Trump World: Breaking the wall of attorney-client privilege, a federal appeals court ruled yesterday that a lawyer representing Donald Trump must hand over documents related to his legal work for the former president in the case of Trump’s handling of secret documents after his presidency.

  It’s an ominous ruling for the lawyer, Evan Corcoran, and for Trump. Prosecutors can break through attorney-client privilege only when they suspect the lawyer’s work  is in furtherance of a crime committed by the client.

  The Justice Department has been trying to determine whether Trump or his associates obstructed justice by failing to comply with demands to return the trove of government materials he took with him from the White House, including hundreds of documents marked classified. 

  And again, yesterday, Trump was not indicted by the Manhattan grand jury considering evidence in his hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels. The grand jury didn’t even meet.

Econ 101: Even with the financial world concerned about the health of banks, the Federal Reserve yesterday raised interest rates by another quarter of a point, the ninth increase in a year in the Fed’s fight against inflation. That caused stocks to skid and raises the cost of financing everything, from cars to homes, and business in a continuing attempt to cool the economy.

  The basic rate is now 5 percent.

  Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell said that while keeping an eye on inflation, the Fed is also watching how recent bank failures might also reduce borrowing and also slow the economy. 

  In an indication that maybe the economy is actually cooling, the job placement company Indeed announced that it’s firing 2,200 employees. Now they need Indeed.

The War Room: Russia has been carrying out more limited strikes with missiles and drones, resulting in some Ukrainian civilian casualties. The Institute for the Study of War assesses that, “Russian forces conducted more intensive and wider-ranging strikes during the fall 2022 air and missile campaign, suggesting that Russian forces may now be rationing their use of high-precision munitions for these strike campaigns or may simply lack the necessary munitions to sustain strike campaigns at their earlier pace and intensity.”

  On the Ukrainian side, the Pentagon now says it will be able to deliver M1A1 tanks by fall, an accelerated schedule, but a long way off for the embattled country. The A1 is not the most advanced version of the American tank, but it’s still ferocious. 

The Obit Page: John Jenrette Jr., once a rising political star as a Democratic Representative from South Carolina who was snared in the Abscam investigation of political corruption, died last Friday in Conway, South Carolina at age 86.

  Jenrette was in his third term with a good reputation for serving his constituents when he was caught in the FBI sting operation that videotaped  politicians and others taking bribes from federal agents posing as rich Arabs looking for favors. Six other members of Congress also were caught.

  Jenrette was taped being offered $100,000 with $50,000 up front. He said on video, ”I have larceny in my blood — I’d take it in a goddamn minute.”

The Spin Rack: A body was found last night near the car of a Denver high school student who shot two faculty members. The shooter, identified as 17-year-old Austin Lyle, was undergoing a daily search imposed upon him because of previous behavior when he is reported to have pulled a gun and fired.  He fled in his car. One faculty member is in stable condition, another in critical. — Six road construction workers were killed yesterday on Interstate 695 near Baltimore  when a car sped into their work zone. — The administration of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is moving to bar classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in all grades, expanding the existing law critics have labelled “Don’t Say Gay.” DeSantis appears to be focusing on social issues in advance of a likely run for president. — Fueled by immigration, Canada’s population grew by a million last year, now 39.5 million people, ay? — Amid accusations that his social media company is a spy platform, Shou Chew, the chief executive of Chinese-owned TikTok is expected to testify before Congress today, facing growing distrust by lawmakers about the video app. Chew is likely to be grilled about TikTok’s relationship with its Chinese owner, ByteDance and the handling of user data.

Below the Fold: The makers of Jack Daniel’s, the famous Tennessee whiskey, are trying to stop production and marketing of a chewy dog toy called Bad Spaniels, claiming it hurts the liquor company’s brand.

  The toy is shaped and labelled like a Jack Daniel’s bottle, and instead of promising 40% alcohol, it says “43% poo by volume, 100% smelly.”

   That’s bad for Jack Daniels and the only thing worse for its reputation would be actually tasting Jack Daniels.

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