Transcript

3.6.25 · Washington Post

0:01
Speaker 1: Welcome to the reading of the Washington Post for Thursday,
0:05
March six, twenty five. As a reminder, radio is a
0:10
reading service intended for people who are blind or have
0:13
other disabilities that make it difficult to read printed material.
0:17
You're reader for today is Mark Webster. Today's front page
0:22
headlines from the Washington Post consist of six headlines with
0:26
two photographs. Here are the six headlines. Chinese evy sales
0:32
humming and automaker less Australia For benet Saknim, the goal
0:38
is unity. Third one month pause from tariffs for carmakers. Fourth,
0:45
five to four court halts, bid to freeze AID funds. Fifth,
0:50
Peace through Strength GOP aims to retrofit of Reagan Credo.
0:56
Six and last new limits on sharing intelligence add to
1:01
US pressure on Ukraine. This reading will be in two
1:04
twenty eight minute segments and many of the articles will
1:07
be cut off for tom saving purposes. Here's the first article.
1:15
Australia with no auto industry to protect is a wash
1:18
with Chinese evs. The United States has effectively banned Chinese
1:22
electric vehicles over concerns about unfair trading practices and national security.
1:29
Not so in Australia. Here's the article. Shoppers streamed through
1:35
a Sydney strip mall on a recent morning, past dueling
1:38
matters outlets and into the neon glow of a bwid
1:43
megastore as a robot brought them Bwidd branded water bottles.
1:48
The potential customers examined rows of gleaming electric vehicles. Vanessa
1:54
for Farah had already paid for one of the Chinese
1:57
vehicles and six plug in hybrid suv that cost about
2:02
thirty one thousand dollars and was waiting for it to
2:05
be delivered a week later. But her husband Liam Flood,
2:09
had been so impressed that he now wanted to take
2:12
BYD's new plug in hybrid pickup truck called a Shark
2:16
for a test drive. Flood Flood, who owns a construction firm,
2:21
immediately dropped thirty eight thousand dollars on the Shark. The
2:26
couple marveled at how inexpensive Chinese electric vehicles are proving
2:31
popular in Australia yet are unavailable in the United States. Quote.
2:35
I don't think that will change with Trump back in office, unquote,
2:38
Flood said. Indeed, both Donald Trump and his predecessor as President,
2:43
Joe Biden, have taken a hard line on Chinese evs,
2:47
which have made rapid inroads into the international market. BYD
2:52
built more electric cars than Tesla last year, Biden effectively
2:56
blocked their import with a one hundred percent tariff aimed
3:00
at protecting US automakers from what he called unfair competition,
3:05
citing Beijing's heavy subsidies. Trump, who launched the trade war
3:10
with China during his first term, has also promised to
3:14
save the American auto industry, in part by undoing Biden's
3:17
support for EV charging in purchases. He also he has
3:23
also hit Beijing with a twenty percent tariff on all products.
3:28
But in Australia, which has no auto industry of its
3:30
own to protect with tariffs, Chinese evs are suddenly everywhere.
3:36
They now make up roughly one third of electric vehicles
3:39
sold here and more than two thirds of Tesla's Chinese
3:44
made cars are included. BYD in particular, is booming sales
3:50
rowed by sixty five percent last year, said David Smitherman,
3:54
the CEO of ev Direct, BYD's Australian distributor. Nearly one
4:03
in four evs sold in Australia in twenty twenty four
4:05
was of Byd, and with sales expected to double this year,
4:10
the car maker is on track to surpass Tesla Here
4:13
by years in Yet BYD's success here is complicated for
4:17
the Australian government, a member of the Five Eyes intelligence
4:21
sharing network along with the United States, Canada, the United
4:25
Kingdom and New Zealand. In addition to taking action to
4:30
protect American auto makers from what it said was unfair
4:34
trading practices, the Biden administration had significant national security concerns
4:40
about Chinese Internet connected car technology, concerns that persist in
4:45
the Trump administration. Shortly before leaving office, the Biden administration
4:51
blocked vehicle software and hardware from China, effectively barring Chinese
4:56
cars by twenty twenty nine, over fears Beijing could use
4:59
them to spy or cause havoc. Officials from the US
5:05
Justice and Commerce Department briefs their Australian counterparts in October,
5:10
urging them to also restrict Chinese connected car technology, but
5:14
Camberra was noncommittal, according to a US official with knowledge
5:19
of the discussions, who spoke on the condition of anonymity
5:22
to discuss sensitive diplomacy. Australia's Department of Home Affairs which
5:28
is responsible for cybersecurity, said in a statement that it
5:31
is quote closely monitoring the developments in the US on
5:35
this matter and proactively engaging with the US government to
5:39
understand the implications of any proposed regulation closed a quote.
