NPR News Now - NPR News: 03-15-2025 6PM EDT

Episode Date: March 15, 2025

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Neuroscientist Ethan Cross says you may think it's healthy to vent about what's bothering you, but... The problem is you often leave that conversation feeling really good about the person you just communicated with, but all the negative feelings are still there. Sometimes they're even more activated. Tools for managing our emotions. That's on the TED Radio Hour podcast from NPR. Liveine Hurst Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janine Hurst.

President Trump has invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, targeting the Venezuelan prison gang Trane de Aragua. He signed an executive order in January, designating the group as a terrorist organization, paving the way for today's presidential declaration. There are already legal challenges in the works. Just hours before Trump's action, a federal judge issued a preemptive temporary stay, blocking the deportation of the five men from Venezuela in anticipation of the move, saying the men are connected to the terrorist group and that they are in danger of being deported without a court hearing.

The stay allows the men to stay in the U.S. for 14 days. An emergency hearing on the matter takes place tonight. President Trump called for the dismantling of the Institute of Museum and Library Services as part of a sweeping executive order issued yesterday targeting seven federal agencies. And Pierce Chloe Veltman reports the IMLS supports museums, libraries and archives. The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal funding for the nation's 123,000 libraries and 35,000 museums. Its grants support programs like

a children's art exhibition at the National September 11 Memorial and Museum and indigenous language workshops in Hawaiian libraries. A fact sheet issued by the White House states that cutting this and six other governmental entities, including the United States Agency for Global Media and the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, will save taxpayer dollars, reduce unnecessary government spending and streamline government priorities. The IMLS did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Chloe Veltman, NPR News. Forecasters are warning of severe weather across much of the south today and tomorrow,

with damaging winds, hail and tornadoes. This follows a series of tornadoes overnight that killed at least 17 people, 14 of them in Missouri and Arkansas. Damage was extensive. Molly Samuel from member station WAVE in Atlanta has more. Molly Samuel Severe weather swept across the central U.S. Friday, damaging buildings, fanning wildfires and spinning off tornadoes. The Weather Service expects the severe weather to continue this evening and into the morning,

warning of the potential for numerous significant tornadoes. Governors, including in Alabama and Missouri, have declared states of emergency. In Georgia, Governor Brian Kemp issued an emergency declaration ahead of the severe weather, which is expected to begin hitting the state Saturday night. In a statement, the governor urged people to prepare ahead of time, writing that the storm will hit at the worst possible time as people are heading to or already in bed. For NPR News, I'm Mollye Samuel in Atlanta.

Lyle Ornstein And the National Weather Service has issued tornado watches for Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The storms have also left tens of thousands without power. According to poweroutage.us, more than 90,000 customers in Missouri are in the dark. You're listening to NPR News. Wildfires that burn into urban areas are more dangerous to people's health than ones that burn in natural landscapes. That's the finding from a new study published in Science Advances. NPR's Alejandra Burunda has more. Wildfire smoke triggers all

kinds of health issues from respiratory and heart problems to mental health emergencies. But those that burn in what's called the wildland-urban interface are worse. Fire emissions from wildland-urban interface fires are three times more likely to lead to annual premature deaths than emissions from wildland fires in general. Wenfu Tang of the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado led the study. The bigger health impacts are largely because wuiwifires happen closer to people and douse them with more smoke. The Tang says it's possible the smoke is even more dangerous because those fires burn houses

and cars, which are full of toxic materials. Alejandra Borunda, NPR News. It's nearly St. Patrick's Day, which this year falls on Monday. So celebrations are taking place across the country this weekend. In Chicago, the Chicago River is once again a vibrant Kelly Green, as thousands of people line the river and the bridges today, cheering as members of the Chicago Journeyman Plumbers Union Local 130 sprayed green dye into the water from boats.

That tradition started 63 years ago. Officials say that dye is non-toxic. I'm Janene Hurst, NPR News in Washington.