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Episode Date: April 18, 2025

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U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen is in El Salvador. He's been able to meet the immigrant who was illegally deported from Maryland to El Salvador by the Trump administration. Gilma Abrego-Garcia was sent to El Salvador in prison, even though he had obtained legal protection in the U.S. Reporter Manuel Reydat has more on the Democratic senator's visit. At about 8 p.S. Reporter Manuel Reyde has more on the Democratic senator's

visit. At about 8 p.m. Eastern, the Maryland senator published a photo on his ex-account that shows him meeting with Abrego Garcia in a room with wooden tables and wine glasses. The meeting was confirmed by El Salvador's president, who posted more pictures on his account, and wrote that Abrego Garcia was now, quote, sipping margaritas in El Salvador. Abrego Garcia immigrated illegally to the U.S. in 2011, but had obtained protection from deportation a few years ago. In March, he was arrested by ICE agents and sent to El Salvador's notorious SACOT prison.

The Trump administration has said that Abrego Garcia's removal was an administrative error, but it has also refused to bring the 29-year-old back to the United States. For NPR News, I'm Manuel Rueda in Bogota. The U.S. Supreme Court says it will hear expedited arguments next month on a key issue. The cases test President Trump's claim that there is no such thing as automatic birthright citizenship in the U.S. Constitution. NPR's Nina Totenberg has more. The 14th Amendment to the Constitution was enacted after the Civil War and aimed at ensuring

citizenship for all previously enslaved people and their children. It says, quote, all persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citizens of the United States. The Supreme Court ruled unanimously in 1898 that the provision guarantees citizenship to all babies born in the U.S. But Trump has long maintained that the provision does not apply to babies whose parents were not born here. Three federal judges have separately ruled against that view, and now the Supreme Court will weigh in next month

with a decision expected in late June or early July. Nina Totenberg, NPR News, Washington. Florida authorities say they have arrested a suspect in connection with the killings of two people yesterday at Florida State University in Tallahassee. Six more people were wounded. Officials say the suspect who was also wounded is the adult son of a sheriff's deputy

and reportedly used his mother's service weapon. Florida Republican Senator Rick Scott says he is backing bipartisan legislation to improve federal authorities' knowledge about preventing school violence. We have a bill called the Equals Act, which will help, the FBI will spend part of their time through their national threat assessment

to do things like, you know, do the school shootings and things like that, to try to share information, to try to do that. The Bipartisan Eagles Act has also been introduced in the House of Representatives. You're listening to NPR News. The State Department releases annual reports on the state of human rights in other countries. NPR has reviewed internal State Department documents that show the Trump administration

will no longer track more than 20 categories of human rights abuses in these reports. It won't check for violations of privacy rights or whether there's been violence against minorities or people with disabilities in other countries. won't check for violations of privacy rights, or whether there's been violence against minorities or people with disabilities in other countries. And it won't track whether other nations are observing their citizens' rights to free and fair elections. President Trump has congratulated Texas lawmakers

for moving forward on a bill that Republicans say is about offering parents school choices. From the Texas newsroom, Blaise Ganey has more. The Education Savings Program allows Texas families to use taxpayer dollars to send their kids to private schools. The voucher program prioritizes students with disabilities and low-income families. Democrat John Busey opposed parts of the measure and tried to amend it. I'm not saying get rid of all the prioritization buckets. I'm talking about those over 500% of the federal poverty level. Families making 160,000.

The attempt failed. Now, with both chambers having the votes, it's likely the bill will become law. If it passes, Texas' program will be one of the largest school voucher rollouts in the nation starting at $1 billion. Some parents of children with disabilities worry because private schools aren't required to provide the same federal legal protections for students with disabilities. I'm Blaze Ganey in Austin. The National Weather Service says critical fire weather conditions persist in the southwest

today, especially New Mexico. Windy, dry conditions could help fuel wildfires. This is NPR. This message comes from the Kresge Foundation. Established 100 years ago, the Kresge Foundation works to expand equity and opportunity in cities across America. A century of impact, a future of opportunity. More at kresge.org.