NPR News Now - NPR News: 02-12-2025 8AM 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, I'm Korva Coleman. Russia is providing some additional detail into an agreement with the White House that led to the release of U.S. schoolteacher Mark Fogel from a Russian prison.

The Kremlin now says the Trump administration agreed to release a Russian national in exchange. NPR's Charles Maines has details. Speaking to reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow had secured the freedom of a Russian national currently in U.S. custody, but he refused to identify the individual until he or she was back on Russian soil. Peskov also said he viewed the prisoner swap as a trust-building measure rather than a breakthrough in relations. The exchange was negotiated during a covert trip to Moscow by White House special envoy

Steve Witkoff, the first confirmed direct high-level contact between the US and Russia since the Kremlin launched its invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago. President Trump has expressed hope the deal marks what he called the beginning of a relationship that leads to an end to the war. Charles Maynes, NPR News. President Trump has signed a new executive order that lays out how the Doge initiative will help cut government spending. Trump appeared at the White House yesterday with Doge's leader, billionaire Elon Musk. Trump says despite court rulings, slowing cuts in spending and the federal workforce, he hopes judges will side with him.

I hope that the court system is going to allow us to do what we have to do. We got elected to, among other things, find all of this fraud, abuse, all of this horrible stuff going on. And we've already found billions of dollars. Not like a little bit. Billions. Trump provided no evidence of any fraud or abuse. Meanwhile, the White House has fired the Inspector General of the agency USAID. That happened one day after Inspector General Paul Martin's office released a critical report on Trump's work to dismantle USAID, that happened one day after Inspector General Paul Martin's office released a critical report on Trump's work to dismantle USAID. The report says

this makes it pretty much impossible for the agency to monitor more than eight billion dollars in unspent humanitarian aid. It means the aid could fall into the wrong hands. Trump's top immigration adviser doesn't think the government is deporting migrants quickly enough. Border Czar Tom Homan says he wants federal agents to work faster. And Pierce Adrian Florido has more. Speaking outside the White House, Homan claimed the government is making deportation arrests at three times the rate of the Biden administration. That would be about a thousand a day. He called that good.

But I'm not satisfied. There's more criminal aliens that need to be arrested. Hundreds of thousands. Sanctuary cities are putting roadblocks up. We got leaks. So we need to increase the arrests of illegal aliens, especially those with criminal convictions. Homan's recently been vocal about his anger at obstacles agents have faced. Officials in sanctuary cities unwilling to help. A large raid in Colorado that fell flat after plans were leaked to the press. His comments come amid reports that two top officials at immigration and customs enforcement have been demoted over the pace of deportations. Adrienne Florido, NPR News. You're listening to NPR News. The federal government is set to release its latest monthly report on consumer prices this morning.

Economists forecast the consumer price index rose 2.9 percent in January over what it was a year ago. These prices are tracked by the Federal Reserve. The Fed uses these to decide whether to act on interest rates. The National Weather Service says a winter storm will continue to pound the central, southern and eastern U.S. this morning. There are also winter storm warnings posted for the mountains of northern and eastern California. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has announced its ballot for the Class of 2025. For Member Station WKSU, Kabir Bhatia has more. Batya has more. The nineties rule the ballot this year as outcasts The Black Crows and Fish make their first appearances, joined by return nominees Mariah Carey, Oasis and Soundgarden. Artists are eligible 25 years after the release of their first record.

Going back further, Joy Division, New Order and Cyndi Lauper return while Billy Idol and Mexican rockers Mana debut on the ballot. The list is rounded out by the White Stripes and three long eligible first-time acts. Bad Company, Chubby Checker, and the late Joe Cocker. For NPR News, I'm Kabir Bhatia in Cleveland. There's a winner in the best of show at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York. A giant schnauzer named Monty was crowned the champion. He bested six other finalists to win the Best in Show award. This is NPR.