US Senate Democrats plan debt-limit vote, Biden hints filibuster could go

WASHINGTON - Senate Democrats are set to try again on Wednesday to extend the US government's borrowing authority to head off a catastrophic default, after President Joe Biden suggested they could change the chamber's rules to bypass a Republican roadblock.

Republicans for months have refused to help raise the self-imposed $28.4 trillion borrowing cap, instead trying to force Democrats to use a different parliamentary maneuver to do so in hopes of scoring political points with voters.

With less than two weeks to go before the Treasury Department expects to run out of ways to meet the government's expenses, Democrats are looking at all their options.

Biden said on Tuesday that it was "real possibility" that Democrats might use their current razor-thin majority to drop the Senate's filibuster rule, which requires 60 of the chamber's 100 members to agree to pass most legislation.

Biden, himself a former Senator, had previously opposed changes to the filibuster, which is meant to help maintain government stability through election cycles.

If Democrats follow through, they could easily suspend the debt ceiling before the deadline of about Oct. 18. That would head off the risk of a crippling default and allow them to focus on passing two mammoth spending bills that make up the bulk of Biden's domestic agenda.

In an effort to underline the severe economic risks of a default, Biden will meet on Wednesday with a group including CEOs of major corporations including JPMorgan Chase & Co , Intel Corp and Nasdaq Inc.

Many Democrats have long argued that the Senate should dump the filibuster entirely, saying it prevents progress on climate change, voting rights and other priorities. The chamber already allows federal judges, including Supreme Court justices, to win approval on a straight majority vote.

Centrist Democratic senators including Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema have said repeatedly they are not willing to dump the filibuster, which would leave the party short of the votes they need to change the rule, however. They could not be reached for comment on whether Biden's words would change their minds.

Democratic Senators John Hickenlooper and Ron Wyden on Tuesday said they were open to dropping the filibuster requirement for the debt-limit vote. Manchin declined to comment when asked about it prior to Biden's remarks.

The Senate was due to hold a Wednesday afternoon procedural vote that would allow them to begin debating a bill that would suspend the debt limit until December 2022, after the elections that will determine control of Congress for the next two years.

That passed the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives last week but Republicans have stalled it in the Senate with the filibuster.

Without a quick resolution, some government services might be suspended, such as delivering Social Security benefit checks to the elderly.

Even a close call would likely be damaging. A 2011 debt ceiling dispute, which Congress resolved two days before the borrowing limit was due to have been reached, caused stocks to tumble and prompted a first-ever credit downgrade for US debt.

The Bipartisan Policy Center on Wednesday issued forecasts on when some federal payments could be postponed as a result of the standoff. Among them: Unemployment insurance payments due Oct. 20 could be delayed five days, federal salaries for civilian employees due Oct. 29 could be pushed back to Nov. 9 and Medicare payments to doctors could be delayed from Nov. 1 to Nov. 19.

Moody's Investors Service said on Tuesday it expects Washington will raise the debt limit.

Democratic Senator Mark Warner said Congress was already risking US creditworthiness, however.

"We're in the danger zone right now," he told reporters on Tuesday.

(Reporting by Andy Sullivan and Susan Cornwell, additional reporting by Richard Cowan and Steve Holland; Editing by Scott Malone, Sonya Hepinstall and Nick Zieminski)

-reuters-

Democrats to send Trump impeachment articles to Senate next week

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Friday she intends to transmit articles of impeachment against Donald Trump to the Senate next week, moving to end a taut standoff with Republicans over terms of the president's trial.

The top Democrat's announcement virtually assures that a historic trial of Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress begins this month, as anticipated.

But she declined to provide a specific timeline for the next steps and did not announce which House Democrats she will ask to spearhead the case in the Senate, saying lawmakers should be ready to vote to appoint the managers some time next week.

"I have asked Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler to be prepared to bring to the floor next week a resolution to appoint managers and transmit articles of impeachment to the Senate," Pelosi said in a letter to her Democratic caucus.

"I will be consulting with you at our Tuesday House Democratic Caucus meeting on how we proceed further," she added.

Pelosi has withheld the articles since Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives on December 18 over allegations that he improperly pressured Ukraine to investigate his potential 2020 election rival Joe Biden, and that he obstructed the subsequent congressional probe.

The top Democrat in Congress had hoped Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, of Trump's Republican Party, would provide assurances of what she described as a "fair" trial in which Democrats can subpoena witnesses and documents.

But McConnell who, like Pelosi, is seen as a wily political strategist, refused to budge, announcing this week he had sufficient Republican votes to conduct a trial without acceding to Democratic demands.

"There will be no haggling with the House over Senate procedure," he said on Wednesday.

For weeks Pelosi had worn a poker face, leaving Democrats and Republicans alike guessing what and when her next move would be.

On Thursday she revealed only a sliver, saying she could "soon" send the articles to McConnell.

Democrats argue that her delay allowed dramatic new information to emerge before the trial, including Trump's former national security advisor John Bolton announcing on Monday that he was prepared to testify before the Senate if subpoenaed.

But as Democrats mulled what benefits, if any, there were to further postponing the trial, Pelosi came under increasing pressure to act.

McConnell has said he wants to set initial trial parameters first, then address possible witnesses once the procedure has begun. Pelosi wanted such assurances up front.

"Clearly, Leader McConnell does not want to present witnesses and documents to senators and the American people so they can make an independent judgment about the president's actions," Pelosi said in her letter.

'Impartial justice'

Democrats want to hear from four current or former administration officials, including Bolton, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, who have direct knowledge of Trump's Ukraine dealings.

Getting McConnell to allow witnesses later in the trial would require support from at least four Republicans.

"In an impeachment trial, every senator takes an oath to 'do impartial justice according to the Constitution and laws,'" Pelosi said. "Every Senator now faces a choice: to be loyal to the president or the Constitution."

Some Republicans saw Pelosi's announcement as a sign she had backed down in the staring contest with McConnell.

"There is no way to spin it," added conservative congressman Mark Meadows. "Speaker Pelosi and her Democrat Caucus spent weeks playing games with what is effectively their attempt at overturning an American election."

The Senate is expected to start its trial this month before the political temperature quickly rises as the nation turns to the 2020 presidential race.

The first vote of the Democratic nomination process, in Iowa, is just weeks away, on February 3.

Five of the candidates -- Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Amy Klobuchar, Cory Booker and Michael Bennet, are US senators and their constitutional duty requires them to be seated in the chamber serving as jurors during the impeachment trial.

That will curtail their campaigning in the run-up to Iowa, handing an advantage to former vice president Joe Biden, who is the Democratic frontrunner, and others in the race.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Trump impeachment sets stage for trial in Senate

WASHINGTON - The impeachment of President Donald Trump in the US House of Representatives on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress sets the stage for a historic trial next month in the Republican-controlled Senate on whether he should be removed from office.

But it was unclear on Thursday how or when that trial would play out after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she might delay sending over the articles of impeachment to the Senate in order to pressure that chamber to conduct what she viewed as a fair trial.

Trump said the ball was now in the Senate's court.

"Now the Do Nothing Party want to Do Nothing with the Articles & not deliver them to the Senate, but it’s Senate’s call!" Trump said on Twitter. "If the Do Nothing Democrats decide, in their great wisdom, not to show up, they would lose by Default!"

