NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-09-2025 9PM EST

Episode Date: January 10, 2025

NPR News: 01-09-2025 9PM ESTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Indicator is a podcast where daily economic news is about what matters to you. Workers have been feeling the sting of inflation. So as a new administration promises action on the cost of living, taxes, and home prices, The S&P 500 biggest post-election day spike ever. follow all the big changes and what they mean for you. Make America affordable again. Listen to The Indicator, the daily economics podcast from NPR. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear.

As several Southern California wildfires continue to rage, President Joe Biden has detailed what the federal government is going to do to help with the response. More from NPR's Lexi Schepitl. President Biden said the federal government is sending 400 firefighters, nearly 40 firefighting helicopters and planes, and 500 ground clearing personnel to Southern California. He also said he had approved funding to cover costs of fire management, debris removal, and first responder salaries for 180 days. But he said Congress will need to allocate more funds for the response efforts.

We're going to be going back to Congress asking for some more help on some of this stuff. And I hope they're ready to step up. Biden also said that lack of power, which was shut off in some cases to prevent sparking more fires, was to blame for some hydrants in the area running dry. Some Republicans have accused local Democratic officials of mismanaging the water supply. Lexi Shapittle, NPR News, Washington. With the number of structures damaged or destroyed by the California wildfires rising between

four and five thousand, many people are returning to their homes to find nothing but charred ruins. MPR's Frank Langford spoke with one homeowner. Jingwan Liu-Tur-Villan had a modest one-story house in Altadena, the small pool. When she left Tuesday night, she thought she'd be back the next day. So we packed our documents, we packed the kids' artwork, and we packed one night worth of clothes. On Wednesday, her son Sam drove back

to pick up more possessions. It was entirely burned to the ground. And I was just stunned, absolutely stunned. Gone are the photos and pictures on the walls and the entire block. I keep on waking up at night thinking, oh my God, how did I not anticipate this? The Auteur Volon says she's not certain

if her family will rebuild here. Frank Langford, NPR News. The Supreme Court has rejected President-elect Donald Trump's request to stop his sentencing in the New York hush money case scheduled for tomorrow. As NPR's Amanda Bastille reports, this was Trump's final attempt to delay the criminal sentencing. The court said that any concerns Trump has about the case should first be litigated through

quote ordinary course on appeal or through lower courts. The justices also said that sentencing will inflict a relatively light burden on him since New York Judge Juan Marchand intends to impose a sentence of unconditional discharge, meaning Trump will not face prison, probation, or any fines. The conviction will, however, remain on his records. Conservative justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, and Brett Kavanaugh would have sided with Trump in halting the sentencing. That means Trump was just one person shy of having a majority of the court agree with him. The decision means Trump will become the first former or sitting president to be convicted

and sentenced on criminal charges after he was found guilty of falsifying business records. Kima Nabustio, NPR News, New York. U.S. financial markets are closed today due to the national day of mourning for former president Jimmy Carter. You're listening to NPR. One organization in Sacramento, California has been dedicated to helping black students with disabilities get the school services they are legally entitled to. Cap Radio Shisti Prabhasmore. Parent Malik faced an uphill battle trying to advocate for her son's school needs

after he was diagnosed with autism. Even though I'm aware of what rights my son had, it seemed like there was always a fight for it. And I always felt outnumbered. Malik's son now has a 3.8 GPA. After being directed to a school that has the resources to support him, she credits the Black Parallel School Board, a Sacramento-based community organization that helps families navigate school systems. In 2019, the board sued the school district saying black students with disabilities were being disproportionately segregated and disciplined. In 2023, they

reached a settlement and the district said they were working to be, quote, more inclusive and less punitive. For NPR News, I'm Srishti Prabha in Sacramento. A spacecraft launched by the European Space Agency and Japan has beamed back some of the closest photos ever of the planet Mercury's North Pole. Pictures released today by the European Space Agency show the permanently shadowed craters at the top of the solar system's smallest innermost planet. It was the sixth flyby of Mercury by the BepiColombo spacecraft since it was first launched in 2018.

Critical futures prices moved higher today as colder winter weather in the U.S. and Europe was expected to drive up demand for heating fuel, oil up 60 cents a barrel to $73.92 a barrel in New York. I'm Jack Spear, NPR News in Washington.