NPR News Now - NPR News: 02-07-2025 3AM EST

Episode Date: February 7, 2025

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Are you the greatest musician the world has never heard? Unsigned artists, now's your opportunity to play the Tiny Desk. Enter the 2025 Tiny Desk Contest, our nationwide search for the next undiscovered star. The winner will play a Tiny Desk concert and a U.S. tour. To learn more, visit npr.org slash tiny desk contest. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shea Stevens. President Trump's plan to purge thousands of federal jobs through deferred resignations is on hold until Monday.

U.S. District Court Judge George O'Toole Jr. has issued a temporary restraining order in response to a request from several labor unions challenging the move. O'Toole issued the ruling only hours before the midnight Thursday deadline for workers to apply for the program. Legal experts are weighing in on billionaire Elon Musk's growing access to federal agencies and the concentration of executive power. NPR's Windsor Johnston reports. Elon Musk's cost-cutting unit DOGE is sending shockwaves through the government workforce

as it aims to make substantial cuts to federal agencies. Kathleen Clark is a professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis. She says without transparency and accountability, Musk's actions risk weakening mechanisms designed to prevent the overreach of power. Congressional Republicans are complicit in this dismantling of Democratic checks and balances. President Trump and Congressional Republicans see Musk's efforts as a way to better streamline and save money within government agencies.

Windsor-Johnston, NPR News, Washington. The NCAA has banned transgender athletes from female sports, this following executive order by President Trump. NPR's Ava Pukac has details. The updated policy limits competition in women's sports to athletes assigned female at birth. But a student athlete assigned male at birth can continue to practice on an NCAA women's team and receive benefits applicable to student athletes. Any athlete, regardless of their sex assigned at birth or gender identity, can compete in

NCAA men's sports if they meet all other eligibility requirements. NCAA President Charlie Baker said Trump's order provides a quote clear national standard instead of a quote patchwork of conflicting state laws in court decisions. The policy is effective immediately regardless of previous eligibility reviews under the NCAA's prior transgender participation policy. Ava Pugac and PR News. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is walking back his statement that Panama agreed to stop charging fees for U.S. government use of its canal. This after Panamanian leaders said it wasn't true.

The United States has a treaty obligation to protect the Panama Canal if it comes under attack. That treaty obligation would have to be enforced by the armed forces of the United States, particularly the U.S. Navy. I find it absurd that we would have to pay fees to transit a zone that we are obligated to protect in a time of conflict. Those are our expectations. They were clear.

They were clearly understood in those conversations. But I respect very much the fact that Panama has a process of laws and procedures that they need to follow. This is NPR News. The Trump administration is suing Chicago and the state of Illinois over so-called sanctuary laws. In Illinois, individuals are not asked about their immigration status or denied city services. A Chicago ordinance also forbids the detention of undocumented individuals who are not suspected

of a crime. The Trump administration says the policies undermine federal efforts to enforce immigration laws. It is threatening to cut federal funding to sanctuary cities. Many Los Angeles county residents who lost their homes in last month's deadly wildfires are struggling to recover without homeowners' insurance. But rising premiums in L.A. and in some cases outright cancellations by insurers is a problem in other cities and states as well.

Cameron Sanchez of Member Station KJZZ reports from Phoenix. Arizona resident Vivian Winneke panicked last year when her insurance rates suddenly shot up after 10 years of living in her home. It was all fine until August and then all of a sudden my renewal went up from $1450 a year to $4500. That's more than my property taxes. Winokie says she was rejected by 22 insurance companies before finding one that offered a rate she can afford. Even still, she's paying more than what she used to and she's underinsured. If companies continue to raise rates or leave Arizona, she'll have to sell her house.

The state's insurance department is studying the issue and is set to make recommendations by the end of the year. For NPR News, I'm Cameron Sanchez in Phoenix. U.S. futures are flat and after hours trading on Wall Street, Asia Pacific markets are mixed. This is NPR News. Extreme weather disasters like wildfires and floods can devastate communities. This is NPR News.