NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-03-2025 4PM EDT

Episode Date: May 3, 2025

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When Malcolm Gladwell presented NPR's Throughline podcast with a Peabody Award, he praised it for its historical and moral clarity. On Throughline, we take you back in time to the origins of what's in the news, like presidential power, aging, and evangelicalism. Time travel with us every week on the Throughline podcast from NPR. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Nora Rahm. This week saw mixed news on the US economy. It shrank in the first three months of the year and consumer confidence has fallen to the lowest level

since the beginning of the pandemic. But there was encouraging news, unemployment. NPR's Scott Horsley has more. Employers added 177,000 jobs in April, not quite as many as the month before, but more than forecasters had expected. And the unemployment rate held steady at a low 4.2%. That suggests that even with all the tariff

chaos of the recent weeks, employers are still hiring. Wages are also still going up. So with more people working and paychecks getting bigger, that should provide some juice to keep the economy moving forward. NPR's Scott Horsley. Warren Buffett warned against trade wars today at the shareholder meeting of his company Berkshire Hathaway, saying it's a mistake when seven and a half billion people don't like you. He also said he plans to step down as CEO at the end of the year. A federal judge has struck down President Trump's executive order targeting the prominent

law firm of Perkins Cooey. The ruling deals a blow to Trump's campaign to punish law firms he views as political enemies. NPR's Ryan Lucas reports. In her ruling, U.S. District Judge Barrell Howell says that no American president has ever issued an executive order like the one against Perkins Cooey. But Howell says in purpose and effect, it draws from a playbook that dates back to Shakespeare in his famous phrase of, quote, the first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers.

Howell's ruling framed Trump's executive order as an attack on the independence of the legal profession and the broader judicial system and their foundational principles. She said punishing lawyers for representing clients or causes the president doesn't like is unconstitutional. Three other firms have sued to challenge Trump's orders targeting them. Perkins case is the first to be permanently blocked by a court. Ryan Lucas, NPR News, Washington. Several law firms have reached settlement agreements with the president to avoid being targeted by him in an executive order. Australia's ruling Labour Party has won the general election,

delivering a second term to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Scott Maiman reports. A clear win for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. His Labour Party has won a second term in office. We take up this task with new hope, new confidence. Together we are turning the corner and together we will make our way forward with no one held back and no one left behind. For the opposition, it's a massive loss for the coalition.

Conservative leader Peter Dutton had been campaigning with President Trump's style policies. We'll rebuild from here because we know our values. But after Dutton was voted out, his party is leaderless for now. For NPR News, I'm Scott Mayman in Canberra, Australia. This is NPR News in Washington. Workers at the Vatican have installed a stove in the Sistine Chapel that will be used to burn the ballots cast by cardinals selecting the new pope. It's connected to a chimney to convey signals to the public.

White smoke means the pope has been elected. The conclave begins Wednesday. After being closed for nearly five years for renovations, a major historic land park in St. Louis is reopening to the public today. Alex Hoyer of St. Louis Public Radio reports. Alex Hoyer, St. Louis Public Radio, reports. Many years before the Gateway Arch dominated the St. Louis skyline, it was the old courthouse

with its green dome reminiscent of the U.S. Capitol. Built in the mid-1800s, the old courthouse is known as the place where Dredd and Harriet Scott sued for their freedom. Their case ultimately reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which in 1857 upheld slavery and pushed the country closer to civil war. The courthouse now includes a permanent exhibit to the Scotts. Lynn Jackson is their great-great-granddaughter. For them to have their own gallery is just an incredible, huge honor and a great leap forward. The old courthouse is part of Gateway Arch National Park, and its reopening concludes

a $380 million renovation that lasted more than a decade. For NPR News, I'm Alex Hoyer in St. Louis. Today is the first Saturday in May, free comic book day. Participating stores will give a free comic book to anyone who walks in the door. The theory is that for every person out there, there's a comic book they'll love. For people who want to get outside, today is also World Naked Gardening Day to encourage everyone to step outside, soak up the sun, and reconnect with nature in the most natural way possible.

I'm Nora Rahm, NPR News in Washington.