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October 24-30, 2024 Volume 35 - No. 43 • 14 Pages
T h e F i l i p i n o A m e r i ca n C o m mu n i t y N e ws pa p e r
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Biden, Harris honor Fil-Am History Month DATELINE USA from the AJPress NEWS TEAM across America
Against access threats, ensuring votes count this November
With the presidential elections just three weeks away, voters and election officials nationwide are facing historically high threats to voting access. These threats include new state voting restrictions, misinformation, voter roll purges and political violence. Political violence “You’d have to go back to the 1960s and ‘70s to see anything like the hotbed of political violence we’re in now,” said Dr. Robert Pape, political science professor at the University of Chicago, at a Friday, October 18 Ethnic Media Services briefing about voting access threats. As director of the Chicago Project on Security and Threats (CPOST), Pape and his colleagues found that since 2001, the average number of Department of Justiceprosecuted threats increased fivefold to 19.5 under President Trump, and even higher to 21.6 under President Biden.
by AJPress
UNITED States President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris extended their greetings for Filipino American History Month, recognizing the contributions of Filipino Americans to the country. Biden acknowledged that “since our founding, Filipinos and Filipino Americans have enriched the very essence of who we are as a people.” “They are the community leaders, who advocate and stand up for all of us. They are the first responders and Service members, who put themselves at risk to
keep the rest of us safe,” his statement continued, adding the breadth of industries Fil-Am contribute to from health care workers to athletes to public servants. He concluded that “Dreamers and doers like you embody the possibilities of this great Nation—and that is a big part of the reason why I have never been more optimistic about our future.” For her part, Vice President Harris said during this month, “we uplift the stories of Filipinos and Filipino Americans — an integral part of the story of America.”
Former Pres. Bill Clinton campaigns for Harris, encourages Fil-Ams to vote in Las Vegas by AJPress
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Medicare drug plans are getting better next year. Some will also cost more. When Pam McClure learned she’d save nearly $4,000 on her prescription drugs next year, she said, “it sounded too good to be true.” She and her husband are both retired and live on a “very strict” budget in central North Dakota. By the end of this year, she will have spent almost $6,000 for her medications, including a drug to control her diabetes. McClure, 70, is one of about 3.2 million people with Medicare prescription drug insurance whose out-of-pocket medication costs will be capped at $2,000 in 2025 because of the Biden administration’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, according to an Avalere/AARP study. “It’s wonderful — oh my gosh. We would actually be able to live,” McClure said. “I might be able to afford fresh fruit in the wintertime.” The IRA, a climate and health care law that President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris promote on u PAGE 5
Based on the 2020 U.S. census, Filipinos make up the third largest Asian-American group with a 4.4 million population. On Monday, October 21, the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders held a Fil-Am History Month celebration, which featured Nani Coloretti, deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget, who is the highest-ranking Fil-Am in the Biden-Harris administration; Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA), who is of Fil-Am descent; and former U.S. Undersecretary of u PAGE 2
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton with Nevada Assemblymembers Brittney Miller and Erica Mosca and community leader Rozita Lee during his visit to Las Vegas this week. His visit, which included making a plea to Filipino Americans, was to rally support for Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s “New Way Forward” plan, encouraging Nevadans to vote early. AJPress photo by Robert Macabagdal
LAS VEGAS — Former United States President Bill Clinton visited Las Vegas this week, rallying support for Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s “New Way Forward” plan. His visit, which included making a plea to Filipino Americans, was aimed to encourage Nevadans to vote early. During a stop on Tuesday, October 22 at Red Ribbon Bakeshop inside Seafood City Supermarket, a community hub for Filipino Americans, Clinton spoke alongside U.S. Representative Dina Titus. He praised Harris' comprehensive strategy to support Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) entrepreneurs, highlighting the small business boom under the Biden-Harris administration. Clinton underscored the critical role these businesses play in the economy, citing Harris’ commitment to bolstering their success. u PAGE 2
Marcos smiled, walked away when asked about VP Duterte’s accusation by Luisa Cabato Inquirer.net
MANILA — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. smiled and walked away when asked about Vice President Sara Duterte’s accusation that he does not know how to be president. Reporters tried to get Marcos’ comment on Duterte’s accusation at the celebration of the Philippine Coast Guard’s 123rd anniversary in Port Area, Manila on Tuesday, October 22. In a press conference last Friday,
October 18, Duterte said the Philippines was on the “road to hell” as Marcos does not know how to do his job. She also said she was blamed several times for the country’s current situation because she chose not to run for president in the 2022 elections. Duterte also claimed she had a list of impeachable offenses that could remove Marcos from office, but she did not disclose what these offenses were. Reporters also sought comment from the Office of the President but received no response. n
Former President Rodrigo Duterte
ManilaTimes.net file photo
Duterte to appear Go leads Senate preference survey before Senate panel by Bernadette E. Tamayo ManilaTimes.net
SEN. Bong Go led a recent Senate preference baseline survey conducted by Publicus Asia Inc. with 5 percent of the votes. In a statement, Publicus said while certain candidates have gained early support, a significant portion of voters remain undecided and open to change. It said the “unaided test was part of the survey where respondents were asked to name their top-of-mind senatorial candidate.” The survey was conducted from October 16 to 17 with 1,500 respondents randomly drawn from the market research panel of over 200,000 registered Filipino voters. The survey firm said Sen. Risa Hontiveros SEN. Bong Go led a recent Senate preference baseline survey “emerged as the most prominent name in the conducted by Publicus Asia Inc. with 5 percent of the votes. ManilaTimes.net file photo survey due to her leadership in the Senate
investigation into illegal Philippine offshore gaming operations.” However, she is not running for reelection in 2025 since her term ends in 2028. Go was followed by a four-way tie among cardiologist and health advocate Doc Willie Ong, former Senators Manny Pacquiao and Vicente Sotto III, and Sagip party-list Rep. Rodante Marcoleta, who all got 4 percent. Go was the top pick in Mindanao with 12 percent, while Pacquiao followed at 8 percent. In North Central Luzon, Ong held a 7 percent lead. In the National Capital Region, returning Senators Paolo Benigno Aquino IV and Francis Pangilinan were the respondents’ “top of mind with 7 percent and 6 percent, respectively.” The Publicus said the survey showed that five to seven out of 10 voters who named u PAGE 6
by Javier Joe Ismael
and Bernadette E. Tamayo ManilaTimes.net
FORMER President Rodrigo Duterte will attend the Senate hearing on his administration’s bloody war on drugs on Monday, October 28, Senate President Francis Escudero said Tuesday, October 22. In a press conference, Escudero assured the former chief executive that he would be accorded the utmost courtesy as a former president of the country and as a former member of Congress. Escudero did not say,
however, if Mr. Duterte could be cited in contempt if he refuses to answer questions from any of the senators, but he said he doesn’t want this to happen. On Friday, October 18, Escudero declared that the hearings on the drug war would be handled by the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee rather than the Senate Committee of the Whole, as proposed by Sen. Risa Hontiveros. Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel III is scheduled to preside over Monday’s hearing, even u PAGE 4