Transcript

9.15.25 · Washington Post

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Speaker 1: Welcome to the reading of Today's Washington Post. It is Monday,
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the fifteenth of September of twenty twenty five. Your reader
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is Alice Stainer. With the reminder that RADIOI is a
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reading service for those blinded with difficulties making it hard
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to hold or read printed material. So I will start
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with the front page of Today's Washington Post. On the
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far left, dark cloud hangs over vaccine developers. Kennedy's skepticism
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has created a difficult environment for research. That's on the
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far left. In the middle, there is a picture of
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Rubio visiting Israel after riftover Qatar strike and he and
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Prime Minister Benjamin Natanya who are touching the West Wall.
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They all have on yamakas. On the underneath the photograph
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is Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Israeli Prime Minister
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benjam Natanya who visit the Western Wall in Jerusalem Old
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City on Sunday, which was Laurel planned. Came after Israel
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strike in Doha targeting Hamas angered the Trump administration. Israel
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also intensifatis on northern Gaza over the weekend. I had
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the privilege of visiting the Western Wall in twenty nineteen,
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just before the COVID nineteen was quite a privilege of
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being in Israel and Jordan and Egypt. To the far
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right lived in kirk killing. Unclear governor alleges leftist ideology.
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Officials continue investigation in Utah under the picture of the
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West Wall, Western Wall guards surges, beecs, big city democratic mayas.
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As Trump considers sending federal troops to cities, officials strategize
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below the fold. On the left putin Imbolden after Alaska,
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China summits. The Russian leader has made escalating moves against
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Europe and Ukraine. In the middle, Nepal's protesters face uncertain future.
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Youth movement brought down government, but it needs a plan.
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And there is a picture of fairly looks like maybe
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gentlemen in their twenties, late teens, twenties on top of
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a roof, standing on top of a roof with Nippolice
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flag hanging, and then to the far right UVUS students
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look to each other after the unthinkable. They yearn for
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civility amid a tense, polarized national climate. And that is
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underneath the article about the kirk killing. First articles, can
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we talk about RFK Junior. A dark cloud hangs over
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vaccine makers. Robert F. Kennedy Junior's skeptical approach to vaccines
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is making it hard to fund and develop new one,
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scientists and investors say by Daniel Gilbert and Carolyn Y. Johnson.
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And there's a person receiving a dose of the coronavirus
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vaccine on September the fourth. I got my shot that
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end the flea shot last Friday. Had high hopes for
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a vaccine in early stages of development that could stem
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the scourge of school age children and their parents the
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bacterial infection that causes Strep throat. There's a profound amount
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of disease that's generated in primary school children as they congregate.
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Grant Pickering, the vaccine makers CEO, said at an investment
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conference in June. Less than two months later, Vacsite announced
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that it would hold off starting human trials for its
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Strep vaccine, citing a need to conserve cash for its
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most advanced vaccine and a dynamic macro environment. The macro
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environment of America vaccine policy is being radically reshaped by
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Health in Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Junior. An
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abrupt shift that is casting a pall on the business
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of developing vaccines. Kennedy, who was a prominent anti vaccine
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activist before becoming the nation's top health official, is using
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his powerful post to raise doubts vaccines from coronavirus to measles,
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while rolling back government research funding. That is creating an
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environment in which some promising discoveries are being shelved because
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of concerns about lack of investment and difficulty winning regulatory approvals,
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particularly FORNA based vaccines. According to interviews with a dozen scientists, investors,
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and executives, and a review of company financial disclosures, Jonathan Kagan,
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co founder of Corno Therapeutics, a startup using mRNA based
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technology against infectious diseases and cancer, said that meeting with
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investors historically involved scientific and business discussions. In these days,
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it involves those plus can we talk about rfk jr
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and the ahhs, said Kagan, who is also a Harvard
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Medical School professor. Numerous venture capital investors are turning away
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from technologies such as m RNA that are regularly disparaged
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by Kennedy. He said, it's not because the data is
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not there. It's not because the scientists. Science isn't innovative.
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It's because we are worried you're going to hit a
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roadblock you can't get around, Kagan said. The business of
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making vaccines, which are given to healthy people, has often
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faced intense scrutiny over safety, but people who have worked
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in the field for decades say they never imagined an
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environment so hostile to vaccines emanating directly from the nation's
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globally knowned public health agencies. I thought what is happening
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now in the United States would be possible in any
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country except the United States, said one senior executive in
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charge of vaccines for a major drug maker, who spoke
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on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized
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to speak publicly. We're going to have less vaccines developed,
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for sure. Kennedy and Gene unilaterally replaced an influential advisory
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panel that recommends which vaccines Americans should receive, appointing several
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new members who have harshly criticized coronavirus vaccines. HHS and
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August hid It canceled five hundred million dollars worth of
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contracts for developing mRNA based vaccines. Administration officials planned to
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link coronavirus vaccines to the deaths of twenty five children,
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apparently based on unverified reports submitted to a federal database,
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The Washington Post reported Friday. While the coronavirus vaccines have
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documented side effects such as rare heart related information, mainly
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in young men, peer reviewed studies have shown they prevent
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severe illness and have had a generally safe track record.