Representative Steny Hoyer, the No. 2 House Democrat, said on MSNBC that Democrats would like the Senate to first approve a $1.4 trillion spending plan and a trade agreement with Canada and Mexico before turning to impeachment.

He said Democrats were also concerned that Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell may not allow a full trial. McConnell has predicted there is "no chance" his chamber will convict Trump.

"It's very hard to believe that Mitch McConnell can raise his right hand and pledge to be impartial," Hoyer said.

The mostly party-line votes on Wednesday in the Democratic-led House came after long hours of bitter debate that reflected the partisan tensions in a divided America, and made Trump the third US President to be impeached.

Republicans argued that Democrats were using a rigged process to nullify the 2016 election and influence Trump's 2020 re-election campaign, while Democrats said Trump's actions in pressuring Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden, a leading Democratic presidential contender, were a threat to democracy.

Trump is certain to face more friendly terrain during a trial in the 100-member Senate, where a vote to remove him would require a two-thirds majority. That means at least 20 Republicans would have to join Democrats in voting against Trump - and none have indicated they will.

Pelosi said after the vote she would wait to name the House managers, who will prosecute the case, until she knew more about the Senate trial procedures. She did not specify when she would send the impeachment articles to the Senate.

Republican Senator Ted Cruz said it would not bother him if Pelosi did not send over the impeachment articles.

"My attitude is OK, throw us in that briar patch, don't send them, that's all right," he said on Fox News. "We actually have work to do."

Trump, 73, is accused of abusing his power by pressuring Ukraine to investigate Biden, a former US vice president, as well as a discredited theory that Democrats conspired with Ukraine to meddle in the 2016 election.

Democrats said Trump held back $391 million in security aid intended to combat Russia-backed separatists and a coveted White House meeting for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as leverage to coerce Kiev into interfering in the 2020 election by smearing Biden.

Trump is also accused of obstruction of Congress by directing administration officials and agencies not to comply with lawful House subpoenas for testimony and documents related to impeachment.

Trump, who is seeking another four-year term in the November 2020 presidential election, has denied wrongdoing and called the impeachment inquiry launched by Pelosi in September a "witch hunt."

At a raucous rally for his re-election in Battle Creek, Michigan, as the House voted, Trump said the impeachment would be a "mark of shame" for Democrats and Pelosi, and cost them in the 2020 election.

"This lawless, partisan impeachment is a political suicide march for the Democrat Party," Trump said. "They're the ones who should be impeached, every one of them."

DEEP DIVISIONS

Trump's election has polarized the United States, dividing families and friends and making it more difficult for politicians in Washington to find middle ground as they try to confront pressing challenges like the rise of China and climate change.

The impeachment vote comes ahead of Trump's re-election campaign, which will pit him against the winner among a field of Democratic contenders, including Biden, who have repeatedly criticized Trump's conduct in office and promised to make it a key issue.

Reuters/Ipsos polls show that while most Democrats wanted to see him impeached, most Republicans did not. Televised hearings last month that were meant to build public support for impeachment appear to have pushed the two sides further apart.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

'Green warrior': Senators hail environmentalist Gina Lopez

MANILA- Senators paid tribute to the late environmentalist and philanthropist Gina Lopez who died Monday due to multiple organ failure.

Lopez, the long-time chairperson of ABS-CBN Foundation Inc. (AFI) and President Rodrigo Duterte's former environment secretary, passed away at the age of 65. 

Senator Sonny Angara honored Lopez as a "one-person green warrior," saying the staunch eco-warrior left the public with a "bucket list to comply with and follow."

"Gina did not preach what she did not practice. She was not a Powerpoint crusader but a living example of how to live a life that will not bankrupt earth’s resources to support us," Angara said in a statement.

"She was a one-person green warrior who took the fight to where it matters – in boardrooms, chatrooms, government offices, and in her favorite office – out in the open, under a forest canopy or underwater, where she was in her element with people she loved in a country she never gave up hope on," he said.

Senators Nancy Binay and Leila de Lima thanked Lopez for her service to the government, noting her determination.

"A staunch defender of the environment, she was steadfast in her beliefs and inspired us all through her passion for the environment," Binay said.

"Maraming salamat former DENR Secretary, Gina Lopez. 🙏," De Lima said in a tweet.

For Senators Bong Go, Richard Gordon, and Grace Poe, the late philanthropist will always be remembered for her passion in pushing for her advocacies.

"She was a fearless advocate and a tireless philanthropist, dedicating most of her life for the betterment of her fellow Filipinos. Her exceptional dedication in protecting our environment has no equal today," Go said.

"She was a staunch advocate of significant and meaningful causes for the country. She stood her ground firmly on issues she felt needed to be addressed," Gordon said.

"Sec. Gina Lopez came in our midst and taught us love for mankind and the environment, our common home. Thank you for touching our lives in your impassioned way," Poe said.

Minority Senator Risa Hontiveros meanwhile noted how "Gina fought with everything she had against big polluters" while Senator Francis Pangilinan recalled how it was a privilege to have someone like Lopez as an eco-warrior in public office.

"She’ll always be remembered that way: as a fighter whose legacy will be remembered by many," she said.

"Rest well and rest in peace, Gina. You did well in helping transform thousands of lives and it was a privilege to have worked alongside you in helping change our world," Pangilinan said.

Senators Bong Revilla and Joel Villanueva, on the other hand, extended prayers to the Lopez family.

"Tinitingalang earth warrior, philanthropist at cultural advocate, malaking kawalan siya sa ating bansa. Maraming salamat sa paglalaan ng iyong buhay upang pangalagaan ang kalikasan at kapakanan ng bawat Pilipino!" Revilla said. 

(A notable earth warrior, philanthropist, and cultural advocate, she is a great loss for our country. Thank you for dedicating your life to our environment and the well-being of Filipinos.)

"Indeed to live in Christ and to die is gain. Rest in Peace Ms Gina Lopez 🙏 Prayers for your family and loved ones. God bless!" Villlanueva said in a tweet.

In lieu of flowers and mass cards, the family requests that donations be made to the ABS-CBN Foundation. There will be a public viewing at the La Mesa Eco Park on Aug. 22 to 23.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Former US Senator Lugar, nuclear nonproliferation champion, dies at 87

WASHINGTON -- Centrist Republican Richard Lugar, a soft-spoken foreign policy powerhouse who championed nuclear nonproliferation during 36 years in the US Senate, died on Sunday at age 87.

The Lugar Center, a Washington-based nonprofit, said in a statement that he died peacefully at the Inova Fairfax Heart and Vascular Institute in Virginia due to complications from CIDP, a chronic neurological disorder.

Lugar, a professorial Midwesterner known for his keen intellect and mild demeanor, served eight years as mayor of Indianapolis starting in 1968 before his long stint in the Senate from 1977 to 2013. He was the longest-serving senator ever from Indiana.

Lugar was an influential Republican voice on foreign policy. A former Rhodes scholar and an avid runner into his 70s, Lugar served as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and also headed the Agriculture Committee. He unsuccessfully sought the Republican presidential nomination in 1996.

Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton issued a statement praising Lugar for his Senate work, including reducing nuclear weapons after the end of the Cold War.