5:43
Some China Hawks here are calling for Camberra to follow suit,
5:47
accusing the government of prioritizing cheap evs and relations with Beijing.
5:53
Quote this is an almighty security risk that simply can't
5:57
be ignored unquote, said Justin Bassi, executive director of the
6:01
Australian Strategic Policy Institute, a think tank that receives defense
6:05
funding and takes a hard line on China. Quote. Australia
6:10
seems absent from the debate, closed the quote. Home Affairs
6:15
officials have said in Parliament that internet connected Chinese cars
6:19
could collect and share travel data, audio recordings and imagery
6:23
of sensitive locations, or receive malicious software updates. An illustration
6:29
of just how complicated this is, it emerged at the
6:33
end of last year that Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke
6:36
drives a Chinese EV. Burke and Home Affairs declined to comment,
6:42
but the government has said Burke informed officials and security
6:45
agencies of the Chinese EV and was given advice on
6:49
the appropriate precaution, which he has taken. While politicians in
6:54
the United States, Canada and Europe are trying to protect
6:57
their auto industries from Chinese evs, the collapse of Australia's
7:01
auto industry a decade ago means consumers here have little
7:05
to lose. Quote. From our point of view, the more
7:09
competitive the global auto landscape becomes, the better close the quote,
7:13
said Hugh McKay, an economist and visiting fellow at the
7:16
Australian National University in Canberra. Quote that is good for
7:20
consumer choice. Close the quote. The rapid growth of Chinese
7:24
models means EV's now account for ten percent of new
7:27
car sales in Australia, slightly higher than in the United States.
7:31
An EV market share is expected to double by twenty
7:35
twenty seven. This could help curb pollution in a country
7:39
long wedded to petrol guzzling pickups and where transportation accounts
7:43
for more than one fifth of carbon emissions. Quote. The
7:48
Australian attitude toward things like industrial subsidies is if you
7:52
want to waste your taxpayer's money subsidizing vehicles you're going
7:56
to sell to us then thank you very much close
7:59
the quote, McKay added with a laugh. BYD has six
8:03
models for sale in Australia, including the Dolphin, a hatchback
8:07
to BYD says as the first EV available for less
8:10
than thirty thousand Australian dollars or about nineteen thousand US dollars.
