">one step closer to cyborgs</a>.</li><li>Business: <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ukraines-real-power-broker-yermak-zelensky-russia-war-biden-2023-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Meet Ukraine's real power broker</a><a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ukraines-real-power-broker-yermak-zelenskyy-russia-war-biden-2023-12"></a><a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ukraines-real-power-broker-yermak-zelenskyy-russia-war-biden-2023-12"></a> making key decisions amid its war with Russia.</li></ul>But first, let's make some predictions.If this was forwarded to you, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/subscription/newsletter/insider-today">sign up here.</a><h2>The big story</h2>Wall Street's crystal ball<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/subscription/newsletter/insider-today"></a><a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/2024-stock-market-investment-outlooks-wall-street-prediction-roundup-sp500-2023-11"></a><div type="image" title="Image of a stock trader at the New York Stock Exchange." height="3886" width="5182" msid="106099960" hostid="261" sizebytes="458942"></div>There's an old joke about Wall Street's annual predictions: Just add 10% to the current market and call it a day.In reality, there's a bit more nuance to the process. But there's no denying speculating where the market will be a year from now is a bit of a crapshoot. But that doesn't stop people from trying. Business Insider's Matt Fox <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/2024-stock-market-investment-outlooks-wall-street-prediction-roundup-sp500-2023-11">compiled predictions from 14 Wall Street firms about where the markets are headed</a>.As is often the case, analysts are overly bullish about 2024. Most firms (9) have a bullish take on where the S&amp;P 500 will be by the end of next year. Three firms, including Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, have a neutral view of the market in 2024.Meanwhile, BCA Research and JPMorgan are the only ones that see things getting worse before they get better.(<a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/2024-stock-market-investment-outlooks-wall-street-prediction-roundup-sp500-2023-11">You can get a summary of all their predictions here</a>.)<a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/2024-stock-market-investment-outlooks-wall-street-prediction-roundup-sp500-2023-11"></a><div type="image" title="Stock man with chart" height="350" width="700" msid="106099961" hostid="261" sizebytes="14324"></div>While Wall Street is largely optimistic about the market's chances, there is still a wide range of opinions. The most bearish and bullish takes in Matt's roundup are a world apart. BCA Research set an S&amp;P 500 price target of 3,300, while Yardeni Research sees the S&amp;P hitting 5,400 by the end of 2024. So, how can two sides see things so vastly differently?For BCA Research's outlook, the belief is that <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/stock-market-crash-sp500-prediction-recession-2024-us-economy-outlook-2023-11">high interest rates will continue to take their toll on the market</a>. Even if the Fed cuts rates, it likely won't be enough. They say any policy adjustment will come after the summer, and things will already be headed downward at that point. "Cracks" are already appearing in the job market, and a default cycle could be on the horizon.(It's worth noting that the firm's prediction was made before the <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/interest-rates-fed-pauses-increases-december-rate-cuts-powell-inflation-2023-12">Fed's comments about projected cuts in 2024</a>.)And then there's Yardeni Research, where the sky is essentially the limit for the market in 2024.Ed Yardeni sees the S&amp;P 500 rising 17% thanks to what he calls the "Roaring 2020's." The thesis is that artificial intelligence will supercharge productivity and efficiency, equalling big gains in profitability for companies.<h2>Your Monday headline catchup</h2>A quick recap of the top news from over the weekend:<ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/rudy-giuliani-likely-cant-afford-148-million-defamation-judgment-2023-12">Rudy Giuliani can't make his $148 million defamation judgment go away even if he can't pay</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/rudy-giuliani-likely-cant-afford-148-million-defamation-judgment-2023-12"></a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-tesla-started-fight-swedish-tesla-workers-cant-win-2023-12">Elon Musk has started a war with Tesla workers that he's unlikely to win</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-tesla-started-fight-swedish-tesla-workers-cant-win-2023-12"></a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-and-uk-naval-forces-intercept-15-drones-in-red-sea">US Navy fights off barrage of 14 drones in Red Sea fired from Yemen as 'global trade problem' looms</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-and-uk-naval-forces-intercept-15-drones-in-red-sea"></a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/henrys-risky-unusual-interest-only-mortgage-loan-home-prices-soar-2023-12">HENRYs are turning to a little-known and risky type of mortgage as home prices soar</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/henrys-risky-unusual-interest-only-mortgage-loan-home-prices-soar-2023-12"></a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gop-nominee-for-george-santos-seat-is-a-registered-democrat-2023-12">The