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SAN JOSE, Calif. – Widespread rain and howling winds greeted the Bay Area as another storm rolled through Sunday after first hitting the Bay Area on Saturday, causing hundreds of thousands of PG&E customers to lose power.

Over 320,000 customers are without power throughout the Bay Area. At 4 p.m., the San Francisco division had nearly 5,500 customers out of power. That number jumped to over 20,000 in a few hours.

In the North Bay, some customers saw their power restored and their numbers dropped from around 94,000 to almost 84,000.

Comparatively, nearly 107,000 customers are without power in the South Bay and nearly 36,000 in the East Bay. That’s down from earlier numbers of 140,000 in the North Bay and 54,000 in the East Bay.

The number of PG&E customers that have lost power in the Peninsula has dropped to around 74,000, down from 81,000.

San Francisco International Airport is experiencing several cancelations and delays, where a wind gust of 45 mph was reported.

According to SFO’s airport’s duty manager, they are experiencing 146 canceled flights and nearly 350 delays.

Oakland International Airport is reporting 29 delays in departures with three cancelations, compared to 28 delays in arrivals and four cancelations.

Trees fell on homes and cars. Heavy rains produced a landslide reported on a San Francisco hill. Power outages were widespread for PG&E customers, including downed power lines that led to the closure of a section of Highway 1.

Downed trees across tracks have disrupted service to Caltrain customers in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties Sunday afternoon and evening.

The north and southbound tracks 200 feet south of the San Antonio Station in Mountain View have halted service to that station as of 3:45 p.m. due to a downed tree.

In Burlingame, a second tree fell onto the tracks at around 5:36 p.m.

SamTrans is honoring Caltrain tickets in Burlingame and The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority is also honoring Caltrain tickets for anyone wishing to go north or south of the San Antonio Station.

Caltrain said at 6 p.m. that it will be several hours before the trees can be completely removed.

The City of San Jose declared a state of emergency due to the weather.

The Guadalupe and San Lorenzo rivers were experiencing flooding in the South Bay. As a result, residents along Alma Avenue are being told to prepare to evacuate.

The San Jose Police Department used loudspeakers in the area to warn residents, many of whom are experiencing homelessness, to reach higher ground.

An evacuation center had been set up. In addition, an overnight warming center has been set up at Roosevelt Community Center.

The National Weather Service forecast the Guadalupe River to reach flood stage by 6 a.m. However, local officials said that pace has somewhat slowed for now. The river was expected to crest at 10 a.m. at around 11 feet.

The flood watch for the entire Bay Area goes until 10 a.m. Monday morning. Meanwhile, a wind advisory goes until 10 p.m. Sunday. Dangerous winds are seeing widespread gusts of up to 45 to 60 mph.

PG&E’s power outage map showed that service had been disrupted in many parts of its vast coverage area. Rohnert Park, Oakland and parts of the Monterey peninsula had some of the most customers without electricity early Sunday afternoon.

San Mateo County is getting hit especially hard. Residents are being warned to stay away from the coast. On Friday, the county was added to the state of emergency list for counties impacted by the storm. You can find information on where to find sandbags, here. Caltrans also announced that Highway 1 was closed near the San Mateo and Santa Cruz County lines because of downed power lines.

In Sonoma County, there are reports of downed trees across the county. As we’ve reported, the ground is saturated by the rain, making trees susceptible to toppling with relative ease from the strong winds.

In Santa Rosa, a tree came down on a vehicle, temporarily closing northbound Highway 101 at Todd Road. Officials are advising people to avoid unnecessary travel.

The city of Pacifica has opened its Community Center for people who have lost power, North County Fire Authority said at 6:35 p.m. Sunday.

The comfort center will offer power created by a generator for charging electronic devices. There will also be water and snacks.

The center is not a place to sleep, but residents are welcome to bring blankets, pillows and warm clothes for comfort, the fire department said.

The Pacifica Community Center is located at 540 Crespi Drive in Pacifica.

A landslide and hillside collapse in San Francisco was reported in addition to flooding at Market and 18th streets. The westbound direction of Market Street is blocked by fallen trees in that area as emergency crews are responding.