8:16
Price was a factor for Greg Pointing, who wanted an
8:20
EV when it was time for a new car two
8:22
years ago. He chose a BYD that, at about thirty
8:26
thousand dollars, was roughly two thirds the cost of a
8:29
Tesla model y quote Chinese vehicles didn't really have a
8:34
track record in Australia, so it was a bit of
8:37
a gamble unquote. Pointing said. Tesla's early EV dominance down
8:44
Under is slipping. Sales slupt by seventeen percent last year,
8:48
according to the Electric Vehicle Council. If this trend continues,
8:52
BYD will surpass Tesla in sales here by years in
8:57
two other Chinese automakers MG and n GWM increased their
9:02
EV sales in Australia last year, though they were well
9:06
behind Tesla and BYD. German carmakers BMW more than double
9:11
its EV sales here, with South Korean companies Hyundi and
9:15
Kia seeing smaller gains. Some Americans are stunned to learn
9:19
Australians can buy dozens of cheap Chinese electric or hybrid cars,
9:24
said David Crockett, who runs a YouTube channel devoted to
9:28
byd US. Viewers sometimes asked Melbourne based Crockett how they
9:34
can get their hands on one. Some even tell him
9:38
they're trying to buy Byds in Mexico and bring them
9:41
across the border, he said. Farr was initially skeptical about
9:49
the quality of BYD vehicles, but then she remembered similar
9:52
fears over Japanese cars in the nineteen eighties and South
9:55
Korean imports of the nineteen nineties. Quote. Once I saw
9:58
the cars, I thought that this was the same story, unquote,
10:01
she said. Quote people just need to get over their
10:04
prejudice about them being Chinese. Close the quote. She's not
10:09
concerned about the possibility her car could be listening to
10:13
her when fire first went to the Mega store, or
10:16
salesperson said the car has automatic software updates. That hastily
10:20
added quote, but there's no spying unquote. Quote I thought, yeah, right, unquote,
10:25
She recalled quote but what can they spy on? Unquote.
10:29
A by D spokesman in Australia, James Robinson, declined to comment.
10:33
Smitherman from the company's local distributy distributor insisted there was
10:38
no danger the car's data would be reported back to Beijing.
10:41
Quote all of our data is stored in Australia and
10:44
we're adhering to all of the privacy legislations and rules unquote,
10:48
he said. But Bassi, the think tank leader, said the
10:52
government isn't taking the issue seriously enough. He wants Australia,
10:56
the United States and other allies to adopt a unit
11:00
fight approach to keeping Chinese technology out of critical sectors
11:04
including cars, infrastructure, healthcare and utilities. Failing that, Australia should
11:11
take a more cautious approach, he said, as occasional one
11:14
off decisions such as banning Hue from building its five
11:19
G network in twenty eighteen or removing Chinese cameras from
11:22
Parliament offices in twenty twenty three, are no longer enough.
11:26
Quote We've got to stop taking a wacamole approach because
11:30
it doesn't work. It isn't working unquote, he said. Quote
11:34
technology is moving faster than governments can close the quote.
11:38
Now that's the end of that entire article, and now
11:41
we'll go to the second one. Playing soccer and navigating
11:44
the war in Gaza on a team of Arab and Jews.
11:49
Benei Sakhneen is the most famous Arab team in the
11:53
Israeli Premier League. For sixteen months of war, players struggled
11:59
not to fall upon here's the article. The viney Sockning
12:05
players ducked through the back entrance of Teddy Stadium, flanked
12:08
by police escorts. They walked slowly toward the field until
12:13
the opposing fans next crane spotted them from the stands.
12:17
Quote we will burn your village down, unquote, screamed one man.
12:21
Quote terrorist, screamed another, his arm wrapped around a tub
12:26
of popcorn. Soackning was the most famous Arab team in
12:31
the Israeli Premier League. On this January afternoon, they were
12:35
playing Beitar Jerusalem, a team with vociferous support among the
12:40
countries far right. It was the biggest rivalry in Israeli soccer,
12:44
which had become a microcosm of a divided nation. The
12:49
stadium was decorated with banners of fans who were killed
12:52
in the Hamas attack on October seven, twenty twenty three,
12:56
and soldiers who had died in the subsequent Israeli invasion
13:00
days before the game. A ceasefire deal marked a possible
13:03
end to the Israeli to the Israel Gaza war, but
13:07
the fishers across Israel in its premier league had only
13:11
deepened in day during the team. Once considered a testament
13:14
to Arab integration for decades, Sakhnian fans had been careful
13:20
when they commented on Israeli politics, aware of their tenuous
13:24
place in the league and broader society. They were Israeli
13:28
citizens with the ability to move freely and vote, but
13:31
they also considered themselves part of a Palestinian community that
13:35
included Gozen. The war made it nearly impossible for them
13:39
to avoid scrutiny. It also made it difficult to say
13:42
nothing between games they watched as thousands of Gozens were killed,
13:47
a toll they believed had received relatively little recognition in Israel.
