NPR News: 02-17-2026 6PM EST
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton.
What tributes are being made for Reverend Jesse Jackson?
Tributes are pouring in for the late Reverend Jesse Jackson, including from former President Barack Obama. As NPR's Elena Moore reports, Jackson has been credited with helping pave the way for Obama's political path.
Obama praised Jackson's legacy in civil rights and politics, saying in a statement that Jackson's presidential runs in the 80s quote, laid the foundation for his bid decades later. Jackson was a strong supporter of Obama's campaign. In a 2008 interview with NPR, he was asked to describe the role he'd play in the election that year.
Work on voter registration, voter mobilization, education, coalition building. reinvest in America, to convince young America that they really do have the power to change the course of the country.
In his tribute to Jackson, Obama wrote that he and former First Lady Michelle Obama would always be grateful for Jackson's lifetime of service, writing, quote, we stood on his shoulders.
How is the shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security affecting FEMA?
Elena Moore, NPR News.
The shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security is affecting the country's top disaster response agency.
What is the current state of builder confidence in the housing market?
NPR's Rebecca Herscher reports FEMA is part of DHS.
FEMA supports state and local governments when hurricanes, earthquakes, and other disasters happen. With its parent agency shut down, FEMA will still be able to respond to emergencies because there's still a pot of money for immediate disaster response. But places that got hit by wildfires or floods in the last few years and are waiting for FEMA reimbursements may have to wait even longer, FEMA leaders warn. That's because there won't be money to pay all of FEMA's workers.
What are the implications of Zelensky's stance on peace negotiations with Russia?
Such delays will not be new, however. Unrelated to this shutdown, the Trump administration has withheld billions of dollars of disaster-related grants for states and is currently moving to cut thousands of jobs at the agency.
Why is Thomas Pritzker retiring from Hyatt and what are the reasons behind it?
Rebecca Herscher, NPR News. Homebuilders are starting the year pessimistic. A survey found their confidence in the market dropped this month. NPR's Stephen Basaja has more.
Builder confidence in the market for new single-family homes fell to 36. Anything below 50 is considered a poor market. The index dropped one point.
What significance does Mardi Gras hold in the context of the carnival season?
The National Association of Homebuilders runs the survey and blames the decline in part on high construction costs. Homebuyers also are not showing up to buy new homes, even as builders offer more incentives like price cuts. 36% of builders cut prices this month by 6% on average. More homes are needed to help lower home prices further. Redfin recently reported Americans need to earn about $110,000 a year to afford a typical home, down from last year, but still significantly more than most American families make. Stephen Basaja, NPR News.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says his people would reject a peace deal that involves the country giving up territory. Russian and Ukrainian delegations are meeting in Geneva for U.S.-brokered talks. Both sides are far apart on issues including land security and a possible ceasefire. This is NPR. Thomas Pritzker says he will retire from his post as the Hyatt Hotel chain's executive chairman over his ties to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The 75-year-old billionaire has held the role for more than two decades. He said he has regret over his connection to Epstein and his accomplished Glenn Maxwell. Pritzker is Illinois Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker's cousin. The longtime host of the syndicated KCRW show Bookworm, Michael Silverblatt, has died.
NPR's Andrew Limbaugh has this appreciation of the interviewer of the day's biggest authors and poets.
Kurt Vonnegut, Alice Walker, David Foster Wallace. For more than 30 years, Michael Silverblatt conducted deep, thorough, and intimate interviews with writers. In 1998, he called up Toni Morrison at home to talk about her work.
And I wondered if you could talk about the ways in which these books combat silence.
Silverblatt started the show in 1989, and it ran until he had to retire in 2022 for health reasons. And throughout that time, he became known as a reader's reader, someone who took seriously the words on the page.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–0:04
2
What tributes are being made for Reverend Jesse Jackson?
0:04–0:58
3
How is the shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security affecting FEMA?
0:58–1:05
4
What is the current state of builder confidence in the housing market?
1:05–1:37
5
What are the implications of Zelensky's stance on peace negotiations with Russia?
1:37–1:49
6
Why is Thomas Pritzker retiring from Hyatt and what are the reasons behind it?
1:49–2:10
7
What significance does Mardi Gras hold in the context of the carnival season?
2:10–4:39