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The idea about the real, and growing, possibility of a united Ireland holds a romantic appeal far beyond a small corner of north-western Europe. For many years, unification was never more than a Republican fantasy. But something has changed. This week, Sinn Fein, which campaigns for unification, won the most first-preference votes in the republic’s election.

Irish unification is becoming likelier

Time to start thinking about what it might mean 

Dublin, Feb.13.– For most of the century since Ireland gained independence from Britain, control of the country has alternated between two parties. On February 8th that duopoly was smashed apart, when Sinn Fein got the largest share of first-preference votes in the republic’s general election. The party, with links to the Irish Republican Army (IRA), which bombed and shot its way through the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, won with a left-wing platform that included promises to spend more on health and housing. Yet it did not hide its desire for something a lot more ambitious. “Our core political objective”, its manifesto read, “is to achieve Irish Unity and the referendum on Unity which is the means to secure this.”

Vatican officials: 'Querida Amazonia' is magisterium, Amazon synod's final doc is not.

by Hannah Brockhaus
Catholic News Agency

Vatican City, Feb.12.– Pope Francis' post-synodal exhortation on the Amazon is part of the Church's ordinary magisterium — that is officially a kind of Church teaching — while the final document of the Vatican’s 2019 Amazon synod is not, Cardinal Michael Czerny, special secretary of the Amazon synod, said Feb. 12.

The distinction in the authoritative weight of the two documents was also emphasized by Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, secretary general of the Synod of Bishops, and by Matteo Bruni, the director of the Holy See Press Office.

Bruni emphasized that “the apostolic exhortation is magisterium, the final document is not.” He later added that “anything in the final document should be read in the lens of the apostolic exhortation,” including any “application.”

“So we have two documents of two different kinds,” Cardinal Czerny said in a presentation to journalists.

Pope Francis released Feb. 12 the apostolic letter, "Querida Amazonia," which presents his response to the discussion of the Amazon synod, which took place in Rome over three weeks in October 2019.

Article of Impeachment Nº 1 was rejected by 52 "not guilty" votes against 48 "guilty" votes.

Article of Impeachment Nº 2 was rejected by 53 "not guilty" votes gainst 48 "guilty" votes.

Vote was entirely along Party lines, with the exception of Republican Senator Mitt Romney, who voted "guilty" on Article Nº 1, but reconsidered as "not guilty" on Article Nº 2. One Independent Senator voted "guilty" on both Articles, and another Independent Senator voted "not guilty" on both Articles.

Washington DC, Feb.5 (DP.net).– Article I of the Constitution grants the House the sole power of impeachment, and if the House does impeach, the Senate the “sole power to try all impeachments.” It also provides that the Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court will preside if the trial involves a President. The Constitution authorizes the Senate to “determine the rules of its proceedings,” including additional rules governing an impeachment trial by the Senate. This was the procedure followed and President Donald Trump was acquited of both impeachment charges presented by the eight House prosecutors, presided by Adam Schiff (all of them members of the Democratic Party). They have accused him on two accounts: that he abused his power and that he obstructed Congress.

Washington DC, Jan 28 (DP.net).– During proceedings this Wednesday in the Senate, Trump’s lawyers painted Biden and his son Hunter as corrupt actors worthy of investigation. Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, in particular, zeroed in on the younger Biden for his role serving on the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian energy company, while his father oversaw Ukraine policy as Vice President of the United States.

“Every witness who was asked about Hunter Biden’s involvement at Burisma agreed there was a potential appearance of a conflict of interest,” Bondi said Monday, describing House testimony.

However, Kurt Volker, the former U.S. special envoy for Ukraine, testified in the House impeachment inquiry that he saw no validity to Trump’s allegations of corruption on the Bidens’ part. There has been no evidence of corruption on the part of the former Vice President or his son, said Volker.

But Senator Joni Kay Ernst, a former military officer serving as the junior United States Senator for Iowa since 2015, said it was “entirely appropriate” for the president’s defense team to attack the Bidens. She said the information aired about them on Monday might be useful to the voting public.