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Trump funding freeze includes payments to keep the Colorado River flowing

An aerial view shows the long-depleted Colorado River (L) as it flows between California (R) and Arizona, and an irrigation ditch (R) carrying river water toward Quechan tribal land on May 26, 2023 near Winterhaven, Calif.

President Biden promised billions in funds to farmers and others to not take water from the Colorado River. President Trump is halting some of those funds, leaving questions about the river's future.

(Image credit: Mario Tama/Getty Images)

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Clint Hill, the Secret Service agent who tried to shield the Kennedys, dies at 93

President John F. Kennedy slumps down in the back seat of the presidential limousine as it speeds along Elm Street toward the Stemmons Freeway overpass in Dallas, Texas, after being fatally shot, Nov. 22, 1963. First lady Jacqueline Kennedy leans over the president as Secret Service Agent Clint Hill pushes her back to her seat.

Hill received Secret Service awards and was promoted for his actions that day, but for decades blamed himself for Kennedy's death, saying he would gladly have given his life to save the president.

(Image credit: James W. Ike Altgens)

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Trump administration backs off requiring response to 'What did you do last week?' email

President Donald Trump delivers remarks during a joint press conference in the East Room at the White House on Feb. 24 in Washington, D.C.

"No one knows what we are supposed to do," said one federal employee amid conflicting and shifting directives on whether to comply with Elon Musk's directive to list five accomplishments.

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Court ruling lets White House ban on the Associated Press continue, for now

The Trump administration has blocked the Associated Press from covering several of the president

The Trump administration may continue — for now — to keep the AP from covering key events. A federal judge declined to issue a temporary restraining order on Monday.

(Image credit: JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)

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Are Trump's military picks based on merit or loyalty?

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Brown Jr. listens to U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth answer reporters

On Friday, Donald Trump fired Chairman of the Joint Chief's of Staff CQ Brown, along with several other top Pentagon officials.

Now, Senator Jack Reed, a Democrat from Rhode Island, has a question for the man tapped to succeed him, Retired Air Force Lieutenant General Dan Caine.

Quote — "will he have the ability to speak truth to power?"
Senator Reed is the top democrat on the Armed Services Committee.

The Trump administration says it wants a military built on meritocracy. Critics say it's building one governed by political loyalty.

For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for C_onsider This+_ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla)

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Germany's historic election. And the impact of 3 years of war in Ukraine

Friedrich Merz, the candidate of the mainstream conservative Christian Democratic Union party,at a press conference after the CDU executive committee meeting on Feb. 24, 2025 in Berlin.

The man poised to become Germany's new Chancellor says the US administration doesn't care about the fate of Europe. And, on the third anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine what has been the impact of the largest conflict in Europe since the second world war?

(Image credit: Marcus Brandt)

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The Panama Canal needs more water. The solution is a dam that could displace thousands

Digna Benite (center) calls her village of Limón de Chagres, a land made of love.

More than 2,000 people could be displaced by the construction of the Río Indio dam. The Panama Canal Authority says the dam solves a long-term water shortage problem.

(Image credit: Tomas Ayuso for NPR)

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Medical research labs brace for possible funding cuts that could disrupt their work

A person breathes inside the Gesundheit II, a machine that allows scientists to study the behavior of pathogens when they

Researchers say the Trump administration's plan to slash payments for indirect costs will hamper new medical science. One example? A lab studying respiratory viruses faces losing half its staff.

(Image credit: Rob Stein)

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Federal watchdog agency intervenes in Trump's purge of probationary employees

Protesters rally outside of the headquarters of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management on February 5, 2025 in Washington, D.C.

U.S. Special Counsel Hampton Dellinger has asked the Merit Systems Protection Board to temporarily reinstate six federal employees fired from their jobs and is considering ways to seek relief for others.

(Image credit: Alex Wong)

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Trump and Macron meet in Washington as Europe pleads for continued help for Ukraine

President Trump meets with French President Emmanuel Macron in the Oval Office of the White House on Monday.

In a conversation between President Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron in the Oval Office Monday, the two leaders seemed friendly even then they appeared far apart on the war in Ukraine.

(Image credit: Ludovic Marin)

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U.S. votes against a U.N. resolution urging Russia's withdrawal from Ukraine

Ukraine

The European-backed resolution that was approved demands Russia immediately withdraw its forces. The Trump administration had offered a competing resolution that did not mention Russian aggression.

(Image credit: Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP)

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DHS memo lays out plans to detain migrants at Fort Bliss and other U.S. bases

An immigrant prepares to board a military removal flight last month at Fort Bliss, near El Paso, Texas.

The Trump administration is developing plans to build immigration detention facilities on bases nationwide, a step that could significantly expand the military's role in immigration enforcement.

(Image credit: U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Nicholas J. De La Pena)

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Mikaela Shiffrin seals legacy as one of skiing's greatest with historic 100 World Cup wins

Mikaela Shiffrin of USA celebrates a first place  during the award ceremony for Slalom 2nd Run of Audi FIS Ski World Cup Sestriere 2025 on Feb. 23 in Sestriere, Italy.

After a bruising crash last November, Mikaela Shiffrin dominated the slopes on Sunday and made skiing history once again.

(Image credit: Stefano Guidi)

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'Jesus Wept' author chronicles the debates roiling the Catholic church

Philip Shenon talks about the past seven popes, and how efforts to reform the Church with the Second Vatican Council led to power struggles and doctrinal debates that lasted for decades.

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What to know about Dan Bongino, the media personality tapped as FBI deputy director

Dan Bongino, pictured in 2021, has been chosen for the role as FBI deputy director in the second Trump administration.

Dan Bongino has been chosen as the FBI's second-in-command, a job that doesn't need Senate confirmation. Here's what to know about the Secret Service agent-turned-conservative media personality.