An emergency crew has also responded to flooding at Haight and Buchanan Streets. City officials advise you to avoid walking near trees, especially in parks.

Elsewhere in the city, Fillmore Street is obstructed in the Western Addition after a tree came down and toppled wires. Traffic lanes are blocked between Golden Gate Avenue and Turk Street.

Strong winds led to the cancelation of San Francisco Bay Ferry service, at least until the winds died down.

The Kaiser Permanente San Francisco half, 5K, and 10K marathons were all canceled.

California Highway Patrol issued an extreme wind advisory for the westbound Bay Bridge from the center anchorage to San Francisco. CHP advised box truck drivers to especially be careful due to the risk of overturning.

Alameda Firefighters were seen rescuing a man in a sailboat who was near the rocky shoreline.

As for the forecast, the temperature highs will be mostly in the 60s in the Bay Area. Overnight lows will be in the 40s on the coast, in the 50s around the bay and in the 40s inland.

Rain tapers off to scattered showers around noon before picking back up around 5 p.m.

Wind, high wind, and surf advisories are in effect until Sunday night for most of the Bay Area. Large breaking waves of 20–25 feet are expected with the accompanying high-surf advisory along the coast.

The flood watch is set to end on Monday with rain continuing into Monday.

KTVU’s Amanda Quintana, Tom Vacar, James Torrez and wire services contributed to this report.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) tore into Donald Trump’s MAGA allies for their increasinglyunhingedattacks on pop superstar Taylor Swift.

“What is her sin? She wants more people to vote,” he pointed out. “She wants to help people register to vote and remind them the importance of expressing their democratic rights and responsibilities.”

Swift endorsed Joe Biden in 2020. And while the president’s camp is reportedly hoping she will do so again this year, the only public position she’s taken lately is to encourage people to register to vote.

Newsom said there’s a reason Republicans find that threatening.

“That says everything you need to know about the Republican Party. They don’t want people to vote, they want to make it harder, because they can’t win if you vote,” he said. “How sad and pathetic the Republican Party have become that Taylor Swift literally is a threat to them for one reason: She wants folks to turn out and vote.”

Capehart asked Newsom if he had anything to say to Swift about handling the situation.

“I’m not telling Taylor Swift anything, I’m in awe of her resiliency,” he said. “I’m not worried about her capacity to weather these rather weak storm systems coming in from Jesse Watters and a few others.”

See the full interview below:

• Chinese migrants hoping to get into the US are turning to an unlikely guide — the Chinese version of Tiktok.

• Migrants told 60 Minutes they planned their journey using Douyin.

• There has been a surge in the number of Chinese migrants crossing the US border in recent years.

Some Chinese migrants attempting to cross the US southern border are getting a little help from Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, according to a report from CBS’ “60 Minutes.”

Over four days, CBS journalists observed nearly 600 migrants, some of whom were Chinese, crossing the border through a gap at the end of a border fence near San Diego.

Chinese migrants who spoke to 60 Minutes said they learned about the gap via the video application Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok.

60 Minutes said it had reviewed several Douyin posts, which gave detailed instructions on how migrants could hire smugglers to get to the border.

And the journey is no walk in the park either.

Chinese migrants hoping to start a new life in the US have to trek through multiple countries before they arrive stateside. Some have had to crisscross through Turkey, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama and then Mexico, per CNN.

There has been a surge in the number of Chinese migrants entering the US through its borders.

According to data from the US Customs and Border Protection, the number of encounters the agency has had with Chinese nationals at the Southwest land border has increased more than 50-fold, from 450 people in 2021 to 24,314 in 2023.

Chinese social media platforms have been a boon for migrants hoping to enter the US.

In April, Reuters interviewed more than two dozen Chinese migrants entering the US via southeastern Texas. All the migrants that Reuters spoke to said that social media had helped them to plan their journey.

It’s not just China. Content creators from Venezuela and India have been producing similar videos as well.

“Migration sells. My public is a public that wants a dream,” Venezuelan Manuel Monterrosa, 35, told The New York Times in a story published in December.

Representatives for the US Customs and Border Protection did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.

Read the original article on Business Insider

DENVER (AP) — In the summer of 2020, Gerard Magliocca, like many during the coronavirus pandemic, found himself stuck inside with time on his hands.

