NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-29-2025 5AM EST

Episode Date: January 29, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dave Mattingly. A federal judge is temporarily blocking President Trump's pause on the federal funding of grants, loans and financial assistance programs. The judge did so minutes before the executive order was set to take effect yesterday. The president's order caused chaos and uncertainty for many states, schools and organizations relying on federal dollars. This order caused chaos and uncertainty for many states, schools, and organizations relying on federal dollars. President Trump's pick to be the nation's top health official appears on Capitol Hill

today. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is slated to begin his confirmation process before a Senate committee. NPR's Will Stone says Kennedy is expected to face tough questioning about his qualifications to serve as secretary of health and human services. Kennedy is an environmental lawyer descended from a political dynasty who spent years leading a prominent anti-vaccine advocacy group. He's emerged as one of the most recognizable and controversial figures in the Trump administration's

proposed cabinet. Many in the medical field warn his views are dangerous for public health. He's pushed false ideas about a link between vaccines and autism and made other inaccurate claims about their safety and infectious diseases more broadly. His supporters have embraced his pledge to disrupt the medical establishment and reverse the chronic disease epidemic. As secretary, Kennedy would wield enormous influence, overseeing agencies that steer biomedical research, pharmaceuticals, health policy, and insurance coverage for more than 100 million Americans.

Will Stone, NPR News. Ahead of his Senate confirmation hearings, Kennedy's cousin, Caroline Kennedy, sent a letter to senators urging them to oppose the nomination. In the letter, the former U.S. ambassador to Australia and Japan and daughter of former President John F. Kennedy describes her cousin as someone who's addicted to power and whose views on vaccines should disqualify him.

New data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress reflects how students in the 4th and 8th grades in the U.S. are performing in core subjects such as math and reading. As NPR's Joannaki Mehta reports, the testing shows for the most part, students did not rebound from learning losses experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. In math, fourth graders scores ticked up slightly compared to 2022. Eighth graders mostly held study between 2022 and 24,

but in math, both groups of students are still below where they were before the pandemic, except in one state, Alabama. The scores in reading were dismal, even worse than in 2022. And there was also only one state where fourth graders saw reading scores surpass 2019, Louisiana. Perhaps what's happening in the two states that bucked the trend can shed light on why students still have so much ground to make up. Janaki Mehta, NPR News. This is NPR News from Washington. The Federal Reserve is expected to hold interest rates steady when it wraps up

its latest policy meeting this afternoon in Washington. Inflation in the US economy remains elevated. Prices continue climbing at a pace faster than the central bank would like to see. The Fed cut rates three times last year. Officials in South Korea say nobody was seriously injured last night when a domestic airliner caught fire as it was preparing to take off at an airport in the country's southeast. All 176 people aboard the Air Busan jet evacuated safely. Three minor injuries were reported. The jet was destined for Hong Kong.

Investigators are looking at how that fire started. French President Emmanuel Macron says the world's most popular art museum will undergo an extensive renovation, as NPR's Elner Beardsley reports from Paris. Standing in front of the Mona Lisa, Macron announced that a new grand entrance to the Louvre would be built and new underground galleries excavated.

Leonardo da Vinci's iconic painting, which is constantly thronged by visitors, will have its own exhibition space. The colossal six-year project known as La Nouvelle Renaissance will cost upwards of $800 million and be entirely paid for out of the Louvre's substantial budget. An international architectural competition will be held for the design of the new entrance and wings.

Macron said promoting art and cultural understanding An international architectural competition will be held for the design of the new entrance and wings. Macron said promoting art and cultural understanding is an important political battle in an era when forceful rhetoric holds hypnotic power over so many. Elinor Beardsley in Pierre News, Paris. I'm Dave Mattingly in Washington.