The Headlines - More Power for Elon Musk, and the Risk of Lithium-Ion Batteries

Episode Date: February 12, 2025

Plus, who isn’t in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.  On Today’s Episode:Trump Orders Plans for ‘Large Scale’ Work Force Cuts and Expands Musk’s Power, by Theodore Schleifer and Madeleine NgoRussia Releases U.S. Prisoner After Talks With Trump Envoy, by Jonathan Swan, Maggie Haberman, Julian E. Barnes and Anton TroianovskiGaza Cease-Fire Imperiled as Netanyahu Threatens to Resume ‘Intense Fighting,’ by Lara Jakes, Patrick Kingsley, Ronen Bergman and Thomas FullerA California Battery Plant Burned. Residents Have Gotten Sick, and Anxious, by Orlando MayorquínMonty, a Dignified Giant Schnauzer, Wins Best in Show at Westminster, by Sarah Lyall and Callie HoltermannChubby Checker, Phish and Outkast Among Rock Hall Nominees, by Ben SisarioTune in every weekday morning. To get our full audio journalism and storytelling experience, download the New York Times Audio app — available to Times news subscribers on iOS — and sign up for our weekly newsletter.Tell us what you think at: [e-mail]. 

From the New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today is Wednesday, February 12th. Here's what we're covering. We're going to be signing a very important deal today. It's Doge. And I'm going to ask Elon to tell you a little bit about it. In the Oval Office yesterday, President Trump announced a new executive order expanding

Elon Musk's mandate to overhaul the federal government. It calls for, quote, large-scale cuts at federal agencies and says that Musk's so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, will need to sign off on most new hires going forward. If your taxpayer dollars are not spent in a sensible and prudent manner, then that's not okay. It's not draconian or radical, I think. For about 30 minutes, Trump had Musk, who was standing next to him wearing a black autographed MAGA hat, take the floor and talk to reporters. It's the first time that Musk has answered questions since he started his overhaul, and he defended the slash and burn campaign that he's been

carrying out against federal agencies. We have this unelected fourth unconstitutional branch of government, which is the bureaucracy, which has in a lot of ways currently more power than any elected representative. Musk said federal workers have far too much power over Americans' lives. Though, as a special government employee himself, Musk has been allowed to operate nearly unchecked. Musk also claimed, without giving any proof, that he'd found widespread corruption in the government, which reporters pressed him about. And how can we make sure that all the statements that you said were correct so we can trust

what you say? Well, first of all, some of the things that I say will be incorrect and should be corrected. So nobody can about a thousand. I mean, we will make mistakes, but we'll act quickly to correct any mistakes. Over the course of the press conference, Musk also dodged questions about his potential conflicts of interest, given the billions of dollars in contracts his companies have with the government and the multiple federal investigations they're facing. Meanwhile, House Speaker Mike Johnson said he, quote, wholeheartedly agrees that the

Trump administration can keep making sweeping cuts to federal spending, taking a position that is at odds with the Constitution. I met with Elon yesterday about this to get an update. And to me, it's very exciting what they're able to do, because what Elon and the Doge effort is doing right now is what Congress has been unable to do in recent years. According to the Constitution, Congress decides how to spend money, and the executive branch is supposed to carry that out. Instead, the Trump administration has been withholding funds that Congress signed off on in a direct challenge to the separation of powers.

Johnson still praised the effort, framing it as a forensic audit. Yesterday the Trump administration struck a deal with the Kremlin to release an American prisoner, Mark Fogel. Everybody knows Mark. He's become a very famous guy. He's a very happy guy tonight. Fogel was working as a teacher in Russia when he was arrested in 2021 on charges of bringing medical marijuana into the country.

