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Episode Date: March 21, 2025

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This message comes from Wondery. Kiki Palmer is that girl, and she's diving into the brains of entertainment's best and brightest to have real conversations on her podcast, Baby, This is Kiki Palmer. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shae Stevens. President Trump has signed an executive order that he says will begin the shutdown of the Department of Education. As NPR's Deepa Sivaram reports, that may not be so easy. Trump's order vastly scales down the Education Department, but it can't be entirely eliminated because that would require an act of Congress. The president cited reading and math test scores that declined during the pandemic as

one of the reasons to close down the department, which has already laid off hundreds of staff. We're not doing well with the world of education in this country and we haven't for a long time. Trump said things like Pell grants, Title I resources, and funding for students with disabilities and special needs will remain intact, but will be managed by other departments and agencies. Deepa Sivaram, NPR News, The White House. A federal judge in Maryland has blocked Elon Musk's Doge team from accessing personal data at the Social Security

Administration. The court also ruled that Doge must delete any personally identifiable information it's gathered so far. More from NPR's Ashley Lopez. In her ruling, Judge Ellen Lipton Hollander wrote that MUST Team has essentially been engaged in what she called a phishing expedition at the Social Security Administration. And this expedition, she wrote, has been based on little more than suspicion of fraud. The judge also noted that the agency gave members of MUST Team, quote, unbridled access to the personal and private data of millions of Americans. That includes social security numbers, medical records, and bank and credit card information.

And while the court has now limited DOJ's access to much of that information, it does say that the agency is still allowed to hand over data that adheres to federal privacy laws. Ashley Lopez, NPR News. California and three other states are suing the Environmental Protection Agency for freezing $20 billion in clean energy grants. The plaintiffs say the EPA is breaking the law by ending funding that was already approved by Congress. New data from the National Association of Realtors shows an uptick in U.S. home sales last month.

But as NPR's Laura Wamsley reports, there is a lot of uncertainty heading into the spring home buying season. Analysts had expected home sales to drop in February as they had the month before. But instead sales of existing homes rose more than 4 percent over January at a seasonally adjusted rate. And prices kept climbing. The median home price reached $398,000, the highest ever for the month of February. As the spring buying season warms up, more homes are coming on the market. Inventory is up 17 percent from a year ago. But affordability remains a big challenge, as mortgage rates stay well above 6 percent. The housing market has been strongest at the top recently, but

with the stock market taking a hit in recent weeks, the demand for luxury homes could soften. Laurel Wamsley, NPR News, Washington. U.S. futures are flat in after-hours trading. This is NPR. A federal judge says the government may not deport a detained Georgetown University graduate fellow who's from India. Badr Khan Suri was arrested Monday night at his home in Arlington, Virginia. He's accused of spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting anti-Semitism on social media. Attorney Hassan Ahmad says his client has not engaged in political activism and believes DHS's allegations stem from the actions of Suri's father-in-law.

Music legend Sir Elton John is well known for his philanthropic efforts and is among small group of people who've won Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Awards. As Jeff London reports, the songwriter has now been awarded the 15th Glenn Gould Prize for impact on the arts and humanity. Glenn Gould was a brilliant eccentric pianist whose performances and recordings were prized. After Gould passed away in 1982, a foundation was established in his memory, and this year Elton John was named laureate of the Glenn Gould Prize. The pop legend is active in the fight against HIV AIDS and advocates for a variety of LGBTQ

plus causes. In winning what has been dubbed the Nobel Prize of the Arts, Elton John joins a prestigious company of previous winners, among them Yo-Yo Ma, Leonard Cohen, and Philip Glass. For NPR News, I'm Jeff London in New York. Again, U.S. futures are flat and after hours trading. On Asia Pacific markets, shares are lower. This is NPR News. Following the news out of Washington, D.C. can be overwhelming.

I'm Scott Detrow and NPR has a podcast that can help. It's called Trump's Terms, stories about big changes the 47th president is pursuing on his own terms. Each episode is short, usually around five minutes or so. We keep it calm and factual. We help you follow what matters and we leave out what doesn't. Listen to Trump's Terms from NPR.