NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-11-2025 8PM EST

Episode Date: January 12, 2025

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Okay, so does this sound like you? You love NPR's podcasts, you wish you could get more of all your favorite shows, and you want to support NPR's mission to create a more informed public. If all that sounds appealing, then it is time to sign up for the NPR Plus bundle. Learn more at plus.npr.org. Live from NPR News in New York City, I'm Dua-Helisa Icautau. On day five of raging wildfires in Southern California, more communities are under threat in the Los Angeles region. Elise Hue reports. Flames are stretching into the communities of Brentwood, West LA, and Mandeville Canyon

in Los Angeles. Firefighters are conducting air drops and digging lines on the ground in an effort to stop the flames from spreading. They are racing to contain the Palisades Fire, which is already the biggest of the wildfires in the county, ahead of more wind events forecast for Monday. Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Maroney gave an update. LA County fire will be prepared. These winds combined with dry air and dry vegetation will keep the fire threat in Los Angeles County high. Dusk to dawn curfews are in effect for Palisades and Eaton fire evacuation zones. For NPR News, I'm Elise Hugh in Los Angeles. Just over a week before President-elect Donald Trump

takes office, groups of House Republicans are visiting Mar-a-Lago this weekend to meet with him. NPR's Amy Held reports the GOP is strategizing over how to push through its priorities. As they prepare to take the trifecta of power in Washington, the GOP has a lot of issues they want to address, like immigration and border security, tax and spending cuts. And they want Trump to weigh in on how to prioritize and structure them.

He met with Republican senators on Capitol Hill earlier this week and said he cares less about process, more about results. We're looking at the one bill versus two bills and whatever it is, it's a matter of whether we get the results. Not if Democrats have their way. Republicans are considering tools to get around a filibuster, including the high-risk, high-reward reconciliation process that would allow for a simple majority to pass legislation. Amy Held, NPR News.

TikTok is awaiting a decision from the Supreme Court over a law that could ban the app by next Sunday. As NPR's Bobby Allen reports, lawyers for a video service say if it is shut down, lawmakers could go after other companies. Tick Tock is asking the Supreme Court to pause or overturn a law prohibiting the app from operating in the U.S. unless it sheds its Chinese owner. TikTok's legal team told the court that upholding the ban will set a dangerous precedent. Lawyer Jeff Fisher, who represented creators on TikTok in the case, asked the justices why lawmakers did not appear worried about other Chinese apps in its crackdown. Would a Congress really worried about these very dramatic risks leave out an e-commerce

site like Temu that has 70 million Americans using it. The Justice Department says China's potential influence over TikTok makes the app a risk to Americans' data and security. President-elect Donald Trump says once in office, he will find a way to save the app. Bobbi Allen in PR News, Washington. This is in PR News. The nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom with distinction, a rare award, is going to Pope Francis. President Biden made the announcement just hours ago after having called his Holiness to congratulate the 88-year-old.

In a statement, Biden says the first pope from the southern hemisphere, Pope Francis, is unlike any who came before. Biden added, above all, he is the people's pope, a light of faith, hope and love that shines brightly across the world. Biden was scheduled to fly to the Vatican this weekend, but canceled due to the California wildfires. The Super Bowl in New Orleans is less than a month away, and public safety concerns have grown since the Bourbon Street attack on New Year's Day.

As Joseph King of the Gulf States Newsroom reports, officials say state and local law enforcement are prepared. At a press conference, New Orleans city officials reassured residents and visitors. New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said local agencies working alongside the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies have created a program for people and businesses involved with the Super Bowl to help identify any suspicious activity. Our greatest asset, which we keep hearing over and over, and which we know are our people. And so if we can engage them in training, And it is specifically on security and terrorism training, awareness training that we will be conducting.

Cantrell said there will be hundreds of local, state and federal officers spread out across New Orleans to ensure public safety. For NPR News, I'm Joseph King. And I'm Dua-Helisa Icautel, NPR News. Matt Wilson spent years doing rounds at children's hospitals in New York City. I had a clip-on tie, I wore Heelys, size 11. Matt was a medical clown. The whole of a medical clown is to reintroduce

the sense of play and joy and hope and light into a space that doesn't normally inhabit. Ideas about navigating uncertainty. That's on the TED Radio Hour podcast from NPR.