NPR News Now - NPR News: 02-23-2025 5PM EST

Episode Date: February 23, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janene Herbst. Employees across the federal government got an email over the weekend asking them to describe their work over the past week. But now, as NPR's Joe Hernandez reports, some other Trump administration officials are telling employees not to reply. The email Saturday came from the Office of Personnel Management and arrived hours after Trump adviser Elon Musk said on social media that workers who didn't respond would lose their jobs.

The email itself didn't say that. Musk has been tasked with cutting the federal government, and so far the administration has fired some 20,000 federal workers. But the email caused confusion in many parts of the government after other Trump administration officials told workers they didn't have to reply. New FBI Director Kash Patel told the agency's workforce that it would review its own processes and to hold off on replying to the email. The Defense Department also told employees not to respond, and the State Department said it would reply on workers' behalf. Joe Hernandez, NPR News. Danielle Pletka Early projections of Germany's

national parliamentary election show that Friedrich Merz, the candidate for the center-right Christian Democrats, is poised to become the country's next chancellor. And here's Rob Schmitz, has more. Rob Schmitz Merz's center-right block emerged as the biggest vote-getter, nearly 10% ahead of the far-right Alternative for Germany party or AFD. Chancellor Olaf Schulz's center-right block emerged as the biggest vote-getter, nearly 10% ahead of the far-right Alternative for Germany party or AFD. Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats were in third place. It is too early to tell whether Merz's Christian Democrats will start coalition talks with one other party or two.

This hinges on whether two parties hovering around 5% are able to stay above that threshold, which is what parties need to enter parliament. If they don't make it, the Christian Democrats and the Social Democrats would have enough votes to form a two-party coalition government. It could take a day before official results are released. Rob Schmitz, NPR News, Berlin. Pope Francis remains hospitalized in critical condition as he battles double pneumonia along with a mild kidney issue. Prayers for his recovery have been held at the Lateran Basilica, the Catholic Cathedral

of Rome. MPR's Ruth Sherlock has more. The sermon tonight is being held in prayer for Pope Francis who's in critical condition in hospital. You can feel the sadness here among the congregation as people are praying, there are tears rolling down their cheeks. They are feeling this moment very deeply. And here's Ruth Sherlock reporting. On Wall Street in the week ahead, a crucial report card on AI as the chip company Nvidia

releases its quarterly earnings. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. More than a third of the U.S. population, some 126 million people, are living in areas where there's drought. That's according to a new report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. And Piers Michael Copley reports on a lot of areas, and usually dry conditions are expected to last into the spring. The latest data from NOAA shows drought or abnormally dry conditions across most of the

country's lower 48 states. Droughts especially severe in the southwest, from southern Nevada and California, through Arizona and New Mexico and into west Texas. There are also pockets of extreme drought in parts of the Great Plains, including Wyoming, South Dakota, and Nebraska. NOAA says the southwest is likely to see below normal precipitation through May. Dryer conditions this spring could extend up into Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming. Michael Copley, NPR News.

At the weekend box office, Captain America, Brave New World, took the top spot for the second weekend in a row with $28 million in ticket sales. The Anthony Mackie-led installment in the Marvel franchise has been slammed by critics, and audiences have also graded it poorly with a B-minus cinema score. But the movie has grossed $289 million globally. In second place, the horror film The Monkey adapted from a Stephen King short story with $14 million. It cost a reported $10 million to make. Its director, Oz Perkins, followed up to his 2024 horror hit, Long Legs. I'm Janene Herbst, and you're listening to NPR News from Washington.