Category: 2. World

WASHINGTON: Debate is underway in the Senate for an all-night session Sunday, with Republicans wrestling President Donald Trump’s big bill of tax breaks and spending cuts over mounting Democratic opposition — and even some brake-pumping over the budget slashing by the president himself.

The outcome from the weekend of work in the Senate remains uncertain and highly volatile. GOP leaders are rushing to meet Trump’s Fourth of July deadline to pass the package, but they barely secured enough support to muscle it past a procedural hurdle in a tense scene the day before. A handful of Republican holdouts revolted, and it took phone calls from Trump and a visit from Vice President JD Vance to keep it on track.

GOP Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina announced Sunday he would not seek reelection after Trump badgered him for saying he could not vote for the bill with its steep Medicaid cuts. A new analysis from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget

Office found that 11.8 million more Americans would become uninsured by 2034 if the bill became law. It also said the package would increase the deficit by nearly $3.3 trillion over the decade.

But other Senate Republicans, along with conservatives in the House, are pushing for steeper cuts, particularly to health care, drawing their own unexpected warning from Trump.

“Don’t go too crazy!” the president posted on social media. “REMEMBER, you still have to get reelected.”

All told, the Senate bill includes some $4 trillion in tax cuts, making permanent Trump’s 2017 rates, which would expire at the end of the year if Congress fails to act, while adding the new ones he campaigned on, including no taxes on tips.

The Senate package would roll back billions in green energy tax credits that Democrats warn will wipe out wind and solar investments nationwide, and impose $1.2 trillion in cuts, largely to Medicaid and food stamps, by imposing work requirements and making sign-up eligibility more stringent.

Additionally, the bill would provide a $350 billion infusion for border and national security, including for deportations, some of it paid for with new fees charged to immigrants.

If the Senate can push through overnight voting and pass the bill, it would need to return to the House. Speaker Mike Johnson has told lawmakers to be on call for a return to Washington this coming week.

Democrats ready to fight all night

Unable to stop the march toward passage of the 940-page bill, the Democrats as the minority party in Congress is using the tools at its disposal to delay and drag out the process.

Democrats forced a full reading of the text, which took some 16 hours. Then senators took over the debate, filling the chamber with speeches, while Republicans largely stood aside.

“Reckless and irresponsible,” said Sen. Gary Peters of Michigan. “A gift to the billionaire class,” said Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

Sen. Patty Murray, the ranking Democrat on the Appropriations Committee, raised particular concern about the accounting method being used by the Republicans, which says the tax breaks from Trump’s first term are now “current policy” and the cost of extending them should not be counted toward deficits.

“In my 33 years here in the United States Senate, things have never — never — worked this way,” said Murray, the longest-serving Democrat on the Budget Committee.

She said that kind of “magic math” won’t fly with Americans trying to balance their own household books.

“Go back home and try that game with your constituents,” she said. “We still need to kick people off their health care — that’s too expensive. We still need to close those hospitals — we have to cut costs. And we still have to kick people off SNAP — because the debt is out of control.”

Sanders said Tillis’ decision not to seek reelection shows the hold that Trump’s cult of personality has over the GOP.

“We are literally taking food out of the mouths of hungry kids,” Sanders said, while giving tax breaks to Jeff Bezos and other wealthy billionaires.

GOP leaders unphased

Republicans are using their majorities to push aside Democratic opposition, and appeared undeterred, even as they have run into a series of political and policy setbacks.

“We’re going to pass the ‘Big, beautiful bill,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, the Budget Committee chairman.

The holdout Republicans remain reluctant to give their votes, and their leaders have almost no room to spare, given their narrow majorities. Essentially, they can afford three dissenters in the Senate, with its 53-47 GOP edge, and about as many in the House, if all members are present and voting.

Trump, who has at times allowed wiggle room on his deadline, kept the pressure on lawmakers to finish.