"He was a man of great decency who was widely respected on both sides of the aisle for his vast policy knowledge, especially on foreign affairs, and his commitment to bipartisan solutions," they said.

Lugar's political career ended when he sought nomination for a seventh 6-year Senate term in 2012 but was challenged by the Republican Party's right and beaten by a candidate backed by the conservative Tea Party movement, which did not like Lugar's willingness to make bipartisan compromises.

As a senator, Lugar sought to curb the spread of nuclear weapons globally. His greatest achievement, forged alongside centrist Democratic Senator Sam Nunn, was a law under which the United States paid for the dismantling and elimination of the nuclear weapons in the former Soviet Union as well as chemical and biological arms.

The 1991 measure was intended to keep nuclear weapons in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan from falling into the hands of hostile countries or extremist groups. Under the program, about 7,600 nuclear warheads were deactivated, 2,300 missiles destroyed and 24 nuclear weapons storage sites secured by the time Lugar's Senate career ended.

He was 80 years old and the senior most Republican in the Senate when he left the Senate in January 2013.

After leaving politics, he founded the Lugar Center, which is focused on global issues such as weapons proliferation, food supply, foreign aid and governance.

"Governance requires adaptation to shifting circumstances," Lugar said in 2012 in his final speech on the Senate floor. "It often requires finding common ground with Americans who have a different vision than your own. It requires leaders who believe ... that their first responsibility to their constituents is to apply their best judgment."

He said Republicans "must be willing to suspend reflexive opposition that serves no purpose but to limit their own role in strategic questions and render cooperation impossible."

'NOTHING SHORT OF A MIRACLE'

Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the top Senate Republican during Lugar's final years in Congress, praised him in 2012 as the "model of the public servant."

"He's earned the respect and admiration of everyone who ever crossed his path," McConnell said on the Senate floor. "I assure you, in the world of politics, that's nothing short of a miracle."

Lugar lost his first run for the Senate in 1974 against incumbent Democrat Birch Bayh, but 2 years later defeated another incumbent Democrat, Senator Vance Hartke. He was re-elected in 1982, 1988, 1994, 2000 and 2006.

In seeking re-election in 2012, Lugar was beaten in the Republican primary by Richard Mourdock, Indiana's state treasurer. Mourdock lost in the general election to Democratic US congressman Joe Donnelly after the Republican nominee said in a debate that if a woman became pregnant in a rape, it was "something that God intended to happen."

In the Senate, Lugar amassed a largely conservative voting record but was willing to side with Democrats when his political convictions differed from the views of his party.

He voted in 1986 to override Republican President Ronald Reagan's veto of a bill to impose economic sanctions on South Africa during its racist apartheid era. He played a key role in persuading Reagan in 1986 to end support for Philippines leader Ferdinand Marcos, leading to Marcos' peaceful ouster.

In 2007, Lugar criticized Republican President George W. Bush's handling of the Iraq war, which began in 2003, particularly the stumbling US efforts to stabilize and rebuild the country.

Lugar's 1996 bid for the Republican presidential nomination focused on a president's role in leading the world toward a future secure from nuclear threats. But his stiff campaign style and refusal to conform to sound-bite themes doomed his chances and he dropped out early in the race.

Born in Indianapolis on April 4, 1932, Lugar attended Pembroke College at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar. He served in the Navy from 1957 to 1960, working as an intelligence officer.

He married his wife, Charlene, in 1956. They had 4 sons. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Fears of tax chaos loom as US IRS readies for filing season

WASHINGTON - The US Internal Revenue Service is due to start sifting through an avalanche of annual tax returns on Monday, with a workforce hard-pressed by the partial government shutdown and Congress uncertain how to avoid chaos for taxpayers.

In what could be a politically explosive chapter in the shutdown saga that already is 34 days long, analysts said at least one in 10 taxpayers could face problems with their returns due to the IRS funding shortfall. The analysts said the situation may worsen if the impasse drags on even longer.

The annual tax filing season for Americans to file their 2018 returns is scheduled to open on Jan. 28 and run through April 15, the annual filing deadline. The IRS has designated more than 46,000 employees, or nearly 60 percent of its workforce, to work without pay on jobs such as staffing taxpayer help lines and processing tax returns and refunds.

"People have figured out how explosive it could be, in terms of not being able to pay down Christmas debt," said Representative Richard Neal, Democratic chairman of the House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee, which oversees tax policy.

"But when you call back 40,000 people arbitrarily, without any guarantee of remuneration, and ask them to pay for gas and things of that sort, their lives aren't getting any easier because of it," Neal told reporters.

Lawmakers on Neal's committee hoped to learn details about the situation at a hearing with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin this week. But it was canceled by Neal after Mnuchin, a top adviser to President Donald Trump, declined to attend. Neal said he would propose more dates for Mnuchin to consider and hoped a hearing could be set for as early as next week.

"The fact that they've called people back is an indication of a chaotic situation," Representative Bill Pascrell, a committee Democrat, said of the IRS. "It's not just getting returns back to people in time, but getting the taxes reviewed in time. That's very, very important."

Representative Kevin Brady, the panel's top Republican, said lawmakers need to hear about the shutdown's impact on the IRS from the administration. "This is a bipartisan area of interest, to make sure this tax-filing season goes well," Brady told reporters.

The IRS issued a statement saying it continues to prepare for next week's start of the tax-filing season by recalling employees.

Most taxpayers filing electronically or using professional preparers should not face major problems, but delays could await people with returns flagged for potential issues and lower-income filers who use IRS assistance, analysts said.

There could also be problems within the agency as it tries to guide taxpayers through a new tax policy landscape created by Trump's sweeping 2017 tax overhaul.

"The longer you make people work without paying them, the more problems you're going to have," said Howard Gleckman, a senior fellow at the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center think tank.

The National Treasury Employees Union, a union that represents IRS employees and has sued in court to prevent the government from forcing them back to work without pay, said increasing numbers of workers are facing financial hardship as bills mount.

Representative Vern Buchanan, a Florida Republican, said he expects Trump and Congress to reopen the government within the next week or so. "If it doesn't, we're going to have to find a way to work with people financially, because there are a lot of people living paycheck to paycheck," Buchanan said.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Canada Senate passes law legalizing recreational marijuana

OTTAWA - Canada's Senate passed a law Thursday legalizing recreational marijuana, moving it closer to becoming the first member of the Group of Seven nations to legalize the production, sale and consumption of the drug.

Bill C-45, or the Cannabis Act, passed the Senate with 52 votes for, 30 against and one abstention after months of debate over the ramifications of legalization.

The Cannabis Act will now go back to the House of Commons, which passed the bill in November 2017 but needs to sign off on changes made by the Senate.

Legalizing weed was a 2015 campaign promise of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who has admitted having smoked a joint with friends "five or six times."

The initial timeline for legal pot sales called for it to be available by July 1, Canada's national day, but August or September now appears more likely.

It would then be up to Canada's provinces and territories to set up distribution networks and enforcement.

The sale of medical marijuana has been legal in Canada since 2001.

Bill C-45 would allow individuals over the age of 18 to possess up to 30 grams of marijuana for personal use.

Sales to anyone under 18 would be banned under federal law but provinces and territories could set their own age limits.

Statistics Canada has estimated that the market will be worth Can$5.7 billion ($4.5 billion US), based on last year's consumption data.

