Up First from NPR - Trump Indictment, Kids And Wildfires, Southern Baptists Meet

Episode Date: June 10, 2023

Prosecutors are charging Donald Trump with 37 federal offenses including obstruction and unlawful retention of defense information. Health experts say children are especially vulnerable to wildfire smoke. Southern Baptist leaders gather in New Orleans and will decide whether to uphold the expulsion of congregations that have women as pastors.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone. The special counsel speaks. Applying those laws, collecting facts, that's what determines the outcome of an investigation. I'm Ayesha Roska. And I'm Scott Simon, and this is Up First from NPR News. We knew an indictment was coming. Now we know how special counsel Jack Smith says Donald Trump treated a breathtaking array of sensitive information kept at his Florida club. We've got the details first up on the podcast this weekend. Also, why kids are most at risk when wildfire smoke fills the air.

And Southern Baptist leaders gather with a lot to discuss. Stay with us. We've got the news you need to start your weekend. Now Our Change will honor 100 years of the Royal Canadian Air Force and their dedicated service to communities at home and abroad. From the skies to Our Change, this $2 commemorative circulation coin marks their storied past and promising future. Find the limited edition Royal Canadian Air Force $2 coin today. When former President Trump took to his social media platform

to say he had been indicted, speculation initially was that he faced seven counts. Now we know it's 37, and special counsel Jack Smith says Trump personally packed boxes, retrieved from Florida, and bragged about having secret materials. NPR political reporter Deepa Shivaram joins us now. Welcome. Hey, Aisha. So the indictment was unsealed yesterday, and this is a really breathtaking document. It's a moment in history. Like, it is a big deal. There's a lot packed in these 40-something pages. It outlines some pretty damning evidence against Trump as it lays out the 37 charges against him, including willful retention of national defense information, conspiracy to obstruct justice, and false

statements. Some of the top lines that stood out to me in the indictment was the part where Trump's lawyer is quoted as saying that in the summer of 2022, he searched the storage room at Mar-a-Lago for classified documents and found 38 of them. And he and Trump discussed whether the lawyer should bring the documents to his hotel room to keep it safe there. And the lawyer says that during that conversation, Trump made a plucking motion to essentially say without words, take the documents, and if there's anything bad in there, just pluck it out. And this all took place two months before Mar-a-Lago was searched last summer. The other part that really stood out were these two instances where Trump showed classified documents to people

who didn't have any kind of security clearance to view them. The first time mentioned was at a meeting at his Bedminster Club with a writer, and Trump called the material highly confidential. And the second time Trump showed classified documents was to a person on his political action committee and admitted to the person that he should not be showing them the document. He told the person not to get too close. And we heard from Special Counsel Jack Smith for the first time, but not for a very long time. What did you think about his statement? So Smith spoke yesterday from the Department of Justice, and his remarks were really brief, only a few minutes long.

He didn't take any questions from reporters, but he made a few important points. One is that he said he wanted there to be a speedy trial in Florida where this will take place. And two, he emphasized the message that no one is above the law. We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone. Applying those laws, collecting facts, that's what determines the outcome of an investigation. Nothing more and nothing less. And what you also hear from Smith there is a little bit of this pushback against the narrative from Trump defenders that this was a politicized investigation, that the Biden administration is

targeting a political candidate. And that's, of course, a claim that Trump has made himself time and time again. He's been consistently posting on his social media platform, Truth Social, to say he's innocent. And he's echoing a line he's often used, which is saying that this investigation is a hoax. The special counsel stressed that he wants a speedy trial. And in fact, the next big day in this case is just days away, right? Right. So that's Tuesday at 3 p.m. That's what we're all watching for, a speedy trial. And in fact, the next big day in this case is just days away, right? Right. So that's Tuesday at 3 p.m. That's what we're all watching for because that's when Trump and his lawyers have to show up at the courthouse in Miami. So there's a lot of prep going on there just to make sure there's enough security in place for a former president coming in. And speaking of his lawyers, he's going to have new legal representation because the two lawyers

he was previously working with, Jim Trustee and John Rowley, resigned yesterday. So we know he's working with at least one attorney and we're waiting to hear who will make up Trump's new legal team as this case moves to Florida. But even before Tuesday, we're expecting to hear a lot from Trump on the campaign trail. Later today, he's got events in North Carolina and Georgia where he'll be defending himself in front of voters. And we'll have a report on those events tomorrow on Week in Edition. Deepa, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you.

