NPR News Now - NPR News: 03-01-2025 8PM EST

Episode Date: March 2, 2025

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This message comes from Wondery. At 24 years old, Monika Lewinsky was in a scandal that defined who she was for the entire world. And now she's ready to draw from her own experience on what it means to redefine yourself on her new podcast, Reclaiming with Monika Lewinsky. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janene Herbst. Reactions continue to pour in from around the world over yesterday's argument between President Trump and Ukrainian leader Zelensky in the Oval Office. As NPR's Charles Maines reports, Trump is finding plenty of support in Moscow. The Kremlin has yet to weigh in directly on the White House meeting, but prominent government

officials took to social media to praise Trump for giving Zelensky what one called a public beatdown. While Zelensky has been largely lauded in the West for his leadership amid the Russian invasion, propagandists in Moscow have long depicted him as both fascist and corrupt. Russia's Foreign Ministry issued a statement seemingly designed to appeal to Trump's argument it was Kiev, rather than Moscow holding up a potential peace deal. The ministry claimed that Zelensky had quote, used lies and manipulation to continue fighting and bilk Western military aid, a view the current White House appears to share.

Charles Maines, NPR News. A group of immigrant rights and legal aid organizations has sued the Trump administration to try to stop the transfer of migrants from the United States to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. And here's Sasha Pfeiffer has more. The lawsuit does not challenge the U.S. government's authority to detain migrants on U.S. soil or deport them directly to their home country or another country allowed under immigration law. Instead, the American Civil Liberties Union and its partner civil rights groups argue it is illegal for the U.S. to first send those migrants to Guantanamo.

The suit says there's no legitimate reason to do that because the government has ample detention capacity inside the United States, and it says holding migrants in the U.S. makes far more sense logistically and financially. The lawsuit alleges the reason the Trump administration is first sending migrants to Guantanamo is to instill fear in the immigrant community. Sasha Pfeiffer, NPR News. — Protest and rallies were held at national parks across the country today over the recent mass firings of federal workers, including those at the country's first national park,

Yellowstone. Gathered under the Roosevelt Arch at the park's north entrance, rallygoers showed support for federal public lands and recently fired employees. Richard Midgett was hired in December to work in information technology for Yellowstone National Park, but was among those fired last month. He helped organize the rally. We're not just protecting our parks for the next 100 years. We're trying to protect our parks for generations and generations of people. Rally goers say they worry that the effects will ripple beyond the parks to the communities that rely on the over 600 million dollars spent

each year by Yellowstone visitors. For NPR News, I'm Ruth Eddy in Gardiner. President Trump tonight signed an executive order making English the official language of the U.S. year by Yellowstone visitors. For NPR News, I'm Ruth Eddie in Gardner. President Trump tonight signed an executive order making English the official language of the U.S. It's the first time in America's history that an official language has been named. It rescinds a Clinton-era mandate requiring agencies to be multilingual. This is NPR. Former New York Mayor Andrew Cuomo is running for mayor of New York City this three years after he resigned amid allegations of sexual harassment. Mayor Eric Adams is running for reelection, but he's been dealing with a scandal for months after a federal indictment

on corruption charges. The case is on hold though because the Trump administration's Justice Department want the charges dismissed. He denies the allegations the primary will be held in June. David Johansson, the flamboyant frontman of the New York Dolls, died yesterday at his home in New York City at the age of 75. He had cancer. And here's Chloe Veltman reports his band was short-lived but influential. The New York Dolls rose to fame in the early 1970s with their brash sound and cross-dressing ways. The Dolls' albums flopped, but they influenced a wave of more commercially successful bands, including the Ramones, the Sex Pistols and the Smiths. David Johansson talked about the Dolls' origins on WHYY's

Fresh Air in 2004. It was like us against the world and we were really trying to evolve music into something new. Johansson was born on Staten Island into a middle class family. After graduating high school he gravitated towards New York's experimental performance scene. After the dolls broke up in 1975, Johansson achieved acclaim with his martini-sipping, tuxedo-wearing alter-ego Buster Poindexter. Chloe Veltman, NPR News.

And I'm Janene Hurst, and you're listening to NPR News from Washington. This message comes from NYU Langone. The NYU Langone Health app gives you access to your electronic health record. Keep track of your visits, lab results, and images all in one place. Better health starts with a better health system.