Meta's Mark Zuckerberg has outlined a new template for companies to make up with President-elect Trump and MAGA, Axios' Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei write in a "Behind the Curtain" column.

Why it matters: Meta did this with a methodical striptease over nine days, capturing massive public and MAGA attention.

• "This is speaking Trump's love language," a transition source told us.

🔎 Behind the scenes: Zuckerberg had been considering some of the moves for years. Almost all had been in the works for months. But sources tell us Meta deliberately packaged them all up for detonation over nine days to maximize the pop for Trump.

• "It's hard to break through in this media environment," said a source familiar with the strategy. "It sends a signal."

Here's the Meta formula:

• Put a Trump friend on your board (Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White).
• Promote a prominent Republican as your chief global affairs officer (Joel Kaplan, succeeding liberal-friendly Nick Clegg, president of global affairs).
• Align your philosophy with Trump's on a big-ticket public issue (free speech over fact-checking).
• Announce your philosophical change on Fox News, hoping Trump is watching. In this case, he was. "Meta, Facebook, I think they've come a long way," Trump said at a Mar-a-Lago news conference, adding of Kaplan's appearance on the "Fox and Friends" curvy couch: "The man was very impressive."
• Take a big public stand on a favorite issue for Trump and MAGA (rolling back DEI programs).
• Amplify that stand in an interview with Fox News Digital. (Kaplan again!)
• Go on Joe Rogan's podcast and blast President Biden for censorship.
• And light up social media with all the fireworks.

Between the lines: Love it or hate it, the strategy seemed to work brilliantly. Trump praised Meta. Rogan hailed Zuck.

• House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who has aggressively investigated Big Tech, said he hopes other companies "follow the lead of X and Meta in upholding freedom of speech online."

🖼️ The big picture: Every company in America is watching. We can expect some to copy Zuckerberg — after Elon Musk showed the way.

• Shifts this fast are rare. And rarely isolated.

The bottom line: Alex Bruesewitz — CEO of X Strategies LLC, and trusted adviser to the Trump campaign on alternative media — told us companies are either "a. Finally recognizing that 'wokeness' is a cancer, or b. Strategically adapting to the political climate and pandering to Republicans now that we are in power."

• "Only time will tell which is the true motivation," Bruesewitz said. "Regardless, MAGA is winning and will continue to win!"

Keep reading ... Axios' Zachary Basu contributed reporting.

• 🗞️ Go deeper: Wall Street Journal front-page story today, "CEOs Kill Policies Before Inauguration: Diversity, climate initiatives gutted" (gift link).

After Mark Zuckerberg's embrace of President-elect Trump, Silicon Valley is watching to see whether a whole row of tech dominoes is about to fall in the same direction, Axios managing editor Scott Rosenberg writes.

Some early signs:

• Google, Apple, Microsoft and Amazon have lined up to give $1 million each to the inauguration. (Apple's donation came personally from CEO Tim Cook.)
• Amazon put $40 million behind a Melania Trump documentary.

🥊 Reality check: Zuckerberg, unlike his rival CEOs, has absolute voting control of his company.

• As he said in his three-hour conversation with Joe Rogan: "Because I control our company, I have the benefit of not having to convince the board not to fire me."

None of the other members of tech's trillion-dollar club can move with the same speed or independence, even if they wanted to.

• Keep reading.

Above: David Hume Kennerly, the legendary political photographer, soared over Pacific Palisades in a chopper yesterday. "Only one house on this block survived — it appears to have a metal roof," David told Mike.

🔎 Risk experts believe the insured losses from the LA wildfires will easily top $20 billion. But that's only the start of the crisis California now faces, Axios managing editor Ben Berkowitz writes.

• Anything above $12.5 billion would pass 2018's Camp Fire to become the biggest insured wildfire loss ever, per data from insurance brokers Aon.
• At the high end of the range, the LA fires would be near the list of the 10 costliest natural disasters in global history by inflation-adjusted insured loss, according to the Insurance Information Institute.

🔭 The big picture: The loss number only tells part of the story.

• Thousands upon thousands of homes and businesses have been lost, and tough decisions about if and how to rebuild will take years, even as climate change makes this sort of disaster more likely.

California's insurance market was already struggling as carriers fled the state's many risks. So the state insurer of last resort, FAIR Plan, has ballooned to an unsustainable size.