13:52
As at one recent match, Sakhnin supporters turned their backs
13:57
during the Israeli NA national anthem, opposing fans attacked them
14:01
with sticks. Twelve people were arrested. Everyone knew today's game
14:04
in Jerusalem could be worse. Concerns about violence were so
14:09
severe that Sakneen fans had been banned from attending the game,
14:14
but a few managed to get inside. One carried a
14:17
Sakneen flag balled up in his hand. Quote you're the
14:21
son of a whore unquote, someone yelled as he sat down.
14:24
The fans knew Sakneen's stunning rise a national title of
14:28
birth in the European Championships. A flurry of support from
14:31
Israeli Jews was over. Now potential recruits were afraid to
14:35
be associated with an Arab team. Some players would quit
14:39
if it didn't defeat Betar This afternoon, Sakneen faced a
14:43
growing risk of relegation from the premier league to a
14:46
lower division. An announcer introduced Sakneen's starting lineup amid a
14:51
chorus of booze. The players huddled close. They whispered in
14:55
each other's ears. In the locker room, someone had posted
14:57
a photo of them that said quote A successful team
15:01
beat with one heart close the quote, but they had
15:04
been on a verge, on the verge of falling apart.
15:07
Five days earlier, the team had gathered for a morning
15:09
practice at Saknan's Doha Stadium, which was named for its
15:13
benefactors in the Qatari government. It was a dot in
15:16
Lower Galilee, twenty miles from the Lebanese border. A few
15:21
fans had come to watch the team, and here they
15:24
were thirteen Arabs, four Jews and six players from outside Israel.
15:29
The coaching staff, too, was a mix of Arabs and Jews.
15:32
Saknean was widely known as the country's quote Arab team
15:36
unquote for its fan base, but on the field that
15:39
label was a gross supplication. Quote run faster, unquote, yelled
15:44
Slowdan Draping, aged sixty, the head coach, a Serbian born
15:49
Jew who was now an Israeli citizen. For years, he
15:55
coached Betar Jerusalem, a past that had worried some Saknean players,
16:00
but Drapik them was them over. Drapik won them over
16:06
by proving an intense loyalty to the team. He was
16:09
kicked off the field the previous week after arguing with
16:11
the referee. Now he shouted in Hebrew and English as
16:15
the players ran through their drills. Omar Abuhaf, a Jew
16:20
from Tel Aviv, quickly passed the ball to maroon gantas
16:25
an Arab player from the city of Saknen, who moved
16:28
it swiftly upheeled upfield to Matthew Kudjo from Ghana. Even
16:33
in practice, the team showed flashes of its brash attacking
16:36
approach that would need to be blistering and precise to
16:39
penetrate Beitar's defense. The players had driven from across Israel
16:46
to get to the training past the quote bring them
16:49
home now unquote banners with the faces of hostages and
16:53
the yellow ribbons tied around the traffic poles symbols of
16:57
solidarity with the Captainwewish players came from Jewish towns and cities,
17:02
the Arabs mostly from Arab towns and neighborhoods. They drove
17:07
into Sachneen, an Arab city that was captured by Israeli
17:10
forces in the nineteen forty eight war that followed Israel's independence.
17:15
There were no banners for victims on either side of
17:17
the conflict. The Israeli police had blocked a solidarity march
17:22
for Gaza planned for the previous week, claimed it risk
17:25
quote incitement. Drapek had implemented a quote no politics, unquote
17:30
rule with the team, but it turned out not to
17:32
be necessary. The players were afraid to know what each
17:36
other really felt about the war. The Jews worried the
17:39
Arab players were unmoved by the October seventh attack. The
17:43
Arabs worried their Jewish teammates did not recognize the civilian casualties, hunger,
17:48
and destruction in Gaza. It was better not to ask.
