NPR News Now - NPR News: 03-25-2025 10PM EDT

Episode Date: March 26, 2025

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Am I a propagandist? A truth teller? An influencer? There's probably no more contested profession in the world today than mine, journalism. I'm Brian Reed, and on my show, Question Everything, we dive head first into the conflicts we're all facing over truth and who gets to tell it. Listen now to Question Everything, part of the NPR Podcast Network. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear. President Donald Trump is defending his national security adviser Mike Waltz following the inadvertent inclusion of a journalist in a messaging app group chat about a US attack on Yemen. Trump also repeating assertions no classified information was involved. Two

Trump intelligence officials were part of that chat appeared before the Senate Intelligence Committee this morning for a hearing on worldwide threats. Virginia Democrat Mark Warner sits on the committee in an interview with NPR, says the security lapse is not a trivial matter. Because if it had gotten out, Americans could have died in terms of the hoodies being able to reconfigure

or redirect their defensive capabilities. This is kind of security 101. If this had been a military officer or a CIA case officer, they would be fired. Warner's call for the release of all the material from the chat, if indeed it is not classified. Mike Waltz for his part slammed the Atlantic and the media over their focus on the matter.

Nominee to head up the Social Security Administration, Frank Bisognano was on Capitol Hill today, appearing before the Senate Finance Committee, the former CEO of Fiserv, telling lawmakers, he's never heard a word about Social Security being privatized and has never thought about it. The agency's been getting a great deal of attention after Elon Musk's Doge Government Cost Cutting Initiative

sought to access sensitive information. The agency pays out $1.4 trillion to 73 million elderly and disabled Americans annually, but has been cutting staff and closing offices. Dr. Mehmet Oz wants the star of the Dr. Oz show cleared another hurdle today in his bid to run Medicare and Medicaid. As NPR's Selina Simmons-Duffin explains, Senate Finance Committee voted 14 to 13 along party lines to advance its nomination to the full Senate. Dr. Mehmet Oz's hearing earlier this month was cordial. Oz was poised and bantered easily with senators, but that friendliness did not translate into votes from Democratic members of the Senate Finance Committee.

Ahead of the vote, Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington summarized Democrats' objections. He was unwilling to commit to opposing a cut to Medicaid. The math is clear. The proposal from the House budget would require massive cuts to Medicaid. Republican Senator Roger Marshall of Kansas, a physician, defended his party's plans, saying Medicaid had gotten too big and too expensive and was unsustainable. We're here to save it. We want to strengthen Medicaid for the most vulnerable.

Oz's nomination will next be voted on by the full Senate in the coming days or weeks. Selena Simmons-Duffin, NPR News, Washington. Vice President JD Vance says he'll join his wife, Usha Vance, in visiting Greenland this week. The second lady announcing a cultural visit to the Danish territory, which sparked consternation from political leaders in Greenland and Denmark who worried about Trump administration's interest

in acquiring the territory. Usher Vansed says she planned to attend a dog sled race, but now she and Vice President J.D. Vansed say they'll visit a space force base on the island instead. You're listening to NPR. Sales of Tesla electric vehicles have been sliding because of actions taken by CEO Elon Musk and as well as head of the Trump administration's Doge team. That seems to be especially true in Europe, where President Trump continues to disparage many of the US's longtime allies.

Trump posted it, or Tesla rather, posted its first annual sales drop in more than a dozen years in January, and European sales reportedly tumbled 49% the first two months of this year. The Israeli military says it fired airstrikes today on southern Syria and also exchanged fire with quote terrorists. Residents told NPR at least seven people were killed. NPR's Jawad Rizkala reports from Damascus. The cousin of two of those killed tells NPR it started when Israeli troops, who've already seized parts of southern Syria, pushed deeper into the country. Villagers threw stones to keep them at bay.

The Israeli soldiers fired bullets back. A gun battle broke out, and the whole village fled, he says. Syria's foreign ministry says the Israelis also fired a missile at the house. It accused Israel of targeting of civilian infrastructure, and called on residents not to relinquish their land. The Israeli military says its soldiers fired only in retaliation, and then called in airstrikes. Since Bashar al-Assad's fall, Syria is awash in weapons, and Israel has attacked often. Syrian officials say many civilians have been killed. Shuaad Arskallah, NPR News, Damascus.

Stocks closed modestly higher on Wall Street today. The Dow was up four points. The Nasdaq closed up 83 points. The Standard & Poor's 500 was up nine points today. I'm Jack Spear, NPR News in Washington. This message comes from NYU Langone. The NYU Langone Health app gives you access to your electronic health record. NPR News in Washington.