Up First from NPR - Ukraine Funds Paused, Trump Addresses Congress, Tariffs Begin

Episode Date: March 4, 2025

The White House put a pause on military aid to Ukraine after a heated Oval Office exchange with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump will address Congress tonight, outlining his agenda on immigration, tax cuts, and his approach to Ukraine. And, Trump's new tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China have sparked retaliation, escalating a trade war that could impact the global economy.Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.Today's episode of Up First was edited by Miguel Macias, Roberta Rampton, Tara Neill, Alice Woelfle and Mohamad ElBardicy.It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Chris Thomas.We get engineering support from Arthur Laurent, our technical director is Carleigh Strange.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

President Trump paused military aid to Ukraine after a disastrous meeting in the Oval Office last week. What is the White House trying to pressure Ukraine to do by holding back weapons? I'm Leila Fadl, that's Michelle Martin, and this is Up First from NPR News. Trump addresses Congress tonight after a dizzying first six weeks in the White House with questions around the legality of mass layoffs of federal workers, a major shift in US foreign policy and his push to consolidate executive power. What will Trump's message to Americans be? And Trump's new tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China are rattling markets and sparking retaliation. They want to come

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The White House says it will pause military aid to Ukraine as the country continues to defend itself from Russian attacks. A White House official told NPR the administration wants to review the aid to see if it is contributing to peace. The decision comes after President Trump and Vice President Vance berated Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky in an Oval Office meeting last Friday. Joining us now to talk about all this is NPR's Ukraine correspondent, Joanna Kakissis. Joanna, good morning.

Good morning, Michelle. Joanna, do we know what this pause will affect? What kinds of weaponry, et cetera, it will cover? Well, Michelle, we don't know a whole lot so far. This pause appears to affect at least a billion dollars in weapons and ammunition en route and on order for Ukraine. It's unclear whether this pause also includes cutting off intelligence sharing a partnership that has helped Ukraine strategize and plan.

I should emphasize that this is the worst case scenario for Ukrainians since the US has been the country's strongest single ally since Russia's full-scale invasion three years ago. And it's painful for Ukrainians because President Zelensky has repeatedly thanked the US for helping his country and Ukrainians say they are fighting to preserve American-style liberty and democracy. Do you have a sense of whether this was a surprise in Ukraine? Well, there hasn't been much official reaction yet, though a member of Ukraine's

parliament said lawmakers have been in meetings to find alternatives to USAID. I've been speaking with Ukrainians over the last few days and many say they were expecting something like this. Even before Friday's debacle in the Oval Office, President Trump was repeating Kremlin talking points, for example, claiming it was Ukraine, not Russia that started the war, and the Trump administration has not been pushing back on some of Moscow's demands, including Ukraine giving up territory and a path to NATO membership.

Do you have a sense of what kind of impact pulling this aid will have, recognizing, like you just said, that we're not exactly sure what it covers, but do you have a sense even now of what kind of impact this is going to have? Well, Michelle, there might not be an immediate impact. A member of the Ukrainian Parliament's Defense Committee said today that Ukraine might be able to hold on for about six months without U.S. aid. Ukraine's defense industry has also been growing exponentially since Russia's 2022 invasion. So some supplies can also come from Ukraine itself. For example, Ukraine has become a powerhouse manufacturer of drones, which can replace

artillery to some extent on the battlefield, but Ukraine can't replace everything, like Bradley fighting vehicles or GPS-guided rockets, or crucially, Patriot air defense systems, which are key to protecting Ukrainian cities from nightly attacks by Russian drones and missiles. And also there is the Starlink system owned by Trump ally, Elon Musk. Starlink helps the military communicate. You know, I think people might remember that Ukraine already has some experience with the U.S. holding back military aid. In 2023, Trump directed Republicans in Congress to stall a multi-billion dollar package which had been proposed by the Biden administration. Can you just

remind us what happened then? Yeah, well, holding up military aid back then certainly had a clear impact. The lack of air defense systems meant Ukrainian cities were less protected from Russian attacks, as were Ukraine's thermal power plants, which Russia repeatedly bombed and largely destroyed. And soldiers on the front line ran so low on artillery shells that they had to ration them. Some military analysts here say Russia, as a result, was able to take key cities because of weakened Ukrainian defenses. So Joanna, before we let you go, what are Ukraine's options? Well, Michelle, Europe has stepped up its support and recent research shows that the block could make up the difference in military aid at least for a while. This morning, European