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Robert Cliff, the Food and Drug Administration's commissioner during the
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Biden administration, said at an event this week that the
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current administration's actions on vaccines are leading to a systemic
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breaking point, comparing the situation to a nursery rhyme. The
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question is when is Humpty Dumpty going to actually hit
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the floor, he Califf said. The vaccine industry's financial challenges
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have nothing to do with Secretary Kennedy and everything to
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do with years of eroded trust, said Andrew Nixon and
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HHS spokesman. Secretary Kennedy's reforms are a bit restoring credibility
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so that when vaccines are recommended, families can have confidence
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that guidance is driven by evidence, not industry influence. The
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FDA in August approved coronavirus vaccines made by Pfizer, Maderna
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and Nova facts for people considered to be at higher risk,
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which spawned ride spread confusion by reducing the number of
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people eligible to receive these shots. Since twenty twenty four
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presidential election, the stock prices of biotech companies broadly have slumped.
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The drumbeat of negative vaccine commentary from federal health agencies
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and the associated increase in regulatory risk for innovations is
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making it especially tricky for some early stage companies developing
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vaccines to raise money investors, said Glenn Rockman, managing partner
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of Adjutant Capital, said his investment firm was part of
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a consortium that had agreed to inject nearly one hundred
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million dollars into vaccine focused startup before Kennedy was sworn
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in as HHS Secretary, But in April of the lead investors,
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Silicon Valley and Boston based venture capital firms woodled down
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their anchor investment to a tiny, and I mean tiny faction.
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Rockman said, he declined to name the startup or the
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venture firms. There are just fewer dollars around the table
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to advance these things, and they go that much slower.
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Rockman said. The chillover vaccine research arrived earlier this year
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at the National Institutes of Health, whose grants are a
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crucial source of basic research funding and often generate ideas
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that had taken up by industry to be developed into products.
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In March, the agency cutback or terminated forty grants because
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they mentioned vaccine hesitancy in our h Officials also informed
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scienceists this year that after investing two hundred and fifty
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eight million in two major consorta focused on HIV vaccine
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development over seven years, they would end that program next summer.
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Ginanne Mazaro's Mazarrazzo Mazaruzo, who was director of the National
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Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases until being placed on
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leave in April, said that her staff also had to
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search and submit a list of all mRNA vaccine research
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being supported by the agency. It became clear that vaccines
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were going to be addressed in a way that was
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even worse than I initially feared, Marazarzo said. H is
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celebrating one vaccine project dubbed Generation gold Standard, making a
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five hundred million dollar investment in an older vaccine technology
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developed by two scientists in senior NIH leadership The decision
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to fund the project has puzzled many outside scientists. Several
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biotech investors said they believe vaccines will remain popular in
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the long run, in part because if people stop getting them,
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diseases will re emerge and remind them of the value
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of vaccines. Still, the new regulatory posture is proving disruptive.
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We're used to taking biology risk, said Peter Kolchinski, a
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virologist and managing partner of R Capitol Management. You know,
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if the vaccine is not good enough, it fails, we
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lose money. I get that, but ivaccine's progress hinges on
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an FDA decision such as whether du alaa trial. He
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sees additional risk in the near term. Until we see
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where things shake out for vaccines, We're going to be
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more nervous about that investment. Kotchinsky said. Publicly traded vaccine
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makers must advise investors of risks in public disclosures. Backsite
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included a risk in a May filing that the FDA
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Commissioner's Office has also become involved in certain vaccine approval decisions,
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one factor that may present additional hurdles to development. In August,
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it added a new risk of at Kennedy's overhaul of
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the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which could impact the
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viability of new vaccines. In response to a request for comment,
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Backsites sent a statement that casts the administration in a
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positive light. We remain fully focused on advancing high impact
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vaccines that address serious bacterial infections and continue to engage
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constructively with the administration, Basite said, adding President Trump has
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demonstrated a strong commitment to vaccine innovation and delivery, most
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notably through Operation Warp Speed, and we supply that legacy.
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We support that legacy by investing in programs and capabilities
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that align with the administration's priorities. Baxart, which is developing
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a coronavirus vaccine in pill form funded by federal grant,
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was also ordered to stop work in February by a
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contractor for the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. That
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order was lifted in April, only for Baxart to receive
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even another stop work order in August. It said the
15:04
order did not explain why it was being told to
15:06
suspend enrollment in the trial. Compounding its woes, Vaxart's share
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price dropped below the minimum required by Nasdaq and it
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was removed from the stock exchange, which executives have said
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could threaten its viability. Box Art said in a statement
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it had enrolled about five thousand participants in an ongoing
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clinical trial for its COVID nineteen pill at the time
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it received the latest stop work order, underscoring the huge
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public interest in our trial. Its stock is trading on
15:44
an alternative market while the company seeks to comply with
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Nasdaq's price requirement. David Dodd, CEO of goo vax Labs,
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said his team began to map back ways to align
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the company's work with administration the day after the November election.
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He was encouraged by Kennedy's comments in April expressing a
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preference for vaccines that use multiple antigens foreign substances that
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trigger an immune response, which geo VAX's platform is designed
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to do fight. Days later, Geofax got a stop work
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order for its federally funded multi antigen coronavirus vaccine. It's
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DOC prices fall and more than seventy percent so far
16:31
this year, and it too is in jeopardy of being
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delisted from the Nasdaq. The prospects are, obviously, they're not good.
