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Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janine Herbst.
Chapter 2: What is the latest controversy surrounding Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick?
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is defending his visits to Jeffrey Epstein's island in 2012 in testimony to the Senate Appropriations Committee today. Here he is in an exchange with Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen.
When you visited the private island, did you see anything inappropriate during that visit?
The only thing I saw with my wife and my children and the other couple and their children was staff who worked for Mr. Epstein on that island.
The Commerce Secretary is facing bipartisan criticism over his ties to Epstein, who had been convicted of sexually abusing minors. Lutnick appears in the most recent release of the Justice Department files on Epstein, and a growing number of Democrats are calling on him to resign.
Chapter 3: How is BYD challenging the Trump administration's tariffs?
And Republican Congressman Thomas Massey also called for his ouster, but the White House has defended him. Chinese company BYD is suing the Trump administration over tariffs. And Pierce Emily Fang reports the automaker is asking for a refund of tariffs paid since last spring.
BYD's U.S. subsidiaries have sued the Trump administration and federal U.S.
Chapter 4: What happened in the New Jersey Democratic primary election?
trade court, saying the tariffs it and other U.S.-based companies have had to pay on imported goods are unlawful. This is all in the run-up to a high-stakes Supreme Court case that could be decided this month. Both the U.S. Court of International Trade and U.S. Federal Appeals Court have already determined President Trump overstepped his powers in using U.S.
legislation to impose tariffs on dozens of countries.
Chapter 5: What culinary traditions are celebrated during Mardi Gras in New Orleans?
Now the Supreme Court must decide whether to uphold these decisions. And if it affirms them, companies like China's BYD could very well reclaim a good chunk of the more than $130 billion in U.S. customs collected since last April. Emily Fang, NPR News.
Former Congressman Tom Malinowski conceded today to challenger Annalilia Mejia in the closely watched special election Democratic primary to fill the congressional seat vacated by New Jersey Governor Mikey Sherrill.
Chapter 6: What issues are athletes facing with Olympic medal quality?
From Member Station WNYC, Mike Hayes has more.
The race was too close to call last Thursday night, and Election Day ended with two of the 11 candidates in the Democratic primary in NJ's 11th district locked in a tight race at the top. Days later, Mejia leads Malinowski by just about 600 votes, with several thousand votes still outstanding. On Tuesday morning, however, Malinowski congratulated Mejia on a, quote, hard-won victory.
The Associated Press has not yet officially declared a winner of the race. For NPR News, I'm Mike Hayes in Mount Laurel, New Jersey.
Wall Street's trading higher at this hour. The Dow is up 234 points. You're listening to NPR News. The carnival season is underway in New Orleans. Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, is a week from today. It's a tradition that includes what's known as king cake, as Avery Juhasz with member station WWNO reports.
Students at New Orleans Culinary and Hospitality Institute are setting up for a four-hour king cake class, hauling stand mixers to their workstations. Some people in today's class already work in the restaurant industry, but their baking experience is limited, like Sierra Francois.
I think we all like looking at cake, maybe, and we know how important it is to the culture, and so we want to do it justice.
And they aren't afraid to experiment. To her classic cinnamon filling, Francois adds coffee liqueur and bourbon. Her finished cake comes out of the oven puffed up and golden brown, her first contribution to a rich tradition. For NPR News, I'm Aubrey Juhasz in New Orleans.
At the Winter Olympics in Italy, an investigation is underway after four athletes reported problems with their medals breaking and falling off the ribbons. Women's downhill gold medalist American Breezy Johnson warned her fellow athletes not to jump in them. Hers broke when she did, although it was quickly replaced. It's not the first time the Olympic medals have come under scrutiny.
After the 2024 Olympics in Paris, some had to be replaced because they were starting to corrode. Again, on Wall Street, the Dow was up 211 points, the Nasdaq is up 11, and the S&P 500 is up 7. I'm Janine Herbst, NPR News in Washington.
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