A law professor at Indiana University, Magliocca emailed with another professor, who was writing a book about overlooked parts of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment. He decided he would research the history of two long-neglected sentences in the post-Civil War addition that prohibit those who “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” from holding office.

Magliocca posted a copy of his research — which he believed was the first law journal article ever written about Section 3 of the 14th Amendment — online in mid-December of 2020, then revised and re-posted it on Dec. 29. Eight days later, President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol to prevent the certification of his loss to Joe Biden. Magliocca watched as Republicans such as Sens. Mitch McConnell and Mitt Romney described the attack as an “insurrection.”

That night, Magliocca composed a quick post on a legal blog: “Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment,” he wrote, “might apply to President Trump.”

Just over four years later, the U.S. Supreme Court will have to determine whether it does. On Thursday, the nation’s highest court is scheduled to hear arguments over whether Trump can remain on the ballot in Colorado, where the state’s Supreme Court ruled that he violated Section 3.

It’s the first time in history that the nation’s highest court has heard a case on Section 3, which was used to keep former Confederates from holding government offices after the amendment’s 1868 adoption. It fell into disuse after Congress granted an amnesty to most ex-rebels in 1872.

Before the violent Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, even many constitutional lawyers rarely thought about Section 3, a provision that isn’t taught at most law schools and hadn’t been used in court for more than 100 years. Legal scholars believe the only time it was cited in the 20th century was to deny a seat in Congress to a socialist on the grounds that he opposed U.S. involvement in World War I.

The clause’s revival is due to an unlikely combination of Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservatives, all rediscovering 111 words in the nation’s foundational legal document that have now become a threat to the former president’s attempt to return to office.

THE FIRST TARGETS

Once she had dried her tears after watching rioters storm the Capitol, Norma Anderson sat down with one of the multiple copies of the Constitution she keeps around her house in the Denver suburbs and reread the 14th Amendment.

“I made the connection,” Anderson, now 91, said in an interview.

Anderson is a former Republican leader of Colorado’s General Assembly and state Senate, and eventually would become the lead plaintiff in the case now before the Supreme Court. The evening of Jan. 6, she read the provision that prohibited anyone who swore an oath to “support” the Constitution and later “engaged in insurrection” against it, or provided “aid and comfort” to its enemies, from holding office.

Anderson didn’t yet have the chance to spread the word beyond her own circle, but in the days after Jan. 6, thanks to scholars such as Magliocca and the University of Maryland law professor whose book project had inspired him, Mark Graber, Section 3 started its slow emergence from obscurity.

“We were the two people doing a little work on Section 3,” Graber said of Magliocca and himself. “We thought this is real interesting; it makes great chitchat at the American Legal Historians Society.” He added, “Then Donald Trump did academics a favor.”

Though the provision was occasionally mentioned, conversation in Washington and the legal profession in general remained dominated by Trump’s second impeachment — where he was acquitted by the Senate after 43 Republicans voted not to convict him.

It took months before the first mention of Section 3 in a public document. Free Speech For People, a Massachusetts-based liberal nonprofit, sent letters to top election officials in all 50 states in June 2021, warning them not to place Trump on the ballot should he run again in 2024 because he had violated the provision.

The group didn’t hear back from any of them.

“People were just treating it as something that was not serious,” recalled John Bonifaz, the group’s co-founder.

In January 2022, Free Speech For People filed a complaint in North Carolina to disqualify Republican Rep. Madison Cawthorn under Section 3 for his involvement in the rally that preceded the Capitol attack. But Cawthorn lost his primary in that year’s midterms, mooting the case.

At the same time, another liberal watchdog group was starting its own Section 3 campaign.

After Jan. 6, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics, also known as CREW, in Washington was focused on Trump’s impeachment and other possible legal penalties against those who participated in the Capitol attack before exploring other remedies, said its chief counsel, Donald Sherman.

By January 2022, the group decided to test Section 3 in court.

“It wasn’t just Trump we were focused on,” Sherman said in an interview. “One thing we’ve been very careful about is we don’t think it’s appropriate to pursue outside or longshot cases.”

