NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-04-2025 6AM EST

Episode Date: January 4, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Giles Snyder. Investigators believe Wednesday's cyber truck explosion in Las Vegas is not connected to the New Year's Eve attack in New Orleans. The FBI says a decorated Army combat veteran found in the truck was likely struggling with PTSD and other issues. Investigators say he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Businesses in the French Quarter of New Orleans hoping tourists don't stay away after the deadly New Year's Day attack.

NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports on the crucial time for some shops. At NOLA Gifts to Go on Bourbon Street, Cindy Dacula says the store stocked up on colorful bead necklaces for the teams in this week's Sugar Bowl. This only the time that we making money because we always run out of the beads. But this time we stuck. Stuck with a lot of unsold beads, she says. A few blocks up, an iconic restaurant had no line for its normally in-demand lunch. One woman who sells tour tickets worries people will just go someplace else for a while.

Many say the attack should not be a bad mark for the city. It could have happened anywhere and they hope crowds return soon for the Super Bowl and Mardi Gras. Jennifer Letton, NPR News, New Orleans. Former New York City Mayor and Donald Trump ally Rudy Giuliani is weighing in on Judge Juan Marchand's decision to sentence Trump in the Hush Money case. Let the case go and don't disgrace the judiciary more than he already has and he's done a hell of a job of making New York judges

look foolish all around the country. Giuliani spoke to reporters after he testified in his own New York case, a contempt hearing in which he insisted that he is not hiding assets from lawyers trying to recover of 148 million dollar judgment for two Georgia election workers. Trump is not expected to face jail time when he's sentenced next Friday. Judge Mershawn indicated that he's leaning toward a sentence that would amount to just closing the case, leaving Trump facing the prospect of becoming the first felon to be inaugurated as president. President Biden awarded seven U.S. Army veterans with the Medal of Honor. MPR's Franco Ordonez reports they were recognized for their heroism during the Korean and Vietnam

wars. Five of the recipients were killed in battle. Another Korean war veteran, Richard Cavazos, died later as the first Hispanic four-star general for the Army. Only specialist first-class Ken David, who drew fire away from his injured comrades in Vietnam so they could get medical aid, was at the White House to receive the medal from President Biden. Ken, I want to say to you that I wish I could say to every man we're honoring today, you're a hero, a genuine hero, a flat-out, straight-up American hero, and we owe you. Biden called the Medal of Honor ceremony

the most solemn occasion he's had the honor to participate in as Commander in Chief Franco Ordonez. NPR News, The White House. And from Washington, this is NPR News. Six days of funeral observances begin today for former President Jimmy Carter. Crowds are expected at the Carter Center in Atlanta today. Carter will lie in repose air before ceremonies move to Washington, D.C. next week. A national service is planned for Thursday at Washington's National Cathedral. President Biden is to deliver the eulogy. Carter is to be laid to rest next to his wife, Rosalynn, in their hometown of Plains, Georgia. Stocks gained ground on Friday, but still ended

down for the week. NPR's Scott Horsley reports that all of the major stock indexes fell by at least half a percent. It was a short week on Wall Street, with markets closed on Wednesday for the New Year's holiday. Investors had lots to celebrate as 2024 came to an end with double-digit annual market gains. The first week of 2025, however, was not so rosy. Stock in U.S. steel fell on Friday after President Biden formally blocked the storied company's sale to Japan's Nippon Steel. A new report showed U.S. factories are still in a slump, although there are some signs

of improvement, with new orders and production activity both perking up. For the week, the Dow slipped six-tenths of a percent. The broader S&P 500 index and the Nasdaq both fell about half a percent. Scott Horsley, MPR News, Washington. Major winter storm will get going by this evening, forecasted to say widespread heavy snow and significant ice likely in parts of Kansas and Indiana. Strong winds could lead to blizzard conditions in the central plains.

That storm is then forecast to move into the east over the next several days. This is NPR News.