He was sentenced to over a decade in prison. He was released after Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, flew to Russia personally on his own jet for a meeting. It was the first time a senior U.S. official has been to the country since before Russia invaded Ukraine and Witkoff flew back with Vogel. Hours later, Trump hosted Vogel at the White House. And we appreciate President Putin's, what he did. He was able to pull it off for you, right? He was able to pull it off. We think, and're here. So it was great. We don't know the contours of this deal. Specifically, we don't know what if anything the US gave

up in order to get Mark Fogel released. But it's already clear this is a win in its own way both for Trump and for Putin. Anton Troianovsky covers Russia for the Times. You know, Trump got that photo op in the White House with this released American, and Putin got this major step toward establishing a closer relationship with Trump. It's really important for Putin to get on Trump's good side and stay there because he sees the United States as the biggest obstacle to his ability to win the war in Ukraine. And in many ways, that's true. The US is by far Ukraine's most important ally, providing a huge amount of weaponry

and financial assistance. Trump has already said that he thinks the US.S. has been making a mistake in providing all that assistance, that the war needs to end. And so Putin clearly sees a massive opportunity here that he's trying to capitalize on. President Trump himself said that the prisoner deal could be a first step toward ending the war in Ukraine and said more details would be announced today. U.S. officials say another American will also be released, but they did not say who.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is promising, quote, intense fighting in Gaza if Hamas does not go through with a plan to release more hostages this weekend. He's accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire deal by postponing hostage releases. Hamas has accused Israel of violating the agreement by blocking humanitarian aid and firing on civilians. The ceasefire has been in place for nearly a month.

It's supposed to continue for several more weeks with the possibility to extend it. In Monterey County, California last month, a battery plant caught fire. There is a fire at the Vista Energy Facility there. It's a natural gas power plant as well as an ion battery storage system. The blaze only got a fraction of the coverage of the wildfires that were happening in Los Angeles at the time, but it burned for days, emitting thick plumes of smoke. We've been told to leave. I'm going to have to find another vantage point. And I don't mind doing that because honestly I don't feel safe this close to this facility.

The plant housed lithium ion batteries, which contain heavy metals that can cause lung problems or even neurological effects when inhaled. Residents nearby reported a metallic taste in the air. They said they got headaches, sore throats, bloody noses. More than a thousand people evacuated, and one man, who lived 25 miles from the fire, told the Times it felt like the air was burning his lungs. Now, people in the area are concerned about potential long-term health effects. A state agency tested the soil for miles around the plant and found heightened levels of cobalt, nickel, copper, and manganese. All are found in lithium-ion batteries. That's a major concern for local agriculture. The

area is known for growing strawberries and other produce. The fire has also raised questions about the safety of California's clean energy efforts. The state relies on battery plants like the one that burned to store electricity gathered during the day and release it to the grid at night. But lithium-ion battery fires are notoriously hard to put out since they can't be extinguished with water. And right now best practice is just to let them burn. One county supervisor told the Times, quote, We are right now in a place where government does not have the knowledge to regulate this technology and industry does not have the know-how to control it. And finally, a lot of you had some very strong reactions earlier this week when

I told you that Golden Retrievers have never won the top award at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. And... For best in show... They still haven't. I choose the giant schnauzer. Oh, Monty! He did it! Monty the Giant Schnauzer won last night, as Handler said the dog will celebrate by doing his favorite thing, destroying some soccer balls. The other big culture story I want to fill you in on today is the Rock and Roll Hall said the dog will celebrate by doing his favorite thing, destroying some soccer balls.

The other big culture story I want to fill you in on today is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. This year's nominees just came out this morning. It's a mix of eras and genres, everybody from Joe Cocker to Billy Idol to Oasis to Outkast. The Hall of Fame has been under pressure in recent years for its poor record of recognizing women, and there's likely to be more criticism. Only two are nominated this year, Cyndi Lauper and the queen of the high note, Mariah Carey. The person maybe most excited to see his name, though, is 83-year-old Chubby Checker. His 1960s cover of The Twist is one of the biggest hits in Billboard singles history. The Checker has been pushing for years to get into the Hall of Fame. He even took out an ad over 20 years ago in Billboard magazine calling on the Hall of Fame,

and also boldly the group behind the Nobel Prizes, to recognize him for his work. I want my flowers while I'm alive, he wrote. I can't smell them when I'm dead. Those are the headlines. Today on The Daily, Time Supreme Court reporter Adam Liptak walks through how the Trump administration is testing the bounds of its power. That's next in the New York Times audio app, or you can listen wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Tracy Mumford.

We'll be back tomorrow.