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Robert Koffen, former chief scientific officer for Dinabacks, said of
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the current climate for inventing vaccines. At Dinabacks, he helped
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develop a novel hepatitis B vaccine that took five years
16:57
to win FDA approval. At the end of the day,
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all decisions by regulatory agencies involved were scientifically based, even
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if I might have felt they were overly cautious at times.
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I think with the kind of anti vaxx leadership we
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have now, it never would have happened. Kaufman said. Kirk
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shooting suspect had leftist ideology but motive unclear, Utah official says.
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Utah Governor Spencer Cox said authorities as speaking with suspect
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Tyler Robinson's family and romantic part as they investigate Charlie
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Kirk's killing by Jeremy Roebuck, Annabelle Timsitt, and Pavina Sumasundarum.
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Utah Governor Spencer Cox. Republicans said Sunday that authorities still
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do not know the motive in the deadly shooting of
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conservative activist Charlie Kirk, but that interviews with those close
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to suspect Tyler Robinson have revealed new information, including that
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he has a leftist ideology. Robinson, who was arrested after
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a thirty three hour manhunt, has not confessed to authorities
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or cooperated with the investigation since he was taken into
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custody Thursday, the governor said. In appearances on multiple TV networks,
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relatives told investigators that Robinson, twenty two, had very different
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political views than those of his conservative family. Cox said
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on NBC's Meet the Press. There clearly was a leftist ideology,
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he said, without further providing further details. State voter records
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show Robinson is registered as an unaffiliated voter, while his
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parents are registered Republicans, said. The suspect, who was once
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a straight a student, appeared to have been radicalized after
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dropping out of the Utah State University. Bullet casings recovered
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at the scene of the shooting were engraved with messages
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such as a fascist catch and words and symbols used
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in gaming culture. Friends have confirmed that there was kind
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of that deep dark Internet, the Reddit culture and these
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other dark places of the Internet where this person was
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going deep. Cox said on NBC Robinson had been living
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with a romantic partner who was shocked to learn about
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the shooting at a crowded event at the Utah Valley
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University campus last week and who has been cooperating with authorities,
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Cox said. Cox said the partner, whom investigators belief did
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not have any prior knowledge of the shooting, is transitioning
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from male to female. He said authorities would not say
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whether these details were relevant to the investigation, and said
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he wanted to be careful about drawing connections to the
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suspect's motive. We're trying to figure it out, and now
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everybody wants to know exactly why I point the binker.
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I just want to be careful, the governor said Sunday
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on CNN State of the Union. Cox said more information
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would become public Tuesday, when authorities expect to formally charge
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Robinson and when he is scheduled to make his first
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court appearance in provo. Utah. Kirk, a thirty one year
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old activist and online provocateur, built Turning Point USA into
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a political organizing force, growing the rights reach among young voters.
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He relished in provoking debate on hot button issues like
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gun control, race, and gay and transgender rights. Kirk was
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answering a question about mass shootings and transgender Americans at
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the Utah Valley University event when he was fatally shot Wednesday.
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Robinson had recently become vocal in his criticism with Kirk
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before the shooting, Authorities have said. Cox declined to say
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Sunday what Robinson's specific points of contention were with Kirk,
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describing him simply as not a fan. Authorities have said
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they believed the suspect in the Kirk case acted alone.
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Robinson is being held without bail at the Utah County
21:37
Jail on suspicion of aggravated murder, obstruction of justice, and
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dischargeable weapon causing serious bodily harm. The aggravated murder count
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could lead to a capital felony charge, which is punishable
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by the death penalty or life in prison under Utah law.
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Robinson has been kept in a special housing unit since
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his arrest and has been supervised more closely than other inmates.
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Raymond Ormond, a spokesperson for the Utah County Sheriff's Office,
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said Sunday, but added that he was not aware of
22:15
any suicidal comments or concerns. The suspect is made. Robinson
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will undergo a mental health screening in the coming days
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to determine the appropriate placement for him in the jail
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going forward, Ormond said in a statement. Since Kirk's shooting,
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President Donald Trump has blamed the radical left and vowed
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to go after each and every one of those who
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contributed to this atrocity. During an address from the White
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House on Wednesday, Trump decried several cases of political violence
22:48
against Republicans, did not highlight attacks against Democrats, such as
22:53
the slaying in June of a Minnesota state legislator and
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her husband, as well as the wounding of another state
22:59
legislate and his wife. Suspect in that case is facing
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murdered charges in state and federal court. Cox, in his
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TV appearances, repeated appeals to Americans to come together and
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disavow political violence. If your view of America is not
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shaken right now, then there's something wrong with you, he
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told Ciena sin In. This is an assault on America.
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Every one of us has to look in the mirror
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and decide are we going to make it better or
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are we going to make it worse. Other politicians are
23:36
also urging de escalation of the nation's political rhetic rhetoric.
23:42
If it were up to me, I think you need
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to take the word radical and remove right or left,
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said Senator John Curtis, Republican, Utah on ABC's This Week.
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Radical coming from any direction is not good, It is
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not healthy, and it should be called out. Many of
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those who knew Robinson had described him as reserved, funny,
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and farmed of video games. Cox said Robinson was a
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very smart young man with high standardized test cause, but
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he seemed to have experienced a shift after dropping out
24:20
of Utah State University after one semester. He then enrolled
24:24
in an electrical apprenticeship program at Dixie Technical College in
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Saint George, Utah, where he was a third year student.