candidate NY Republicans chose to replace George Santos has been a registered Democrat for more than a decade</a></li></ul><h2>3 things in markets</h2><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wall-street-private-equity-woes-debt-stock-market-interest-rates-2023-12"></a><div type="image" title="A business man in a coffin with money floating away from him" height="1000" width="2000" msid="106099962" hostid="261" sizebytes="71084"></div><ul><li>The dramatic comedown of Wall Street's buyout kings. After an incredible run, high interest rates have proven to be a thorn in the side of private equity's debt-laden business model. As a result, <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wall-street-private-equity-woes-debt-stock-market-interest-rates-2023-12">the next few years will be messy for PE firms and their portfolio companies</a>.</li><li>Here's what a fund manager up 55% this year is betting on. Baron Fifth Avenue Growth Fund has had incredible success this year. The firm is looking to continue its winning streak with a combination of high-profile (Nvidia) and lesser-known names (TradeDesk). <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/stocks-to-buy-500-percent-upside-where-invest-baron-funds-2023-12">More picks here</a>.</li><li>Larry Summers sounds off. The former treasury secretary shared his views on what he'd do differently at the Fed and the odds of a soft economic landing. <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/larry-summers-federal-reserve-soft-landing-artificial-intelligence-trump-presidency-2023-12">These are some of his best quotes</a>.</li></ul><h2>3 things in tech</h2><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/deepsouth-supercomputer-simulates-human-brain-go-online-next-year-2023-12"></a><div type="image" title="Synapse" height="2000" width="2666" msid="106099963" hostid="261" sizebytes="1302738"></div><ul><li>The world's first supercomputer that rivals the human brain's speed will go live next year. It's called DeepSouth and is being developed by Western Sydney University. The hope is to better understand how brains can use such little power to <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/deepsouth-supercomputer-simulates-human-brain-go-online-next-year-2023-12">process huge amounts of information</a>.</li><li>How to use Grok — Elon Musk's rival to OpenAI's ChatGPT. The chatbot is now available to certain users of X. It's a <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-use-grok-elon-musk-ai-chatbot-2023-12">spicy rival to ChatGPT</a> that is trained off X posts and speaks with sarcasm.</li><li>AI companies are split on how much power to give CEOs. OpenAI and Anthropic both have measures to limit the CEO's ability to make big decisions. Meanwhile, Cohere embraced a more traditional structure that <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coheres-traditional-approach-to-ai-corporate-governance-2023-12">puts the founders firmly in control</a>.</li></ul><h2>3 things in business</h2><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ukraines-real-power-broker-yermak-zelensky-russia-war-biden-2023-12"></a><div type="image" title="Yermak and Zelensky are surrounded by war and excessive oligarchy wealth." height="900" width="1200" msid="106100085" hostid="261" sizebytes="180128"></div><ul><li>Ukraine's real power broker. After Russia's invasion, the generation of oligarchs that enjoyed free rein to plunder Ukraine's economy was largely destroyed. But now, a new system of well-connected people is <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ukraines-real-power-broker-yermak-zelensky-russia-war-biden-2023-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">maneuvering to exert control</a> over a large swath of Ukraine's economy, law enforcement, and security apparatus.</li><li>Top investors name the 25 healthcare startups set to take off next year. As investment activity dwindles, VCs are holding startups to high standards. Their <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/list-top-healthcare-startups-investors-take-off-in-2024">top healthcare startup picks</a> include companies that free up nurses' time, provide behavioral healthcare, and bring telehealth to Gen Z.</li><li>The top 32 managers and agents helping athletes forge careers in media and entertainment. Launching podcasts. Building influencer businesses. Creating production companies. Athlete storytelling is booming, and these are the <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/athlete-agents-managers-in-sports-landing-media-content-deals-2023-12">agents and managers making it happen</a>.</li></ul><h2>In other news</h2><ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/real-estate-housing-market-2024-home-prices-top-us-cities-2023-12">These will be the 10 hottest real-estate markets in the US as home sales surge in 2024, according to the National Association of Realtors</a>.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/israel-gen-z-facing-prison-ostracization-refusing-join-idf-gaza-2023-12">Israel's Gen Z conscientious objectors are being shunned and are even going to prison for refusing to join the army</a>.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/costco-sold-100-million-in-gold-bars-last-quarter-2023-12">Costco gold bars were a hot holiday buy — while they lasted</a>.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/best-photos-of-the-year-news-events-2023-12">The most powerful news photos of the year</a>.