NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-09-2025 2PM EDT

Episode Date: May 9, 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. Lyle from NPR News. I'm Lakshmi Singh. Newark's been hit by a second radar outage in as many weeks, the Federal Aviation Administration says. The air traffic control facility in Philadelphia that directs planes at Newark Liberty International Airport went black for

90 seconds. It happened just before 4 this morning. Same thing happened April 28th, prompting several controllers to take trauma leave. Hundreds of flights were delayed or canceled during the last two weeks. The White House says President Trump will not unilaterally bring down tariffs on China. Press Secretary Caroline Levitt was asked at today's briefing about Trump's online post suggesting an 80 percent tariff on Chinese goods now. That was a number the president threw out there and we'll see what happens this weekend. High level U.S.-China talks are scheduled in Geneva tomorrow for the first time since the trade war between the world's two biggest economies escalated.

A federal judge in San Francisco will hear arguments today in a lawsuit challenging the administration's sweeping overhaul of the federal government. NPR's Andrea Hsu reports the case was brought by a coalition of unions, nonprofits, and local governments. The case is the broadest legal challenge yet to President Trump's efforts to dramatically downsize the government. The plaintiffs contend that Congress has the sole authority to undertake the kind of wholesale transformation Trump has ordered, shutting down programs and firing large swaths of the workforce. They argue actions taken by Trump, Elon Musk, and the heads of nearly two dozen federal agencies usurp Congress's authority under the Constitution. They're asking the court

to void agencies' plans for mass layoffs, as well as Trump's executive order directing agencies to come up with those plans. Trump has repeatedly said that he has a mandate from the American people to root out waste and bloat and make government more efficient. Andrea Hsu, NPR News. Andrea Hsu Newly elected Pope, Leo XIV celebrated his first public mass as head of the Catholic Church this morning at the Vatican. NPR's Jason DeRose reports from Rome. The Bible readings for the mass in the Sistine Chapel were in English, Spanish, and Latin. Two of them read by women. Pope Leo began his homily in English before switching to

Italian. I invite you to recognize the marvels that the Lord has done, the blessings that the Lord continues to pour out upon all of us. He preached on the story from the Gospel of Matthew, in which Jesus tells the disciple Peter that he will build his church upon him, the Rock. The sermon went on to warn of the dangers of practical atheism, the idea that one leads one's life without concern about God. Jason DeRose, NPR News, Rome.

The Vatican, says Leah, will be formally installed as an ex-Pope at a mass on Sunday, May 18th. The Dow is down 73 points. From Washington, this is NPR News. Russia is marking the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany in World War II. Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to crowds gathered in Moscow. Today, all of us are united by feelings of joy and sadness, of pride and gratitude. We bow our heads to the generation that crushed the Nazism. At the cost of millions of lives, there was one peace and freedom for the whole of humanity. Lylea Hickman, Ph.D., Ph.D., Ph.E., Ph.D.

Putin, hearth and interpreter on the BBC, the observations also overshadowed by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. A Russian spacecraft launched 53 years ago could come crashing down as soon as tonight. Exactly where on earth it would land remains unclear and PRS Amy Held reports people are on alert for what may be an unusual reentry. Since 1972 failed launched Venus the craft has been orbiting Earth, slowly sinking. It's expected to finally fall this weekend. It's not unusual for space junk to enter the atmosphere. Often it just burns up.

This time could be different. Cosmos 482 was built to sustain landing on the second planet from the Sun, Venus. So it's possible the 1,000-pound craft with a titanium shell will withstand the heat, pressure, and speed of entry to Earth. Experts say the vast possible landing area is mostly ocean or uninhabited land, but not all of it. And because it's an uncontrolled entry, the risk is also not zero. Space agencies are monitoring it. Amy Held, NPR News. It's NPR.