NPR News Now - NPR News: 02-07-2025 8PM EST

Episode Date: February 8, 2025

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Usher, Yo-Yo Ma, Boy Genius, Shaka Khan, Billie Eilish, Weird Al, one thing all these big stars have in common, they've all played behind NPR's Tiny Desk. And if you enter NPR's Tiny Desk Contest between now and February 10th, you could be next. Unsigned musicians can find out more and see the official rules at npr.org slash tiny desk contest. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear. President Donald Trump reaffirmed today he supports SpaceX CEO Elon Musk's remaking of the federal government via what the administration is calling DOGE.

NPR's Daniel Kurtzleben has more. Speaking at a press conference, Trump was unclear about his own role in DOge's actions, but seemed to say he had given Musk wide rein. I think everything's fertile, you know, we're a government. We have to be open. And as an open government, I don't know, I guess you could say maybe some high intelligence or something, and I'll do that myself if I have to. He added several times that he wants Doge to target the Education Department and the military for cuts. Trump did say he doesn't plan on having Musk make changes to Social Security or Medicare, but added that the administration would be looking for fraud in those programs.

Danielle Kurtz-Lehmann in PR News, The White House. The Trump administration is now delaying the end of a loophole in import tax. It's helped some companies import cheap goods from China. The president just closed the loophole as part of his new tariffs on Chinese imports, but is now pausing that plan while customs inspectors look at the big change and PR's Alina Selyuk has more. For almost a century, U.S. law has carved out an exemption for small packages to not have to pay import duties. That's allowed packages worth under $800 to arrive in the U.S. duty-free.

While most retailers ship in the US duty-free. While most retailers ship in bulk, ultra-cheap retailers like Shien and Temu ship individual packages directly from China to shoppers in the US and use the exemption to avoid paying tariffs. And that saved them millions of dollars and their popularity has exploded. President Biden and bipartisan lawmakers in Congress have pushed to close the loophole and Trump did. But this created chaos for U.S. customs and shipping companies, and Trump has now delayed

the plan, unclear for how long. Alina Seluk, NPR News, Washington. Springfield, Ohio is suing a neo-Nazi group for its alleged role in harassing, intimidating and inciting violence against the city and its residents. As NPR's Odette Youssef reports, Springfield was the center of a national firestorm over immigration in the months before the presidential election. The civil lawsuit against the neo-Nazi group Blood Tribe was brought by Springfield's mayor,

three city commissioners, and four residents who were public in their support of Haitian immigrants. It claims the group interfered with plaintiffs' federal civil rights, that it created a public nuisance, and that it incited violence. The suit alleges, among other things, that the neo-Nazis instigated dozens of bomb threats and that they instructed strangers

to enter some plaintiffs' homes at night without knocking to demand drugs and sex. None of the plaintiffs themselves are Haitian residents of Springfield. Instead, the complaint paints a picture of a city terrorized by a campaign of hate. The blood tribe has not publicly posted a response. Odette Youssef, NPR News. Stocks lost ground at Weeks End on Wall Street.

The Dow fell 444 points. The Nasdaq dropped 268 points today. You're listening to NPR. The search has ended for a missing plane that vanished just south of the Arctic Circle. The plane with 10 people aboard, including the pilot, disappeared yesterday afternoon near the Norton Sound area while heading to Nome, Alaska. Authorities say the wreckage of the small plane has been located on sea ice and all those on board are presumed dead. It's not clear what caused the plane to go down.

Daniel Barnbaum, the renowned conductor and pianist, announced this week he has Parkinson's disease. He had cut back on his engagement in recent years due to health issues, but plans to continue conducting. Jeff London reports. The Argentine-born Jewish conductor and former piano prodigy resigned from his post at the Berlin State Opera in 2023, but is still committed

to performing with the ensemble he co-founded with the late Palestinian-American scholar Edward Said in 1999, the West Eastern Divan Orchestra. Baron Boim said the orchestra, featuring Arab and Israeli musicians, and its school are his most important responsibility. The 82-year-old continues to teach at the musical academy he established in Berlin and plans to conduct the orchestra on tour in August, health permitting. For NPR News, I'm Jeff London in New York. It appears the flu season in the U.S. is in full swing.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimating so far this year there have been 13,000 flu deaths, including at least 57 children. Some schools have been forced to shut down entirely due to flu outbreaks. I'm Jack Spear, NPR News in Washington. This message comes from NYU Langone. I'm Jack Spear, NPR News in Washington.