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Robinson had been living at an apartment complex in Saint George,
24:37
a few miles away from his family home. According to neighbors,
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Several said they occasionally saw him or his car, but
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knew little about him. Residents had they were shocked to
24:48
see Kirk's alleged killer arrested in their quiet and Republican
24:52
leaning corner of Utah. It's a pretty conservative place and
24:57
it's very rooted in family values, said Jesse Raleigh, forty one,
25:01
who noted that the Mormon Church has a strong presence
25:05
in the community. I'm dumbfounded, he said Friday, as reporters
25:10
from national and international news outlets wandered around the parking lot,
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you kind of look at humanity a little bit different
25:19
when it's here. You're like, Wow, maybe I should pay
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more attention to my neighbors. Court records indicate that after
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authorities began circulating photos of Kirk's led shooter, Robinson confessed
25:32
to a family member or implied that he had committed
25:36
the incident. Cox said Sunday that law enforcement officials were
25:40
still investigating reports of a note Robinson allegedly left before
25:45
the shooting and messages he sent to friends on the
25:48
social platform discord afterward. A memorial for Kirk is scheduled
25:54
for next Sunday in the Phoenix area at State Farm Stadium,
25:59
where the Arizon on a Cardinals plague. Trump, Vice President J. D. Vance,
26:05
cabinet secretaries, and members of Congress are expected to attend,
26:09
according to people familiar with the planning who spoke on
26:12
the condition of anonymity to discuss the details. Several other
26:16
prayer of rigials have been held around the country, including
26:20
one at the Kennedy's Center on Sunday evening that was
26:23
attended by lawmakers, administration officials, and the public. Article number three.
26:31
Trump's unpredictable Guard deployments send big city mayors scrambling. Democratic
26:37
leaders are weighing their responses as Trump pursues federal deployments
26:42
that affect their communities and political careers. There's members of
26:48
the West Virginia National Guard on patrol on August thirtieth,
26:52
with the Lincoln Memorial and the background big blue sky.
26:56
They have on their camouflage suits carrying more biles, it
27:00
looks like and just are standing on the pavement right
27:04
there at the Lincoln Memorial Matt Patrick Svitek and Marianna Alfaro.
27:12
For nearly three weeks, President Donald Trump's signal Chicago would
27:16
be the next site of a National Guard deployment, promising
27:19
that armed federal troops would be going in to fight crime.
27:24
On Friday morning, he announced a different destination, Memphis. Trump
27:30
has left democratic mayors uncertain where he will send forces next,
27:35
making it a challenge to prepare for interventions that will
27:39
affect residents daily lives and their city's operations, and could
27:44
influence their own political careers. As they prepare, democratic mayors
27:49
are communicating on text change and strategy calls, contacting their governors,
27:55
including those in Trump's party, and confronting tricky neighborhoods while
28:01
grasping for effective responses amid their own internal divisions. Trump's
28:08
tough talk on the ravages of violent crime is put
28:11
them into a tight political box. They must show their
28:15
taking crime seriously. While heeding pressure from core supporters to
28:20
resist Trump, most have sought to convey a nuanced message.
28:26
Crime is a serious issue, they say, and they are
28:28
open to federal support that they do not want Trump's
28:31
sending the military to their streets, especially with that coordination.
28:37
I'll work with anybody to keep my cities safe, said
28:40
Justin Bibb, the mayor of Cleveland and chair of the
28:43
Democratic Mayor's Association. I'll do it with his administration, but
28:49
I don't want the damn National Guard in Cleveland patrolling
28:52
my streets. Trump unveiled his plans for Memphis on Friday,
28:58
but he had spent recent days floating several of the
29:01
cities beyond Chicago, including Baltimore, New Orleans, and New York City.
29:07
A seemingly offhand comment about Portland, Oregon, this month prompted
29:12
a swift response from state and local officials asking him
29:15
to stay away. Anxiety is high. Portland Maya Keith Wilson
29:21
had asked his residence yesterday earlier for donations to two
29:26
new homeless shelters, saying that the administration could launch its
29:30
next incursion there if the city did not clean up
29:34
its streets. Trump's focus on crime has only intensified in
29:39
recent days, amid national outrage over the killing of conservative
29:43
activist Charlie Kirk and the fatal stabbing of the Ukrainian
29:48
refugee aboard a light rail train in Charlotte. White House
29:52
chief of Staff Susie Wilde said Thursday in a radio
29:55
interview that Trump is preparing to announce in the coming
29:59
days a more comprehensive plan on violence in America. In
30:07
the month since the DC deployment, Trump has sought to
30:11
portray himself as deferential to local leaders, saying he would
30:15
like them to ask for help before he surges Federals
30:19
resources into their cities. But he has also suggested his
30:23
patients could run out at a certain point. We'll just
30:27
say I'm sorry, We're going in, Trump said in a
30:31
radio interview Tuesday. On Friday, Trump portrayed the Memphis operation
30:36
as a collaborative effort, suggesting the city's Democratic mayor, Paul Young,
30:41
was happy with it. Young said that was an overstatement
30:47
at a news conference hours later, expressing opposition to the
30:52
deployment but conceding that it was out of his control.
30:56
My goal is to make sure that as they come
31:00
that I have an opportunity to work with him to
31:02
strategize on how they engage in this community, Young said.