Uruguay approved the recreational usage of marijuana five years ago and nine US states have too but Canada will be the first G-7 country to do so.

'CANADA IS BEING DARING'

In an interview with AFP last month, Trudeau said the world is closely following Canada's plans and predicted several nations would follow suit.

"There is a lot of interest from our allies in what we're doing," he said.

"They recognize that Canada is being daring... and recognize that the current regime (of prohibition) does not work, that it's not preventing young people from having easy access to cannabis.

"In many countries, especially in Canada, it is easier (as a minor) to buy a joint than buy a beer," Trudeau said. "Organized crime is making huge sums of money on the illicit sale of marijuana."

Trudeau insisted that creating a regulated market would take it out of the hands of crime groups and "better protect communities and children."

However, he added the allies he spoke with "are interested in seeing how things go... before they try it," without specifying which nations.

It would also allow the federal government and the provinces to levy taxes on legal weed sales amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars annually.

Pot sales would be through authorized retail stores much like the current situation regulating alcohol sales in Quebec and Ontario.

A total of 105 businesses have been authorized to grow marijuana and offer pot-based products. Under the new law, individuals could grow up to four plants at home.

The government has also set aside funds to study the impact of legalized cannabis consumption on public health.

mbr/cl/wd/ska

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Romney announces Utah Senate bid

WASHINGTON - Former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, a frequent critic of President Donald Trump, announced on Friday he would run for a U.S. Senate seat in Utah, confirming months of speculation about a return to national politics.

"I've decided to run for United States Senate because I've decided I can help bring Utah's values and Utah's lessons to Washington," Romney, who is seeking to replace retiring Senator Orrin Hatch, said in a video posted to Twitter.

Much of Romney's video focused on Utah values versus the Washington culture.

"Utah has a lot to teach the politicians in Washington," he said. "... Utah welcomes legal immigrants from around the world. Washington sends immigrants a message of exclusion. And on Utah's Capitol Hill, people treat one another with respect."

Trump has called for building a wall on the country's border with Mexico and limiting legal migration.

Romney, the son of former Michigan Governor George Romney, served as governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007. Before that, he helped found the buyout firm Bain Capital and gained prominence after stepping in to lead the organizing committee for the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics after a bribery scandal.

Romney first sought the presidency in 2008 but lost the Republican nomination to Arizona Senator John McCain. Four years later, Romney won the party's nomination but was defeated by incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama.

Romney is the front-runner in the November election in Republican-dominated Utah. According to the Federal Election Commission, the field includes five other people, including a Salt Lake City councilwoman and a Marine Corps veteran.

The race will be Romney's second for the Senate. In 1994, he failed to oust Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy from his seat in Massachusetts.

Hatch, 83, the most senior Republican in the Senate, said last month he would not seek an eighth term. Trump had urged Hatch to run again in an apparent attempt to head off Romney.

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Romney excoriated Trump as a "fraud" who was "playing the American public for suckers." Trump responded that Romney had "choked like a dog" in his race against Obama.

However, after Trump won the presidency in November 2016, he briefly considered whether to pick Romney as his secretary of state.

Trump had lobbied Hatch to run for re-election in 2018 in what was viewed as an effort to prevent Romney from getting into the Senate. Trump and Romney spoke in January after Hatch announced his retirement, a White House official said.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, who had been Romney's vice presidential running mate in 2012, said in a statement on Friday that he was thrilled with Romney's decision to run for Senate.

"His campaign has my unwavering support and the people of Utah will be getting an accomplished and decent man when they make him their next Senator," Ryan said.

Republicans hold 52 of the Senate's 100 seats but that majority is not always big enough to pass the Trump agenda.

Romney had successful treatment for prostate cancer in 2017, a source close to him said in January.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

7 BDO ATMs compromised in skimming: official

 

Executive says bank has disabled compromised cards

MANILA - An official of BDO Unibank on Wednesday confirmed before a senate inquiry that seven of its automated teller machines were compromised in recent skimming hacks.

"The recent events are connected to three separate fraud events that have recently come to the bank’s attention, and they affected 7 ATMs. The seven ATMs are from three locations," BDO Executive Vice President Edwin Romualdo Reyes told lawmakers in a hearing of the Senate committee on Banks, Financial Institutions and Currencies.

Reyes did not disclose locations of the compromised machines




Reyes said the skimming incident represents only 0.02 percent of its total 3,700 ATMs across the country.

BDO, the country's largest lender, called on depositors last week to report cases of ATM "skimming," just one week after an "internal error" paralyzed electronic services of rival Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI).


 Reyes said 95 complaints from clients have reached the bank and that BDO has disabled cards which may have been compromised.

Under the skimming scheme, a device is attached to a machine that reads and records details embedded in the magnetic strips at the back of an ATM card during a transaction.

A complementing device, meanwhile, records the user's personal identification number (PIN). The details then are combined to create fake cards that may be used to withdraw or purchase items.

Reyes described the magnetic strip as "a 50-year old technology," and that "attempts to defraud it are as old." He said new technology has made these illegal devices cheap and easy to produce and obtain.

Apart from this, he said, a new skimming scheme was also on the rise.

Called "deep insert skimming," the method would be "undetected and will not be visible in conventional anti-skimming protection" systems, he said.

To remedy this, the executive said BDO was upgrading its ATMs.

The bank, he added, will "reimburse all clients affected by unauthorized withdrawals... subject to existing investigation and reimbursement processes."

Reyes said affected customers should file their complaints through proper bank channels, adding that "social media posts and activities will not be actionable from the bank's side without a formal filing."

Affected customers, he added, may have their cards replaced for free.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

No Napoles tell-all in Senate - Kapunan

MANILA - Businesswoman Janet Napoles will reveal what she knows about the misuse of the pork funds only at the right venue – which is not the Senate.

On Thursday, her lawyer Lorna Kapunan told dzMM, “At the appropriate time and appropriate venue, she will talk.”

She said the Senate is not the appropriate venue because of the agenda of some senators in using the hearings as a political platform.

Napoles has been subpoenaed to the November 7 hearing of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee on the pork barrel scam.

What will happen at the Senate is a media spectacle where the public will be allowed to see who has the dirtiest linen, she said.

“[Any] confrontation is good for the media. It will not help us in getting closer to a conviction [of the guilty].”

Besides, the Senate will not even be able to give Napoles immunity from suit despite assurances from some senators.

“[An] immunity given by the Senate does not prevent criminal culpability because only a court of law such as the Sandiganbayan or Ombudsman [can provide such],” she said.

She said she and her team gave Napoles her legal options, including invoking the “right to remain silent” and the “right against self-incrimination”.

She said no one “can waive those rights except [Napoles].”

“She was the one who said she doesn’t want to go [to the Senate],” she said. And even with a subpoena, the Senate will have to ask the Makati judge to secure her, Kapunan added.

She said at the right time and place, Napoles will “confirm the belief of the people that the PDAF [Priority Development Assistance Fund] has been abused by public officials, even down to the mayors.”

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

U.S. Congress Finally Votes to Cut Student Loan Interest Rates

WASHINGTON - U.S. college students will likely pay a reduced interest rate of 3.86 percent on their student loans for the new school year, after lawmakers on Wednesday finally passed a compromise bill that would reverse a recent rate hike.