That's NPR political reporter Deepa Shivaram. From Minnesota to Mississippi today and over almost every state to the east, wildfire smoke. Federal authorities say smoke from hundreds of Canadian wildfires will be mostly light today, but not yet gone. Experts say that children are most at risk when there's smoke in the air. We turn now to NPR Health correspondent Maria Godoy. Maria, thanks so much for being with us. Of course. And why are children especially vulnerable? Well, there are actually several reasons.

One is that kids breathe faster, and so they take in more air relative to their body weight compared with grownups. So they're breathing in more of those tiny particles in smoke that can go down deep into the lungs and trigger inflammation. I spoke to Dr. Lisa Patel about this. She's a pediatrician and she's also the executive director of the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health. Kids are more susceptible to begin with because their airways are even smaller. So even a smaller amount of inflammation can hit a kid harder as well. She told me that's especially true for kids under the age of five. She says in general, wildfire smoke exposure can cause symptoms like coughing or sneezing in kids. Where it gets concerning is if they're having trouble breathing, so they're wheezing or using their belly muscles

to breathe. And in babies, that might look like bobbing their heads or grunting to keep their airways open. If you see that, you definitely should call a doctor. And you know, even pregnant women are at higher risk. And why is that? Well, because studies have shown that repeated exposure to air pollution in general can be harmful even in the womb. There's less evidence specific to wildfires, but I did speak with Dr. Keith Brenner. He's a pulmonologist at Hackensack University Medical Center, and he says studies have shown that particulate matter of the same size that's found in wildfire smoke can impact the development of the fetus. So I think that pregnant women should do all

they can to avoid, you know, exposures on these days when the levels are so high. And, you know, Brenner says there are also several studies that show hospitalization rates for children with asthma increase when air pollution levels are high. Maria, is wildfire smoke different than other kinds of air pollution? Yeah, actually. One thing that I find really striking is just how bad wildfire smoke is. Dr. Patel told me it's estimated to be 10 times as toxic as air pollution from burning fossil fuels. Knowing that wildfire pollution is actually worse,

I think it merits us being a little more careful when it comes to children. She says it's important to keep that in mind because as climate change makes intense wildfires more common, many of us will likely be exposed to this type of air pollution more often. What can parents do to try and keep their children as safe as possible from wildfire smoke? Children who, you know, want to be outside and play. Yeah, well, a lot of the advice is the same for kids and adults. So, you know, for starters, make sure to check the air quality where you live by going to the EPA website, airnow.gov. There's this nifty

color-coded meter that shows the air quality in your area. And if the air quality is bad, like in the red or purple zone, it's not a time for outdoor sports or the playground. And definitely have kids mask up if they are going to be spending time outside when air pollution levels are high. And if they protest on the mask, Dr. Patel says, maybe instead of fighting them, just keep them indoors as much as possible. And one thing is it is hard to find an N95 mask for younger kids,

but you can find KN95s that fit pretty well. I know personally, I have lots left over from COVID. And then if you're at home, use an air purifier. If you've got one, blast it on high, and also keep the doors and windows closed. And try not to use your gas stove or burn candles or vacuum because that can all add to indoor air pollution. NPR Health correspondent Maria Godoy, thank you so much. My pleasure. The Southern Baptist Convention, which is America's largest Protestant denomination,

is wrestling with disputes over women serving as pastors and the fallout from sexual abuse within its own ranks. Baptist leaders are gathering in New Orleans this weekend, and all of that is expected to dominate the conversation even as they elect their next president. NPR religion correspondent Jason DeRose will be monitoring the meeting, and he joins us now. Good morning. Good morning. So let's start with women pastors. What's driving that issue? Well, earlier this year, the Southern Baptist Convention expelled several congregations in which women serve as pastors. Now, the denomination has a strict rule. Women cannot be senior or lead pastors, and that's because they believe that the Bible prohibits women from teaching men

