Up First from NPR - DOJ Targets Minnesota Officials; Harsh Ukraine Winter; AI Harmful In Child Education

Episode Date: January 17, 2026

The Justice Department has launched an investigation into Minnesota's Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, alleging that they conspired to impede the work of ICE agents. Plus, an especially harsh winter hits Ukraine, where Russian strikes have taken out power plants, leaving many without heat and electricity. And, a new study finds that the use of generative AI is harmful to the development of children.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The U.S. Justice Department is investigating Minnesota's Governor Tim Walts and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Fry. The DOJ says they are impeding the work of federal law enforcement officers. I'm Scott Simon. And I'm Aisha Roscoe, and this is up first from NPR News. The DOJ is investigating Democratic officials in Minnesota. Things remain tense there with more protest plan today. We'll have the latest. And in Ukraine, a brutal winter there makes life during war even harder. It's so frigid that things are icing up indoors.

We'll tell you more. Plus, the use of artificial intelligence and education can harm child development. We'll tell you more about that study, which was done by actual humans. What an idea. So please stay with us. We've got the news you need to start your weekend. This message comes from Databricks, the data and AI company. AI agents work best when they have the right context, your unique data, your rules, your workflows. Agent Bricks helps companies build agents that are accurate, continuously learning, and automate everyday tasks.

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The U.S. Justice Department has launched a probe into Minnesota. to Governor Tim Walts and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Fry. And tensions remain high there this weekend with an anti-immigration rally planned for later today. And Fier's Kat Lonsdorf has been following these developments and joins us now for Minneapolis. Kat, thanks for being with us. Hey, good morning. What's it like there? Well, it was relatively quiet here last night. It's really cold. It's in the single digits and it's been snowing, so it's possible folks are hunkered down inside. But people are still really on edge. Just to give you a sense, Scott, driving around, you'll see people standing on the corners and neighborhoods wearing whistles ready to blow them and alert their neighbors if ice shows up. There's a lot of skepticism around unfamiliar cars in the areas, especially ones with out-of-state license plates. And many restaurants, if they're open, are keeping their doors locked, letting customers in as they come, but keeping federal agents out. It's just a pretty tense environment. And all of this occurs as federal immigration officers continue to arrive and make arrests. Yes, yes. Yeah, exactly. There are some 2,500 federal immigration officers on the ground and more

expected soon, according to DHS. That's more than four times the number of local Minneapolis police officers. And protests against that surge and the arrests are still happening too, many of which have been met with aggression. We've seen ICE officers using tear gas, flashbanks, pepper balls to disperse crowds. But late last night, a federal judge here issued a preliminary injunction restricting federal agents from retaliating against people, quote, engaging in peaceful and unobstructive protest activity. And President Trump has at least been talking about invoking the Insurrection Act, which has happened some 30 times in U.S. history. Any indications this would be the latest? Well, it's really hard to say. The Insurrection Act is a 200-year-old law that, if invoked,

would allow Trump to deploy the military to Minneapolis for law enforcement purposes, essentially. Many legal experts I've talked to in the past few days have told me that the situation here in Minneapolis right now just doesn't meet the criteria to justify that. Here's Joseph Nunn. He's an attorney at the Brennan Center's Liberty and National Security Program. I think if he does, it would be a flagrant abuse of the Insurrection Act, unlike anything that's ever happened before in the history of the country. And yesterday, Trump walked back his threat earlier this week to do so, but also made it clear he's not taking it off the table. If I needed it, I'd use it. I don't think there's any reason right now to use it. But if I needed it, I'd use it. Trump has threatened invoking the Insurrection Act many times in recent months for various situations. So we've heard this kind of talk before. If he did, it would be a highly controversial move and most definitely challenged in court. And, of course, late last night, there was news that the Department of Justice is investigating Mayor Frye and Governor Walts. Of course, both are Democrats. What's the latest?