31:07
And there's a picture of him with his hand pointing
31:11
downward making a point in front of microphones and different
31:16
station logos on them. Poles show many Americans consider crime
31:22
a big problem, especially in urban areas, and they approve
31:25
of Trump's handling of it more than they do his
31:28
performance on other major issues. But when asked about his
31:32
specific tactics to fight crime, opinions have been more varied.
31:37
Bibb acknowledged the challenge, but he also said he gives
31:40
Maya an opening to show they have been hiring more
31:43
police officers and investing in mental health resources to reduce
31:48
violent crime since the pandemic era spike. Democrats also face
31:53
arrestive based demanding its leaders do more to resist what
31:57
they label as authoritarian behavior. Trump every democratic mayor has
32:04
two options, plan ahead and fight back, or play nice
32:10
and get steamrolled. Ezra Leven, co founder of the liberal
32:14
organizing group Indivisible, said in a statement contrasting the relatively
32:19
conciliatory approach of Washington Mayor Muriel E. Bouser with a
32:23
more combative pushback that Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has expressed.
32:29
America's largest cities are overwhelmingly led by Democrats, and the
32:34
most populous one, New York, is holding an election this
32:38
fall in which the front runner, Zorin Mandani, is promising
32:43
a more aggressive posture against Trump. During a recent campaign
32:47
event with Senator Bernie Sanders, Independent of Vermont, Mendanni said
32:52
it was an inevitability that Trump would send the Guard
32:56
to New York and that local leaders must be ready
32:59
to use every single tool at our disposal. For now,
33:06
the mayors who were most alarmed by Trump's crackdowns appeared
33:09
to be placing much of their faith in the courts.
33:13
A federal judge in California ruled last week that Trump's
33:16
deployment of the National Guard to Los Angeles in June,
33:19
over the objections of Governor Gavin Newsom, Democrat, was improper.
33:26
Mandaani praised the team effort that California Democrats showed against
33:31
Trump's deployment, suggesting it may pave the way for success
33:36
in the courts. And on Friday, after the Memphis announcement,
33:41
Maya Johnson of Chicago held the united front that Illinois
33:46
Democrats had displayed, suggesting it caused Trump to reconsider his
33:50
plans there for now. In other states, democrats at different
33:55
levels of government favored different strategies. That was clear Friday
33:59
in Tennessee, when the Democratic mayor whose county includes Memphis,
34:04
Lee Harris, responded more quickly and forcefully to Trump's announcement
34:09
than Young did. In a statement, Harris said that the
34:12
deployment is disappointing, anti democratic, and violates American norms and
34:18
possibly US laws. Young was not nearly as critical during
34:23
his news conference, and Memphis is not the only place
34:27
where mayors have sought to ease rather than escalate, tensions
34:31
with Trump. In Detroit, mayor Mike Dugan toted the city
34:36
already has a highly successful partnership with the federal government.
34:41
After Mike Rogers, the Trump backed candidate for Senate, suggested
34:46
Dugan ask for National Guard support New Orleans took a
34:50
similar approach. After Trump first floated the city as a target,
34:55
Trump continued to mention New Orleans as a likely spot
34:58
for further deployment Friday, Bibb said he has encouraged other
35:03
Democratic mayors to talk with their governors, especially if they
35:07
are in red states. He said Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, Republican,
35:13
has assured him in no uncertain terms, that he would
35:18
not send the National Guard to Cleveland with aut Viib's
35:21
sign off. Trump, of course, has disregarded California's governor. Late
35:27
last month, as anxiety was rising over Trump's threats to
35:31
send National Guard to cities beyond Washington, Bibbs held a
35:35
private strategy call for Democratic mayors that drew representatives from
35:40
more than two dozen cities, according to a person familiar
35:43
with the call, who spoke on the condition of anonymity
35:47
because they were not authorized to publicly discuss it. The
35:51
call was first reported by The New York Times. On
35:55
the call, the mayors sought to coalesce around a message
35:59
that emphasizes that they know what is best for their
36:02
cities and that they need a federal partner that works
36:06
with them, not against them, the person said. Bibb said
36:12
he is in three or four group chats with fellow mayas,
36:16
while other municipal officials pointed to additional efforts to share
36:20
the experience of Los Angeles, Washington and other cities that
36:24
have dealt with Trump. In Chicago, as they awaited a
36:28
potential guard deployment, some Democratic aldermen contacted colleagues in the
36:34
Los Angeles City Council for advice and commiseration. Alderman Gilbert Valegas,
36:41
who represents a ward that includes three predominantly Hispanic neighborhoods,
36:46
said he never thought I'd have to call a colleague
36:50
of man in a different city to talk about authoritarianism
36:54
or dictatorship. But as Ice carried out arrest under Trump's
37:00
operation Midway Blitz, a ramped up deportation campaign targeting criminals
37:05
who are in the country illegally, the legas and other
37:09
city aldermen acknowledged that the local leaders were struggling to
37:13
find unity. Alderman Nicholas Passato, a former Democrat who declared
37:19
himself an independent in twenty seventeen, welcomed the Ice reinforcements
37:25
and accused some Democrats of spreading fear without offering a
37:28
coherent alternative. Maybe two or three aldermen in the city
37:33
Council think we should do something and work together with
37:38
the federal government, he said. The rest of them are like,
37:41
stay the heck out of here. I'm going into a
37:47
one now. Political turbulence engulfs the FED as Trump pushes
37:53
to assert control. Political pressure will underscore this week SPED meeting,
37:59
when seamakers will consider interest rate cuts to steer the
38:03
economy through slowing growth and stubborn inflation. There's a picture
38:09
of President Donald Trump and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H.
