FILIPINOS in America are divided in their reactions after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to curse U.S. President Barack Obama should he question Duterte about the human rights violations and drug-related deaths in the Philippines related to the all-out war against drugs. Obama canceled what should have been their first formal bilateral meeting. The stock…

“PUTANG ina mumurahin kita diyan sa forum na iyan…(Son of a whore, I’ll curse you at that forum).” These are just some of the toxic words spewed by Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte as a warning to U.S. President Barack Obama, when asked in a press meeting what he would do if Obama questions him about…

AS the global debate continues about Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s all-out war against drugs, the newly organized advocacy group of Filipinos in America called “U.S. Pinoys for Real Change in the Philippines” (USPRCP) will hold a vigil rally in front of the Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C. on September 11 to declare full support for…

EVEN U.S. President Barack Obama has raised concern about the recent statements of Philippine Pres. Rodrigo Duterte and his war on drugs, which has already claimed the lives of more than 1,800 people since Duterte took office. Obama is set to meet with Duterte in Laos next week to talk about the alleged issue of…

“YOU can’t stop me,” declared Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, despite the criticism from international organizations like the United Nations and the Human Rights Watch, as well as by major international news organizations, for the drug war-related deaths since he took office. They call the killings a violation of human rights and due process, however, Duterte…

INTERNATIONAL organizations like the United Nations (UN) and Human Rights Watch(HRW) did not mince words in their concerns about how Philippine Pres. Rodrigo Duterte is governing the country, specifically on his war against drugs. The United Nations may send observers to the Philippines after it has expressed concern regarding what the international organization deems as…

IN a recent The Filipino Channel “Balitang America” viewers’ poll, a majority (55 percent) of those who voted say they agree with President Rodrigo Duterte’s decision to allow the interment of deposed Pres. Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. Duterte says he is just executing the law, and claims the law grants Marcos…

MUST a Filipino be buried in the Libingan ng mga Bayani just because he was a president and/or a soldier? Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte believes so, contending that this is what the law of the land says and that he, as the president, is duty bound to execute what the law mandates. This is the…

SOME U.S. politicians have spoken up in support of Filipinos against Republican Presidential Nominee Donald Trump’s plan to temporarily ban immigration from what he called “terrorist nations” to keep America safe from terrorism. In his speech in Portland, Maine, he named the Philippines as part of the list along with Afghanistan, Iraq, Morocco, Pakistan, Somalia,…

DONALD Trump has declared before that should he be elected President of the United States, he would ban immigration from countries identified to be a hub of terrorists so he could protect America from ISIS. The Philippines has been named by the State Department as one of those countries. However, it was when Donald Trump…

Did Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump go too far when he defamed the parents of a Muslim American hero who was killed in the line of duty in Baghdad in 2004? Most Americans, and a majority of Filipinos in America, believe so. A poll released by Fox News revealed that 69 percent of respondents familiar with Trump’s…

Donald Trump’s millions of loyal ardent followers, many of whom are Filipinos in America, would even question the title of this piece as they believe in their hearts that he can indeed “make America great again.” There are kababayans who find it unfathomable how there are people who could not see beyond what they call…

IT is official! It will be Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton vs Republican nominee Donald Trump in the final stretch of the race to the White House after both were officially nominated in their respective party conventions during the past two weeks. After testimonial speeches and videos making the case as to why their respective candidate…

The fierce and contentious debates, criticisms and attacks among candidates of both parties and their supporters in the age of a 24/7 news and social media cycle present a very real challenge for both the Democratic and Republican parties: how to unite their voters who supported different candidates during the primary season and rally behind…

AFTER being on hospital arrest for almost four years, former Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has been released, after the Supreme Court (SC) of the Philippines ruled that there is no sufficient evidence to convict her of plunder. However, an overwhelming majority of Filipinos in America  (78 percent), who voted in The Filipino Channel’s “Balitang…

THEIR political opponents from their respective parties might have conceded defeat following a long contentious primary season, but Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump would remain to be called as presumptive nominees of the Democratic and Republican parties respectively — up until they both get officially proclaimed to be their parties’ presidential nominee for the general…

THE Philippines may have scored a moral and legal victory after the United Nations (UN)tribunal in The Hague ruled that China has no historical basis in claiming the resources-rich West Philippine Sea, but the debate continues even among Filipinos in America who are heavily invested on this fight: Should the Philippines negotiate with China? What…

KUDOS to former Philippine Pres. Benigno Aquino III, former DFA Sec. Albert del Rosario and the whole team which, on behalf of the Filipino people, filed, argued, and won the case against China before the United Nations Arbitral Tribunal. The court found China’s claims illegal in its territorial dispute in the West Philippine Sea (South…

A RECENT “Balitang America” online viewer poll revealed that a large majority of Filipinos in America are feeling very hopeful under the Duterte presidency. Eighty-seven percent of kababayans who voted in The Filipino Channel’s daily newscast opinion poll feel the Philippines will be better off with newly sworn-in President Rodrigo Duterte stirring the country toward…

THE 16th president of the Philippines — Rodrigo Duterte — has finally taken the oath of office on June 30, after a highly contro- versial campaign and election season. Many Filipinos in America who started out as not even knowing much about the former Davao City mayor, and those who were doubtful and even scared…

IF there is a singular issue that makes many kababayans gravitate toward the Republican Party, it’s the issue of the right of women to have an abortion — a right traditionally fought for by Democrats and opposed by Republicans. On Monday, June 27, the Supreme Court (SC) upheld such right of women by striking down…

THE 4-4 vote by the Supreme Court was a big blow not only to President Barack Obama’s legacy, but to the hopes and dreams of many undocumented immigrants — including many kababayans and their families. Because it was a tie, the highest court’s ruling leaves in place an appeals court decision which ruled that Obama overstepped…

IT may be less than a month away from the Republican and Democratic National Conventions, but the respective presumptive nominees for parties — Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton — have sharpened their attacks against each other. Polls suggest that Hillary Clinton is winning in the match-up this early. According to a CNN/ORC poll released on…

JUNE is here! The season of weddings and new beginnings unfold as the days get warmer and longer. It is unfortunate, though, that half of the marriages these days end in divorce. It does not have to be that way. It should not be that way. I just attended a beautiful wedding in New York where…

This race to the White House is not like any other, especially when you look at the front-runners of each party. In past elections, voters generally have fallen in love with their candidates of choice, giving each a boost in favorability ratings. The winning candidate usually has the highest favorability rating — the one that…

TIME is of the essence for Filipino World War II veterans who are now living in the United States but are still counting years to finally have their children and grandchildren with approved petition to join him here  and enjoy the remaining years of their life together as a family. With the Obama Administration parole…

CREATING a lot of buzz in the United States these days is a law in North Carolina which forbids transgender people from using public restrooms that comport with their gender identity. If a person is born male, then he should go to the boys’ bathroom, and conversely, those born female should go to the girls’…

WHEN Sen. Grace Poe conceded on the day of the May 9 election after the numbers showed it would be mathematically impossible for her to overtake the lead of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and that she placed third after former DILG Sec. Mar Roxas, many kababayans in the Philippines were surprised. Surely this is…

EIGHTY ONE PERCENT turnout among registered voters in the Philippines is a reason enough to celebrate in a country that has complained about apathy among Filipino people, who have much to complain about lacking in the will and push to do something to do something about the problems that beset the nation. After more than…

I COULD not believe my ears when I heard Pres. Benigno Aquino III say in a television interview that he is working on an alliance among presidential candidates so they could come together and work out something to defeat Philippine Presidential Election front-runner Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte. It seemed as though Aquino was lifting…