NPR News Now - NPR News: 02-06-2025 2PM EST

Episode Date: February 6, 2025

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Public media counts on your support to ensure that the reporting and programs you depend on thrive. Make a recurring donation today to get special access to more than 20 NPR podcasts, perks like sponsor-free listening, bonus episodes, early access, and more. So start supporting what you love today at plus.npr.org. Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. More than two million federal workers will get at least a few more days to decide whether they should take the Trump administration's deferred resignation offer under federal judges' ruling in Boston today. The judge has pushed the midnight deadline to at least Monday, the courts directing the

administration to notify employees by close of business today. Under an order to end remote work arrangements and shrink government spending, the Office of Personnel Management offered 2.3 million workers the option of quitting now while retaining pay and benefits through September, although the pay timeline's in question since funding for most federal agencies expires in middle of next month. This morning, President Trump joined the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington where he talked about rooting out anti-Christian bias. And Piers Asmohallad reports.

The president spoke about the need to bring religion back, and he specifically talked about plans for a task force to eradicate anti-Christian bias. It's about time, isn't it though, really? So many, so many times you hear but you don't hear the anti-Christian bias. It's about time isn't it though really? So many so many times you hear but you don't hear the anti-Christian bias. Trump said the aim is to stop anti-Christian discrimination within the federal government. The task force will work to fully prosecute anti-Christian violence and vandalism in our society and to move heaven and earth to defend the rights of Christians.

Trump also announced plans for a new presidential commission on religious liberty, but did not specify how that would protect religious minorities. Asma Khalid, NPR News. The Justice Department is taking new action on immigration policies, often referred to as sanctuary laws. And Piers Stroll rose with details. The federal lawsuit accuses the city of Chicago, state of Illinois, and Cook County of quote deliberately impeding, unquote, immigration officers, making it harder for them to detain

immigrants who don't have legal status. This is the first of what could be many Justice Department lawsuits targeting cities and states that limit their cooperation with U.S. immigration and customs enforcement. During the first Trump administration, the DOJ tried to withhold funding from those jurisdictions, but the cities and states were often able to defeat those efforts in court. Chicago and other cities argue that collaborating with ICE would drain their resources and undermine trust between police and immigrant communities. Joel Rose, NPR News, Washington. A UCLA report on the Los Angeles area wildfires finds this could be California's most expensive

series of wildfires to date in large part because of where they happen. Here's Capra Adesmanola, Cicada. So far, the Eaton and Palisades fires have resulted in the loss of over 16,000 homes and other structures. Zhu Yanli is an economist with UCLA's Anderson School of Management and a co-author of the report. We see that the median home price in these two recent fires is much higher than previous ones. That may cause more loss. She says the damage could also cause a loss of $4.6 billion for Los Angeles County's GDP

for 2025. For NPR News, I'm Manuela Segeita in Sacramento. It's NPR. President Trump has stocked his second administration full of former Fox News personalities, but one member of the Trump family is headed in the other direction. NPR's David Fokinflick reports a hiring demonstrates the hand-in-glove dynamic of the White House and the conservative network. The network's founder, Rupert Murdoch, met with Trump at the Oval Office earlier this week, signifying their ongoing alliance of convenience. Fox has been a pillar of Trump's political base, and except when its stars deviate

from supporting him, his fans have rewarded the network with strong ratings. Fox has now named his daughter in law, Lara Trump, the host of a show on Saturday nights. Lara Trump was a producer on the tabloid TV show, Inside Edition, years ago and married Eric Trump during that time. She has worked on Trump's behalf repeatedly since. Fox News briefly hired her as a commentator after then President Joe Biden took office. More recently, Laura Trump helped to lead the Republican National Committee. Her show is to debut later this month.

David Folkenflick, NPR News. In Australia, scientists have announced a major advance in their mission to preserve endangered marsupial species such as koalas and Tasmanian devils. Researchers at the University of Queensland say they have successfully produced the first kangaroo embryos through in vitro fertilization. Now, the kangaroos in the trial are not endangered. However, they have contributed to what scientists have called a breakthrough in Australia's conservation effort.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 174 points at 44,698. I'm Lakshmi Singh, NPR News.