NPR News Now - NPR News: 03-05-2025 5AM EST

Episode Date: March 5, 2025

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On the Thru Line podcast, the myth linking autism and vaccines was decades in the making and was a major moment for vaccine hesitancy in America, tapping into fears involving the pharmaceutical industry and the federal government. No matter how many studies you do showing that this is not a problem, it's very hard to unring the bell. Listen to Thru Line from NPR, wherever you get your podcasts. Listen to Throughline from NPR, wherever you get your podcast. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dave Mattingly. President Trump is vowing to continue his efforts to downsize the federal government and reshape the U.S. economy and foreign policy. NPR's Tamara Keith reports on Trump's address to a joint session of Congress last night,

six weeks into his second term in the White House. Trump spent a significant share of the speech discussing immigration, highlighting brutal crimes committed by people in the U.S. without legal status. He talked about transgender athletes and his effort to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Because we're getting wokers out of our schools and out of our military and it's already out and it's out of our society.

We don't want it. Wokeness is trouble. Wokeness is bad. It's gone. It's gone. Trump asked Congress to pass major tax cuts and said he'd even like to balance the federal budget, something he never did in his first term.

Tamara Keith, NPR News. Several Democratic lawmakers staged protests during the president's speech to a joint session of Congress. As NPR's Elena Moore reports, Congressman Al Green of Texas was removed from the House Chamber for heckling the president. Lawmakers in the opposition party have been vocal from their seats in years past. But Green's removal was a break from tradition. He stood up and began yelling at Trump after the president claimed he had been given a

mandate following his 2024 election win. We won the popular vote by big numbers and won counties in our country. Green responded by saying Trump didn't have a mandate, but was escorted out after refusing to take his seat after a warning from House Speaker Mike Johnson. Other lawmakers led quieter protests. A group of Democrats walked out during the address. Some were wearing shirts that read, resist. Elena Moore, NPR News.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky says Kyiv is ready to sign an economic deal giving the U.S. access to his country's rare earth minerals. In a statement on social media, Zelensky describes last week's verbal clash with President Trump and Vice President Vance in the Oval Office as regrettable, adding it's time to make things right. Trump referenced Zelensky in last night's speech, saying he'd received a letter from the Ukrainian leader saying as much. Strong storms in the southern U.S. are blamed for at least two deaths in Mississippi. One person was killed by a tree falling on his car. A second person

was killed by a downed power line. The severe weather forced the rescheduling of some Mardi Gras events in New Orleans. The National Weather Service confirms there was a tornado briefly in Irving, Texas yesterday about 10 miles outside Dallas. No deaths or injuries were reported. This is NPR News. China is pledging to keep its economy growing this year despite mounting pressure from U.S. tariffs and weak demand domestically. NPR's Anthony Kuhn has more from Beijing. China's annual session of parliament kicked off with the usual political pageantry at

the Great Hall of the People on Tiananmen Square. China's Premier Li Qiang announced that the government will try to jump-start the economy this year by boosting deficit spending from 3% of GDP to 4%. It'll launch a trade-in program to boost consumer spending. But with wages and prices declining and the real estate market in a prolonged slump, consumers are in no mood to splurge. The government will also increase childcare subsidies to stem the country's falling birth rate. The defense budget will remain the same as last year, growing by 7.2% to about $245 billion,

although experts say the actual total is higher. Anthony Kuhn, NPR News, Beijing. Prosecutors in New York say cyber hackers stole more than 900 digital tickets to Taylor Swift concerts and then resold them. They say it was an international scam involving people working in Jamaica for a firm contracted by StubHub, an online ticket marketplace. LeBron James made NBA history last night. He became the first player in league history to score 50,000 points in the regular season

and the playoffs combined. James had 34 points as his Los Angeles Lakers defeated New Orleans 136-115. James is in his 22nd NBA season. I'm Dave Mattingly in Washington.