Looking for a lower-level defendant, Sherman’s organization zeroed in on Couy Griffin. The subject of one of the earliest Jan. 6 prosecutions, Griffin already has a rich legal record. He was was recorded in a restricted area of the U.S. Capitol as head of a group called Cowboys for Trump. Griffin was convicted of illegally entering the Capitol, but acquitted of engaging in disorderly conduct.

He still served as a commissioner in a rural New Mexico county, which kept CREW’s attention on him. On Sept. 6, 2022, a New Mexico judge ordered Griffin removed from his position. It was the first time in more than 100 years an official had been removed under Section 3. Griffin has appealed to the Supreme Court.

CREW prepared to turn to other Section 3 targets. But it quickly became clear Trump would be next. He announced his campaign for president on Nov. 15, 2022.

‘IS THIS FOR REAL?’

Both Free Speech For People and CREW had similar discussions about how to challenge a presidential candidacy. They knew the complaints would have to come at the state level because federal courts have ruled that citizens can’t challenge presidential criteria in that venue.

The two groups began scouring state ballot laws, looking for a place that allowed the rapid contesting of a candidacy. CREW settled on Colorado. It had a clear process for a quick challenge in trial court that would be fast-tracked on appeal to the state Supreme Court.

After a brief trip to Denver checking on potential local lawyers to lead the challenge, Sherman and another CREW attorney, Nikhel Sus, contracted Martha Tierney, a veteran election lawyer who also served as general counsel of the state Democratic Party.

“Hmm, that’s a longshot,” Tierney recalled thinking. She signed up, anyway.

Tierney wasn’t acting as the Democratic Party’s lawyer, but CREW wanted to balance its team with someone from the right. Sherman reached out to Mario Nicolais, a former Republican election lawyer who had left the party over Trump.

Nicolais’ first interaction with Sherman was a direct message about the case on X, the social media network previously known as Twitter. Nicolais thought it could be from a crank.

“Is this for real or is this from somebody just angry at the president?” Nicolais recalled wondering.

Then he saw Sherman was with CREW. — an organization he considered serious. In Nicolais’ office hangs a copy of his first appearance on the front page of The Denver Post, when he beat CREW’s local chapter in a case before the Colorado Supreme Court.

Nicolais was in charge of recruiting plaintiffs. The attorneys wanted Republicans and independents, not only because they were eligible to vote in Colorado’s Republican primary but also to keep the case from being seen as partisan. Anderson, the former state lawmaker, signed on right away.

On Sept. 6, 2023 — one year from the disqualification of the New Mexico county commissioner — Anderson’s was the lead name of the six plaintiffs on the 105-page complaint filed in district court in Denver.

A HISTORIC RULING

Scott Gessler got the call from Trump’s team that day. A former Colorado secretary of state, Gessler was one of the go-to Republican election lawyers in the state.

Trump’s campaign had been fending off scores of Section 3 lawsuits across the country, often from fringe players such as John Castro, a write-in Republican presidential candidate from Texas who had filed numerous ones against Trump.

This case was more serious. The Denver judge who got CREW’s complaint, Sarah Block Wallace, said she was obligated to hold a hearing under Colorado election law.

In the five-day hearing, which took place in late October and early November, two officers who defended the Capitol testified, along with a University of California professor who was an expert in right-wing extremism, two Trump aides and several other witnesses. One was Magliocca, who laid out the history of Section 3.

Trump’s attorneys were pessimistic, expecting Wallace, who had a history of donating to Democrats, to rule against them. Trump’s top spokesman, Jason Miller, addressed reporters outside court, complaining that the plaintiffs had intentionally filed in a liberal jurisdiction in a blue state.

Trump’s lawyers filed a motion asking Wallace step aside because before becoming a judge, she had made a $100 donation to a liberal group that had declared Jan. 6 was an “insurrection.” She declined.

“I will not allow this legal proceeding to turn into a circus,” Wallace said as the hearing began.

Testimony was occasionally interrupted by sirens from a fire station around the corner from Wallace’s courtroom. Security was an ever-present concern. About a half-dozen sheriff’s deputies stood guard throughout the trial, and the plaintiffs had reached out to the FBI and other law enforcement agencies.

