The Headlines - Pope Francis Dies at 88, and Another Hegseth Signal Chat

Episode Date: April 21, 2025

Plus, more stories from our newsroom. On Today’s Episode:Pope Francis Dies at 88, by Jason HorowitzHegseth Said to Have Shared Attack Details in Second Signal Chat, by Greg Jaffe, Eric Schmitt and Maggie HabermanDemocrats Land in El Salvador, Seeking Release of Maryland Resident, by Robert Jimison and Annie CorrealAn Urgent Supreme Court Order Protecting Migrants Was Built for Speed, by Adam LiptakMillions of Student Loan Borrowers Are Behind on Payments, by Stacy CowleyTune 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's Monday, April 21st. Here's what we're covering. The Vatican announced this morning that Pope Francis has died at 88 years old. The Catholic leader was just in public yesterday. He met with Vice President J.D. Vance and made an appearance in St. Peter's Square in Vatican City for Easter Mass, where he blessed the tens of thousands of people who had gathered to see him. His weak and raspy voice was a reminder of the health issues the Pope had faced in recent months, including pneumonia and other complications.

His death will set off mourning around the world. There are more than one billion Catholics. Francis was the first Pope from Latin America and tried to reshape the Church into a more inclusive institution, championing the poor as well as migrants and refugees. Catholic cardinals will soon gather in Vatican City for a highly ritualized, centuries-old, and secretive process in which they'll select a new pope. The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth

The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth

The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth The Times has learned that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared detailed information on military strikes in Yemen in another group chat back in March. Hegseth has been under intense scrutiny since it came to light that he posted details for forthcoming military strikes in a chat on the app Signal that inadvertently included the editor of the Atlantic. According

to people familiar with the messages, Hegseth also posted some of those same details in a separate signal group that included his wife, his brother, his personal lawyer, and others from his inner circle. Unlike the previously known group, this one was not made up of government officials with reason to track the progress of the strikes. One person familiar with the chat told the Times that Hegseth's aides had warned him just days before the strikes. One person familiar with the chat told the Times that Hegseth aides had warned him just days before the strikes not to discuss sensitive operational details on Signal, since the messaging app is not considered as secure as government channels. If details of an airstrike were to leak before it was carried out, military experts say that

could endanger the lives of the pilots involved. In the face of the controversy, the White House has stood by Hegseth in a statement a White House spokeswoman called the new revelations a, quote, non-story. Some Democratic lawmakers, however, say the second group chat is fresh proof that Hegseth should be removed from his position. Seth should be removed from his position. This morning, four Democratic lawmakers are in El Salvador to call for the release of Kilmar Armando Abrego-Garcia, the man who was wrongly deported by the Trump administration.

The congressional representatives from California, Florida, Arizona, and Oregon landed yesterday. Their visit comes days after Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen visited the country and met with Abrego Garcia. The lawmakers say they're also there to find out the status of other migrants the federal government deported to El Salvador. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court temporarily blocked the Trump administration from using a wartime law

to deport another group of migrants this weekend. Before the decision, the administration had been preparing to send more than 50 Venezuelans out of the country, presumably to El Salvador. It's claimed that the men are gang members affiliated with Tren de Aragua, and that the Alien Enemies Act gives the administration the right to remove them without legal hearings. But around 1 a.m. Saturday, the court issued a one paragraph order directing the government to not remove any of the detainees until quote, further order of this court. Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented. I literally lose sleep over this. I have nightmares about this. After five years of not penalizing student loan borrowers if they missed a payment, the

federal government's leniency has ended. My payments are so insanely high. I can't really put money in savings. I'm not contributing to 401K. And people struggle to start paying again has become clear. As of today, I can't even log into the account. Right now, only one third of the 38 million Americans who borrowed money to pay for school are making the payments they're supposed to be.

Those who aren't have seen their credit scores plunge in the last few months. And loan companies say a record number of people are at risk of defaulting. Industry experts point to two primary factors driving the issue. First, borrowers and the companies involved have been through years of major changes and reversals

on how and when loans should be paid back, sowing confusion and backlog at all levels. And second, after such a long pause, many people are just unable to fit the payment back into their budget. They've gotten out of the habit and may now have additional credit card debt or a mortgage. The growing number of people behind on their payments has implications for the broader economy. Lower credit scores can keep people from buying or renting homes, can also push them toward

riskier options, like payday loans. One economist told the Times, quote, "'It's not a problem we want to add to the pile.'" For more on how student loans could affect the U.S. economy, listen to today's episode of The Daily. Those are the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford.

We'll be back tomorrow.