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also laid out a plan for the EU to boost its own defense spending by about 800 billion euros. But without the U.S., defending Ukraine and Europe will be challenging, especially in the long run. That is NPR's Joanna Kakissis in Kyiv. Thanks, Joanna. You're welcome, Michelle. President Trump will deliver a major speech to a joint session of Congress tonight. Yeah, it's the first such address of his term, so it's not formally called the State of the Union,

but it will have all the pomp and gravity of that kind of speech. This is one of the President's most visible moments of the year. It usually has a big primetime television audience, and it comes as Trump has been upending long-standing norms of American government and diplomacy. Danielle Pletka For more on what we might expect, we have White House correspondent Danielle Kersley been here with us. Good morning, Danielle.

Danielle Kersley Good morning, Michelle. Danielle Pletka Has the White House said anything about what the president will talk about tonight? Danielle Kersley Not a lot. We know broad strokes, but the White House hasn't given reporters the kind of preview information that they often do ahead of these speeches. Now, they have said the theme is the renewal of the American dream. And one thing you can definitely expect is to hear Trump talk about what he counts as his accomplishments, for

example, the steps he's taken in the past six weeks to get rid of Joe Biden's policies and also just to do what Trump told his base he would do during the campaign. Now, a lot of those moves are aggressive, to put it mildly, and they're things that are being challenged in the courts. So moving immigrants to Guantanamo Bay, diminishing transgender people's rights, and not to mention bringing on an unelected billionaire, Elon Musk, to gut federal agencies. Danielle, I'm thinking about my time as a White House correspondent, and my recollection is that the presidents usually ask Congress to do something. So, and I recognize what you said that there hasn't been the kind of preview we

were used to getting, but do we have a sense of what kind of legislation President Trump might be looking for? Yes, we do know he's going to ask Congress to spend more money on border security. We also expect him to ask for another top legislative priority, which is extending tax cuts passed in his first Congress to spend more money on border security. We also expect him to ask for another top legislative priority, which is extending tax cuts passed in his first term. But one thing that I would add is there's a pretty unusual dynamic hanging over this speech. This Congress, which is narrowly controlled by Republicans, they have been remarkably acquiescent to Trump's norm-shattering moves. And that acquiescence has come even as Trump

has consolidated wide-ranging governmental powers into the executive branch, including powers that Congress historically has had, things like imposing tariffs. And the speech is also coming on the heels of that just remarkable, contentious meeting last week with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, that fight in the Oval Office that we've talked so much about. Do you have a sense of whether Trump is going to address that in these remarks tonight?

Well, he has said he will be talking about that proposal under which the US would get some revenue from Ukraine's mineral resources. It's part of how Trump wants to broker a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia, that mineral deal. Now, a reporter asked Trump yesterday if the mineral deal is dead after that fight and Trump seemed to leave the door open. Well I'll let you know we're making a speech you probably heard about it tomorrow night so I'll let you know tomorrow night but no I don't think so. I think it's look it's a great deal. Now he has also said he's been talking to European leaders and it does sound like we'll hear more about this tonight. Now Democrats for their part their response to the speech will be from Michigan Senator Alyssa Slotkin, who

worked at the CIA prior to holding office, and she's been attacking Trump on Ukraine a lot in recent weeks. So, you know, one of the things that I think a lot of people look for, including, you know, not the political professionals, but just people in the audience, is what's the mood in the room? What are the theatrics of the speech? Any sense of what we might expect there? Well, you'll see Democrats continuing to try to figure out how to respond to Trump, and this will be an opportunity to do that. They'll have guests like fired federal workers and

Medicaid recipients, the latter presumably to highlight the possibility that Republicans cut that program. Now, President Trump, we don't know who his guests are yet, but Melania Trump will have a guest who was a victim of revenge porn, and that's part of the First program. Now, President Trump, we don't know who his guests are yet, but Melania Trump will have a guest who was a victim of revenge porn, and that's part of the First Lady's push to combat that type of online abuse. Danielle Pletka That is, and here's Danielle Kersley. And Danielle, thank you. Danielle Kersley Thank you.