The House of Representatives voted 392-31 in support of a bipartisan deal to lower interest rates on millions of new federal student loans. The Senate passed the bill on July 24 and President Barack Obama is expected to sign it into law.

The action followed months of partisan bickering, with Democrats and Republicans blaming each other for a politically embarrassing delay that had the potential to cost students and their parents thousands of dollars.

The legislation replaces a system in which Congress fixed interest rates every year and substitutes it with a market-based mechanism tied to the government's cost of borrowing and capped to protect borrowers in the event of a severe spike in rates.

The legislation passed just two days before Congress recesses for five weeks, after several failed efforts in the House and Senate.


Interest rates on student loans automatically doubled on July 1 to 6.8 percent after Congressfailed to meet the deadline to prevent the rate increase. Congress has since incorporated a retroactive fix that would keep borrowers of loans originated since July 1 when rates had doubled from paying the higher rate.

The measure passed Wednesday pegs interest rates on student loans to the 10-year Treasury note plus 2.05 percentage points for undergraduates, and plus 3.6 percentage points for graduate student loans.

The interest rate would roughly work out to 3.86 percent this year for undergraduates and 5.42 percent for graduates.

Supporters of the bill say it gets politicians out of the business of setting student loan rates and provides certainty for students and their families.

'Long-Term Fix'
Critics of a market-based system say it fails to offer enough protection against increasing rates as the economy improves.

"This bill provides American college students immediate debt relief on upcoming studentloans," said California Representative George Miller, the senior Democrat at the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. "Families battered by the recent recession should have received this relief over a month ago."




In 2007, Congress lowered the interest rates on federal subsidized Stafford loans to 3.4 percent. That lower rate was due to expire last year, but Congress extended it for another year rather than argue about a replacement for it during an election year.

Under the caps in the new plan, if market rates rise, undergraduates could pay as high as 8.25 percent and graduates as much as 9.5 percent. The rate could go to 10.5 percent for PLUS loans for parents who borrow to pay for their children's college.

"We wanted to get out of the partisan squabbling that has been happening in this city every year - let the market do it in a way that is fair to students and the taxpayer," said Education Committee Chairman Representative John Kline, a Minnesota Republican.

"After months of great uncertainty, students can finally breathe a sigh of relief knowing that interest rates on subsidized federal loans for college won't double from last year and a long-term fix will be in place to avoid these annual political chess matches over the loan program," said Peter McPherson, president of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities.

source: dailyfinance.com

Senate Passes Student Loan Deal

The Senate passed legislation Wednesday that would make it less expensive for college students to borrow money to pay for classes, housing and books. But interest rates could soon start climbing.

The proposal, that passed by 81 votes to 18, would link interest rates on federal student loans to the financial markets. That means student loans for the next few years would have lower interest rates. Higher rates would come in later years if the economy improves as expected.

Liberal Democrats opposed the White House-backed proposal as a bait-and-switch measure that would lure in new borrowers. Republicans supported the measure and helped the bill win passage. The bill is similar to one the House has already passed.

The White House and its allies said the new loan structure would offer lower rates to 11 million borrowers right away and save the average undergraduate $1,500 in interest But there was no denying the new structure could cost future students if the economy improves as expected and interest rates climb. The White House's allies instead suggested the new formula is better than the status quo.

After the bill's passage the White House released a statement from President Obama applauding the vote.

"This compromise is a major victory for our nation's students," the statement read. "It meets the key principles I laid out from the start: it locks in low rates next year, and it doesn't overcharge students to pay down the deficit. I urge the House to pass this bill so that I can sign it into law right away, and I hope both parties build on this progress by taking even more steps to bring down soaring costs and keep a good education - a cornerstone of what it means to be middle class - within reach for working families."

Rates on subsidized Stafford loans doubled to 6.8 percent July 1 because Congress could not agree on a way to keep them at 3.4 percent.

Liberal members of the Democratic caucus were vocal in their opposition over the potentially shifting rates included in the Senate measure, which passed with support from both parties. The bill passed with support from 45 Republicans, 35 Democrats and Sen. Angus King, the independent from Maine who helped negotiate the deal.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, joined 16 Democrats and Sen. Bernie Sanders, the Vermont independent who caucuses with Democrats, to oppose the legislation.

Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., did not cast a recorded vote.

"This permanent, market-based plan makes students' loans cheaper, simpler and more certain," said Sen. Lamar Alexander, the top Republican on the Senate education panel. "It ends the annual game of Congress playing politics with student loan interest rates at the expense of students planning their futures."

Under the bipartisan deal, undergraduates this fall could borrow at a 3.9 percent interest rate. Graduate students would have access to loans at 5.4 percent, and parents could borrow at 6.4 percent. Those rates would rise as the economy picks up and it becomes more expensive for the government to borrow money.

The compromise could be a good deal for students through the 2015 academic year. After that, interest rates are expected to climb above where they were when students left campus in the spring, if congressional estimates prove correct.

As part of the compromise, Democrats won a protection for students by capping rates at a maximum 8.25 percent for undergraduates. Graduate students would not pay rates higher than 9.5 percent, and parents' rates would top out at 10.5 percent.

Using Congressional Budget Office estimates, rates would not reach those limits in the next 10 years.

But even among those who voted for it, frustrations remained evident.

"The bill that is before us represents a number of compromises that were made on both sides," said Sen. Tom Harkin, the Iowa Democrat who chairs the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, before the vote.

Harkin said the legislation is not what he would have written if he had the final say but he also said that he recognizes the need to restore the lower rates on students before they return to campus for classes.

"It's the best that we can do," Harkin said on the Senate floor. "If we don't pass this today, there will be one sure effect: student loans will be almost twice what they would be under this bill."

Most Senate Republicans who pushed for interest rates to be linked to the financial markets voted for the measure. It was negotiated by Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and GOP Sens. Richard Burr of North Carolina and Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, the top Republican on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

"They may come from different political parties, but they all really care about students. And this bill proves it," said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. "And there's something else this bill proves, too: That Democrats can work with Republicans when they actually want to do it -- when they check their partisan, take-it-or-leave-it approaches at the door and actually talk with, rather than at, us."

The compromise negotiated in the Senate closely hews to what House Republicans passed this year, and that's a sticking point for some liberals.

Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., pushed for an extension of the current 3.4 percent rate so lawmakers could address the subject this fall during the revision of the Higher Education Act. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has objected to students paying higher interest rates than the Federal Reserve offers to big banks.

"I understand that compromise isn't always pretty, but there isn't any compromise in this bill," Warren said last week when the deal was announced.

"In fact, I think the whole system stinks," she added during a Senate speech.

Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Al Franken, D-Minn., planned amendments that would redirect any profits made through the bill to help low-income students.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated the bill as written would reduce the deficit by $715 million over the next decade. During that same time, federal loans would be a $1.4 trillion program.

"We've got to get out of the business of making profits of struggling families who want nothing more than to be able to send their kids to college," said Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent who caucuses with Democrats. "This legislation only makes a bad situation worse."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

source: dailyfinance.com

Sotto on blogging bill: 'They're putting words in my mouth'

Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III on Thursday once again decried attacks against him regarding a proposed blogging law, saying critics are merely "putting words in [his] mouth."

