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Billionaire Ken Griffin said stiff inflation could persist “for decades” as wars in Ukraine and Israel further push the world towards “deglobalization” — and warned of dire consequences as the US government continues its spending binge.

The founder of the giant Citadel hedge fund — who’s worth a reported $35.5 billion, per Bloomberg estimates — said the federal government clearly didn’t brace for inflation during the pandemic, when it “went on the spending spree that created a $33 trillion deficit.”

Last month, the US government posted a $1.695 trillion budget deficit in fiscal 2023, a 23% jump from the prior year as revenues fell and outlays for Social Security, Medicare and record-high interest costs on the federal debt rose.

The US’s fiscal binge must be reined in, Griffin added, as the country is spending on the government level like a drunken sailor.

The Treasury Department said the deficit was the largest since a COVID-fueled $2.78 trillion gap in 2021, though President Joe Biden is still asking Congress for $100 billion in new foreign aid and security spending — including $60 billion for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel — along with funding for US border security and the Indo-Pacific region.

The figures are unsustainable, according to Griffin, and mark a major return to ballooning deficits after back-to-back declines during President Bidens first two years in office.

Surging inflation, meanwhile, will increase the cost of funding the US deficit, he warned.

The peace dividend is clearly at the end of the road, Griffin said at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore on Thursday, nodding to international conflicts in Eastern Europe and the Middle East.

“We are likely to see higher real rates and were likely to see higher nominal rates,” he added, according to Bloomberg.

The fiscal 2023 deficit would have been $321 billion larger, but was reduced by this amount because the Supreme Court struck down Bidens student loan forgiveness program as unconstitutional.

The ruling forced the Treasury to reverse a pre-emptive charge against fiscal 2022 budget results that increased that years deficit.

The fiscal year 2022 deficit was $1.375 trillion.

The 55-year-old hedge fund titan also pointed to pandemic-induced supply-chain disruptions and European countries losing access to Russian natural gas as reason that “a trend towards higher baseline inflation…could be for decades,” per the outlet.

Theres many trends at play right now that are pushing us toward deglobalization, he added.

Inflation has squeezed Americans since before its 9.1% peak in June 2022, which spurred the Federal Reserve’s aggressive tightening regime that has lowered the figure sharply but has yet to reach the central bank’s 2% target.

In September, the Consumer Price Index — the most widely used measure of inflation that tracks the overall change in goods and services — rose 3.7% year over year, driven primarily by the gasoline index’s advance.

The gasoline index ticked 2.1% higher last month, the federal agency said, a stark slowdown from August’s 10.6% increase, when AAA figures showed that the average price for a gallon of gas was $3.85.

As of Thursday, a gallon of gas in the US averages $3.40, according to AAA.

While many investors had been willing to look past the volatile energy numbers, a surprisingly resilient labor market has some worried that inflation could be more stubborn.

However, Griffin warned that US consumers realize deep down that something is not quite right, despite the country’s payroll gains, according to Bloomberg.

October’s CPI data will be released on Nov. 14.

Should inflation rise again, all attention will no doubt be on whether the Fed implements one more interest rate hike by the end of the year, pushing it beyond its current 22-year high, between 5.25% and 5.5%.

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Manning’s 1st start ‘a C-plus,’ but Texas cruises

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Manning's 1st start 'a C-plus,' but Texas cruises

AUSTIN, Texas — Arch Manning threw for 258 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions in his first career start at Texas, leading a 51-3 win over UL Monroe in relief of injured starter Quinn Ewers to push the No. 1 Longhorns to 4-0.

After throwing an interception on his first possession, Manning settled in, and Texas scored touchdowns on six of his 10 drives for a 44-3 lead when he left the game early in the fourth quarter. The redshirt freshman competed 15 of his 29 pass attempts.

