NPR News Now - NPR News: 03-24-2025 1PM EDT

Episode Date: March 24, 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 Lakshmi Singh. A federal judge in Washington, D.C. is blocking the Trump administration's attempt to lift a pause on deportation flights under the 18th century wartime law, the Alien Enemies Act. NPR's Hima Nibusti reports the court's pause will remain in effect for another week.

Judge James Boasberg last week issued a 14-day temporary restraining order barring the Trump administration from using the Alien Enemies Act as the basis for deporting people. The Alien Enemies Act has only been used three other times in U.S. history. It allows the government to quickly deport people without going through immigration courts. The Trump administration had sought to resume flights earlier. Boesberg says the pause on the flight does not prevent the government from making arrests or even deporting those it suspects of being members of Tren de Agua, a Venezuelan gang targeted. Judge Boasberg, meanwhile, is asking immigrant rights groups who sued to file a request for a longer pause

on such flights known as a preliminary injunction. Jimena Bustillo, NPR News. The Trump administration's latest appeal will be the subject of a separate hearing this afternoon. Members of Congress in our back in Washington after a week in their home districts. As NPR's Barbara Sprunt reports, some Democratic lawmakers received an earful

from their constituents who've demanded that their elected officials resist President Trump's efforts to downsize the federal government. I heard a lot of other people ask, is there a plan? And it really doesn't seem like there's a plan. This question from a constituent named Amanda during a town hall in Golden, Colorado, was one of many asked to Democratic Senator Michael Bennett about what Democrats can do to push back on the GOP agenda. 19-year-old Jackson Armenta said it's personal. I have family that's on Medicaid.

I have family that collects Social Security, and they need that to survive month to month. And so we just really want to make sure that there's a real plan. Bennett acknowledged Democrats are limited in what they can do on Capitol Hill as members of the minority party, but said mobilizing ahead of next year's midterms will be critical to put a check on the Trump administration.

Barbara Sprint and Pure News, Washington. Firefighters in North Carolina continue battling wildfires. Blue Ridge Public Radio's Gerard Albert III reports from Ashville that crews are having trouble with trees that were knocked over by Hurricane Helene. The crews from across the state have struggled to contain a trio of wildfires that started in sparsely populated Polk County. Jeremy Waldrop is with the North Carolina Forest Service. One of the big things, we've got a lot of down debris from Hurricane Helene.

They are working in a lot of steep, rocky terrain that's there, so that is something we have to keep in check as well for safety reasons. Waldrop says low humidity and high winds also make fighting the fire harder. For NPR News, I'm Jeroi Albert III in Asheville. From Washington, this is NPR News. A European private company scrubbed its first attempt at launching an orbital rocket. It may try again later in the week.

ICAR Aerospace says unfavorable wind conditions forced it to ground the Spectrum rocket in northern Norway. The startup says it is hoping to build up to 40 launch vehicles per year at some point to put satellites into orbit. To that end, the European company says it has raised $435 million. Disney's Snow White dominated the box office over the weekend, but that may not mean that the film's turning a profit. NPR's Bob Mandello explains.

Snow White easily dwarfed the competition at cinemas. The rest of the box office top ten combined made barely half as much as Snow White did, but this live-action remake of Disney's first animated feature only took in $87 million worldwide, and that means making back its $270 million production cost is going to be difficult. Disney has had a lot of success with live remakes of its animated classics, and even when they don't cast a spell at the box office, they feed the company's other revenue streams – Disney Plus, sales of merchandise, theme park rides, even shows on Broadway.

Still, for Hollywood, it's a disappointing start in a year that has yet to have a smash hit. Bob Mandelo, NPR News. U.S. stocks are trading higher this hour, the Dow Jones Industrial Average up now more than 1 percent, or 440 points. Bob Mandelo, NPR News.