During a discussion at the Kapihan sa Senado on Thursday, Sotto clarified that he never proposed the creation of an anti-blogging bill, unlike what earlier reports have indicated.

"'Yun ang pinagtatakahan ko. Dito lalabas yung sinasabi ko na nagiimbento sila at wala silang ginawa kundi umatake lang," Sotto said. "Wala akong sinabing ganun sa speech ko. In my entire speech, I did not say anything about that."

Sotto drew the ire of many bloggers and Internet users on Wednesday as he continued to say that he did not plagiarize an earlier privilege speech from a foreign blogger, stressing that plagiarism is not a crime in the Philippines.

It was actually Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile who raised the topic of a possible law about blogging, as a means to clearly define the rights of bloggers in light of the plagiarism allegations leveled against Sotto.

"Ngunit wala yatang batas sa ating bansa tungkol diyan (blogs)," Enrile said. "Marahil dahil dito sa ating naranasan … para maliwanagan na ito at magkaroon ng patakaran o reglamento o rules na susundin ng lahat, ay mag-panukala tayo ng batas."

No need for blogging law

Meanwhile, some experts and solons have come out defending free speech online, emphasizing that there is no need to create a law specifically regulating blogging.

"Blogs have been one of the freest avenues for opinions and discussions, and we fear that we might lose this freedom if a law is passed to regulate it," said Kabataan Rep. Raymond Palatino, also an active blogger.

Palatino went on to defended the anonymity afforded by blogs on the Internet, pointing out how it is "essential in some cases," especially when the message may endanger the lives of the author.

"Passing a blogging law may endanger this anonymity. We can even enter a scenario wherein authorities track down bloggers using their IP address just to enforce the law," he added.

Meanwhile, lawyer Romel Regalado-Bagares told InterAksyon.com that there is no more need to legislate rules regarding blogging, since it is "part and parcel of our democratic tradition of free expression."

"[There is also a] physical impossibility of monitoring each and every blog there is on the blogosphere from the Philippine side," Bagares pointed out, while stressing that it is senators who should be the ones doing some form of self-regulation.

"Senators occupy a privileged position with high public expectations. As legislators, they should be the first to follow the law, instead of being the first to encourage people to break it by saying that because they are senators, they are immune from its requirements," he added.

source: interaksyon.com

Sotto revision in anti-discrimination bill gets muddled, sparks backlash

MANILA, Philippines – Lost in translation, again: a congressman supposedly gave gay groups wrong information that Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III opposed the inclusion of persons with “different sexual orientation and gender identity” from groups entitled to state protection in a sweeping anti-discrimination law, sparking a backlash.

But the office of Sotto, who in recent days has drawn flak over issues of reproductive health, plagiarism, and blogger rights, clarified to InterAksyon.com that he in fact supports the bill prohibiting discrimination on the basis of gender, race or creed. What Sotto did, said his media officer, was propose an insertion affirming that the Family Code of the Philippines stays as is and is not being repealed or amended with respect to same-sex marriage.

The Senate Journal validated the claim of Sotto’s office that he did not seek the exclusion from state protection of SOGIs, but simply wanted a clear affirmation of the Family Code provision.

After earning the ire of bloggers and netizens for his allegedly plagiarized speech against the Reproductive Health Bill, Sotto on Thursday morning faced another backlash from lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Filipinos.

In a statement, the Progressive Organization of Gays (ProGay Philippines) protested against Sotto’s reported move to remove state protection for SOGI’s from the proposed Anti-Racial, Ethnic and Anti-Religious Discrimination Act.

The alleged “Sotto position” was reported by Ifugao Rep. Teodoro Brawner Baguilat Jr., a member of the House of Representatives panel that crafted a version to be reconciled with the Senate version in a bicameral conference.

“We are saddened that Senator Sotto, whose successful showbiz and political careers are in part supported by hardworking LGBTs, now [considers them] second-class citizens who for him do not deserve equality before the law," said Goya Candelario, spokesperson of ProGay.

ProGay urged Congress to include SOGI as a protected status because this was one of the recommendations of the United Nations Human Rights Council during the Philippines’ Universal Periodic Review in May 2012.

The UN upheld the SOGI rights against discrimination but did not champion same-sex marriage, a matter that is left to individual lawmaking bodies and states of different countries.

“We appeal to Senator Sotto to give back to the LGBT community which had suffered long enough from a spate of hate crimes, workplace discrimination, and ridicule from homophobic elements of society," the group added.

Reached for comment, Sotto’s office said the lawmaker definitely did not oppose the bill, but instead wanted to include a phrase in Section 7 of Senate Bill 2814, which would make it clear that the new bill, while outlawing discrimination against LGBTs, is not replacing the Family Code of the Philippines by way of allowing same-sex marriage.

“Mali ang interpretasyon ng Pro-Gay sa gustong ilagay ni Senator Sotto sa bill. [Hindi niya tinutulan ang bill] kundi naglagay lamang siya ng isang phrase sa Section 7 upang matiyak na hindi maibabasura ang Family Code of the Philippines (Pro-Gay wrongly interpreted what Senator Sotto wanted included in the bill. He did not oppose the bill but put in a phrase in Section 7 to ensure that the Family Code of the Philippines is not disregarded),” Mike Caber, Sotto’s media relations officer, explained.

The Senate Journal dated November 24, 2011, said the body approved, subject to style, the insertion of the phrase “except the statutory provision of the Family Code of the Philippines, as amended, which shall remain in force.”

The Journal said: “Senator Sotto pointed out that Section 7 of the bill grants all persons the right of equality and non-discrimination regardless of their sexual orientation, gender and gender identity.

“To allay fears of some sectors that the measure could be misinterpreted to mean that same sex marriages would be allowed, he [Sotto] underscored the need for the clause that he introduced to clarify that the Family Code of the Philippines was not being repealed,” the Senate journal said.

The bill is an Act "prohibiting discrimination, profiling, violence and all forms of intolerance against persons based on ethnicity, race, religion or belief, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, languages disability, or other status." (Lourdes Fernandez, with Karl John Reyes, InterAksyon.com)

source: interaksyon.com

Robredo showed commitment to reform – Enrile

MANILA, Philippines – Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile extended his condolences to the family of Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo, whose body was found 3 days after a fatal plane crash.

“I deeply mourn the untimely demise of Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo and extend my sincere condolences to his family,” Enrile said in a statement released Tuesday.

Enrile said Robredo “epitomized genuine commitment to reform and dedication to duty both as DILG Secretary and as Mayor of Naga City for 18 years.”

Enrile described Robredo a well-loved public servant who “will be greatly missed.”

“On behalf of the Senate, I join the rest of the nation in grieving over the passing of a well-loved public servant,” he said.

Enrile also urged the government to extend full state honors for Robredo.

Robredo was killed after a plane carrying him and 3 others crashed off the coast of Masbate on Saturday.

Robredo’s aide survived the crash. Robredo’s body, meanwhile, was found Tuesday morning.

Search and retrieval operations are ongoing for the two pilots.

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Sotto's office admits copying US blog

Senator Tito Sotto's chief of staff on Thursday night admitted that they copied the work of an American blogger in the lawmaker's turno en contra speech on the reproductive health (RH) bill.

Atty. Hector Villacorta, in a message posted on the Facebook page of Sarah Pope, said it was the senator's staff who lifted the content of the blogger's work without attributing it to her.

