NPR News Now - NPR News: 02-11-2025 11PM EST

Episode Date: February 12, 2025

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At the Super Bowl halftime show, Kendrick Lamar indeed performed his smash diss track Not Like Us and brought out Samuel L. Jackson, Serena Williams, and SZA. We're recapping the Super Bowl, including why we saw so many celebrities in commercials this year. Listen to the Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast from NPR. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shae Stevens. President Trump and billionaire aide Elon Musk are defending their efforts to enact sweeping changes to federal government.

As NPR's Elena Moore reports, Musk leads the White House's Department of Government Efficiency or DOJ, which focuses on slashing federal spending. Musk said Trump had a mandate from the public to do this work. The people voted for major government reform and that's what people are gonna get. They're gonna get what they voted for. Trump declared that the Doge effort has already found billions of dollars in waste, fraud and abuse. When asked about some of the legal challenges the administration is facing over the effort, Trump said he would comply with court rulings and then appeal. After taking questions, Trump signed an executive order further breaking down how government agencies will work with Doge to reduce the size of the federal

workforce. Elena Moore, NPR News, Washington. Pennsylvania teacher Mark Fogel is back in the United States after being released from a prison in Russia. 63-year-old Fogle was serving a 14-year-long prison sentence on drug charges. He was arrested in August 2021 for possession of medical marijuana, which the State Department repeatedly called a wrongful detention. Fogle is meeting with President Trump at the White House. Trump says that the release deal was fair. The White House has blocked the Associated Press from covering an official event over

the way the news organization refers to the Gulf of Mexico. President Trump has renamed the Atlantic Sea Basin the Gulf of America. NPR's Stephen Falkenfleck has details. Associated Press executive editor Julie Pace said, quote, It is alarming that the Trump administration would punish AP for its independent journalism. She continued, quote, Limiting our access to the Oval Office

based on the content of AP's speech not only severely impedes the public's access to independent news, it plainly violates the First Amendment. The White House did not reply to a request for comment. The Trump administration is pressuring the news media in other ways, dislodging news organizations from workstations at the Pentagon, including NPR. Under Trump's new chairman, the Federal Communications Commission is investigating all major broadcast

networks except Fox. David Hoganflick, NPR News. In a White House meeting with King Abdullah, President Trump again called on Jordanian government to take in Palestinians displaced by the war in Gaza. Trump insists that the United States will take over and rebuild the territory and that its Palestinian residents should leave. King Abdullah says Arab leaders will soon meet in Saudi Arabia and come up with their own plan. But in a post on the social media site X, he said that Jordan remains steadfast against

the displacement of Palestinians in Gaza and in the West Bank. You're listening to NPR News. California-based Tri-Union Seafoods is voluntarily recalling canned tuna that was sold at major grocery stores across the nation. The Food and Drug Administration says the alert is being issued because the tuna may cause botulism, which is a rare bacterial infection that can cause paralysis. The recalled tuna was sold under the H-E-B Trader Joe's and Van Camp's brands. Parts of the United States are being pounded by a late season winter storm or are preparing for the arrival of one. NPR's Alana Wise reports on what the central and eastern U.S.

can expect as well as big weather events occur on the West Coast. Parts of the East Coast are getting a dump of snow and ice. The South is bracing for heavy rains and the West Coast. Parts of the East Coast are getting a dump of snow and ice. The South is bracing for heavy rains, and the West Coast is under flash flood warnings. These big, potentially catastrophic weather events come after weeks of calamitous weather across the U.S. After fires ravaged California, and icy weather wreaked havoc across the Midwest

and Eastern Seaboard. The winter storm is expected to pummel Kentucky to West Virginia, from Richmond to Philadelphia with heavy snow. Further west, California is bracing for heavy rain and what is on track to be the strongest storm of the season there. Meanwhile, Texas is facing the prospect of wildfires in the West, snow in the Panhandle, and flooding in the East part of the state. Alana Wise, NPR News.

US futures are flat and after hours trading on Wall Street. I'm Shea Stevens. This is NPR News. Support for NPR and the following message come from Jarl and Pamela Mohn, thanking the people who make public radio great every day and also those who listen.