To handle much of the examination and argument, Tierney and Nicolais had brought on a new firm of trial lawyers, whose lead partner was former Colorado Solicitor General Eric Olson.

Wallace issued her decision on Nov. 17. She ruled that Trump had “engaged in insurrection” but found that — contrary to Magliocca’s testimony — it wasn’t certain that the authors of the 14th Amendment meant it to apply to the president. Section 3 refers to “elector of President and Vice President,” but not specifically to the office itself.

Wallace was hesitant to become the first judge in history to bar a top presidential contender from the ballot unless the law was crystal clear.

“It was a loss that only a lawyer could love,” Sus recalled.

CREW was just a legal sliver away from victory — it just needed the Colorado Supreme Court to uphold all of Wallace’s ruling besides the technicality of whether the president was covered.

A COURT DIVIDED

The seven justices of the state’s high court — all appointed by Democrats from a pool chosen by a nonpartisan panel — peppered both sides with pointed questions at oral argument three weeks later.

Olson and another partner from his firm, Jason Murray, argued for the plaintiffs. Murray had the rare distinction of having clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, a member of the court’s liberal bloc, and Justice Neil Gorsuch, a member of its conservative bloc.

Gessler handled the argument for Trump. At the end of the grueling session, he addressed the meaning of insurrection and summed up the unprecedented, improvised nature of the case.

“You’re going to tell me, ‘Mr. Gessler, you’re making it up,’” Gessler told the justices. “I’m going to tell you, well, so did the judge. And at the end of the day, we all are to a certain extent.”

Neither side left feeling certain of victory.

On Dec. 19, the court announced it would issue its ruling that afternoon. Sean Grimsley, one of Olson’s law partners who also had argued the case, was in Washington, at the memorial service for former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, for whom he had clerked.

The ruling, which was 4-3, came down while Grimsley was on the flight back, frantically checking his phone via the plane’s wi-fi. They had won. Grimsley leapt from his seat and dashed back several rows, where he high-fived a fellow O’Connor clerk who was on the flight.

Eight days later, Maine’s Democratic secretary of state barred Trump from that state’s ballot under Section 3. That decision and Colorado’s are on hold until the U.S. Supreme Court rules.

The reaction to Colorado and Maine’s decisions has been furious, especially from Republicans. Trump has decried them as “election interference” and “anti-democratic.” They have warned that, if they stand, they could open the door to challenges of other politicians under Section 3, including Biden for not sufficiently defending the nation’s southern border.

Sherman, who chafes at the notion that his nonpartisan group works on Democrats’ behalf, notes that several Republican lawyers, former judges, members of Congress and governors have filed briefs with the Supreme Court backing them. In contrast, Sherman said he has heard grumbling from Democrats that the case risks replacing Trump with a Republican who would be harder to beat in this year’s election.

Free Speech For People has filed Section 3 cases against Trump in five states. None has succeeded, with every legal entity ruling that it doesn’t have the authority to decide whether to remove Trump from the ballot. The Minnesota Supreme Court, for example, kept Trump on that state’s ballot by ruling that state law allows political parties to put whomever they want on their primary ballot.

With most jurisdictions dodging the questions at the heart of the case, it can create a misleading impression that things have gone well for the former president.

“The cases have gone poorly for Trump,” Derek Muller, a Notre Dame law professor who has followed the cases closely, wrote Friday in a blog post. “He lost on the merits in the only two jurisdictions that got to the merits, Colorado and Maine.”

Next up is the one that matters most.

Retiring to Florida has been the dream for generations of Americans, thanks to the state’s beautiful beaches, tropical weather, cultural diversity and endless variations of unique regional cultures and vibes. But, the dream has drifted out of reach for many.

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Also: 3 Costco Essentials You Shouldn’t Buy Anywhere Else

The cost of housing in Florida has soared, with a median home value of nearly $393,000 well over the already prohibitive $348,539 national median.

Also, the state’s ongoing insurance crisis is spiraling toward catastrophe and the hurricanes that have long plagued Florida’s summers and falls are becoming more frequent and severe. All of that, plus the state’s emergence as an epicenter of America’s political and culture wars, is making some people rethink the Sunshine State as the go-to retirement destination. But which states offer a better alternative?