"I understand you felt slighted that your blog was not attributed to you which became part of the speech of the senator. Let me say that after asking my staff, indeed, your blog was used but only in quoting also from the same book of Dr. Campbell-Mcbride," he said.

Villacorta confirmed to ABS-CBN News and ANC that he indeed sent the message to Pope.

"We are both indebted to the book's author but if you wish that you also be credited with the contents of the book, let this be your affirmation. I can do it and by this message, I am doing it. Hope it satisfies you. But if it does not, what would you want us to do?" he said.

"What have we done to deserve your incriminating words. The senator did not lift it himself, we did. Did you want us to tell him to admit what he did not do? Who would you like to crucify for this oversight?" he asked after Pope lashed out at Sotto and directly accused him of plagiarizing her work.

"Forgive us our single trespass. We had no malice, we thought you would be happy about it. There was no injury. Hope this makes you feel better," Villacorta said.

Blogger: Sotto twisted message against women

Pope, in reply to Villacorta, said she does not approve of Sotto using her work without her permission "against the education of the women of the Philippines and their reproductive rights."

She also said Sotto is responsible for his staff's actions.

"That is the issue and it was indeed plagiarism. If his staff did it, he condoned it. He is responsible for your actions. My blog was quoted, not Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride. I put her work in my own words and you copied my words," she said.

"A woman needs to know that the Pill can indeed harm her but this is NO REASON to take away this choice from her in the first place," she added.

"I do not agree with Senator Sotto's position on this issue and he twisted the message of my blog to suit his own purposes against the women of the Philippines," Pope said.

"Your lame comment does not make me feel any better," she told Villacorta.

"A thief is a thief, Mr. Senator. Denying it won't get you off the hook.; it just makes you a lying thief," Pope said in a blog post after Sotto earlier denied plagiarizing her work.

"Women of the Philippines: I am terribly sorry my blog was used and twisted against you. You deserve the choice to use The Pill if you want or need to based on your particular circumstances. While I want you to know that this choice has health consequences, I in no way would ever condone taking this choice away from you! Mabuhay!" she added. - with reports from Ryan Chua, ABS-CBN News; ANC

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Drilon votes Corona guilty on Article 2

The Senate, convened as an impeachment court over the past four months, adjourned on Monday having heard the final arguments of lawyers prosecuting and defending Chief Justice Renato Corona, and now placing the fate of the chief magistrate solely in the hands of senator-judges.

The senators are expected to vote on Tuesday either to convict and immediately remove Corona from his post as Chief Justice, or to acquit and send the Philippines into uncharted political waters.

It will ultimately be a political vote, and while there will be time on Tuesday for each senator-judge to explain his or her vote, the impeachment trial had in fact progressed, and will conclude, with no formal guideline or consensus on the criteria for voting to either convict or acquit. The senators early on in the trial had raised questions as to the "quantum of evidence" or the level of proof that they should seek – whether at par with standards for criminal, civil, or administrative cases – but there was never any resolution on the matter.

That will leave Corona's fate to be determined by a mixed group of lawyers and non-lawyers distributed over a number of political parties and affiliations, and each with different political considerations and interests heading into a crucial election season.

Congressmen composing a panel of prosecutors on Monday accused Corona of "deception of the highest order" and called for his sacking, as the historic four-month trial reached a climax. The final plea to oust the Chief Justice came from no less than the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Feliciano Belmonte.

The first Supreme Court justice to stand trial, Renato Corona is accused of hiding millions of dollars' worth of assets and other graft, claims he says were cooked up by President Benigno Aquino to have him removed.

"Palusot." Excuses, excuses. This was how Ilocos Rep. Rodolfo Fariñas - as member of the House panel prosecuting Chief Justice Renato Corona - characterized the defense of the chief magistrate in the concluding impeachment trial against him.

Fariñas said Corona and his lawyers' explanations for peso and dollar properties undeclared in the Chief Justice's statements of assets and net worth (SALN) all amounted to "one flimsy excuse after another" ("puro palusot") - all coming too weakly and too late supposedly after Corona had been caught in what lead prosecutor Niel Tupas recapped as "lies".

Fariñas said Corona's accounting for $2.4 million and P80 million that went undeclared in his SALNs were hard to swallow.

The Chief Justice on Friday tried to counter suggestions that the moneys were ill-gotten, saying the dollar amounts could be easily explained by his and his wife's discipline and foresight in saving dollars starting from the 1960's. Corona had even noted that he started investing in dollars in the late 1960s when the peso traded at "2-to-1" with the US dollar.

As for not declaring the savings in his SALN, Corona and his lawyers have insisted that the Chief Justice had no obligation to declare his dollar "savings" given laws guaranteeing secrecy and privacy in foreign currency deposits. The peso accounts, they add, were not actually entirely Corona's, and were supposedly aggregated and co-mingled savings of Corona, his wife, children, and even relatives tied to a family company.

Fariñas, however, mocked the very notion of Corona hoarding dollars starting from the 1960s. By the prosecution's accounting, for the Chief Justice's story to hold true, Corona started buying dollars "when he was in Grade 4." Meanwhile, he said Corona's story about co-mingled funds contradicted what the prosecution tried to portray as an increasingly convoluted story that at turns made clear delienations between his properties and assets and those of his children and relatives, and at turns suggested they were one and the same.

Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona, 63, is accused of protecting graft-tainted former president Gloria Arroyo from prosecution, as well as lacking integrity and amassing a personal fortune above the limits of his salary - which he failed to declare as required by the constitution.

The maximum penalty for a guilty verdict on any of the three charges is his removal, but the Senate, sitting as a court, said it also has the option of imposing the lesser penalties of censure, reprimand, fine, or suspension.

In his closing argument Monday, chief prosecutor Niel Tupas said the senator-judges must convict and impose the severest penalty for Corona's failure to declare bank deposits including $2.4 million in US dollar accounts. He said the campaign to oust Corona was not one waged against one man, but rather one to rid the Philippine justice system of "evils".

"His lies in the SALN (his statement of assets, liabilities and net worth) run into the hundreds of millions and cannot be ignored," Tupas said.

"It is lying, it is dishonesty, it is deception of the highest order."

Tupas said these assets were significantly higher than the P22.9 million (about $533,000) net worth declared by Corona in his 2010 declaration, an annual constitutional requirement for all public officials.

Corona's removal was sought by Aquino, who was elected to the presidency in 2010 on a platform to end corruption which he claimed reached pervasive levels during Arroyo's term.

Aquino has accused Arroyo of illegally appointing Corona as chief justice just before she stepped down, allegedly to protect her from prosecution. Arroyo is now in detention while separately being tried for vote rigging.

Corona was impeached by Aquino's allies in the House of Representatives in December, which then sent the complaint to the Senate for trial.

Millions of Filipinos have closely followed the trial, which began in January, and various opinion surveys have indicated that Aquino enjoyed widespread public support for pursuing a judge perceived to be corrupt.

Corona however was backed by his peers in the judiciary amid warnings the president may have violated constitutional provisions in his zeal to remove the chief justice.

Sixteen votes, about two-thirds of the chamber, are required to unseat Corona. The senators, who include only four members of Aquino's party, have been tight-lipped about how they intended to vote.