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blackstone-taylor-swift-eras-holiday-video-mockumentary-tour-cringe-schwarzman2023-12">"Can cringe be a SEC violation?": $1 trillion investment giant Blackstone is getting roasted for its Eras Tour-inspired holiday video</a>.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/lyft-president-kristin-sverchek-2023-lesson-2024-outlook-leadership-strategy-2023-12">Lyft President Kristin Sverchek on 2024: "I'm excited to just move — I have a bias towards action.</a>"</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-says-compromise-is-a-bad-idea-in-the-workplace-2023-12">Jeff Bezos says compromising with coworkers is actually a bad idea, because it "doesn't lead to truth.</a>"</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/interest-rates-2024-outlook-cuts-dovish-fed-economy-central-banks-2023-12">CHART OF THE DAY: There will be 152 rate cuts next year from central banks around the world, Bank of America says</a>.</li></ul><h2>What's happening today</h2><ul><li>The rocket launch window for Blue Origin opens. The Jeff Bezos-owned company plans to bring science and research materials into space.</li><li>It's International Migrants Day. The day is meant to "reflect on and celebrate the contributions of millions of migrants worldwide," according to the UN.</li><li>Happy birthday, Billie Eilish. Sia, DMX, Joseph Stalin, Brad Pitt, Christina Aguilera, and Keith Richards were also born on this day.</li></ul><h2>For your bookmarks</h2>Overrated destinationsMartha Stewart told BI the five recipes everyone should learn how to make. From a couple of tasty pies to a simple salad vinaigrette, <a style="text-decoration: underline;" href="https://www.insider.com/martha-stewart-reveals-favorite-recipes-2023-11">check them all out here</a>. The Insider Today team: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/author/dan-defrancesco">Dan DeFrancesco</a>, deputy editor and anchor, in New York City. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/author/diamond-naga-siu">Diamond Naga Siu</a>, senior reporter, in San Diego. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/author/hallam-bullock">Hallam Bullock</a>, editor, in London. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/author/lisa-ryan">Lisa Ryan</a>, executive editor, in New York.

Wall Street's 2024 bets

<div type="image" title="Putin and Mishustin 2018 .JPG" height="1431" width="2000" msid="76429753" hostid="261"></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>On paper, <keyword id="43440" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Vladimir-Putin">Vladimir Putin</keyword> would be replaced by <keyword id="8570051" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Mikhail-Mishustin">Mikhail Mishustin</keyword> as president of Russia if Putin dies or leaves office.</li><li>But Mishustin is an obscure former tax official with no power base inside the Russian state.</li><li>That illustrates Putin's true dilemma: He can never fully relinquish control.</li><li>Intelligence and state security sources told Insider why they believe Putin can never retire.</li></ul>Russian President Vladimir Putin's 10-day disappearance in April — amid rumors of COVID-19 infections in the top ranks of government — has raised a question the Russian leader has avoided for two decades in office: Who will replace him when he leaves office? Technically, the answer is straightforward: On January 15, <a href="https://apnews.com/e47ad98af595835b0570e6af3f278976">Putin announced a series of constitutional changes</a> and dismissed the cabinet of Prime Minister Dimitri Medvedev and replaced him with a little-known tax official, Mikhail Mishustin. The change allowed himself to stay in power yet limited future presidents to two terms total in office. Mishustin would officially take control of the Russian government in the case of Putin's death or incapacitation, for 90 days or until an election to replace him can be held.  Mishustin is regarded in Russian political circles as a bland and powerless factotum with no major ambitions. At the time of the announcement, Tatiana Stanovaya, a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Moscow Center, described Mishustin as a "technocratic placeholder," with little political backing from anyone beyond Putin. <h2>This is not about a peaceful succession</h2><a href="https://www.dw.com/en/who-is-mikhail-mishustin-russias-next-prime-minister/a-52021268">Few observers saw the move as Putin taking steps to ensure a peaceful succession</a>. Rather, the choice of Mishustin reflects a desire to hand day-to-day control of the cabinet to an easily controlled figure with no internal political power base of his own. The constitutional changes were set to be approved by voters in April but were delayed due to COVID-19. They are currently rescheduled for July 1 and will undoubtedly end up approved.The package includes the replacement of the prime minister, changes that would limit the presidency after Putin leaves office, and a formal extension of his term to at least 2024.They have all been described as less a way to clarify the terms of succession and more <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/01/23/putins-succession-strategy-could-be-risky-this-explains-why/">as a final power grab by Putin</a> to ensure that his final years are spent controlling Russia's levers of powers. <h2>Putin can never actually retire. He may die in charge.