NPR News Now - NPR News: 02-08-2025 12PM EST

Episode Date: February 8, 2025

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Noor Rahm, NPR News. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Noor Rahm. A federal judge has blocked Elon Musk's team, the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOJ, from accessing sensitive personal data on millions of Americans kept at the U.S. Treasury Department. The order also bars political appointees or special government employees detailed to Treasury, the designation given to Musk's allies. NPR's Julianiana Kim reports.

The emergency order was issued early Saturday. It prohibited the DOJ entity from accessing personal data kept at the Treasury Department's payment system. That includes Social Security benefits and bank account information for millions of Americans. President Trump tapped Elon Musk to find and cut wasteful government funding. The ruling is the latest development in a lawsuit filed against the Trump administration by Democratic attorneys general from 19 states. They argue that Elon Musk and Doge don't have the authority to access treasury records and are hoping to stop Musk's team for good.

Juliana Kim, NPR News. Community health care centers across the country are having trouble obtaining government grant money, even after the White House rescinded an order freezing funds. From member station, VPM, Adrienne Hor McGibbon reports. Three Richmond, Virginia-based community health care centers were forced to close Tuesday because they couldn't access a payment management system operated by the U.S. Health and Human Services Department.

Joe Stevens is a spokesperson for the Virginia Community Health Care Association. Without that funding, they can't pay their employees. Without employees getting paid, they can't operate their health centers. So it's a domino effect. Some clinics say if funding disruptions continue, they may have to cancel services or lay off staff. HHS is blaming a technical issue and says while the payment system is up and running now, some users may be experiencing lags in service.

For NPR News, I'm Adrienne Horigibbon, in Richmond. More than 180 Palestinian prisoners and detainees were freed from Israeli jails today in exchange for three more Israeli hostages released by Hamas. NPR's Kat Lonsdorf reports from Tel Aviv. Seven of the Palestinians freed into the Israeli-occupied West Bank were rushed to the hospital upon release, according to the Red Crescent. One had injuries from what a Red Crescent spokesperson described as a severe beating, while others were treated for malnourishment and fatigue. Earlier, Israel condemned the condition of the three Israeli hostages released today who appeared frail and malnourished. This

weekend's hostage for prisoner exchange is the first since President Trump floated a plan to have the U.S. take over Gaza and relocate the nearly 2 million Palestinians there elsewhere, a plan Palestinians, as well as many regional and world leaders, rejected. Talks for the next phase of the ceasefire are set to begin this weekend. Kat Lansdorf, NPR News, Tel Aviv. And you're listening to NPR News from Washington. Protests continue this weekend in Munich in advance of Germany's general election later this month. Police estimate more than 200,000 people showed up today.

They're opposed to the far-right anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany party, which is in second place in recent polls. Sony PlayStation has been experiencing a major outage since last night, frustrating tens of thousands of gamers. NPR's Amy Hald reports. Sony said its online services, stores, and apps were all experiencing issues. No word on why. PlayStation was trending Saturday with complaints flooding social media as frustrated gamers failed to access their accounts. PlayStation Network has more than 100 million monthly users. Fortnite, Call of Duty, and Grand Theft Auto are among the most popular games.

Last February, Sony laid off nearly 1,000 PlayStation employees, citing industry changes. Video game companies grew during the pandemic when people were home more. Then they downsized as normal activities resumed. Now mobile gaming is on the rise with more people playing, or trying to, on their smartphones. Amy Held and PR News. President Trump says he plans to take over the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

in Washington. He posted online he's firing some members of the trustees and will appoint himself chair. Trump said some of the current members do not share his vision for a golden age in arts and culture. Unlike previous presidents, Trump did not attend the annual Kennedy Center honors ceremonies during his first tour. I'm Nora Rahm, NPR News in Washington.