GOBankingRates spoke with two retirement experts — one who advises seniors on all aspects of living well in later life and another who specializes in real estate for retirees — who suggested a few states that give Florida a run for its money.

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Alabama

Zach Shelley, a Dallas-based real estate agent, land developer and investment advisor, founded A-List Properties to help retirees find their dream homes or investment properties. He has his eye on Florida’s far northwest border.

“Alabama is one of the most tax-friendly states for retirees,” said Shelley. “The state has no taxes on Social Security benefits, pension income or withdrawals from retirement accounts such as 401(k)s and IRAs. This makes it an attractive destination for retirees looking to stretch their retirement income. In addition to its tax-friendly policies, Alabama also boasts a low cost of living compared to other states, making it easier to manage expenses on a fixed retirement budget. The state also has a mild climate, with warm summers and mild winters, which can be appealing to those looking to escape harsher climates during their retirement years.”

Story continues

Related: 7 Places to Retire That Are Just Like Tropical Vacations But Way Cheaper

Wyoming

Shelley cited America’s least populous state as another budget-friendly destination that does not tax Social Security benefits or retirement account withdrawals.

“Wyoming also has no state income tax, making it an ideal location for retirees looking to minimize their tax burden,” he said. “The state also has a low overall cost of living and affordable housing options, making it a financially stable choice for retirement. In addition to its financial benefits, Wyoming offers plenty of outdoor activities and stunning natural landscapes for retirees to explore. With national parks like Yellowstone and Grand Teton within its borders, there is no shortage of opportunities for outdoor recreation and adventure.”

South Carolina

Back in the Southeast, Shelley touts South Carolina as an overlooked retirement destination with plenty of upside.

“The state has a low cost of living and affordable housing options, making it an attractive choice for those looking to stretch their retirement budget,” he said. “Additionally, South Carolina does not tax Social Security benefits and offers generous deductions for other forms of retirement income. Retirees in South Carolina can also enjoy a mild climate, beautiful beaches and a rich cultural and historical heritage. The state has many charming towns and cities that provide a slower pace of life, perfect for those looking to relax during their retirement years.”

New Hampshire

Amber Dixon is the CEO of Elderly Guides, an organization dedicated to providing answers and assistance to seniors on a range of issues — including relocation in retirement. She’s noticed a recent trend of older Americans scratching the Sunshine State off their shortlists.

“While Florida is a popular choice for retirement due to its warm climate and tax benefits, there are other states that can offer retirees a more holistic and enriching experience,” she said. “New Hampshire is an excellent choice due to its high quality of life, excellent health care services and low crime rates. Despite its higher cost of living, the natural beauty and outdoor recreation opportunities make it a compelling choice.”

South Dakota

In terms of climate, culture and geography, the Mount Rushmore State is about as far from Florida as you can get — but that doesn’t mean it’s not a great place to retire.

“South Dakota has a low cost of living and high health care quality, making it ideal for retirees,” said Dixon. “The state also has a favorable tax structure for retirees and a strong sense of community.”

Colorado

Dixon also cites Colorado as “a great choice for active retirees.” She said, “It provides a plethora of outdoor activities, from hiking to skiing. The state also ranks high in overall well-being, with excellent healthcare and a lower-than-average crime rate.”

Utah

On Colorado’s western border lies another mountain retirement haven, which offers many of the same benefits to active retirees.

“Utah offers a high quality of life with a focus on health and wellness,” said Dixon. “Its stunning natural landscapes provide plenty of opportunities for exploration and physical activity, ideal for maintaining a healthy lifestyle in retirement.”

More From GOBankingRates

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: I’m a Retirement Expert: These 7 States Are Better for Retirement Than Florida

MANILA (Reuters) – The Philippine government is ready to use “authority and forces” against attempts to divide the nation, a security official said Sunday, after former President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to separate some southern islands from the rest of the archipelago.

Duterte has called for the independence of his hometown Mindanao from the Philippines as his alliance with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr disintegrated this week over disagreements around efforts to amend the constitution.

Marcos said amending the 1987 constitution was meant to ease foreign investments, but Duterte accused him of using constitutional change to stay in power.