</h2>"The only goal of Putin and his regime is to stay in charge for life, having the entire country as his personal asset and seizing its riches for himself and his friends," Russia's most prominent Putin critic, Alexei Navalny, said at the time of the announcement, <a href="https://apnews.com/e47ad98af595835b0570e6af3f278976">according to the AP</a>.A Central European counter-intelligence official who has spent most of his career focused on Russian intelligence and criminal threats said that after 20 years of fighting to stay in power, Putin — as an ex-intelligence operative himself — knows that any chance of his peacefully leaving office for retirement evaporated long ago. Putin will have to fight for control of the Russian security services until his last dying breath. "Do you see a lot of Mafia bosses decide, after decades of stealing and killing, to retire quietly to some beach house with all their money?" he asked with a chuckle. "How about Narco-traffickers? Also think about the major dictators ... How many of them end their reigns with a peaceful retirement?" "What Putin has in common with all of these types, even if you somehow want to dispute that he's a murdering, stealing despot, is that he's had 20 years of decisions that he made to stay in power -- to break up [the oil giant] Yukos [in 2005],the war in Chechnya, the killing of rivals at home and around the world … not to mention the smaller, daily pain and humiliation he must inflict to run the beast that is the Russian state," explained the official who works undercover and cannot be named. "In his mind all of these things were necessary and even just. But Vladimir Putin completely understands this sort of power and he knows that the only way he will ever sleep safely is by complete and direct control of Russian security services and military. He knows that with his enemies even the most loyal proxy won't be good enough." <h2>Having an heir apparent is an invitation to a coup</h2>It's that relationship with proxies and replacements that forces Putin and other authoritarian leaders to intentionally design security systems that prevent anyone under them from ever effectively wielding power. "It's by design," according to a Western European intelligence official who refused to be identified but works for a service with decent relations with the Russians. "Having a political heir is an invitation to a coup in most authoritarian structures like organized crime. And letting that heir build their own independent political and power base through legitimate authority almost guarantees one," said the official, who studies transnational crime networks such as the Mafia, ISIS and Russian money-laundering operations.  <h2>'Drop a ball and you're dead or in prison'</h2>"Putin's job, like anyone in that position, is to wake up each day and juggle a dozen or more power centers, keeping them moving in the directions you want, replacing them on the fly with others just to disrupt the flow of energy if it moves away from you," the official said. "Drop a ball and you're dead or in prison. It might be tempting to ask someone to help you juggle but who can you trust really?" Abu Muhammed al Hashemi is a former top intelligence official for Saddam Hussein. Currently living in Amman, Jordan, Abu Muhammed (he asked that his nickname be used to avoid annoying his Jordanian hosts), said that Saddam spent most of his time managing this question. "Saddam was surrounded by family, but also his family, he could not really trust them," said Abu Muhammed. "Everyone from that family loved Saddam but feared him and would probably kill him to replace him. So he had to make sure they were always fighting each other and not him. But with people not from the family it was simple: Saddam would pick some low guy and build him up, give him things and power, and then take it away. Maybe have him arrested or killed. Then pick some new guy and do it again. He'd always have someone walking up the hill but nobody could ever get to the top." So Mishustin is a perfect proxy, for now. He combines an understanding of the Russian tax system with — what Putin clearly hopes — are no direct personal ambitions and no independent support from the security services. <h2>'It will be Death of Stalin'</h2>"This is a great move from Putin survival wise," according to the Central European intelligence official.  "The first thing Putin weaponized really well when he came to power and began to take control of the economy from the oligarchs was the tax system, because in a system like that anything can be legal or illegal because the system is at its base complete anarchy," said the official. "It's how he keeps his guys in line: Anyone with any assets in Russia can be arrested on a tax charge at any time, the rich guys couldn't get legal and properly pay their taxes if they wanted to."So what would happen if Putin suddenly caught COVID-19 and died? Who would control Russia's nuclear weapons and who would come out on top during the 90-day struggle before an election is called? "It will be 'Death of Stalin,'" said the Western European official, referring to the recent black comedy movie about the days after Stalin's death, as his lieutenants fought to replace him (and avoid being killed by their rivals). "The oligarchs that selected Putin have been destroyed by Putin, he set about doing that first," said the Western official. "We have our eyes on some people at the higher levels of the security services and army that we think could be contenders to win a struggle but until Putin is gone or greatly diminished it's always going to be nearly impossible. He's intentionally making sure there's never any clear candidates."