We don't know much about the investigation. It's a lot of the investigation. It's a lot of. centers on public statements the two made during recent ice raids here. Fry and Waltz both responded to the news and separate social media posts. Walls wrote, quote, weaponizing the justice system against your opponents is an authoritarian tactic. He urged calm. And one last thing, Scott, there is an anti-immigration march plan later today here organized by Jake Lang. He's part of the January 6th insurrection on the Capitol, later pardoned by Trump. It's not clear how many people will show up or if there will be counter-protests, but it has many here worried it could be a kind of powder keg moment in the midst of all of this. And bears Kat Lansdorf in Minneapolis, Kat,

thanks so much. Thank you. Ukrainians are enduring an especially harsh winter. With Russians repeatedly attacking Ukraine's energy grid, residents of several cities are left without heating and electricity for extended periods of time. And there's Joanna Kikis is there and has been talking to people in Kiev about how they're all getting by. Joanna, thanks for being with you. this. Thanks for having me on the show, Scott. How cold is it? How are you and everyone else managing? It's cold. The sun is shining today, and that does make things a little better, but it's still 13 degrees Fahrenheit out. We're lucky at the Bureau because we have this backup battery for electricity.

However, the heating is out for long period, so it's really cold in our house, and I am wearing my coat right now. And outside, businesses are using generators to keep operating, but many homes are cold and dark. It's so cold indoors in some homes that windows are icing up. People can see their breath and children are vulnerable. We met one mom, Inessa Roshdesvinska. She was inside a bus that had been turned into a mobile shelter. It's a place where people can keep warm. They can warm up. They can charge their phones. She sipped hot tea as her two daughters, who were five and two, they're eating steaming bowls of instant ramen. She says she goes to cafes to fill up thermoses with hot water,

which she then pours into hot water bottles at home to help warm the beds at night. Joanna, any sense of how long these power outages might last? Well, Scott, you know, Ukrainian energy workers are remarkably efficient at getting power plants and substations operating quickly again, even after repeated attacks. But it's a Sisyphian task. They rebuild them, and then they're more strikes. Also, Keeve is filled with these enormous,

apartment buildings are like 25, 30 stories high. They're heated through a system that pumps hot water through pipes. And because Russian attacks have damaged the system during sub-zero temperatures, the water is frozen in some of these pipes and burst them. So these will have to be fixed too. I spoke with Ukrainian energy expert Alexander Harchenko, who said only about a quarter of the electricity needed is available to Kiv right now. And he said he believes the Russian attacks aimed to make Kiev and other cities unlivable. It's absolutely clear. Target was to kill the city.

Target was to freeze the city and to push $3 million for $4 million. I don't know exactly how many people live right now in Kiev, but to push them out of the city. And he says the Kremlin wants to wear down Ukrainians, so they will give up and make more concessions to Russia. Do you see signs of fatigue among the citizens? Trying to live a normal life when you're freezing is exhausting.

Nessa Rosh Dazvanska, the mother we met in the mobile shelter, she said that before the war, you know, when the heat wasn't disrupted like this, she used to love seeing Kiev blanketed in snow and icicles. But now she says she will probably move to Western Ukraine if this blackout situation here in Kiev lasts much longer. Other Ukrainians we spoke to say they will stay in Kiev no matter what. One is personal trainer and former professional volleyball player, Polina Lutakova. It came to my mind the words of my mom. My mom, she said to me, like, we're survivors, and let's say it's a test for us. We have to survive no matter how, and we will. And Scott, this is a sentiment I've heard over and over again.

It shows up in public opinion surveys as well. Ukrainians want peace, and they are pressing their leaders for an end of the war, but not on Russia's terms. And Pierre's Joanna Kukisius and Keyes. Thanks so much. You're welcome. Artificial intelligence is weaving its way into virtually every aspect of our lives, including children's education. But a new study has found that the use of generative AI in education can, quote, undermine children's foundational development. The report calls the extent of the damage done daunting.