Manning said there were several throws he’d like back, starting with his first interception, a second-down throw under pressure that ULM defensive back Carl Fauntroy snagged three minutes into the game. When asked how he’d grade his performance, Manning said, “Probably a C-plus, but a win’s a win.”

“To think he was going to come out and play a perfect game, I don’t think anybody in here thought that,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “I thought he was going to prepare really well, work really hard, do everything he could to play good football. He was gonna have some lessons learned, and I think that’s what tonight was about.”

In the Longhorns’ first game as the No. 1-ranked team in the AP Top 25 since 2008, Manning received plenty of help. Running back Jaydon Blue rushed for 124 yards and scored four total touchdowns, and Texas’ defense held General Booty and the Warhawks (2-1) to 111 total yards on 2.2 yards per play.

Sarkisian said the game plan called for Manning to be aggressive in taking deep shots against ULM’s defense, and the former five-star recruit had some success with eight passes of 15 or more yards, including a 56-yard completion to Isaiah Bond and a 46-yarder to Matthew Golden. Manning connected with 11 receivers on the night.

“Having so many playmakers around you, it definitely brings up the comfort level for me,” he said. “We got a bunch of different receivers catch balls tonight. Just getting them in space and having them make plays is huge.”

Ewers exited Texas’ 56-7 win over UTSA last week after suffering an oblique strain. His status is considered day-to-day, and he could potentially return for the Longhorns’ SEC debut against Mississippi State next week. Manning shared SEC Freshman of the Week honors after producing 276 total yards and five touchdowns against UTSA in Ewers’ absence.

After their first SEC conference game at home against Mississippi State, the Longhorns have an idle week followed by showdowns with No. 15 Oklahoma and No. 2 Georgia in consecutive weeks.

A Texas team with national championship ambitions has played up to those expectations through four games, outscoring its opponents 190-22 and flexing its muscles in its toughest test with a 31-12 road win against then-No. 10 Michigan. With the Longhorns winning 16 of their past 18 games, Sarkisian is confident he has a team with talent, depth and maturity that’s built to contend in the SEC.

“I’m pleased with where we’re at, but it’s like everything I just told the team: The mission is far from over,” Sarkisian said. “We’ve got a lot of work to do and a lot of great games ahead of us.”

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Cards Against Humanity sues SpaceX for $15m over claims Elon Musk’s firm illegally trespassed on land

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Cards Against Humanity sues SpaceX for m over claims Elon Musk's firm illegally trespassed on land

The maker of the popular party game Cards Against Humanity is suing SpaceX for $15m over claims Elon Musk’s company trespassed and damaged a plot of its land.

A lawsuit filed in Texas alleges SpaceX treated a plot of land owned by Cards Against Humanity as essentially its own for at least the past six months.

The company purchased a plot of land in Cameron County in 2017 as part of a stunt to prevent then president Donald Trump from building a border wall in the area between the US and Mexico.

It was purchased after 150,000 subscribers paid $15 to their Cards Against Humanity Saves America campaign.

The lawsuit said Cards Against Humanity – referred to as CAH in legal filings – “acquired the Property for the sole purpose of ensuring that it would stay that way” and added: “SpaceX’s abuse of this Property has not only destroyed its natural condition, but has also caused even greater harm to CAH by virtue of the damage it has caused to CAH’s relationship with its paying supporters.”

Cards Against Humanity purchased a plot of land in Cameron County, Texas, to protest Donald Trump's border wall in 2017.
File pic: Cards Against Humanity / Cameron County District Court
Image:
Cards Against Humanity purchased a plot of land in Cameron County, Texas, to protest against Donald Trump’s border wall in 2017.
File pic: Cards Against Humanity / Cameron County District Court

SpaceX allegedly trespassed and abused the property for at least six months without Cards Against Humanity's knowledge
Pic: Cards Against Humanity / Cameron County District Court
Image:
SpaceX allegedly trespassed and abused the property for at least six months without Cards Against Humanity’s knowledge
Pic: Cards Against Humanity / Cameron County District Court

In a statement through their Saves America campaign, Cards Against Humanity said SpaceX “f***ed” the land and alleged Mr Musk “figured he could just dump his shit all over our gorgeous plot of land without asking”.