Putin's 10-day disappearance raised a grim question: Who will replace him when he's gone?

<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-business-insider-interview"></a><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">Mike Nudelman, Business Insider</div></div></div>John Kasich was the last remaining Republican primary challenger to Donald Trump. Since ending his campaign in early May, Kasich has not followed the same course as fellow long-lasting GOP primary challengers, such as Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida and Ted Cruz of Texas, in endorsing Trump. Instead, Kasich has expressed his dismay with the tone of Trump's presidential venture while criticizing his policy positions on trade and Russia, to name just a couple.He has strongly condemned the leaked audio of Trump in 2005, released last week, that showed Trump making crude sexual remarks about women. But he said nothing about the tape surprised him."I mean, I don't have any more words," Kasich said of Trump. "I've tried to do the best I can to lead by my actions in an appropriate way without recrimination or anything like that, because I'm a very happy person. I don't think I need to say any more than what I've demonstrated."Last month, Kasich joined President Barack Obama at the White House, alongside other leaders, to advocate for the passing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, the landmark trade agreement that's being torched along the campaign trail. Neither major-party candidate is publicly supporting the agreement, with Trump going as far as saying it would continue "the rape of our country."But that did not push Kasich to distance himself from the deal, which he believes is necessary economically and geopolitically. Since that press conference, he has continued to push for its passing as the most prominent elected Republican official to stand firmly behind the agreement.In an interview with Business Insider this week, Kasich discussed TPP and the recent Wells Fargo scandal, and he gave a dire warning to the Republican Party.This interview has been edited for clarity and length.Allan Smith: Last month, you gave a <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/john-kasich-barack-obama-trade-deal-2016-9" target="_blank">rather surreal speech</a> at the White House on trade. Tell us what you've been up to regarding helping the Trans-Pacific Partnership pass since then, and what you're planning for the crucial lame-duck session?John Kasich: Well, we just published <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/john-kasich-refusing-to-ratify-tpp-risks-americas-role-as-the-world-leader/2016/10/12/a8f8d6fe-9092-11e6-9c52-0b10449e33c4_story.html?utm_term=.e6936d39503d" target="_blank">a piece in The Washington Post</a>, and I've talked to a few members about this. I was discouraged when I read that [Senate Minority Leader Mitch] McConnell said that it was dead, but then I was told he turned around and said, "No, it's not."As long as the White House is deadly serious, which they tell me they are, I'll help them anyway I can. You know, whatever it takes. It's very important obviously from an economic point of view because of the need for innovation, for progress, to improve the standard of living of people. But I also think it's a critical issue in geopolitics too. With all those fledgling countries in Asia, who really want to stand with us but they live under the shadow of China and the smaller shadow of Russia. So I just think it's really important both economically and geopolitically.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_left"><div><div class="image on-image">Skye Gould, Business Insider</div></div></div>I have never worshipped at the altar of free trade, but I've always been an advocate of free trade. This - it's just now more clear than ever.Look, we have a very lousy system for retraining workers that get disrupted. And, you know, I just don't see anybody that's particularly interested in fixing that. They think it's fixed, but it's not fixed. So, we need a dramatic improvement in the way we train people who get displaced. Furthermore, when there is cheating, the cheating needs to be called. And I see that the administration has become much more aggressive on that front.Smith: Building off that, when you look at your state, and a lot of the press surrounding trade in Rust Belt states - such as Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Michigan - has been focused on how factories have closed and how manufacturing jobs are leaving.Kasich: Well, first of all, we're not Rust Belt. I mean, that's an old term. We do have manufacturing. We have a half-a-billion-dollar investment from a Chinese individual, which brings a couple thousand jobs in Dayton. So manufacturing is still very important to us, but we are much more diversified state. And furthermore, anybody that says the steel mills are coming back to Youngstown is not telling the truth. They're not coming back. You could have some aspects of advanced manufacturing appear. But if you look even at Pittsburgh, where I grew up, you've now replaced steel jobs with technology jobs, and they pay better. So, I know that, you know, leaders have to lead. I don't read polls to decide what I'm going to do. But for the best interest of the people of our state, having a big mix of technology, healthcare, IT, financial services, and manufacturing is the ticket. To put all of your eggs in one basket is silly. We did that for a long time and I don't think it's very smart.Smith: You won a sweeping reelection based mainly on touting your record of strengthening Ohio's economy following Gov. Strickland's years. So what has happened with the narrative that this anti-trade message, that the economy is not doing well, is really picking up steam in some areas?