National security adviser Eduardo Ano said in a statement any attempt to secede “will be met by the government with resolute force”, citing “recent calls to separate Mindanao” but without specifically naming Duterte.

“The national government will not hesitate to use its authority and forces to quell and stop any and all attempts to dismember the Republic,” Ano said.

Ano said calls for secession could reverse the gains of government’s peace deal with former separatist groups.

Violence and conflict had plagued Mindanao for decades as the government battled insurgents and extremists, which has discouraged investments and left many villages in poverty.

The region’s largest rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), had signed a peace agreement with the Philippine government in 2014, withdrawing their fight for independence in exchange for enhanced autonomy in a Muslim region called the Bangsamoro.

Bangsamoro chief minister Ahod Ebrahim said in a statement on Friday he remains committed to the peace agreement while government peace process adviser Carlito Galvez Jr. called on Filipinos to “turn away from any call…to destabilize” the country.

Philippine armed forces chief Romeo Brawner told soldiers on Saturday “to remain united and loyal to the constitution and the chain of command”.

(Reporting by Mikhail Flores; editing by Miral Fahmy)

Killer Mike was detained at the 66th Grammy Awards at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles Sunday afternoon, shortly after winning three of the four rap categories in the pre-show telecast about two hours earlier.

An LAPD source tells Rolling Stone that Render was cuffed and detained after an alleged “physical altercation” inside the arena involving a third party. “Somebody complains, obviously we have to do something about it,” the source said. Render was questioned, the source said, adding that any possible arrest depends on the result of the investigation and whether the third party wants to press charges.

More from Rolling Stone

Video captured by The Hollywood Reporter’s Chris Gardner showed Render, being taken away in handcuffs. Gardner reported that an official said the arrest was related to an unspecified misdemeanor that didn’t have to do with any happenings during the Grammys on Sunday. (A rep for Killer Mike did not immediately reply to a request for comment.)

The detainment came shortly after the rapper had gone to the press area fielding questions about his win — elated to have been recognized after more than 20 years into his hip-hop career. “It feels absolutely grand,” Render said. “If it feels like some people are reaching the finish line first, don’t worry. Just keep running your race. The only thing stopping you is your imagination. It’s our responsibility to be grand in every action.”

Sunday’s award marked the first time Render had won a Grammy for his solo work. His first win came more than two decades ago for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group alongside Outkast for “The Whole World.” Prior to 2024, he was last nominated in 2018 for Best Rap Song for “Chase Me,” the Run the Jewels collaboration with Danger Mouse and Big Boi. Render did not address the incident on social media following the detainment, but proclaimed “Thank God” and “Dreams come true – It’s a sweep!”

Ironically, Mike’s father served as a policeman in Atlanta. In 2014, he told The Fader that his father wanted him and his siblings to be “good citizens,” but he didn’t want them to join the police force.

Mike also referenced his father in 2020, during an emotional press conference amid intense protests in the wake of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor’s police killings.

“I’m the son of an Atlanta City Police Officer. My cousin is an Atlanta City Police Officer…I got a lot of love and respect for police officers,” he said standing alongside then-Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and rapper T.I. Mike, along with T.I. also made polarizing pleas for Atlanta residents to stop looting and burning area establishments.

He noted, “I’m duty bound to be here to simply say that it is your duty not to burn your own house down for anger with an enemy. It is your duty to fortify your own house so that you may be a house of refuge in times of organization.”

Mike has frequently discussed the failings of the police system in his music, in interviews, and a 2014 op-ed about the Ferguson uprising,” where he wrote “I will never take a day off policing the people we pay and keep a public trust with. I will use my camera, my pen, my pad and my network to do my part, to make sure that American will no longer fear their government. or it’s employees.  They work for us — not the other way around.

This is not the first time an artist has been arrested on the site of an awards show. In 2006, Yaasin Bey was arrested by the NYPD after a guerilla-style street performance. He traveled to Radio City Music Hall, where the MTV Video Music Awards were taking place, and performed “Katrina Clap,” a remix of UTP’s “Nolia Clap” that spoke on the Hurricane Katrina tragedy. Though Bey’s then-publicist claimed he had a permit to perform, he was still arrested after a crowd gathered around the flatbed truck he was performing on.