and having authority over them. And a few of the churches expelled do have senior pastors who are women in violation of church rules. And at least one of those congregations is appealing its removal, and that appeal is being considered during the meeting. So what about women who are pastors but not the head of the congregation? Like, is that allowed? Well, a number of Southern Baptist congregations, in fact, employ women who perform all sorts of ministry, but they're not senior pastors. For instance, they could be the education pastor who oversees Sunday school. Lots of women in that position.

They may teach boys and girls and other women, but they may not teach men. And those congregations say that this work is all done under the leadership and authority of a senior male pastor. So they argue it's permissible. That's the situation at a well-known church, Saddleback Church, in Southern California. That megachurch has a woman who serves as a teaching pastor. And it was also expelled from the Southern Baptist Convention earlier this year, and it's also appealing that decision. There's also the issue of sexual abuse that has been uncovered in the Southern Baptist Convention. What's the latest on how it's being addressed? Well, you'll remember that last year, the church's sexual abuse task force released a very strongly worded report that detailed how Southern Baptists had mishandled sex abuse claims

and mistreated victims. Now, during this meeting, the church will hear a report about what it's done since then. It's developing a database of abusive clergy, so if a congregation wants to hire someone, it would be able to see if there were allegations of misconduct elsewhere. The task force is also creating a toolkit for how to handle abuse, say how best to report it to the civil authorities, how to conduct an internal investigation, how best to care for the victims. And keep in mind, Aisha, that parts of this church are under investigation by the U.S. Justice Department because of the way it handled earlier sexual misconduct. And all of this is happening at the same time as

an election to decide the next president of the Southern Baptist Convention. The incumbent is facing a challenger for the office. So, Jason, given all of this, are Southern Baptists as influential as they once were? Well, there is a demographic answer to that question. Southern Baptists are losing members. A recent study shows about half a million fewer members between 2021 and 2022, and it's lost three million members since the year 2006. It's still the largest Protestant denomination in the country, with just over 13 million people, but smaller than it used to be. However, the conservative beliefs and values of Southern Baptists still make up a huge part of the Republican political

agenda, such as opposition to abortion and LGBTQ rights. So it's still influential. And, you know, talking about these issues, of course, makes me think about a very prominent Southern Baptist minister, Pat Robertson. He died on Thursday. Well, Pat Robertson was arguably among the more influential people in American public life over the last 50 years. He founded the Christian Broadcasting Network. He hosted the 700 Club TV show for decades, from 1966 to 2021. He founded a conservative Christian university, ran for president, and steered conservative evangelical Christians more deeply into politics over those years. And that conservative religious presence in public life is something

we'll continue to see play out heading into the 2024 presidential election. That's NPR's Jason DeRose. Thank you so much for joining us. You're welcome. And that's Up First for Saturday, June 10, 2023. I'm Scott Simon. And I'm Aisha Roscoe. Today's episode of Up First was edited by Halima Abdullah, Will Stone, Cheryl Corley, Hadil Al-Shauchi, and Ed McNulty.

It was produced by Andrew Craig and Michael Radcliffe and directed by Danny Hensel with engineering support from Hannah Glovden. Evie Stone is our senior supervising editor. Our executive producer is Sarah Oliver. And our deputy managing editor is Jim Kane. This podcast, back tomorrow. Ayesha, what's on Sundays up first? So me, tomorrow I speak with author and former Southern Baptist superstar, Beth Moore.

We get into her crisis of faith and why she finally decided to walk away from her denomination. And for more great conversations like that one, as well as all the latest news and more, you can find us both on the radio every Saturday and Sunday morning on Weekend Edition from NPR News. Find your NPR station at stations.npr.org. And it's also my birthday today. I didn't make that announcement.

Oh, happy birthday, Aisha. Yes, it's my birthday. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday.