NPR News Now - NPR News: 03-05-2025 11PM EST

Episode Date: March 6, 2025

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This message comes from Wondery. At 24 years old, Monica 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 Monica Lewinsky. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in New York City, I'm Doa Alisa Icautau. President Trump is giving automakers in the U.S. a break on those steep tariffs on imports of goods from Canada and Mexico. But as NPR's Mara Eliason reports, the exemption is only until April 2nd. The exemption is the latest in a series of whiplash moves on tariffs.

25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico took effect Tuesday. Then the big three automakers, GM Ford and Stellantis, lobbied the White House saying they would be hit hard because their supply chains are so integrated between the U.S., Mexico and Canada. And the president agreed, says White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt. The president is giving them an exemption for one month so they are not at an economic disadvantage. The reprieve recognizes the free trade agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada

that Trump himself negotiated in his first term to replace NAFTA. Until now, there were no tariffs on anything between these three giant trading partners. Mara Elias in NPR News, the White House. Millions of federal workers are still weighing how to respond to a second email sent this weekend asking them to justify their jobs. The messages are part of Elon Musk's push to root out dead or non-existent workers, as NPR's Bobbi Allen reports. Musk has now asked the federal workforce twice to list five bullet points about their accomplishments. He said ignoring it could lead to termination. To former Twitter employees, it sounds familiar. Musk has called the messages a pulse check, suggesting, without evidence, that tax payers

are not doing anything. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check.

He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check.

He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the message is a false check. He says that the stuff is just complete fantasy. Musk has called the messages a pulse check, suggesting without evidence that taxpayers are paying the salaries and benefits of phantom employees. Bobby Allen, NPR News.

The Republican-led Senate has voted to confirm the number two official at the Justice Department. Todd Blanche was confirmed by a party line of vote of 52 to 46, N Piers Ryan Lucas reports. Todd Blanch is a former federal prosecutor who is best known for serving as President Trump's personal attorney. He represented Trump in several of his recent criminal cases including the Hush Money case in New York where Trump was convicted of 34 felony counts. At his confirmation hearing Blanch said that the Justice Department must focus on

keeping Americans safe. But he also echoed Trump's allegations that the justice system was weaponized against Trump in recent years. Now Blanche moves into the number two post at the Justice Department alongside Attorney General Pam Bondi, another close Trump ally. Ryan Lucas, NPR News, Washington. Los Angeles County today filed a lawsuit against the public utility company Southern California Edison, alleging that Edison's equipment failed to work properly and caused the January

Eaton fire that killed 17 people and destroyed thousands of buildings. You're listening to NPR. Butterflies are declining rapidly across the U.S. That's according to research published today in the journal Science, which finds butterfly abundance fell by 22 percent between 2000 and 2020. Barbara Moran with member station WBUR reports on why butterflies in some regions are harder hit than others. The study looked at nearly 80,000 butterfly surveys across the contiguous United States. Butterfly declines were most severe in the southwest, where increasing heat driven by

climate change is a likely factor. Elizabeth Cron is an ecology professor at the University of California, Davis, and one of the study authors. Elizabeth Cron In the southwest, one of the biggest changes is increasing drought and it is hurting the plants that they need as well as potentially stressing the butterflies. Other factors harming butterflies are pesticide use and habitat loss. For NPR News, I'm Barbara Moran in Boston. Texas Representative Sylvester Turner has died at the age of 70.

A statement released by Turner's congressional office said the long-time Democrat and former Houston mayor died peacefully just hours after attending President Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress last night. The current mayor of Houston, John Whitmire, said no one will be able to step into Sylvester's shoes and carry on his duties because there's only one Sylvester Turner. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called Turner a powerful, profound, principled public servant. I'm Dwahili Sykowtow, NPR News from New York City.

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