NPR News Now - NPR News: 04-15-2025 12PM EDT

Episode Date: April 15, 2025

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These days, there is a lot of news. It can be hard to keep up with what it means for you, your family, and your community. Consider This from NPR is a podcast that helps you make sense of the news. Six days a week, we bring you a deep dive on a story and provide the context, backstory, and analysis you need to understand our rapidly changing world. Listen to the Consider This Podcast from NPR. Winzer Johnston Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Winzer Johnston. A federal court in Maryland will hold a hearing today in the case of a man who was wrongfully deported to El Salvador last month. NPR's Franco Ardoñez reports the Trump administration was ordered to help facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia,

but the White House says it can't comply. The Trump team is downplaying this as a paperwork issue. They insist Abrego Garcia has ties to the MS-13 gang. Again, his lawyer says he's not a member. NPR's Franco Ardoñez, despite a Supreme Court ruling directing the White House to facilitate his return, El Salvador maintains custody of Abrego Garcia. The man's family continues to push for his release, stressing his lack of criminal history

and the dangers he faces in El Salvador. The Trump administration is freezing $2 billion in federal grants to Harvard University. NPR's Alyssa Nadwerney reports the withholding of funds follows the university's refusal to comply with the list of demands from the administration. On Monday, the nation's wealthiest university became the first college to say it would not comply with a list of demands from the federal government, saying they were unlawful in exchange for federal funds. The Trump administration's demands included reporting foreign students who commit conduct violations to federal authorities, giving students and faculty less power in university

affairs, and having an outside party oversee academic departments for what the administration calls viewpoint diversity. The changes stem from a federal investigation of Harvard and dozens of other schools over diversity efforts and alleged anti-semitism on campus. Alyson Adwani, NPR News. In a post on social media today, President Trump suggested that Harvard University should lose its tax exempt status. It's the first public comment from the president since the administration froze federal funding. A vaccine advisory committee for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is holding its first public

meeting of the Trump administration today. NPR's Ping Huang reports this meeting was postponed from February. In the two-day public meeting, CDC staff will present data and updates on a range of vaccines to a panel of independent advisors who will then discuss and vote on recommendations for some of them, including RSV and chikungunya. Claire Hannon, head of the Association of Immunization Managers, says she's reassured by the meeting's agenda. Claire Hannon, Director, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC,

CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, CDC, that it's scheduled and that, you know, they're holding public comments. The committee's advice shapes access and insurance coverage for vaccines. Vaccine advocates have been concerned that Trump administration officials would interfere with this committee by removing members. That has not happened yet.

Ping Huang, NPR News. On Wall Street, the Dow was at 138 points. This is NPR. A graduate student from Tufts University is waiting to hear if she'll be released from immigration detention or have her case transferred following a hearing in federal court in Vermont on Monday. Turkish student Ruzmeza Ozturk is being held at a detention center in Louisiana. Jessie Rossman is with the ACLU of Massachusetts. She says the detainment sends a chilling message. And of course, this also is sending a very clear message from the government that if you speak in a way that the administration disagrees with, you face the potential of

punishment. Without evidence, the Trump administration accuses Osturk of supporting Hamas. The recipients of the prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship have been announced this morning in New York City. NPR's Net-a-ulibi reports fellowships are going to nearly 200 scholars, scientists, and artists across four dozen fields. This is the 100th class of Guggenheim Fellows. They range from a paleontologist studying evolutionary

responses to climate change to the best-selling novelist Miranda July. She talked to WHYY's Fresh Air last year about writing all fours, a book hailed as perhaps the first great paramenopause novel. Like if you're hiding the place where you're actually at, then it's hard to get to the next place. Other Guggenheim fellows include the novelist Jonathan Lethem and artist Theaster Gates, known for making abandoned old houses and buildings his medium. On average grants range from $40,000 to $55,000. Neda Ulibi, NPR News. – I'm Windsor Johnston, NPR News in Washington. – On the Wild Card Podcast, author John Green fights to be optimistic. NPR News in Washington.