38:14
Powell during a tour of the Federal Reserve Board building,
38:18
which is undergoing renovations in Washington on July twenty four.
38:22
They both have on white hard hats and blue suits
38:27
with kids see Pal's shirt, but Trump has on his
38:33
signature white shirt and red tie. By Andrew Ackerman. President
38:39
Donald Trump's aggressive steps to his shape the Federal Reserve
38:43
could play it dramatically at this week's FED policy meeting,
38:47
marking an extraordinary moment of political tension at an institution
38:52
designed to operate independently from White House influence. While financial
38:57
markets fully expect a quarter point interest rate cut at
39:01
the conclusion of the Central Bank's two day meeting on Wednesday.
39:05
The gathering will be fundamentally different from those in the
39:09
immediate past, as the FED navigates unprecedented pressure from the
39:14
White House, Congress, and the courts that could shape the
39:17
future of the Central Bank. The meeting is happening in
39:22
this political mailstrom, said Mark Spindle, an investment manager who
39:28
co wrote a history of FED independence. We've never seen
39:32
that before. For consumers, the stakes extend far beyond Washington
39:37
power struggles. Lower short term rates could mean mortgages and
39:42
other types of loans to get somewhat cheaper, potentially providing
39:46
relief to consumers facing higher borrowing cost. But there's also
39:52
the potential for long term loans to become more expensive
39:56
if the Fed's independence erodes over time and markets lose
40:00
confidence in the central banks ability to raise rates to
40:04
control inflation. Investors, in other words, could demand higher yields
40:10
to compensate for that risk. Tis no guarantee whatsoever that
40:16
longer term rates will come down even if the FED
40:19
makes cuts to the short term rate that they control,
40:23
said David Wilcox, an economist at Bloomberg Economics and the
40:28
Peterson Institute. One of Trump's top economic advisors, Stephen Moran,
40:34
is expected to be confirmed in time to participate in
40:38
the deliberations, after the Senate moved at breaknecks paces to
40:42
greenlight his nomination ahead of the meeting. It's an unusual
40:46
twist with the Fed, which hasn't had a sitting member
40:50
of a presidential administration involved in its decision making in decades.
40:56
It also marks a sea change among Senate Republicans, who
41:00
generally moved to shield the FED from Trump's influence during
41:04
his first term. Miran says he will take an unpaid
41:09
leave of absence as chairman of the White House's Council
41:13
of Economic Advisors, but he does not plan to resign
41:16
from the role, prompting objections from Congressional Democrats that he
41:21
would remain beholden of Trump while serving at the Central Bank.
41:26
Although he would be filling a term that expires at
41:29
the end of January, Ran could stay on the Federal
41:32
board until his successor is confirmed. In written answers to
41:37
Senate lawmakers, he said no when asked if he would
41:41
commit to stepping down at the end of January, though
41:44
he pledged to act in an independent Manner, adding to
41:49
the drama. Another Biden appointee, Lisa Cook, has had a
41:54
cloud over her tenure since Trump sought to fire her
41:57
from the seven member board in late August over allegations
42:01
of mortgage fraud. A federal judge temporarily blocked her removal Tuesday,
42:06
ruling that the FED governor made a strong showing that
42:10
Trump's attempt to fire her was illegal, but the Trump
42:14
administration asked an appeals court for an emergency ruling to
42:17
fire Cook by Monday, just one day before the FED
42:21
meeting begins. The Supreme Court could ultimately decide by Tuesday
42:29
whether Cook can participate while she challenges the legality of
42:33
her firing, which revolves around fraud allegations stemming from mortgages
42:37
in twenty twenty one before her FED appointment. Cook has
42:42
not been charged with anti crime in denies wrongdoing. Sharper
42:46
political fault lines among FED policymakers could mean unusually vocal
42:51
descents at this week's meeting, particularly from a likely three
42:55
member block of Trump's aligned officials pushing for lower rates.
43:00
Two Trump appointees, Christopher Walla and Michele Bowman, in July
43:05
cast the first dual descent from FED governors in more
43:08
than thirty years by voting for a raped cut while
43:12
the majority held steady. If Marian joins them, Trump could
43:16
effectively assert influence over three of the seven governor's seats.
43:21
Advocating aggressive rate reductions such as split would mark a
43:26
striking departure from the Fed's tradition of consensus, raising the
43:31
prospect of a more politically fractured central bank where monetary
43:35
policy becomes more entangled in partisan battles. Interest rates are
43:41
set by a larger nineteen member committee, seven FED governors
43:45
and twelve regional FED presidents, though only five presidents vote
43:50
at each meeting. Central bankers around the world are watching
43:54
the FED closely, mindful of the risks that political interference
43:59
can carry for borrowing cost and financial stability. Any attempt
44:05
to undermine central bank independence is going to lead to
44:09
an increase in medium and long term interest rates, Isabelle Shansabel,
44:18
a European Federal Bank Board number, told Reuters in an
44:22
interview published this months, adding, history is very clear, but
44:27
the benefits of central bank independence. It lowers risk prima
44:32
and it aises financing conditions by households, firms, and governments.
