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Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janine Herbst. Funding for the Department of Homeland Security lapsed at midnight, which means a partial shutdown that officials say isn't expected to bring the whole department's mission to a halt. But it could impact travelers because TSA workers, who screen passengers and baggage, are required to work without pay. This as Congress is gone for a week.
DHS was funded for two weeks as Democrats sought to rein in the agency after two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis were shot and killed by immigration officers, but they couldn't reach an agreement. Michigan Democratic Senator Gary Peters says they want common-sense guardrails.
The relatively concise list we provided to Republicans were to make sure that federal agents have to abide by the same kinds of rules and regulations that our local police in our communities follow. follow each and every day. I think most Americans would agree that federal agents should not be above any of those laws or policies.
Speaking there to NPR's weekend edition. China's foreign minister offered a conciliatory tone with Washington at a speech at the Munich Security Conference in Germany, pushing for more cooperation with the U.S. NPR's Emily Fang reports this as President Trump prepares to visit Beijing in April.
China's top diplomat Wang Yi spoke right after Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the conference where world leaders are gathered. Wang said he was gratified that President Trump showed respect to China and its leader. But in comments after his speech here, Wang Yi noted that while China wanted to pursue ties with the U.S.
according to principles like mutual cooperation and respect, it was also prepared to, quote, fight to the end with the U.S.,
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Chapter 2: What are the implications of the Department of Homeland Security shutdown?
Wang Yi and Rubio met in person on Friday as well, in part to prepare for President Trump's April visit to China. China's leader Xi Jinping invited Trump to come in what would be the first U.S. presidential visit to China since 2017. Emily Fang, NPR News.
President Trump says he will make an official visit to Venezuela and that he thinks the interim leader there is doing an excellent job. His comments highlight the close coordination and support between the U.S. and the new government after the U.S. removed its president.
Diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Venezuela were only recently reestablished after U.S. military forces captured former leader NicolƔs Maduro on January 3rd. Trump traveled to the Fort Bragg military base in North Carolina to meet with special forces involved in the operation. He told troops, quote, the entire world saw what the full military might of the U.S.
can do and ensured, quote, we are feared by potential enemies around the world. As he has repeatedly done in recent weeks, Trump said interim President Delce Rodriguez, who was left in place to run the country, is doing a fine, fine job. Carrie Conn, NPR News, Rio de Janeiro. You're listening to NPR News from Washington.
One of the biggest sewage spills in U.S. history has sent tons of raw sewage into the Potomac River. And Piers Amy Held reports it could be months before the issue in Washington, D.C. is fully addressed. This major ecological issue.
That's how Maryland State Delegate Linda Foley describes this sewer line collapse. The disaster started January 19th, upriver from D.C. in Montgomery County, Maryland, sending hundreds of millions of gallons of raw sewage into the river, along with chemicals, viruses, and bacteria like E. coli. Not only polluting the Potomac, but it is also threatening the Chesapeake Bay and environs.
Friday, the D.C. government advised avoiding all unnecessary contact with the river. Adding drinking water is separate and safe. Repairs have been complicated by severe weather, pumps clogged by wipes, rock blockages, and as DC Water describes it, outdated infrastructure. The utility says it will take a few weeks to stop small overflows and up to nine months or more for full repairs.
Amy Held, NPR News, Washington.
Federal health officials say at least 177 new measles cases have been reported in just the last week. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 910 infections have been confirmed in 24 states, with the majority of them from unvaccinated people or those whose vaccination status isn't known. And the majority of the cases are in people under the age of 19.
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