Additional reporting by Nancy Dillon and Tomás Mier. This is a developing story…

Best of Rolling Stone

By Ellen Zhang and Marius Zaharia

BEIJING/HONG KONG (Reuters) – When Kris Lin, who owns a lighting factory in China, received this year’s first order from a close overseas client, he faced a distressing choice: take it at a loss, or tell workers not to come back after the Lunar New Year.

“It was impossible for me to lose this order,” said Lin, who plans to re-start his factory in the eastern city of Taizhou at around half its capacity after the Feb. 10-17 holiday break.

“I could have lost this client forever, and it would have endangered livelihoods for so many people. If we delay resuming production, people might start doubting our business. If rumours spread, it affects the decisions of our suppliers.”

Prolonged factory deflation is threatening the survival of smaller Chinese exporters who are locked in relentless price wars for shrinking business as higher interest rates abroad and rising trade protectionism squeeze demand.

Producer prices have been falling for 15 straight months, crushing profit margins to the point where industrial output and jobs are now at risk and compounding China’s economic woes, which include a property crisis and debt crunch.

About 180 million people work in export-related jobs, commerce ministry data from 2022 shows.

Raymond Yeung, chief China economist at ANZ, says fixing deflation should be a higher policy priority than reaching the expected growth target of around 5% for this year.

“Companies cut product prices, then staff salaries. Then consumers won’t buy – this could be a vicious cycle,” he said.

Profits at China’s industrial firms fell 2.3% last year, adding to the 4% drop in COVID-hit 2022. An official survey showed manufacturing activity contracting for a fourth straight month in January, while export orders shrank for a 10th month.

For Lin, that has meant the $1.5 million order his client placed was 25% below a similar one last year. It was 10% below production cost.

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Sluggish exports mean policymakers need to pull other levers to reach their growth target, increasing the urgency of stimulating household consumption, analysts say.

“The more ‘rebalanced’ growth is, the faster that downward pressure on prices and margins will dissipate,” said Louis Kuijs, Asia-Pacific chief economist at S&P Global.

‘RAT RACE’

China has been funnelling financial resources into the manufacturing sector, rather than consumers, exacerbating overcapacity and deflation concerns, even in booming higher-end sectors, such as electric vehicles.

An executive at an automotive moulds factory from the eastern Zhejiang province, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter, expects the firm’s output and exports to rise, but earnings to fall, describing the intensifying competition in the industry as a “rat race.”

As China’s central bank unleashes liquidity into the financial system to spur growth, banks are chasing factories with cheap loan offers.

But squeezed out by bigger rivals, smaller firms are unwilling to take on loans to finance new business, in what economists see as a broken link in China’s increasingly inefficient monetary policy.

Investment by private companies, which according to state officials provide 80% of urban jobs, dropped 0.4% last year, while state investment rose 6.4%.

“Many bank managers call me and they sound very anxious when they can’t lend money,” said Miao Yujie, an e-commerce clothing exporter.

Even after halving his workforce to about 20 people last year, he cannot turn a profit as bigger firms elbow him out of the market.

“But you only need to borrow when you want to expand,” said Miao, adding he mulls closing his business.

THIS TIME IS DIFFERENT

China also went through a deflationary scare in 2015, when it faced overcapacity in primary industries, such as steel, dominated by state-owned enterprises. Authorities downsized these companies to reduce supply and accelerated infrastructure and property construction to boost demand.

“This time it’s more of a private sector surplus,” said Hwabao Trust economist Nie Wen, singling out electronics, chemicals and machinery makers. These firms employ large numbers of people, a sensitive spot for China’s policymakers.

“It is therefore difficult to shrink supply, so more effort should be made on the demand side this year,” Nie said.

Factory owners say the pressure to cut jobs is intense, even if some are reluctant to do so.

Yang Bingben, whose company makes industrial-use valves in the eastern city of Wenzhou, said he had thought of shutting down the business, but keeps it running as he feels indebted to his workers, most of whom are close to retirement age.

Still, he doesn’t know how long the factory can survive.

“This year will be the best of the next decade,” Yang said.

(Additional reporting by Qiaoyi Li; Graphic by Kripa Jayaram; Editing by Sam Holmes)

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