44:39
The FAED phases a particularly tricky policy environment. The labor
44:44
market is clearly softening, which would normally trigger rate cuts
44:49
to prevent recession. An employment rose to four point three
44:52
percent in August, the highest since October twenty twenty one,
44:57
while job growth as dalled would just twenty two thousand
45:01
positions added last month, far below expectations. But inflation remains
45:08
elevated at two point nine percent annually, above the Fed's
45:12
two percent target, fueled partly by Trump's tariffs on imported goods.
45:18
Consumer prices rose zero point four percent into August alone,
45:23
the largest monthly increase since January, contradicting Trump's claims that
45:29
there is no inflation For the FED, The big question
45:34
revolves around whether firmer inflation stemming from tariffs will prove temporary,
45:40
or whether cost increases will become more entrenched. When households
45:45
and businesses expect inflation to persist, those expectations can become
45:51
self fulfilling as workers demand raises and companies raise prices accordingly.
45:57
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell has openly acknowledged the
46:04
fine line that that is walking, warning that moving too
46:08
soon risks undoing progress on inflation, while moving too late
46:12
could damage the job market. At his July news conference,
46:17
he underscored the need to get the timing right. If
46:22
we cut rates too soon, maybe we didn't finish the
46:25
job with inflation. There's history has dotted with examples of that.
46:31
Powell said, if you cut too late, then maybe you're
46:35
doing unnecessary damage to the labor market. So we're trying
46:39
to get that timing right. That's effectively what we're doing,
46:45
getting away from politics and murderers and rhetoric going I'm
46:50
going in a totally different direction right now. Brittain's King
46:54
Charles the Third lives another slower life in Transylvania. For decades,
47:01
Charles has returned regularly to Romanian villages that are lost
47:06
in time. And there's a picture of King Charles in
47:11
a grayish suit walking with Caroline Fernoland, president of the
47:17
mahai eminescued Trusk in twenty twenty three, and he's walking
47:23
along sort of a stone path with grass on either side,
47:29
by Carla Adam the lampat Neck, Romania. The king's quarters
47:36
are surprisingly unroyal, no WiFi and no television, but there
47:42
is a seventeenth century wood burning stove, a wooden box bed,
47:47
and a portrait of Queen elizabethsid watching from the wall.
47:52
Kind of like mom checking to see if you've tidied
47:55
your room. But step outside and the setting starts to
47:59
make sense. To understand King Charles the Third who last
48:04
week marked the third anniversary of his ascension to the
48:07
throne and this week will meet President Donald Trump. Forget
48:12
Buckingham Palace. Instead follow a three mile dirt road in Romania,
48:18
through wildflower meadows and pastel painted homes to House Nobu
48:23
one at the edge of this Transylvanian hammet hamlet, where
48:28
a village a greeted recent visitors with a warning. A
48:32
mother bear and her cub were spotted nearby. This was
48:36
meant less as a deterrent than Transylvanian shorthand for and
48:41
maybe skip the evening jog. This is the rhythm Charles prefers.
48:47
For a quarter century. Charles has turned regularly to lost
48:51
in time Romanian villages where cattle clogged the streets and
48:57
horse drawn cart still trundle the roads. Romania is part
49:02
of his life. Count Tibor Kanaki, a distant relative and
49:07
friend of Charles, said, and an interview, Charles finds many
49:12
of those things that he has been now. I don't
49:16
want to use the word preaching, yes, but all his
49:20
convictions that he is trying to convey and fight for
49:23
he finds here. The Count said, the fact that he's
49:28
been coming for over twenty five years now is speaking
49:30
for itself. Charles has been in the global spotlight frequently
49:35
this year, attending the eightieth anniversary of the liberation of
49:39
the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland, visiting Pope Francis at
49:44
the Vatican, meeting with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelenski at Sandringham
49:50
opening Parliament in Canada. But if these moments show them
49:55
Arenarch performing unpredictable formal duties on the world stage, Romania
50:01
reveals something about the man behind the crown. Charles likes
50:07
to joke that he has a steak in Romania. He
50:11
is descended from blood the Impala, the inspiration for brown
50:15
Stoker's Dracula, But the real pool runs deeper. Biographers say,
50:22
rural Romania office the King both a hideaway and a
50:25
living laboratory for his long standing preoccupations with land farming
50:30
and biodiversity. Here, the small scale Agriculture is a way
50:35
of light, and the landscape is rich with plants and
50:39
animals that are lost or rare in Northern Europe. Bears,
50:43
wolves and lynx long vanished from Britain due to hunting,
50:47
deforestation and loss of habitat still Room, an information panel
50:54
at one of Charles's properties notes there are twelve hundred
50:58
plant species in this corner of Transylvania alone. Another quotes
51:03
the King noting that there are over two hundred butterfly
51:08
species in Romania, compared to only forty in the United Kingdom.