Danielle Pletka President Trump's trade war is escalating. U.S. tariffs on Canada and Mexico took effect at midnight and tariffs on Chinese imports were doubled to 20%. In response this morning Beijing announced tariffs of up to 15% on an array of US products including wheat, corn, cotton, and chicken. The reason given for these tariffs? The White House says it wants to stop the flow of fentanyl going into the US from these countries. When it comes to Canada and Mexico, border security is also one of President Trump's main motivations. The stock markets have already reacted to this news taking an early hit on Monday, but

so too have relations between the U.S. and its neighbors. And NPR's international affairs correspondent Jackie Northam has been following all of this. She's with us now. Good morning, Jackie. Good morning, Michelle. So President Trump has been warning that he's going to impose tariffs on Canada and Mexico. He had delayed them by a month, thinking, you know, leading to speculation he might be open to compromise. Any sense of why go ahead now?

Well, President Trump said on Monday that there was no room left for negotiations with Canada and Mexico. As you say, he announced the tariffs as a way to pressure both countries to curb the flow of fentanyl and migrants crossing illegally into the U.S. Both countries have tried to work with the administration to satisfy those concerns, but it didn't seem to matter enough. And just after midnight, Trump imposed the tariffs, raising fears of a trade war with Canada and Mexico, as well as inflation here in the U.S. Any response so far from Mexico and Canada? Yeah, Mexican officials told NPR that an official response will come from President Claudia

Scheinbaum later this morning. Earlier on Monday, she pleaded for quote, serenity and patience. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau immediately pledged to impose 25% import taxes on about $100 billion worth of US goods. You know, everything from clothing and lumber to Florida orange juice and Kentucky bourbon Trump placed lower tariffs 10% on Canadian energy imports You know Canada sends a lot of heavy crude and hydroelectric power to the US and on Monday Ontario's premier Doug Ford indicated those imports are now at risk. I will do everything

Doug Ford indicated those imports are now at risk. I will do everything, including cut off their energy, with a smile on my face. They rely on their energy. They need to feel the pain. They want to come at us hard, we're going to come back twice as hard. And Michelle, Canada could also cut off shipments of things like uranium and potash, which is a fertilizer widely used by American farmers. So whatever happens to these tariffs, whether they hold or not, has this action had an effect on US-Canadian relationships?

Oh, certainly, yeah. There's a lot of anger in Canada about Trump's actions, not only the tariffs, but his constant jibes that Canada become the 51st state. And we're seeing it play out in federal politics in an election year in Canada. Before Trump came back to office, the opposition Conservative Party was 20 plus points ahead in the polls. But now Trudeau's Liberal Party is surging ahead in the polls. And that's largely because leader of the opposition party, Pierre Poliev, is considered too much like Trump. He's known in Canada as Trump-lite and maple-maga. And now his poll numbers are tanking.

That is NPR's Jackie Northam. Jackie, thank you. Thanks very much, Michelle. And that's Up First for Tuesday, March 4th. I'm Michelle Martin. And I'm Leila Fadl. Thank you for listening to Up First. You can find more in-depth coverage of the stories we talked about today and so much more on NPR's Morning Edition, the radio show that Michelle Martin, Steven Skeep, A. Martinez and I host. Find Morning Edition on your local NPR station at stations.npr.org. Today's episode of Up First was edited by Miguel Macias, Roberta Rampton, Tara Neal, Alice Wolfley and Muhammad El-Bardisi. It was produced by Zia Budge, Nia Dumas and

Chris Thomas. We get engineering support from Arthur Laurent and our technical directors Carly Strange. We hope you'll join us again tomorrow. You better join us again tomorrow. Don't leave us here by ourselves. Do not think about it. NPR informs and connects communities around the country, providing reliable information in times of crisis. Federal funding helps us fulfill our mission to create a more informed public and ensures that public radio remains available to everyone. Learn more about safeguarding the future of public media.

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