NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-22-2025 10PM EST

Episode Date: January 23, 2025

NPR News: 01-22-2025 10PM ESTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janene Hurst. The Justice Department is directing federal prosecutors to investigate and possibly prosecute state and local officials who don't cooperate with immigration authorities. MPHERES Joel Rose reports a memo issued this week realigns the department's position with President Trump's executive actions. The three-page memo was sent to the entire DOJ workforce by Acting Deputy Attorney General Amal Bovi. It signals a sharp break with the immigration policies of the Biden administration.

The memo says prosecutors should return to the principle of charging defendants with the most serious crime they can prove, removing the discretion to charge a lower-level offense. Bovi also calls on U.S. attorneys to prosecute state or local officials who obstruct, quote, lawful immigration-related commands or requests, unquote. Boevi also calls on U.S. attorneys to prosecute state or local officials who obstruct, quote, lawful immigration-related commands or requests, unquote. That sets the stage for a fresh round of legal action against so-called sanctuary cities and states that limit their cooperation with immigration authorities. Joel Rose, NPR News, Washington.

Federal agencies put workers in diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility offices on paid lead this evening as part of President Trump's efforts to end those programs. And here's Andrea Hsu has more. In several sweeping executive orders, President Trump has called DEIA programs illegal, immoral, and discriminatory. The Office of Personnel Management gave federal agencies until the end of the business day to begin shutting down offices running such programs. By the end of the month, federal agencies must submit plans to lay people off. It's not clear how many people could be affected

by this order. Rob Shriver was OPM's acting director under former President Biden. Given the broad brush that they have painted, it's potentially very large numbers of people. Agencies have also been directed to terminate DEIA-related contracts. Andrea Hsu, NPR News. And President Trump says he's open to Elon Musk or Oracle chairman Larry Ellison buying TikTok. And Piers Babayalan reports the popular video sharing app remains in legal limbo until it breaks away from its Chinese owner. Neither Musk nor Ellison has come right out and announced any interest in TikTok, but Ellison stood next to Trump in the White House when he made this comment.

So what I'm thinking about saying to somebody is buy it and give half to the United States of America, half, and we'll give you the permit and they'll have a great partner, the United States. A federal law upheld by the Supreme Court mandates the video apps U.S. operations be sold away from China. Other self-described bidders include the content creator known as Mr. Beast. Any TikTok transaction would require approval from Beijing. Bobbi Allen, NPR News.

Another fire has broken out in Los Angeles County, this one north of Kasaik, and it's forced some 50,000 people to evacuate. The Hughes fire has exploded in size today and it's burned more than 9,000 acres and is 0% contained. There's no word on the cause of the blaze. Asian markets are trading higher than Ikea and Japan, up about a half percent. You're listening to NPR News. In Nashville, a 17-year-old male student armed with a pistol shot and killed a female student

in their high school cafeteria before turning the gun on himself. Another student was grazed by a bullet. There's no word on a motive. Netflix announced a record-setting fourth quarter today, adding about 19 million new subscribers. And here's Eric Deggans reports that the video streaming company is also raising the cost of its monthly subscription. Netflix says it now has about 302 million subscribers globally, a 16% increase from

the year before. The company credited a range of programs, from popular series like the second season of hit drama Squid Game to live events, like two NFL games on Christmas Day. The service has also boosted prices for its subscription tiers. Standard service with ads goes up to about $8 a month, while standard without ads and premium services will go up to about $18 and $25 per month respectively. The company will no longer report its number of paid memberships every quarter, which may make tracking the impact of these price hikes more difficult. Eric Deggans, NPR News.

Stellantis, which owns Chrysler and Jeep, says it plans to reopen an assembly plant in Illinois and increase production on other plants around the country. This says the company tries to strengthen its U.S. manufacturing base and resolve ongoing disputes with United Auto Workers Union. Stellantis also says it will build a new Dodge Durango SUV at its plant in Detroit. I'm Janene Herbst, and you're listening to NPR News from Washington.