NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-24-2026 11AM EST

Episode Date: January 24, 2026

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Live from NPR news in Washington, I'm Luis Skiyvone. Travel disruptions are already in gear amid a major winter storm system. U.S. airlines have canceled almost 10,000 flights. Snow and slead and rain have been falling across Texas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas causing power outages in some locations. NPR's Matt Bloom has more. Widespread snow, ice, and extreme cold are expected to make travel difficult, if not impossible in many areas of the central and eastern U.S. Most airlines waived rebooking fees during the storm and urged passengers to change their plans. Roads will be bad, too. In Louisiana, Governor Jeff Landry told residents, freezing weather could make pavement icy for days, even after the storm passes. Ice on the road is not only dangerous, it is deadly. More than a dozen governors from Texas to New York have declared states of emergency,

allowing them to stage equipment, pre-treat roadways, and activate National Guard. troops. Matt Bloom and PR News, New Orleans. President Trump is threatening Canada with a 100% tariff on goods imported from Canada. If that nation goes through with the trade deal with China, Trump wrote on social media he would not permit Canada to become a drop-off port for Chinese goods and products to enter the U.S. It was a turbulent week on Wall Street defined by President Trump's sharp U-turn on Greenland, and PR's Raphael NOM has more. Trump always chickens out. It's a phrase the president deeply dislikes,

but Wall Street investors stand by what they call the taco trade. Like this week, last weekend, Trump threatened to impose additional tariffs on several European allies unless the U.S. was given control of Greenland. That sent stocks sharply lower, but the president then backed down after saying he had agreed to a framework of a deal. He provided no details, but investors were relieved, sending stocks sharply higher before gains eventually stalled.

The Dow Jones and the S&P ended the week with small losses. But it could have been worse. Once again, the taco trade came through. Rafael NAMM, in PR News. Ukraine's foreign minister has denounced Russian president of Vladimir Putin for ordering the latest massive overnight bombardment of his country while peace talks were taking place in Abu Dhabi. The BBC Sarah Rainsford has more.

About 1.30 in the morning, the air raid alarms went off and the missile threat warnings started coming in. So last night there was one person killed and more people left without heating and without electricity in their houses here in Ukraine's capital. Again, it seems like Russia was targeting the civilian infrastructure here, the civilian heating and power infrastructure in cities across Ukraine, which is deliberate and which is clearly meant to freeze people here into submission. The BBC Sarah Rainsford, this is NPR News. U.S. Southern Command has carried out another lethal strike on a small boat allegedly carrying drugs in the eastern Pacific. In the latest strike, the Pentagon posted a grainy video on social media showing a small boat exploding into flames. Southcom said two crew members were killed. The U.S. Coast Guard confirmed to NPR it was engaged in a search and rescue operation for one survivor. The city of Philadelphia is suing the National Park Service for dismantling an outdoor exhibit about slavery at Independence National Historical Park. NPR's Elizabeth Blair reports the exhibit, a joint project between the city and the Park Service, honored enslaved people who worked for George Washington.

The National Park Service workers pulled down artwork and signage that told the stories of nine enslaved people who worked for George and Martha Washington, including a cook named Hercules. and Martha's maid own a judge. The Department of the Interior, which oversees the Park Service, says it tore down the signs because it's implementing President Trump's executive order restoring truth and sanity to American history and calls the City of Philadelphia's lawsuit frivolous. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro wrote on social media, Donald Trump will take any opportunity to rewrite and whitewash our history. We learn from our history in Pennsylvania, even when it's painful.

Elizabeth Blair, NPR News. In Australian Open tennis, Novak Djokovic hit a record extending 400th Grand Slam match win, defeating Botech Vanda Zonskulp in the third round today. The victory also marked his 100 second win at the Australian Open. I'm Louise Kiovanni and PR News.