The report comes from the Brookings Institution and its Center for University, education. And NPR's Corey Turner is here to tell us more about it. Hi, Corey. Hey, Ayesha. The report makes things sound pretty dire. What was your take after reading it? Yeah, I think dire is pretty fair. Although I want to start with a glimmer of hope or at least some good news. You know, some kids with disabilities, for example, are benefiting from AI improvements to things like text to speech programs or imagine being in science class, right? And because of AI, you're able to visually adventure inside a cell or zip around the solar system. The problem here is that these tools are really the exception right now because they're

complex and they can cost a lot of money that many schools just don't have. And what kids are far more likely to be using in school and at home are these free, easily accessible chatbots. And that's the kind of AI that these researchers are worried about with kids? Yeah, exactly. The report lays out really two big buckets. of risk here. So first, young people who use this kind of AI aren't learning how to think for themselves. And it's because most of these common chatbots don't actually supplement kids learning,

right? Students just tell them to do something and then the chatbot does it. Here's Rebecca Winthrop. She's one of the researchers on the study. They're not learning to parse truth from fiction. They're not learning to understand what makes a good argument. They're not learning about about different perspectives in the world because they're not actually engaging in the material. Aisha, Winthrop told me, if students rely on this kind of AI too much, it can actually stunt the kind of brain growth, wiring, that comes from the trying and doing and failing and trying again. And you said there are two buckets of risk. What's the other one? The other is social-emotional growth. So it's in childhood, right, that we learn how to get along with us. hopefully, especially people who may look and think and feel differently from us.

But these free chatbot tools are designed to be sycophantic. What that means is they tell the user essentially whatever the AI thinks the student wants to hear. For children and teens now, this can be really intoxicating because the user is always right. Again, here's Rebecca Winthrop. So if you are on a chatbot complaining about your parents and saying they want me to wash the dishes. This is so annoying. I hate my parents. The chat bot will likely say, you're right. You're misunderstood. I'm so sorry. I understand you. Versus a friend who would say,

dude, I wash the dishes all the time in my house. I don't know what you're complaining about. That's normal. That right there is the problem. And Aisha, the stakes are obviously a lot higher than kids refusing to do dishes. The stakes are children growing into adults who never learned empathy or how to relate because they spent more time engaging with chatbots than they did with other kids. And Winthrop told me one in three teens in the U.S. who use AI say they actually prefer talking about important or serious subjects with a chatbot than they do with other people. So what can be done about this? So the report says AI designed for use by children and teens, for one thing, should be less sycophantic and more what they call antagonistic. So it pushes kids preconceived notions.

But one of the biggest recommendations they make is really for governments to do more to regulate the use of AI by children. And in the U.S., we're at a really weird impasse right now. The Trump administration has issued an executive order trying to prohibit states from regulating AI for themselves. But Congress hasn't created any federal regulations so far. So it's really for parents and schools. It's kind of a wild west right now. That's in PR education correspondent. Corey Turner, thank you so much. You're welcome.

And that's up first for Saturday, January 17, 2026. I'm Scott Simon. And I'm Aisha Roscoe. Dave Mischich produced today's podcast with help from Elena Torak, Fernando Naro, and Michael Radcliffe. Our editor is Dee Parvaz. She had an assist from Nick Spicer, Eric Westervelt, Jacob Finston, Hidal Al-Souchi, and Nicole Cohen. Andy Craig is our director. Our technical director is David Greenberg with engineering support from Zoe Van Gnhoven,

Zach Coleman, and Simon Laslow Janssen. Our senior supervising editor is Shannon Rhodes, Evie Stone is our executive producer, and Jim Kane is our deputy managing editor. And tomorrow, on the Great Sunday Story, the issue talks to NPR reporter Meg Anderson about her reporting on how an L.A. County Public Defender's Office is trying to get clients with cognitive disabilities diagnosed and treat them with the aim of keeping them out of the criminal justice system.

I mean, it's really fascinating. So tune in for that. And Scott, what else do we have for them? I'm so glad you asked, okay? We have all the news you need. Also, all the stuff that you didn't know you were interested in, but might well be once you hear it, books, movies, music, sports, and so much more.

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