NPR News Now - NPR News: 04-16-2025 5PM EDT

Episode Date: April 16, 2025

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Imagine, if you will, a show from NPR that's not like NPR, a show that focuses not on the important but the stupid, which features stories about people smuggling animals in their pants and competent criminals in ridiculous science studies, and call it Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me because the good names were taken. Listen to NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Yes, that is what it is called wherever You Get Your Podcast. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear. When Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell speaks, the financial markets listen

and investors appear to have not liked what they heard today. Speaking to members of the Economic Club of Chicago, the Fed Chairman had this response when asked whether the central bank might be ready to take action as a result of current market turmoil from President Trump's tariffs. As that great Chicagoan, Ferris Bueller, once noted, life moves pretty fast. For the time being, we are well positioned to wait for greater clarity before considering any adjustments to our policy stance. Powell did warn of a challenging scenario posed by tariffs though and did note there could be difficult trade-offs ahead as tariffs push up consumer prices while weakening economic activity. Blue chips closed down more than 1.7 percent. The Nasdaq plunged more than 3 percent today.

California leaders are asking a federal court to halt President Trump's tariffs, arguing in a lawsuit filed today he exceeded his authority in imposing them. Member station KQED in San Francisco, Marisa Lagos, says more. Governor Gavin Newsom says the 10 percent across-the-board tariffs, as well as higher tariffs levied against Mexico, Canada, and China, are not legal and are hurting both businesses and consumers. He appeared at a family-owned almond farm in California's Central Valley Wednesday morning.

No state is poised to lose more than the state of California. So that's our state of mind. That's why we're asserting ourselves on behalf of 40 million Americans. The suit argues Trump needs congressional authorization for actions with such broad economic consequences. White House spokesman Kush Desai responded in a statement saying Newsom should be focusing on California's problems. For NPR News, I'm Marisa Lagos in San Francisco. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi says the Trump administration is launching a civil lawsuit against Maine

for allegedly violating a law preventing discrimination on the basis of sex. Steve Missler from Embers Station Maine Public has more. Bondi's announcement is the latest development in a dispute that began when Maine Governor Janet Mills told President Trump that she would continue to follow a state law that allows transgender athletes to participate on girls' sports teams. The Trump administration contends that the state is violating Title IX, and Bondi said its lawsuit will seek to end that practice, restore state titles to girls defeated by transgender athletes, and potentially pull federal education funds retroactively.

In a statement, Mills said the lawsuit is the latest salvo in the Trump administration's ongoing retaliation campaign designed to coerce the state into ignoring the Constitution and the rule of law. For NPR News, I'm Steve Missler in Augusta, Maine. Renewed worries about the Trump administration tariffs sent stocks tumbling again on Wall Street. The Dow fell 699 points. Today the Nasdaq was down 516 points. You're listening to NPR. Well, and Senator Chris Van Hollen is in El Salvador where he met with the country's

vice president to try and push for the release of a man being held in a notorious prison there. While administration officials have said Kilmore or Brego Garcia was sent there by accident, they continue to maintain without any evidence Garcia was a member of MS-13. Van Hollen says the Salvadoran government also claims it can't return to Brego Garcia to the U.S. and it was refused to allow the senator to visit him in prison. Scientists are reporting success in using stem cells

to treat Parkinson's disease. NPR's John Hamilton reports on two new studies in the journal Nature. The study showed that two different kinds of stem cells began making the chemical messenger dopamine after being transplanted into the brains of Parkinson's patients. In one study, 12 patients received either a low or high dose of neurons derived from human embryonic stem cells. Dr. Lauren Studer of Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York says over the next 18 months, scientists used a standard rating scale to assess symptoms like tremor.

You would expect every year to get two to three points worse. And actually the high dose group, they got about 20 points better. A team in Japan reported similar success using a different type of stem cell treatment. Researchers caution that it will take larger studies to confirm the results. John Hamilton, NPR News. Representative Elise Stefanik, a one-time nominee to be U.S. Ambassador to the UN, now says she's mulling a run for the New York governor's office. Stefanik is a close ally of President Trump's, but her nomination was pulled last month. Be concerned about

leaving a Republican House seat vacant. I'm Jack Spear, NPR News in Washington. Having news at your fingertips is great, but sometimes you need an escape. And that's where Shortwave comes in. We're a joy-filled science podcast driven by wonder and curiosity that will get you out of your head and in touch with the world around you. Listen now to Shortwave, the science podcast from NPR.