NPR News Now - NPR News: 03-16-2025 9PM EDT

Episode Date: March 17, 2025

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A lot happens in Washington every day, from the White House to Capitol Hill and everywhere in between. That's where we come in. On the NPR Politics Podcast, we keep you up to date on what happens inside Washington and what it means for you and your community. The NPR Politics Podcast. Listen wherever you listen. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janene Hurst. This week President Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a wartime law that gives him sweeping deportation powers. A federal judge blocked his administration from using this law to immediately deport migrants who are allegedly members of a Venezuelan prison gang.

Despite this, a plane landed in El Salvador carrying hundreds of deportees from the U.S. who were then sent to a notorious prison where they will stay for at least a year. And here's Luke Garrett says court challenges are underway. The ACLU is waiting to hear back from the government on the timing of this weekend's deportation and another hearing in this case is set for March 21st. As for the hundreds of people deported, they're set to spend the next year in El Salvador's terrorism confinement center, according to President Bukele. U.S. courts just don't have jurisdiction in other countries, meaning their fates are up to Bukele.

Danielle Pletka And here is Luke Garrett reporting. Ukrainian troops now hold just a small sliver of land in Russia's Kursk region. And they say military analysts in the Kremlin, after fierce clashes with Russian troops, trying to dislodge them. Impeers Eleanor Beardsley reports Ukraine's campaign to seize and occupy the Russian region seems to be nearing an end. Ukraine had wanted to use its Kursk conquest as a bargaining chip in any ceasefire negotiations. Its surprise invasion last August marked the biggest attack on Russia since the Nazi invasion

of 1941. President Vladimir Putin used North Korean troops to try to get back the territory in a lightning offensive that has reduced the area under Ukrainian control from 500 to about 40 square miles. In his nightly address Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Putin had ignored the U.S.-Ukrainian ceasefire proposal to, quote, steal another week of war. We will do everything to intensify diplomacy, said Zelensky, but we must also protect our independence, our state, and our people. Eleanor Beardsley in PR News, Kyiv.

As Wall Street spotters and consumer confidence falls on worries about President Trump's chaotic tariff threats and its effect on the economy, Treasury Secretary Scott Besson defended Trump's tariff policy and says while there are no guarantees, there won't be a recession. I'm not worried about the markets. Over the long term, if we put good tax policy in place, deregulation and energy security, the markets will do great. Speaking there on NBC's Meet the Press, but despite all three major indices closing higher on Friday, it was a brutal week on Wall Street as the Dow had its worst week since 2023.

Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve will hold a two-day policy meeting this week, and after cutting interest rates three times last year, the Fed is widely expected to keep them on hold this time. Asian markets are trading higher at this hour than Nikkei. The main market in Japan is up 1.2 percent. You're listening to NPR News. In North Macedonia, a fire tore through an overcrowded nightclub, killing at least 59 people and injuring more than 150 others during a concert. Officials say victims suffered

burns, smoke inhalation, and injuries from a panicked crowd surge. At least 15 people have been detained as the club exceeded its capacity and lacked a proper license. Videos show pyrotechnics igniting the ceiling before the chaotic escape erupted early today. Leaders from around the world, including Pope Francis and Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky, sent condolences. Authorities also accepted medical aid from neighboring countries, and the government has declared seven days of national mourning. Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts has received $50 million for dance initiatives. And Pierce Elizabeth Blair reports it's the largest gift in the New York institution's

history. The $50 million donation comes from philanthropists Lynn and Richard Pasquilano. The goal? Transform Lincoln Center's contemporary dance programming. In a statement, Lincoln Center says the money will support contemporary dance performances from across the globe and the next generation of dance artists. The Center's president and CEO, Mariko Silver, notes, these are challenging times for the contemporary dance community as we continue recovering from the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Lincoln Center is home to Juilliard, the renowned New York City Ballet, and the

School of American Ballet, both co-founded by George Balanchine. Elizabeth Blair, NPR News. U.S. futures contracts are trading lower at this hour. Dow futures down about three-tenths of a percent. I'm Janene Herbst, NPR News. Here on Shortwave, we believe that science is for everyone and that every question is worth asking, no matter your age. My name is Willie and my question is, is magic real? Our podcast is for the curious at heart.

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