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Today’s best stories
President Trump will highlight his first week in office with a trip to Asheville, NC, today and then to Los Angeles. Both communities have been ravaged by disasters and are struggling with recovery efforts. Asheville was devastated by Hurricane Helene in September, in the middle of the presidential campaign. At that time, Trump posted online that the Biden administration was not doing enough to help.
President Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC
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Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
- 🎧 The Los Angeles wildfires, which started more than two weeks ago, are expected to be One of the most expensive natural disasters in the United States for a long time. Currently, FEMA has enough money, but there will be plenty of federal aid needed to get the city back on track, NPR’s Deepa Shivaram reports. First. Trump sees this as an opportunity to strengthen Congress for some of his legislative priorities. He asks California to change its water policies if it wants to receive money.
The Trump administration has Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Programs through the federal government. The president calls the programs, which were part of the decades-old civil rights movement, “dangerous, degrading or immoral.” It also targets efforts to investigate extremism in military ranks.
- 🎧 DEI programs have been considered effective in bringing more women and minorities into the ranks at all levelsNPR’s Tom Bowman says. Trump and his Defense Secretary nominee, Pete Hegseth, have dismissed the programs as woke and divisive. As Trump aims to end investigations into military extremism, Pentagon officials have now insisted they don’t have a problem and that the numbers are low. However, the Pentagon can’t really know levels of extremism because it doesn’t collect data, according to Bowman. He adds that it is important to note that approximately one in five people arrested for the January 6 activities had a military background.
- ➡️ 71-year-old woman who received one of Trump’s 1,500 pardons Issued this week as of January 6, the defendants refused the offer. Here’s why.
- ➡️ As many American companies withdraw from Dei initiativesCostco shareholders rejected an anti-DEI proposal.
The United States is trying to unravel a global hacking campaign that targeted prominent climate activists in the United States several years ago. The Justice Department is trying to extradite an Israeli private investigator named Amit Forlit from the United Kingdom for allegedly orchestrating the operation on behalf of an unnamed public affairs firm based in Washington, D.C.
- 🎧 The Forlit company worked for represented one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies based in Texas, NPR’s Michael Copley said. Forlit’s lawyer claimed in a court filing that the operation he was accused of leading “was allegedly commissioned by DCI Group, a lobbying firm representing ExxonMobil, one of the world’s largest fossil fuel companies.” . The Justice Department has not accused Exxon or DCI of any wrongdoing. Both informed NPR that they were not involved in the hack.
From our hosts
An aerial view of homes that burned in the Eaton Fire on January 19, 2025 in Altadena, California.
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Mario Tama/Getty Images
This essay is written by a martinez, First And Morning edition host.
Los Angeles wildfires are still burning With strong winds expected this week, which could slow down the already incredible work firefighters have been doing to try to contain them. Some people in evacuation zones have been allowed to return home while many have nothing to return to.
This got me thinking about rebuilding. When will it start? How will it be done? Who will offer help?
I don’t know the answers to these three questions But I know that none of this can happen without cooperation. From neighbor helping neighbor to city, county, state and federal government working together on next steps.
The only thing I hope is that the blame Focusing on what should have been done differently or better will not stop you from making recovery possible.
This week, one of Trump’s first trips of his second term will be to Los Angeles to survey the damage. He will come to a state that sued him more than a hundred times during his first term and whose governor, Gavin Newsom, called a special legislative session last November to prepare for potential new prosecutions.
People who lost everything probably don’t think about red versus blue politics right away. Hopefully when it comes to determining these next steps, Trump and Newsom won’t be either.
Weekend choice
Keke Palmer and Sza in Tri-Star Picture’s One of These Days (photo by Anne Marie Fox)
Anne Marie Fox / Anne Marie Fox
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Anne Marie Fox / Anne Marie Fox
Find out what NPR watch, read and listen this weekend:
🍿 Movies: One of the days is a comedy about two best friends, played by Keke Palmer and SZA, who endure a wild series of misadventures as they try to make rent during a hectic day.
📺TV: BreakupThe second season is now streaming on Apple TV+, and it’s even weirder and more skillfully put together than the first.
📚 Books: There’s still time to catch up on some titles that change the perspective of 2024 before launching into this year’s new reads. Check out these 12 books exploring the world of art, life after death, life as a nun and more.
🎵 Music: Tina Turner’s lost song “Hot for You Baby” was reintroduced to the world yesterday morning. Check it out here.
❓ Quizzes: Well… I didn’t do badly, but I could have done better. Please take the time to redeem me with your score.
3 things to know before you leave
Boone Hogg (left) and Logan Jugler, who run the @OfficialStickReviews account, show off their sticks.
Jackson Hoget
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Jackson Hoget
- Have you ever found a cool stick and wanted to show it off? If so, “Stick Nation,” a global movement that thrives on wholesome descriptions of sticks and the people who categorize them, is probably right up your alley. So far, the Internet community has millions of people.
- Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic has retired injured from his Australian Open semi-final. He was aiming for a standalone record of 25 major titles.
- New figures show U.S. college enrollment increased 4.5% In undergraduate and graduate programs for the first time last fall to surpass pre-pandemic levels.
This newsletter was published by Suzanne Nuyen.
