NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-20-2025 11PM EST

Episode Date: January 21, 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 Washington, I'm Shea Stevens. President Donald Trump has issued pardons to more than 1,500 people charged in connection with a violent January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. As NPR's Tom Driesbach reports, Trump's action ends the prison sentence for every defendant who attacked police on that day.

On January 6, 2021, a mob of Trump supporters violently stormed the Capitol, some using weapons like pepper spray, a stun gun, a hockey stick, and stolen riot batons that they used to attack and beat police officers. More than 100 officers were injured. Following the insurrection, the Justice Department brought charges against more than 1,500 people. Now, Trump has given nearly all of those defendants an unconditional pardon, except for just 14 who are getting commutations. That smaller group will be released from prison, but still have a felony on their records. Trump said the January 6th defendants had been treated horribly, though most of them

pleaded guilty. Tom Dreisbach, NPR News. In his final moments as president, Joe Biden preemptively pardoned several members of his own family. NPR's Asma Khalid reports on that unusual move. In a statement, Biden wrote that his family had been subjected to, quote, unrelenting attacks and threats that he does not foresee ending. And therefore he was pardoning his brother James and his wife, his sister Valerie and her husband, along with his other brother Francis. He said the issuance of these pardons should not be mistaken as an acknowledgement that

they did anything wrong. But it's a sign of the distrust Biden has for the new administration. This despite Biden's longstanding avowal of respect for the rule of law. Late last year, Biden issued a sweeping pardon of his son Hunter, who had been convicted of gun and tax related crimes. Asma Khalid, NPR News. The Senate has unanimously confirmed Florida Republican

Marco Rubio to be the next Secretary of State. And as NPR's Michelle Kellerman reports, Rubio is expected to be on the job as soon as Tuesday. Once he's sworn in, Rubio is expected to dive into work hosting foreign ministers from India, Japan and Australia at the State Department. The group, known as the Quad, is a key partnership in the Pacific and part of the U.S. efforts to counter China's influence.

The three ministers are in Washington for Trump's inauguration. Marco Rubio has been a hawkish voice in the Senate on China, and in his confirmation hearing, he described China as a potent and dangerous adversary. He said the U.S. needs to build up its domestic industrial base so that Americans won't have to depend so much

on goods from China. Michelle Kelliman, NPR News, Washington. Most of the nation is experiencing dangerous cold temperatures, and a winter storm is threatening to blanket areas from Texas through the Gulf states and into the southeast. You're listening to NPR News. Firefighters in Southern California are bracing for the return of extreme weather conditions that could fuel more fires. Forecasters are predicting wind gusts of up to 70 miles per hour along the coast and higher

gusts in the mountains and the Los Angeles foothills through Tuesday. Today wasn't just about the presidential inauguration across the United States. Communities also celebrated Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy. Brian Bull of Members Station KLCC reports from Eugene, Oregon. An MLK boulevard, roughly 300 people lined up in below freezing temperatures for the annual MLK Jr Celebration on March. DeMond Hawkins of the Eugene Springfield NAACP said President Trump's push to roll back DEI initiatives neither surprises nor discourages Black Americans. If we were fighting for diversity,

equity and inclusion before, it didn't matter if Kamala Harris was in office or Donald Trump in office, we were going to still have to for diversity, equity, and inclusion. That's just what the battle is in our country, right? Marchers paraded through Eugene before more speakers and music honoring King's civil rights legacy. For NPR News, I'm Brian Boll in Eugene, Oregon. Former Planned Parenthood president Cecil Richards has died following a bout with brain cancer. Richards led the organization through some of its most tumultuous years. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in November. Cecil Richards was the daughter of late Texas Governor Ann Richards. She was 67 years old.

Wall Street was closed today, and observance of the King holiday and pre-market training, U.S. futures are mixed. This is NPR News.