Redacto Ad Absurdum: The top secret documents former President Donald Trump took to his Florida home included information about  “clandestine human sources” in intelligence gathering, according to the redacted affidavit used to get a warrant to search Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home. In other words, it named the spies.

  Roughly half the 38 pages are blacked out but it’s possible to learn a few things from reading it.

  The affidavit had to offer some proof of a crime and it did, saying there is “probable cause to believe that evidence of obstruction will be found” at Trump’s house.

  Trump responded to the release calling it a “total public-relations subterfuge” and yet further evidence of a “WITCH HUNT!!!” 

  The affidavit says right off the top, “The government is conducting a criminal investigation concerning the improper removal and storage of classified information in unauthorized spaces, as well as the unlawful concealment or removal of government records. It goes on to say that “of most significant concern was that highly classified records were unfoldered, intermixed with other records, and otherwise unproperly [sic] identified.” 

  The records were stored along with miscellaneous newspapers, magazines, and personal correspondence.

  In a supporting document, the Justice Department said it had “well-founded concerns that steps may be taken to frustrate or otherwise interfere with this investigation if facts in the affidavit were prematurely disclosed.”

  The affidavit reveals details of how Trump was asked for the return of documents immediately after he left office and how he reluctantly handed over some, but not all of them, until the Justice Department moved in with a search warrant to get the rest.

  Those documents he did return included 184 marked  “classified,” 25 of which were designated “Top Secret.”

  The FBI agent who wrote the warrant affidavit said, “probable cause exists 

to believe that evidence, contraband, fruits of crime, or other items illegally possessed in violation (of law)will be found at the PREMISES.” (Mar-a-Lago)

Economic Pain: Stocks took a nose dive yesterday after the chairman of the Federal Reserve warned that his campaign to lower inflation by raising interest rates is “unconditional,” even if it leads to pinching household budgets, businesses, and stock prices.

  The Dow Jones promptly fell by 1008 points.

  Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said his primary goal right now is to fight inflation. “Restoring price stability will take some time and requires using our tools forcefully to bring demand and supply into better balance,” Powell said in a speech yesterday. “While higher interest rates, slower growth and softer labor market conditions will bring down inflation, they will also bring some pain to households and businesses.” He concluded, “These are the unfortunate costs of reducing inflation.”

The War Zone: Russia is reported to be burning off an estimated $10 million worth of natural gas a day near its border with Finland rather than deliver it to Europe. 

  State gas giant Gazprom is burning, or as they call it, “flaring,”about 4.34 million cubic meters of gas a day, injecting 9,000 tons of carbon dioxide into the air. Going into winter, the Russians have cut their supply of gas to Europe by 80 percent.  Last year, Russia supplied 45% of the European Union’s total gas imports. 

  Of course, prices are spiking and millions of people may not be able  to afford to heat their homes this winter. Britain’s energy regulator said the price of natural gas could climb 80 percent.

The “F” Word: President Biden is beginning to take on the Trump MAGA Republicans with the “F” word – fascism. At a fundraiser this week Biden said, 

“It’s not just Trump. It’s the entire philosophy that underpins the — I’m going to say something: It’s like semi-fascism.” Later at a rally he said, “The MAGA Republicans are a threat to our very democracy. They refuse to accept the will of the people. They embrace — embrace — political violence.”

The Spin Rack: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended four elected members of the Broward County school board, following a report from the grand jury impaneled after the 2018 Parkland massacre that said the board members had “engaged in acts of incompetence and neglect of duty” in handling $800 million designated to make schools safer. — Matt Araiza, 22, the rookie Buffalo Bills punter nicknamed the “Punt God” at San Diego State, is accused in a lawsuit of having sex with a minor while he was in college and then leading her into a room where she was gang raped. Lawyers offered gritty passages from the girl’s diary as proof. 

Electric Shock: Just as California announced a move to electric cars, the prices of the already expensive vehicles are shooting up. Ford announced that the base model of its F-150 Lighting pickup is jumping from $40,000 to $47,000. The base model Mustang Mach-E is rising by $3,000 and the fancier version by $8,000,

bringing the price to $70,000.

  Ford vaguely explained that the price hikes are due to “continued strain on key supply chains, and rapidly evolving market conditions.” That means they can make more money if they charge more.

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