<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">Business Insider/Skye Gould</div></div></div>Kasich: I don't really think it is. I don't really know - I don't think I believe that. When you ask people, do they believe that we ought to have trade, I think people understand it's important. Now, I think that they are hung up on, you know, that people cheat and we don't enforce the laws, and I think that's correct. But I don't think people want to just say, "We're not going to trade with anybody." I don't accept that. I really don't care - I'm going to be like one of these deniers - I don't care what the polls say. People intuitively know that trade is good for our country. We just have to get the right trade agreements.Smith: Do you think the lame-duck session is the only time this agreement can get through? Or do you think it's still possible afterward?Kasich: You know, I don't know enough to say. You watch people run for president, and a large part of what they say, they don't ever follow through on. But I don't think you can afford to wait on this. Do I think it could get passed in a lame duck? Probably tough. But impossible? No, or I wouldn't be wasting my time. It's going to take some leadership, and it takes a time where leadership is more important than people's political career at times.Smith: What do you think the president needs to do to help get this passed?Kasich: He needs to really engage both Republicans and Democrats. He needs to engage them in a very personal way. And he needs to tell them that this is something that America, the United States of America, needs. Not Republican. It's not Democrat. It's America.Smith: Now certain media outlets - Breitbart, Drudge Report, Sean Hannity, places where a lot of conservative voters go to for information - have been pushing a strong protectionist message with this agenda that coincides with what Trump is pushing. This is out of step with more traditional conservative values. Do you think the Republican Party needs to take some control back from some of these outlets?<table class="float_left" dir="ltr" border="0"><tbody><tr><td></td></tr></tbody></table>Kasich: Well, I don't want to comment on media outlets, but I will tell you that if the Republican Party does not evolve, the Republican Party is going to die. The Republican Party cannot be anti-trade, anti-immigrant, not out there practicing the <keyword id="6358883" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Politics">politics</keyword> of people, you know, the issues surrounding drug addiction and mental illness and the cost of prescription drugs and healthcare and student debt and all of these things are very personal to people now. And if the party wants to have an ideological debate, it's never going to win anything in a major way. So I do believe that the party needs to evolve, or I won't be a part of it.Smith: In your Washington Post op-ed, you called Vladimir Putin a latter-day Stalin. What do you make of the state of US-Russia relations, which are seemingly at a low point since the Cold War?Kasich: I've been frankly very surprised at the intensity of our differences. I mean, between what appears to be hacking of our political system to the aggressive use of nukes on the borders, to these atrocities in Syria and their warnings. I've been very, very surprised at the intensity of all this. You know, I think to a degree this happens when they spot a softness in us, which I think for a while they did. But I think that's coming to an end. And, you know, when we ... we can't beg them to get along with us. And I think there was some of that going on, which has now ended.<div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right"><div class="image on-image">AP PhotoJoseph Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union from the mid-1920s until his death in 1953. John Kasich thinks there are similarities between Stalin, known as one of the most brutal authoritarian leaders in modern history, and current Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has embraced in much warmer terms.</div></div>It's a very serious matter. And what should we do about it? We should reinforce NATO. We need to be prepared to take solid actions to make it clear that we will not tolerate any intervention, and Russian intervention. These are serious matters, and we can never let up on these sanctions. Frankly, we should publicly increase them. And when it comes to the cyberwarfare piece, we're going to have to deal with it. I mean, it would be very easy to make an inflammatory statement on what we ought to do on cyber. I don't think that that's productive. But to allow the Russian activity to go unresponded to is not acceptable. So the administration is going to have to figure out, you know, a tough response on the basis of this hacking.Smith: Now there was just a story published on how the administration is weighing military options regarding Syria, not necessarily