NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-24-2025 9AM EST

Episode Date: January 24, 2025

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The indicator from Planet Money is diving into the world of batteries. Not the kind you buy at the grocery store. We're talking really big batteries. The kind that can power thousands of homes. This technology came seemingly out of nowhere. We're digging deep into the battery industry in three back-to-back episodes. Listen to the indicator from Planet Money podcast on NPR. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Korva Coleman. The annual March for Life is happening today in Washington, D.C. Vice President Vance is expected to address the gathering of anti-abortion activists. The event comes as President Trump has pardoned several anti-abortion activists convicted

of blocking entrances to women's clinics that perform abortions. President Trump's nominee to be defense secretary has passed a procedural vote in the Senate. Pete Hegseth appears on track to win Senate confirmation, possibly today. And Piers Tom Bowman says Hegseth has spoken out against programs intended to broaden diversity in the military.

We could see him making some personnel changes, maybe removing military leaders. He believes got the job not based on merit but because of their gender or race. There is concern with people I talk with in the Pentagon, among the officer corps. We'll just have to wait and see. NPR's Tom Bowman reporting. Separately, Trump's nominee to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs has won approval from a Senate committee. NPR's Quill Lawrence reports this came as many members of the VA's staff have been exempted from a new federal hiring freeze.

Doug Collins, an Air Force Reserve Colonel and former Georgia congressman, was endorsed by the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee 18-to-1, almost guaranteeing he'll be the next Secretary of Veterans Affairs. During his confirmation hearing this week, he was pressed on whether President Trump's federal hiring freeze would apply to VA. He said he needed to study it. In the meantime, doctors and nurses nationwide who thought they had VA job offers got the news their offers were rescinded. After two days of mixed messages, the administration has now exempted the majority of health care positions at VA from the hiring freeze. Senate Democrats

have urged Trump to protect all VA staff positions from the freeze. Quill Lawrence, NPR News. President Trump's press secretary says the administration has arrested hundreds of people who she says are criminals illegally in the U.S. Caroline Leavitt also says the administration has deported hundreds more by military aircraft.

Mexico is preparing to receive back its citizens who are deported from the United States. For member station KJZZ, Nina Kravinsky reports the Mexican government has created a program called Mexico Embraces You. Mexico is setting up nine centers along the border with the US to provide medical attention, food, and shelter to Mexican citizens who are deported.

There will be at least one shelter in each of Mexico's six border states. That includes one in Tijuana, south of California, one in Ciudad Juarez, south of Texas, and one in Nogales, south of Arizona. Buses will be available to transport people from the border to those centers and from the centers to their home states. President Claudia Schoenbaum says the country will welcome Mexicans required to leave the U.S. with open arms.

According to the Pew Research Center, about four million of the 11 million immigrants in the U.S. illegally in 2022 were from Mexico. For NPR News, I'm Nina Kravinsky in Hermosillo, Mexico. You're listening to NPR News. President Trump will visit North Carolina today to observe hurricane recovery efforts. He'll then go to Los Angeles to see wildfire recovery efforts. Trump has suggested he could hold up federal disaster aid for California unless state officials

agree to some of his administration's demands. Trump's visit comes as new wildfires have broken out in San Diego County. A new study shows that adults who are diagnosed with ADHD live shorter lives than people without a diagnosis, and Piers Maria Godoy has more. The study looked at more than 30,000 adults diagnosed with ADHD in the UK. The researchers used national data on mortality rates to estimate their life expectancy. They found that men diagnosed with ADHD were dying seven years younger on average

compared to their counterparts without a diagnosis. Women with ADHD lived an average of nine years less. Prior research has found that factors including smoking, sleep, exercise, nutrition, and risky driving are key factors behind the shorter lifespans in adults with ADHD. Researchers say these factors are linked to impulsivity, which can be treated. The findings are in line with other research that finds untreated ADHD

raises the risk of serious health problems such as diabetes and heart disease. Maria Godoy, NPR News. Thousands of people are lining up at the Botanical Garden in Sydney, Australia to see what's called the corpse flower. It's blooming for the first time in 15 years, but it is famous for its horrible stink. Fans cannot wait to smell what some are calling hot garbage. I'm Korova Coleman, NPR News in Washington. Matt Wilson spent years doing rounds at children's hospitals in New York City. I'm Korova Coleman, NPR News in Washington.