• Systematic reforms designed to expand coverage and let insurers re-price risk are just now coming online — but may be too late, given the scope of losses.

The latest: California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is ordering an investigation into water supply problems that left fire hydrants dry and hurt firefighting efforts.

• The 117-million-gallon Santa Ynez Reservoir in Pacific Palisades was empty and closed for repairs as the wildfire tore through homes, the LA Times reports: "Whether having the reservoir online would have had a meaningful impact on fighting the blaze is unclear."

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Denmark sent private messages in recent days to President-elect Trump's team expressing willingness to discuss boosting security in Greenland or increasing the U.S. military presence on the island, Axios' Barak Ravid and David Lawler report.

• Why it matters: Trump's refusal to rule out military force to take control of Greenland was effectively a threat to invade a longstanding NATO ally. Those comments caught Copenhagen and many other European capitals off guard.

🔭 The big picture: Greenland (pop. 56,000) is largely autonomous, but Denmark maintains responsibility for defense.

• Trump has repeatedly declared that controlling Greenland — the world's largest island — is necessary for U.S. national security vis-a-vis Russia and China. His son Don Jr. visited Greenland this week bearing MAGA hats.

🔎 Behind the scenes: In the messages passed to the Trump team, the Danish government made clear Greenland isn't for sale, but expressed readiness to discuss any other U.S. request regarding the island, the sources said.

• The U.S. already has a military base on Greenland and an agreement with Denmark dating to 1951 on defending the island, under which an increase of U.S. forces could easily be discussed.
• The main question is whether Trump would be content to cut a deal with Denmark and declare victory, or whether his true mission is to become the first president in 80 years to gain new territory for the U.S.

🇮🇱 What else we're watching: Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Israel today to push for a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, Axios' Barak Ravid reports.

• It's a last-minute effort by Trump to get a deal before his inauguration on Jan. 20.

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The U.S. economy added 2.23 million jobs in 2024, including 256,000 in the final full month of Joe Biden's presidency.

• The big picture: There have been more jobs gained under Biden's term than under the full terms of former Presidents Trump, Obama, or George W. Bush, Axios' Dan Primack writes.

🧮 By the numbers: Biden is now at +16.1 million, aided by the post-pandemic economic recovery.

• Trump oversaw 2.1 million job losses, although there were 6.6 million jobs added during his first three years in office (i.e., pre-pandemic years).
• Obama oversaw 7.1 million job gains, with losses at the beginning of his first term due to the Great Financial Crisis.
• Bush oversaw 5.2 million job gains.

Bill Clinton has a stronger record than any of his successors, with a total of 23 million jobs added, although his annual average trails that of Biden.

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People are saying "I do" later in life. The median age of those getting married for the first time was nearly 30 in 2023, up two years from 2010, Axios' Sami Sparber writes from census data.

• Compare that to 1950, when the median age was around 22, per the U.S. Census Bureau's Current Population Survey.

State of play: D.C., New York and California residents are the oldest at their first marriage, at around 31.

• Utah, Idaho and West Virginia residents are the youngest, at around 27.

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Forget the stand mixer or the barista-grade espresso machine — newlyweds don't have the space.

• Wedding registries are shrinking to fit into cramped apartments and starter homes, Axios' Sami Sparber reports.

"We would love to ask for" big home gadgets, "but there's no room to store them or keep them on the kitchen countertops," says Kristen Campilonga, a D.C. resident who's getting married this summer.

• Their wish list includes an upgraded knife set and rice cooker "because the newer, better models are smaller," Campilonga tells Axios.
• Plus, they're asking for a portable gas pizza oven for the balcony and camping trips.

🔮 What's next: Look for big home appliance makers to continue rolling out miniature, feature-loaded models.

• Whirlpool, known for washing machines and refrigerators, is focusing on smaller products such as blenders and food processors, The Wall Street Journal reports.

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LA sports organizations are uniting to launch an "LA Strong" custom logo and apparel line that will raise money for organizations assisting those impacted by this week's wildfires.

• The collaboration spans eight leagues, USC and the 2028 LA Olympic organizing committee. Participating teams include the Lakers, Dodgers, Rams and Chargers. Keep reading.

❤️ How you can help: Here's a list of groups — compiled by Axios journalists in California — that are distributing meals and medical supplies, helping families rebuild, sheltering animals and more.