looking at ISIS but at Assad and Russia backing them. Do you think we're at the point where that needs to be on the table?Kasich: I think it's too late. I think that there's been too much. This all started with the red line, walking away from it. The inability to arm the legitimate Assad opposition. And, you know, it's trying to put toothpaste back in the tube. Not only are there a lot of outsiders intervening but this also involves a vicious internal war. There are many who believe the Alawites will fight to the death because they believe that, should they lose power, the majority would take, would show no compassion for them. They ruled that country for a long time, ruthlessly. It is a vicious civil war that makes one want to cry every day. We've just let too many things happen. And now, try to turn around and fix it. Getting involved in a civil war directly was never something I thought made sense.Smith: Moving on to Wells Fargo, this is one of the biggest banking scandals that I can remember in my lifetime. What were some of your thoughts on what happened?Kasich: It's a disgrace. And everybody who was involved in that culture should be held accountable. And there is no way they should walk out of that place with millions, tens of millions, tens and tens of millions of dollars, when innocent people who actually flagged this culture of conceit and culture of rip off should've been fired while the people who were doing it somehow are able to just resign and reap the big reward. It's just an outrage. It's people who have forgotten decent values towards other people.Smith: I know that California and Illinois have both suspended doing business with Wells Fargo. Would you recommend that Ohio do the same? (<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/john-kasich-wells-fargo-ohio-2016-10" target="_blank">Kasich would announce Friday</a> that state agencies under his control would cut off business with the bank for at least one year.)Kasich: Well, I don't know the extent to which they do business. I just want to see how this thing continues to unfold and if they have a legitimately major change in their culture. They have a new CEO. I don't know much about him. The lady who was involved to some degree in the shenanigans along with the CEO are gone. So I need to see where things stand before we go any farther at this point.<div class="KonaFilter image-container float_left"><div class="image on-image">Business Insider</div></div>Smith: As someone who worked with a major bank, how do you suggest preventing scandals like this from happening in the future? What's your fix to prevent this?Kasich: How do you prevent people from doing inappropriate things? We can write laws. But at the end of the day, I actually wonder what the board was doing. What had the board been doing when they see these things happening. I mean, you can write a law that says you cannot provide incentives for the openings of accounts, but I think it gets to be a deeper issue of the value structure of any organization and the value of its leaders. And if you talk to anybody who's been successful in business, they will tell you the thing that matters the most are people. And clearly, in this case, the quality of the people was not paid attention to. By the board and I don't know what they were doing. And I think there is a certain accountability by the board here.In terms of what law you could pass, I don't know. I mean if there was something specific that made sense, then I'd be OK with that. I would favor that. But just passing something without having a great impact, look, laws only go so far. It's an individual morality in values that matters in these companies. I mean, they ought to clean house. And they ought to figure out how to claw back all this money. That is a given. In terms of additional laws, there are reasonable approaches to this, but I'd have to see what they are. I'm not a federal lawmaker.Smith: You released probably the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/john-kasich-donald-trump-tape-2005-video-2016-10" target="_blank">strongest statement</a> over the weekend regarding the leaked audio from Donald Trump. You've been steadfast in your position post-primary season, and you haven't wavered. Is there any advice you'd have for fellow Republicans? And what do you make of this ongoing situation?Kasich: I think you <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/john-kasich-donald-trump-republicans-2016-10" target="_blank">lead by example</a>, that's my advice. I mean, I don't have any more words. I've tried to do the best I can to lead by my actions in an appropriate way without recrimination or anything like that, because I'm a very happy person. I don't think I need to say any more than what I've demonstrated. And my action over the weekend was not based on just this incident, which is terrible - it's been a whole consistent message of division and anger, and I don't support that. <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/paul-ryan-electoral-college-tie-president-hillary-clinton-donald-trump-2016-10">Here's how Paul Ryan can become the next president</a></h3> <div> <div> <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="BxYjRiNjE6iLkdlAM21y1_B3JTeEg71-" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div> </div> </div> </div>

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