He threatened to campaign aginst Tillis, who was worried that Medicaid cuts would leave many without health care in his state. Trump badgered Tillis again on Sunday morning, saying the senator “has hurt the great people of North Carolina.”

Later Sunday, Tillis issued a lengthy statement announcing he would not seek reelection in 2026.

 

In an impassioned evening speech, Tillis shared his views arguing the Senate approach is a betrayal of Trump’s promise not to kick people off health care.

“We could take the time to get this right,” he thundered. But until then, he said he would remain opposed.

Democrats can’t filibuster, but can stall

Using a congressional process called budget reconciliation, the Republicans can muscle the bill through on a simple majority vote in the Senate, rather than the typical 60-vote threshold needed to overcome objections.

Without the filibuster, Democrats have latched on to other tools to mount their objections.

One is the full reading of the bill text, which has been done in past situations. Democrats also intend to use their full 10 hours of available debate time, now underway.

And then Democrats are prepared to propose dozens of amendments to the package that would be considered in an all-night voting session — or all-day, depending on the hour.

GOP senators to watch

As Saturday’s vote tally teetered, attention turned to Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, who was surrounded by GOP leaders in intense conversation. She voted “yes.”

Several provisions in the package are designed for her state in Alaska, but some were out of compliance of the strict rules by the Senate parliamentarian.

A short time later, Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., drew holdouts Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, Mike Lee of Utah and Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming to his office. Vance joined in.

Later, Scott said, “We all want to get to yes.”

 

KARACHI: Members of the fisherfolk community, civil society and rights activists staged a rally calling for a transformation of the international financial system, along with immediate demands such as debt cancellation, wealth taxes and the delivery of climate finance.

The rally was held in connection with the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) in Sevilla, Spain, a once-in-a-decade UN gathering that concluded on Sunday.

The participants marched from Governor House Roundabout to the Karachi Press Club, carrying banners and placards and raising slogans in favour of their demands.

Civil society organisations and movements reiterated the urgent demand for debt cancellation and called for a UN Framework Convention on Debt to pave the way for a democratic, multilateral and transparent mechanism to address unsustainable and illegitimate debts.

They assert that it is vital to move away from creditor-dominated forums that have failed to prevent and resolve the accumulation of unsustainable and illegitimate debts, and have resulted in debt relief schemes that protect creditor interests. In 2022, developing countries paid USD 49 billion more to their external creditors than they received in fresh disbursements.

Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum General Secretary Saeed Baloch said, “The global financial architecture is dominated by rich countries and not responsive to the needs and priorities of the Global South. It is in the interest of all of us… to build a Financing for Development system that reduces inequality… and ensures adequate public finance for climate change.”

Fatima Majeed, senior vice chairperson, said, “The international tax system is broken… Tax abuse by the rich and multinational corporations has instead taken these resources, deepening the debt crisis… A historic process is underway as countries will meet in August to begin negotiations on a UN Tax Convention.”

Climate disasters are further depleting public coffers in developing countries. Civil society groups emphasised that climate finance must be delivered in the form of public, predictable, grant-based finance, not loans. Aid cuts by Global North governments were denounced as harmful to necessary transitions.

Qazi Khizar of the HRCP, said, “The world is on fire — and the systems meant to protect us are feeding the flames.”

Majeed Motani, city president of PFF, said: “What our world needs is a massive transfer of resources from North to South, as part of the reparations we are owed for historical injustice.”

Talib Kuchi, PFF Karachi Secretary, added, “A UN Convention on Sovereign Debt… can deliver fair, sustainable and equitable solutions for all.”

Published in Dawn, June 30th, 2025

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan and China are working on a proposal to establish a new regional organisation that could potentially replace the now-defunct South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

Discussions between Islamabad and Beijing are now at an advanced stage as both sides are convinced that a new organisation is need of the hour for regional integration and connectivity, according to diplomatic sources familiar with the development.

The recent trilateral meeting of Pakistan, China and Bangladesh held in Kunming, China, was part of those diplomatic maneuvers.