The senator-judges were expected to announce their vote in individual speeches later Monday or Tuesday.

Corona's lawyer Eduardo de los Angeles stressed that Corona did not commit any "high crime" cited by the constitution, such as treason, bribery, or corruption, that would be cause for his removal.

Corona's failure to declare his dollar savings was covered under the country's strict bank confidentiality laws, his lawyer said.

At most, Corona's failure to declare the dollar deposits was a minor breach of another law requiring public officials to declare all their assets, and this can be remedied by filing an amended statement of assets, de los Angeles added.

"Certainly a high government official should not be impeached nor removed from office for any minor breach of the law."

Last week, Corona appeared as the final witness in his defence and delivered a three-hour testimony accusing Aquino of a conspiracy to oust him.

He claimed his impeachment was the result of a personal vendetta by Aquino following a landmark Supreme Court ruling to break up Hacienda Luisita, a giant sugar estate owned by the president's clan.

That court decision came shortly before Aquino's allies voted to impeach Corona. With reports from Joseph Hollandes Ubalde, InterAksyon.com, and from Agence France-Presse

source: interaksyon.com

Alma Moreno confirms election bid for senator in 2013

Masayang nagdiwang si Alma Moreno ng kanyang ika-53 birthday sa Pool Bar ng Manila Pavillion Hotel nitong May 24.

Dumalo sa kanyang party ang mga malalapit nitong kaibigan, supporters sa pulitika, at mga anak.

Dito na rin niya ipinahayag ang desisyong tumakbo sa pagka-senador sa 2013 elections.

Sabi ni Alma, “Actually, pinag-isipan kong mabuti talaga kahit marami ang nagsasabi sa akin na, ‘Tumakbo ka kasi sa loob mo ‘yan, e.’

“Dinasal ko. Saka humingi talaga ako ng sign. After Holy Week lang ako talaga nagdesisyon.
“Ang sign, nawala ang kaba ko— nararamdaman mo naman yun, e. Yung kutob na hindi pa ako handa.

“Nagdadalawang-isip pa ako na, ‘Hindi pa ako handa, dito na lang ako.’

“Paggising ko, ‘eto na 'yan. Lahat na mga tao na nakausap ko, lahat kasi sila naka-back-up sa akin."

Masaya nitong ibinalita na susuportahan daw siya ng Philippine Councilors League (PCL).

Sa pagpapatuloy niya, “Lahat sa amin sa PCL, nakakausap ko. Kasi we’re 17,000 councilors [sa buong Pilipinas].

“Kaya sabi ko nga kung magtutulungan lang kami, di ba? Kasi kami sa PCL sobra kami magtulungan, magmahalan."

CONSULTING WITH FAMILY. Kasama rin daw sa pagdep-desisyon ang kanyang mga anak.

“Bago ako nagdeklara, kinausap ko na ang mga anak ko. Kasi kukunin ko muna siyempre yung ano [reaksiyon] ng mga anak ko, e, kung papayag sila.

“E, nakita ko yung suporta nila, yung worries nila. In-explain ko naman, ayun nakasuporta naman sila," ang pahayag ng pa Parañaque councilor.

“Nagulat sila. Ang reaksiyon nila, ‘Ang hirap n’yan, Mama, ang laki ng Pilipinas.’

“Sabi ko sa kanila, ‘Hindi n’yo ba naiisip na halos naikot ko na rin ang Pilipinas?’

“Ang kulang ko na lang na ipaalam ko sa mga kapwa ko konsehal na, ‘Malalayo na, yun na ang desisyon ko.’ Yun naman ang sabi nila noon, e."

Ang unang inaalala lang naman daw ng mga anak niya ay ang kalusugan ng dating aktres. Alam kasi nila ang hirap sa kampanya.

“Sabi ko naman, kung hindi naman ako magtatrabaho, kung hindi ko gagawin ang gusto kong gawin, kasi mundo ko na ‘to, e.

“Bata pa lang ako, sa tao na talaga ang mundo ko, e.

“‘Pag hininto ko ito, ‘pag wala akong ginagawa, magkakasakit ako lalo," ang sabi ni Alma sa mga anak.

POLITICAL SUPPORT. Nakausap na rin daw nito si Senator Bong Revilla na presidente ng Lakas-CMD, na partido rin ni Alma. Nangako raw ito sa kanya na all-out ang suporta ng buong partido.

Naging presidente ng Philippine Councilor’s League si Alma kaya’t alam niya ang kanyang pinasok.

Ang asawa nitong si Mayor Sultan Fahad “Pre" Salic ng Marawi City ay nakasuporta rin sa kanya.

Aniya, “Yun ang sobrang support sa akin. Nakasuporta sa akin yun, walang problema sa kanya.
“Lahat ng payo niya sa akin—sipag… huwag akong magkasakit."

ACADEMIC PURSUITS. Ipinagmamalaki rin niya na sa June 13 ay matatapos na niya ang kursong Political Science sa University of Makati, at baka kumuha rin siya ng master’s degree.

Dugtong ni Alma, “Basta ako tuluy-tuloy lang ang trabaho ko, ang pinakikita ko.

“Kung ano ang dapat kong gawin, gagawin ko.

“Kasi mas nilalagay ko sa tenga ko ang naririnig ko, kasi kung papansinin ko sila masisira lang ang diskarte ko, ang focus ko.

“So, sa akin ang totoo lang ang pinapakita ko.

“Sabi ko nga, ‘Bago n’yo naman ako husgaha, hayaan n’yo na muna ako, pagbigyan n’yo naman muna ako,’" pakiusap ni Alma. -- Gorgy Rula, PEP

source: gmanetwork.com

Uncertainty about Corona guilt strong but majority trust Senate to be fair - survey

MANILA, Philippines -- Just below half of all Filipinos -- 47 percent -- think Chief Justice Renato Corona is guilty of the charges against him but almost as many -- 43 percent -- have yet to make up their minds about him, the results of a recent Pulse Asia released on Tuesday showed.

However, only five percent of respondents to the survey conducted form February 26 to March 9 think the Chief Justice is innocent and, of this percentage, only one percent believes he is “definitely innocent.”

Most of those who think Corona is innocent are in Metro Manila, the rest of Luzon and Mindanao and belong to Classes D and E, the survey showed.

Of those who think Corona guilty, only 15 percent are certain about his guilty while 33 percent see him as “probably guilty.

The survey also showed a high level of interest among Filipinos in Corona’s impeachment trial, with eight out of 10 saying they follow the proceedings.

But no matter how they feel about Corona, the majority of the respondents -- 69 percent -- said they expect the Senate to be fair and impartial in judging the case against the Chief Justice.

This sentiment prevailed across geographic areas and socio-economic groups.

Public opinion was also split on the question of whether the House of Representatives railroaded Corona’s impeachment, with 32 percent saying it did and 38 percent believing otherwise.

But in Metro Manila, almost 50% of the respondents believe the House fast-tracked the process.
The survey was conducted among 1,200 adult respondents and has a +/-3% error margin.

The prevailing issues at the time of the survey were Corona’s impeachment trial, the arraignment for electoral fraud of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the magnitude-6.9 earthquake that struck the Visayas, and the 26th anniversary of the 1986 People Power uprising.

source: interaksyon.com