(Image credit: Calla Kessler)

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A new document undercuts Trump admin's denials about $400 million Tesla deal

A Tesla Cybertruck at a Tesla dealership on Dec. 20, 2024 in Corte Madera, Calif. A State Department procurement document suggested the Trump administration planned to buy $400 million worth of Tesla vehicles to transport diplomats. The administration now says no such purchase is planned.

The State Department claimed a plan to buy thousands of armored Teslas was left over from the Biden administration. A document obtained by NPR shows the Biden plan was far smaller.

(Image credit: Justin Sullivan)

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Pope rests in his 10th day of hospitalization but remains in critical condition

Balloons depicting Pope Francis are laid at the statue of John Paul II outside the Gemelli hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized, in Rome on Feb. 24, 2025. Pope Francis, in critical condition in hospital with pneumonia, had a good night and was resting, the Vatican said Monday.

Francis, 88, had remained in critical condition throughout the weekend after severe breathing difficulties were reported.

(Image credit: ALBERTO PIZZOLI)

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Macron, Trump to discuss Ukraine peace plan. And, Greenpeace faces $300 million lawsuit

President Trump returns to the White House on Feb. 19 after spending the weekend and the first two days of the week in Florida.

French President Emmanuel Macron is set to present the European peace plan for Ukraine to President Trump today. And, Greenpeace faces a lawsuit that could shut it down.

(Image credit: Win McNamee)

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A 10-year-old's story of family immigration that spans three continents

Fifth-grader Ameya Desai works at a research project that she

A California fourth-grader's interview with her grandfather, who was forced out of Uganda before moving to the U.S., is one of our outstanding podcasts.

(Image credit: Janet Woojeong Lee)

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Republicans' love/hate relationship with the Education Department

President Trump says he wants to close the U.S. Department of Education. Some Republicans appear torn about the department

President Trump has made clear he wants to close the U.S. Department of Education, but Republicans seem torn on just how far to go.

(Image credit: Jon Cherry)

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3 years on, here's what to keep an eye on in the Ukraine war — and efforts to end it

A rescue team gathers in front of a damaged residential building in Sumy just after a Russian drone strike that destroyed nine apartments and killed 11 people, Jan. 30.

Thousands of civilians have been killed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022. Amid a stark shift in U.S. policy, Ukrainians want the war to end — but not on Russia's terms.

(Image credit: Anton Shtuka for NPR)

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Federal workers feel betrayed and alone in Trump administration's chaotic purge

Mike Macans stands for a portrait outside of his home in Anchorage, Alaska, on Feb. 23, 2025. Macans served in the U.S. Army for five years and was most recently working as a disaster recovery coordinator for the Small Business Administration. He was officially terminated from his job on Feb. 11, 2025.

Mike Macans is one of an unknown number of Small Business Administration employees who were fired, unfired and fired again as part of the Trump administration's deep cuts to the federal workforce.

(Image credit: Ash Adams for NPR)

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A break from your smartphone can reboot your mood. Here's how long you need

People who block the internet from their smartphones spend more time on other activities that improve their wellbeing.

What would happen if you blocked the internet from your cellphone for two weeks? A bunch of millennial researchers wanted to answer that question. Here's what they found.

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Greenpeace faces a $300 million lawsuit after Dakota Access Pipeline protests

Protesters wade in the Cannon Ball River during a standoff with the police at Turtle Island north of the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota, on Nov. 2, 2016.

The company behind the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline is suing Greenpeace for at least $300 million for damages the oil pipeline company says it suffered from protests in 2016 and 2017.

(Image credit: Emily Kask for NPR)

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Mental health issues ripple through the federal workforce with firings

A protest at the U.S. Department of Labor on Feb. 5. (Photo by Kena Betancur/VIEWpress)

The way the terminations have been carried out will undermine the efficiency and productivity of workers left behind, expert says.

(Image credit: Kena Betancur/VIEWpress)

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Historian Anne Applebaum breaks down what Trump's alignment with Russia means

President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin walk together at the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan, on June 28, 2019.

Historian Anne Applebaum says America's shifting alliances with anti-democratic nations, particularly Russia, raise questions about the state of world order and long-standing alliances.

(Image credit: Susan Walsh)

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Trump names conservative media personality Dan Bongino as FBI deputy director

Conservative commentator Dan Bongino speaks at the Conservative Political Action Committee annual conference in National Harbor, Md., on March 6, 2014.

The selection places two staunch Trump allies atop the nation's premier federal law enforcement agency at a time when Democrats are concerned that the president could seek to target his adversaries.

(Image credit: Susan Walsh/AP)

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A French surgeon is on trial accused of raping or abusing 299 people, mostly children

Activists hold posters during a women

The trial comes as French activists are pushing to lift taboos that surround sexual abuse. The most prominent case was that of Gisèle Pélicot, who was raped by her now ex-husband and dozens of others.

(Image credit: Aurelien Morissard)

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Trump officials will put 4,700 USAID employees on leave and eliminate 1,600 jobs

In early February, the signage was removed from the  headquarters of the United States Agency for International Development in Washington, D.C. — one of many actions targeting the foreign aid agency since Donald Trump was inaugurated.

The decision comes in the wake of a judge's ruling that such a move will not cause irreparable harm to the employees. There will be exceptions for several hundred employees in roles deemed critical.

(Image credit: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

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Center-right opposition wins German election, with the far right coming in 2nd

Friedrich Merz, the candidate of the mainstream conservative Christian Democratic Union party, gestures while addressing supporters at the party headquarters in Berlin, Germany, on Sunday.

Conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz won a lackluster victory in a national election Sunday, while the far-right Alternative for Germany doubled its support, projections showed.

(Image credit: Markus Schreiber)

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