51:13
In a twenty fourteen speech at the University of Buchwarst
51:16
he warned against modernization, saying Britain had made the gasly
51:21
mistake of damaging its own rural heritage and biodiversity. Charles
51:28
was once marked at home as an odd of all
51:30
prince who talked to plants. That many of his views
51:34
have become mainstream. Though his carbon footprint has done criticism,
51:38
he continues to signal his passion for what he calls
51:42
with a capital in nature. I have come to love Romania,
51:48
Charles said during a twenty twenty three visit, his first
51:51
trip aboard after being crowned Romania has retained in its
51:56
ancient forest Christine countryside and through some remarkable examples of
52:01
sustainable farming and incomparable richness of nature. Critics warn that
52:07
his gaze can romanticize rural hardship. Romania's economy nearly matches
52:13
the European Union average, but rural poverty, while improving ranks
52:18
among the block's highest traditions are fading too, as tractors
52:22
replace scyths and young people leave for cities. Supporters counter
52:28
that the King's president's presence helps the royal thus attracts
52:33
curious tourists who then linger for the landscapes and traditions.
52:38
Charles's various charities support those teaching rural skills, repairing monuments,
52:44
and financing projects such as an ecological sewage system. Caroline Fernoland,
52:52
president of the NIHI MSCU Trust in Romania, a charity
52:57
dedicated to conserving and regenerating rule or villages, and a
53:01
lifelong Viscrey resident his family has lived there since eleven
53:06
forty two, credits Charles with raising local living standards in
53:11
her visits. And there is a picture, and it really
53:14
looks like an oil painting of a man milking a
53:18
cow as the sun rises of a Biscrey, a Transylvanian
53:22
village where Charles owns a property in twenty twenty three,
53:27
and you just see this light in the background of
53:31
clouds and blues and grays and blacks and green hillside
53:39
with cows in the background. The gentleman is sit resting
53:44
on an upside down box and an orange looks like
53:48
a home depot bucket to his side. Through his patronage
53:54
of the Romanian Trust, she said, Charles financed much of
53:58
a four hundred thousand year ecological wastewater treatment plant that
54:03
uses gravity reads in organic bacteria. It was the first
54:08
ecological sewage system in Romania. She noted of the facility,
54:13
which opened in twenty eleven with Charles in attendance. Normally
54:17
the local administration should do this. Her trust had offered
54:21
to gift Charles farm house in two thousand and six,
54:25
but he chose to buy it about thirty thousand euros.
54:29
Outside royal circles and outside Romania, it is not well
54:33
known that Charles has properties here. Among the recent visitors
54:38
was Linka Karkobaka forty one, an auditor from the Czech Republic.
54:44
Friends told her Charles had ties to Transylvania, so she
54:47
came to see her for herself. Charles has a place here, really,
54:52
she recalled thinking. Cyprian Miha thirty four, who works in
54:57
banking in Brucharest and was visiting one of the properties, said,
55:01
most Romanians view the king warmly, in part because he's
55:04
not a politician and he evokes memories of the country's
55:07
own royal family established under communism. Would Romanians want their
55:13
own king again? No, no, no, no, Mahai said with
55:16
a laugh. Late May and early June is Charles's usual
55:21
season here, when wildflowers fill across the hills. He stays
55:26
at his seven bedroom guest house in his lamp Potak,
55:29
which closes for visitors and fills his security fills with
55:34
his security staff. The village is known locally by its
55:38
Hungarian names, a Lampotac. Its Romanian name is Valia Zelanuli.
55:45
At other times, rooms rent for about two hundred dollars
55:48
a night, with extra activities like bear watching, horse cart rides,
55:53
a baking a traditional chimney. Cake. Meals are usually communal.
55:58
A recent breakfast in an open air shed facing a
56:02
barn was shared with a British couple who had come
56:04
from Maldovo. A wildlife diary in the guest house records
56:10
the animal sightings. Charles spends hours walking in the wildfire
56:14
meadows that on a recent day were silent but for
56:17
crickets and the clatter of a stork. On his last
56:21
visit to Zelampatac in twenty twenty three, Charles invited the
56:27
whole village, about one hundred people to a picnic. Families
56:30
brought bread cheeses in plumbrandy. Charles, ever, the brit turned
56:35
up with jars of marmite, a charming or baffling move,
56:40
depending on taste. It was Clinocchi who helped Charles find
56:45
the spot. The king already owned another property in Romania
56:49
and the village of Viscreek, but it was in the
56:51
center of town, and, as Klonachi said, was already becoming
56:56
quite a touristy, and he would certainly not have had
56:59
him his peace there. So, when Charles described in exacting
57:04
detail the cottage, he wanted a stream of access to
57:08
wild flowers and a village setting, but not at its center.
57:11
Planaki led him on a five hour walk to a
57:14
cluster of seventeenth century cottages near a trickling brook. His
57:19
ancestor had built them centuries earlier to host glass blowers.
57:24
The factory was long gone and the buildings derelict. I
57:28
asked him, well with that do Zilaki recalled, and he said,
57:35
that's exactly what I've been dreaming of. Charles bought the
57:38
property in two thousand and eight. Charles first visited Romania
57:43
in nineteen ninety eight, a difficult year after the death
57:46
of Diana, and he has been back almost every year since.
57:51
Locals expected him this year, but he was diverted to
57:54
Canada instead. His Riscrey property was rebranded the King's House
58:00
and reopened in twenty twenty two as a museum and
58:03
exhibition space. Profits supported local initiatives, from planting pear trees
58:09
to a new playground. And with that, I close for
58:13
today's Washington Post reading for September fifteenth of twenty twenty five.
58:19
Thank you for listening, and please stay tuned for continued
58:22
programming on Radio app. I'll be back on Thursday. Bye.