NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-01-2025 8AM EDT

Episode Date: May 1, 2025

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Does the idea of listening to political news freak you out? Well, don't sweat it. The NPR Politics Podcast makes politics a breeze. Every episode will break down the day's headlines into totally normal language and make sure that you walk away understanding what the day's news might mean for you. Take a deep breath and give politics another chance with the NPR Politics Podcast, available wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, on Korova Coleman, Ukraine and the US have set up an investment fund to share profits from the sale of Ukraine's

critical minerals and raw materials. NPR's Joanna Kakissis reports from Kyiv, the deal will give the White House incentives to keep investing in Ukraine's defense and reconstruction. Ukraine's economy minister, Yulia Svedenko, who led negotiations on the deal, said revenue for the investment fund would come from new licenses for critical raw materials and natural resources. Volodymyr Londa of the Center for Economic Strategy in Kyiv said an earlier draft smacked of colonialism.

The signed deal, he says, does not obstruct Ukraine's path to the European Union. It stipulates that the military and the financial assistance provided earlier will not be counted as that. The deal does not provide explicit security guarantees but the fund that can be used to finance new military aid to Ukraine. Joanna Kekesis, NPR News, Kiev. Former Vice President Kamala Harris delivered a major speech last night in San Francisco. For Member Station KQED, Scott Schaeffer reports she blasted President Trump's actions during his first 100 days in office. This was Harris's first major speech since she and Joe Biden left office in January. Speaking to Emerge America, a political

group that helps elect democratic women, Harris said the Trump administration is counting on fear to divide the country while implementing a far right agenda. Instead of an administration working to advance America's highest ideals, we are witnessing the wholesale abandonment of those ideals. The California Democrat is reportedly considering a run for governor next year, a campaign that would surely take her out of the next presidential election. She made no mention of either in her remarks.

For NPR News, I'm Scott Schaefer in San Francisco. This week, Trump administration officials have been highlighting his work. Today, Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller will speak from the White House about Trump's efforts to restore common sense in his first 100 days in office. No details have been provided. The Trump administration is moving to terminate $1 billion for school mental health grants. The Education Department says the grants conflict with the Trump administration's priorities. These grants were part of a gun violence bill passed in Congress. It allows

schools across the country to hire more psychologists, counselors, and social workers. The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments yesterday on whether overtly religious charter schools can be fully funded by taxpayers. By law, public schools must be nonsectarian, but the conservative majority on the Supreme Court appeared to be friendly to the arguments supporting the position. Some justices suggested that preventing religious schools from doing so could be seen as discriminatory.

You're listening to NPR News from Washington. A federal judge has ruled that big tech company Apple has violated a court injunction in an antitrust case. The lawsuit was filed by the parent company of the game, Fortnite. The federal judge had ordered Apple to lower barriers for its once-exclusive in-app digital transactions, and Apple was supposed to let developers show links to alternatives to those in-app transactions. The federal judge told Apple to stop blocking her order. Local governments around the country are trying to replace billions of dollars in infrastructure

spending. These funds had been granted by the federal government. But as Lauren Summer reports, they were recently canceled by the Trump administration. Hundreds of communities around the country have spent years planning much needed infrastructure projects. That includes building tornado shelters, fixing water systems that cause flooding, and preparing for wildfires. The federal government has granted more than $4 billion since 2020 to help with infrastructure that's at risk from disasters, especially as climate change makes weather more extreme.

The Trump administration has now canceled those grants, saying in a statement that the program was ineffective and wasteful. That has many communities scrambling to find new sources of funding, especially rural areas that have few options to pay for projects locally. Lauren Summer, NPR News. President Trump will observe the National Day of Prayer today in the White House Rose Garden. The National Day of Prayer has been observed since 1952, since President Harry Truman signed its recognition into law.

I'm Corva Coleman, NPR News in Washington. There was Barbenheimer's summer, then Bratz summer. What will this season bring? I'm Korva Coleman, NPR News in Washington.