NPR News Now - NPR News: 02-22-2025 7PM EST

Episode Date: February 23, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. Federal government workers have received an email essentially asking them to defend their jobs. The employees were asked to provide an account for what they did in the last week or face being fired. The emails, which NPR has confirmed, came several hours after Elon Musk posted on social media that failure to respond will be taken as a resignation. Musk is leading a massive effort to downsize the federal workforce.

The Trump administration is refusing to support a UN General Assembly resolution to mark the third anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Instead, it's proposing its own text, which doesn't criticize Russia at all. NPR's Michelle Kellerman reports a vote on the resolution is set for Monday. Secretary of State Marco Rubio calls it a simple, historic resolution to support a path to peace. He says the UN should affirm that this conflict is awful and that the UN can help end it. Ukraine and the Europeans had proposed a much longer text that reminds the world that Russia

is violating the UN charter by invading its neighbor. It calls on Russia to withdraw and return all civilians, including children who were forcibly deported to Russia. The US text simply acknowledges tragic losses with no language saying Russia started the war and calls for a quick end to the conflict. Russia's ambassador to the UN called it a good move by the Trump administration to offer a rival text.

Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, Washington. The Pentagon has announced that it's freezing hiring next week and firing more than 5,000 probationary workers. President Trump fired the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Friday. He's also replacing the chief of naval operations. The Vatican says Pope Francis remains in critical condition after a respiratory crisis earlier today. NPR's Jason DeRose reports the 88-year-old pontiff was admitted to a hospital in Rome last week to be treated for a complex lung infection. The Holy See press office says Pope Francis experienced a quote, asthma-like respiratory crisis of prolonged intensity Saturday morning.

The event required the administration of high flow oxygen The Vatican also says blood tests have revealed a condition called thrombocytopenia Which is associated with anemia that condition required the 88 year old pope to undergo a blood transfusion The Vatican Press Office says Francis remains alert and spent Saturday in an armchair Although he's more uncomfortable than in recent days. The prognosis, it says, remains guarded. Francis has served as Pope since March of 2013. Jason DeRose, NPR News.

This is NPR. The first and only museum dedicated to Leonardo da Vinci in the United States is scheduled to open in the fall. NPR's Chloe Veltman reports it will be located in southern Colorado. The Colorado Economic Development Commission greenlit plans to open the Leonardo da Vinci Museum of North America in Pueblo, Colorado this week. According to a statement, the new museum will feature life-size machine replicas based on the famous Renaissance artists' sketches, science-related exhibitions and interactive displays. There will also be a café. Pueblo is a city of just over 110,000 people. The local economy long focused on steel, but Pueblo has been working to reinvent itself. In a report for KOAA News 5, Craig Elliott-Chisney,

vice president of the museum's board, defended the choice of location. A lot of people say why Pueblo and we say why not Pueblo. Leonardo da Vinci lived and worked in Florence, Italy, where the main da Vinci Museum is located and his art can be found in major capitals like Paris and London. Chloe Valtman, NPR News. The Trump administration has laid off roughly a thousand National Park Service employees. Andrea Townsend researched endangered species at Yosemite National Park in California.

She's among the workers who were laid off. What does this mean for the state of national parks? What does this mean for wildlife conservation? It's really scary. It's a really uncertain time for those of us who care about conservation and public lands. So, I am definitely worried for the future. The White House is defending the move, saying President Trump is making good on his pledge to make better use of taxpayer dollars.

This is NPR News in Washington.