The Chicago-based company then claimed “SpaceX gave us a 12-hour ultimatum to accept a lowball offer for less than half our land’s value” after they noticed the alleged trespass on their land. They said they declined the offer before filing the suit.

More on Elon Musk

On a website – titled elonowesyou100dollars – the card company said it was seeking $15m in damages and offered the original subscribers to the Save America campaign $100 should they win the claim.

Read more:
Musk set ‘to be the first trillionaire’
White House attacks Musk’s assassination post
Trump vows to reach Mars if elected

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They also referenced a Reuters news agency report into SpaceX’s rapid development in the south Texas areas where it operates, in which some locals criticised the company for unfair and unchecked property and government dealings.

SpaceX started operating in Texas in 2003. In recent months, Mr Musk has stated he would move more of his businesses to the state.

Neither SpaceX nor Mr Musk have commented publicly on the matter. Sky News has contacted SpaceX for comment.

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White Sox lose 119th game, 1 away from ’62 Mets

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White Sox lose 119th game, 1 away from '62 Mets

SAN DIEGO — The Chicago White Sox tied the American League record with their 119th loss Saturday night, when Xander Bogaerts and Elias Diaz each hit a two-run homer to help the San Diego Padres to a 6-2 win and move closer to a playoff spot.

The White Sox (36-119) matched the AL mark set by the 2003 Detroit Tigers, who finished 43-119. One more defeat for Chicago over its final seven games would equal the post-1900 record of 120 losses by the 1962 expansion New York Mets, and two more would set a record. The 1899 Cleveland Spiders hold the overall major league record for losses at 20-134.

Chris Flexen (2-15) remained winless in his past 23 starts for a White Sox club that lost its 20th straight road series. According to ESPN Research, Chicago, which is now 9-48 since the All-Star break, is on pace for 124 losses.

“They’ve been playing some good baseball these last couple of days,” Bogaerts said of Chicago. “Obviously, we want to win every game by a big margin, but these guys are putting up a fight. They’re trying to be spoilers. Nothing’s been given easy to us these last couple of days. It’s been nice to be able to fight for it a little bit more than people would have expected.”

David Peralta also homered for San Diego (89-66), which maintained a two-game lead over Arizona for the top National League wild-card spot.

The Padres reduced their magic number to two for clinching their second playoff berth in three seasons. They received no help from the Atlanta Braves or the New York Mets, both of whom won Saturday.

Bogaerts gave the Padres a 2-0 lead with his shot to left-center field with no outs in the second inning off Flexen. It was Bogaerts’ 11th homer and it came with rookie Jackson Merrill aboard on a leadoff single.

“It’s a good lineup,” Chicago manager Grady Sizemore said of the Padres. “You make mistakes over the plate, and they might hurt you.”

Peralta homered with one out in the third, his eighth. Merrill, considered by some the front-runner for NL Rookie of the Year, hit an RBI single in the fifth.

Diaz hit a two-run shot in the eighth off former Padres reliever Enyel De Los Santos. It was his sixth of the season.

Lenyn Sosa hit an RBI single in the sixth for the White Sox off Martin Perez (5-5). Bryan Ramos drew a bases-loaded walk from Padres reliever Jason Adam in the eighth.

Perez held Chicago to one run and two hits in 5⅓ innings, struck out six and walked three. And Tanner Scott recorded five outs for his 22nd save.

Flexen gave up four runs and eight hits in five innings, struck out three and walked two.

With history awaiting, the White Sox will start right-hander Sean Burke (1-0, 2.25 ERA) on Sunday, opposed by Padres righty Yu Darvish (6-3, 3.21).

“Hits were hard to come by tonight,” Sizemore said. “But we had good at-bats.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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