NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-23-2025 7AM EST

Episode Date: January 23, 2025

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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. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Korva Coleman. President Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, says deportation actions are underway.

These are supposed to focus on migrants considered a public safety threat. There is no word of a large immigration enforcement action. Homan is warning migrants in the U.S. illegally could also be arrested. NPR's Jasmine Garz reports from Chicago, sanctuary jurisdictions like the Illinois City are waiting to see what happens next. In Chicago's Little Village neighborhood, in a restaurant on the main street,

every time someone opens the door, a waitress named Caridad looks up in fear. I'm afraid... She says she worries that it's immigration agents. Caridad doesn't want her last name used. She's in the US without legal status. The potential raids have turned this immigrant neighborhood into a ghost town. People stay home out of fear.

Earlier this week, Mayor Brandon Johnson told NPR the city will stand by its sanctuary policies which prohibit Chicago police from enforcing immigration law. Jasmine Garst, NPR News, Chicago. President Trump continues to defend his pardons of about 1,500 January 6th rioters. He falsely claims those who were convicted were innocent. Some of the rioters were convicted for very violent attacks on police officers. One former officer says he's been betrayed

by his country. NPR's Odette Youssef says among those who have been freed by Trump are the leaders of two far-right extremist groups. Enrique Tarrio of the Proud Boys said that success during this administration will be quote retribution and the former Oath Keepers leader, Stuart Rhodes, also said he's expecting the administration to exact, quote, payback for his and others' prosecutions. Those two groups, you know, they've both changed a lot in the last four years. They're weaker, they're less centralized, but now they're experiencing a boost and even other groups are emboldened. Danielle Pletka And here's Odet-Yusef reporting.

Employees of the Department of Health and Human Services have been told to immediately stop all public communications. NPR has obtained a memo sent to the heads of all federal health agencies. And Piers Selena Simmons-Duffin has more. The memo was sent by Acting Health Secretary Dr. Dorothy Fink. It instructs all health agencies to institute an immediate pause on external communication, including social media, until items can be reviewed by an appointee of the Trump administration. It asserts such a pause is, quote, consistent with precedent.

The freeze on communications was first reported by the Washington Post. Dr. George's Benjamin is the president of the American Public Health Association and says he's giving the HHS team the benefit of the doubt. They're simply trying to get their hands around the government. This is a big government, but it creates enormous confusion. He believes the communications pause could have been avoided if there had been a smoother transition between the Biden and Trump administrations. Selena Simmons-Duffin, NPR News. You're listening to NPR. The Israeli military says it killed two Palestinian suspects wanted for an attack earlier this

month that killed several Israelis. At the same time, an Israeli incursion in the West Bank is intensifying after a ceasefire took effect last weekend in Gaza. And Piers Hadil El-Shelchi has more. The Israeli military says the suspects were wanted in the killings of two Israeli women and an off-duty police officer on January 6th. That attack targeted a bus on a road used by Israeli settlers as well as Palestinians near the village of Fundok.

Palestinian health officials confirmed the killing of the two suspects. The military says they were tracked down near Jenin, a major urban center and militant stronghold where the military is mounting a major operation. Palestinian health officials in the West Bank say 12 Palestinians have been killed in the latest Israeli operation. Hadil Alshalchi, NPR News, Tel Aviv. In the U.S., fire officials in Southern California say new wildfires have broken out in Los Angeles County. They include the Sepulveda fire that ignited after midnight. It's already burned 40 acres north of the city. The Hughes fire north of L.A. has also spilled into Ventura County. That's exploded to more than 10,000

acres. Thousands of people have been told to evacuate. Police in Nashville are investigating a deadly school shooting yesterday at a city high school. They say a male student shot and killed a female student and then wounded another male student. He then apparently shot and killed himself. Nashville authorities have not disclosed a motive for the attack. They say they're investigating disturbing online writings. I'm Korva Coleman, NPR News.

The indicator for Plano Money is diving into the world of batteries. I'm Korva Coleman, NPR News.