The meeting attended by senior diplomats from three countries was first of its kind that raised eyebrows in India.

The ultimate goal of the meeting in Kunming on June 19 was to invite other South Asian countries, which were part of SAARC, to join the new grouping.

India, according to sources, would be invited to the new proposed forum but given its divergent interests, it is unlikely to respond positively.

Nevertheless, other countries including Sri Lanka, Maldives, Afghanistan to name a few are expected to be part of the grouping.

The main purpose of the new organisation is to seek greater regional engagement through enhanced trade and connectivity.

If the proposal is materialised, SAARC, which was once dubbed European Union (EU) of South Asia, would be dead as ever.

SAARC could not achieve its stated objectives as it remained hostage to adversarial ties between Pakistan and India.

The regional grouping last held its summit a decade ago. Pakistan was to host the summit in 2016 but India boycotted the meeting in Islamabad. Bangladesh, which was at the time ruled by pro-India Sheikh Hasina Wajid, also joined New Delhi in staying away from the summit.

Since then no serious efforts were made to revive the organisation, though Pakistan was keen to host the summit.

Recently, SAARC was dealt with another fatal blow when India withdrew from offering special visas under the organization to Pakistani businessmen following the Pahalgam attack.

Pakistan and China were discussing the proposal of new organization for months and came to the conclusion that like-minded countries should join hands for better future.

India, observers believe, because of its divergent interests finds itself misfit in other regional groupings such as Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Prime Minister Narendra Modi skipped the last two SCO summits. The 10-member security alliance comprises China, Russia, Iran, Pakistan and some central Asian States.

The presence of China and Russia often refers the SCO as regional bloc to challenge West. However, India in recent years seems to be at odds with the SCO agenda.

Seven workers were injured in the collapse, which occurred in an area controlled by the Sudanese Armed Forces.

The partial collapse of a traditional gold mine in Sudan’s northeast has killed 11 miners and wounded seven others, according to the state mining company, as a brutal civil war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) is in its third year.

Since the war erupted in April 2023, both sides’ war chests have been largely funded by Sudan’s gold industry.

In a statement released on Sunday, the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company (SMRC) said that the collapse occurred in an “artisanal shaft in the Kirsh al-Fil mine” over the weekend in the remote desert area of Howeid, located between the SAF-controlled cities of Atbara and Haiya in Sudan’s northeastern Red Sea state.

Another seven workers were injured and transferred to a hospital, the SMRC said.

The company added that it had previously suspended work in the mine and “warned against its continuing activity due to its posing great risk to life”.

According to official and NGO sources, nearly all of the gold trade is funnelled through the United Arab Emirates, which has been accused of arming the RSF. The UAE denies it does so.

The war has shattered Sudan’s already fragile economy. The army-backed government, nevertheless, announced record gold production of 64 tonnes in 2024.

Africa’s third-largest country is one of the continent’s top gold producers, but artisanal and small-scale gold mining accounts for the majority of gold extracted.

In contrast to larger industrial facilities, these mines lack safety measures and use hazardous chemicals that often cause widespread diseases in nearby areas.

Mining collapses are also common. Similar incidents in recent years include a 2023 collapse that killed 14 miners and another in 2021 that claimed 38 lives.

Before the war, which has pushed 25 million people into dire food insecurity, artisanal mining employed more than two million people, according to mining industry sources and experts.

Today, according to those sources, much of the gold produced by both sides is smuggled to Chad, South Sudan and Egypt, before reaching the UAE, the world’s second-largest gold exporter.

Tens of thousands of people have been killed in Sudan, where more than 13 million people are currently displaced in the world’s largest displacement crisis.

More than four million have fled across borders.

Currently, the SAF dominates the north and east of the country – including the smallest state by area, but most populous, Khartoum – along with some central areas. The RSF, meanwhile, holds most of western Sudan, including most of Darfur.