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Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Corva Coleman.
Chapter 2: What led to the end of the federal government shutdown?
The federal government shutdown is over now that Congress has passed short-term spending legislation. The House approved the bill last night. That happened after an independent and seven Democrats agreed to vote with Republicans in the U.S. Senate earlier this week. In exchange, they won a promise from Republican leaders to hold a Senate vote next month.
It will be on a Democratic bill aimed at renewing subsidies for health care insurance premiums. This is for policies through the Affordable Care Act.
Chapter 3: How are Congress and Senate Democrats addressing health care subsidies?
NPR's Barbara Sprunt says its success is not clear.
Looking to see how Senate Democrats craft a bill to address the subsidies. Can they do it in a way that brings enough Republicans on board? If they're successful, they'll start the year with a policy victory. And if Republicans don't support it, Democrats still have what they say is a winning issue, health care, to campaign on.
NPR's Barbara Sprunt reporting. But even if the Senate does pass the Democratic health care subsidy bill, It's not clear that the Republican-led House would even take up the measure. Although the shutdown is over, the federal government is still continuing to slow air traffic. It has been reduced by 6 percent.
Officials say it will hold there until more air traffic controllers are able to return to work. Congressional Democrats are warning the nation's governors that federal immigration officials are accessing data from people's driver's licenses. NPR's Jude Jaffe-Block has more.
A group of 40 Democratic senators and representatives sent a letter Wednesday to 19 governors from their party, urging them to block ICE's access to their residents' driver's license data and photos to stop the Trump administration from using them from what the lawmakers call, quote, unjustified politicized actions.
States share their residents' driver's license data with each other and law enforcement across the U.S. and Canada through a nonprofit called Enlets. The lawmakers say ICE and Homeland Security investigators have made hundreds of thousands of queries through Enlets in the past year. Five states had already blocked ICE's access. ICE did not return NPR's request for comment.
Jude Jaffeblock, NPR News.
Robotaxi company Waymo is expanding its service to include freeway rides in three major cities. They include San Francisco. From Member Station KALW, Suni Khalid reports.
The Autonomous Taxi Service began operating on Bay Area freeways Wednesday morning. expanding its service in the region to San Jose as well. Waymo is also adding freeway routes to Phoenix and Los Angeles. Waymo says freeway routes will initially be offered to riders who have early access to Waymo's advanced features before they are gradually offered to all.
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