17:51
Drapek tried to deflate the tension with bad jokes. If
17:55
an Arab player was late, he would say, quote, what
17:58
were you busy with? Ama? He would refer to himself
18:02
sardonically as a quote Jewish mother. Quote that's all we
18:07
can do. Pretend this whole thing is a comedy and
18:09
not take it too seriously. Unquote. He said it was
18:12
a tactic that didn't always work. Now I apologize. I
18:16
am going to cut that off. I think you basically
18:18
get the tenor of the article. I'm going to go
18:25
to the third article, one month pause from tariffs. Trump
18:34
agrees to one month tariff reprieve aimed at helping US automakers,
18:38
but the President said more tariffs are coming April second.
18:43
Here's the article, Less than forty eight hours after slapping
18:45
tariffs on all goods from Canada and Mexico. President Donald
18:49
Trump agreed to a one month reprieve for automobile imports
18:53
that qualify for duty free treatment under the North American
18:57
Trade Agreement negotiated during his first term. The president's decision
19:03
followed a phone conversation with executives from the Big three automakers,
19:07
General Motors, Ford, and Stillantus, who sought relief from the
19:11
new import taxes. Each of the automakers, over the past
19:16
several decades has developed complex supply chains across North American
19:20
borders multiple times before delivering a finished product. Along with
19:25
disrupting these those supply lines, Trump's tariff would have increased
19:30
the cost of the typical new car by more than
19:33
ten thousand dollars. Industry groups said Ford CEO Jim Farley
19:37
warned last month that the president's tariff's quote would blow
19:41
a hole in the US industry unquote, and give Asian
19:45
and European producers a distinct competitive advantage. Trump spared the
19:50
automakers after acknowledging in Tuesday night's address to a joint
19:53
Session of Congress that his tariffs would cause quote a
19:57
little disturbance unquote in the economy his tariff pause averts
20:01
the likely closure of auto plants in all three countries,
20:05
which would have idled quote hundreds of thousands of American
20:08
autoworkers unquote. According to Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive
20:13
Parts Manufacturers Association in Toronto, quote, this is not the
20:19
President acceding to a request from Canada or Mexico for
20:22
a carve out. It's the President making a deal with
20:25
the automakers he put on the edge of crisis to
20:28
step back from the break, unquote, Volpi said. Caroleen Leavitt,
20:33
the White House Press Secretary, announced the one month delay
20:37
at midday Wednesday. She said the vehicles complying with the
20:41
twenty twenty United States Mexico Canada agreement would face no
20:45
new tariffs, at least until Trump's plan to implement a
20:49
new system of tip for tat quote reciprocal unquote tariffs
20:53
takes shape next month. The twenty twenty trade deal requires
20:58
vehicles to meet Pacific targets for sourcing parts from suppliers
21:02
in North America or face a two point five percent tariff.
21:07
USMCA requires forty percent to forty five percent of a
21:10
vehicle's content to be produced by workers making an hourly
21:15
wage of at least sixteen dollars, a provision designed to
21:18
discourage sourcing from low wage Mexican plants. Levitt did not
21:24
indicate whether auto parts would also be covered by the reprieve.
21:29
Through the first eleven months of last year, the United
21:31
States imported seventy to two seventy two billion dollars of
21:35
parts from Mexico and nineteen billion dollars from Canada, according
21:40
to the alex partners A consultancy over the same period.
21:44
As over the same period, US imports of light vehicles
21:48
from the two countries total one hundred and thirty four
21:51
billion dollars, but several hours later, the White House confirmed
21:55
that parks also would be exempt. Shortly before the White
21:59
House announcement, the President disclosed that he had spoken by
22:03
phone with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about tariffs. Trump
22:08
reiterated his complaint that lacks border policies are allowing illicit
22:12
fentannil shipments to enter the United States. Quote he said
22:17
that it's gotten better, but I said, quote that's not enough. Unquote,
22:20
the President said in a post on truth Social quote.
22:23
The call ended in a somewhat friendly Manner closed a quote.
22:29
When he first re raised the proposed tariff on two
22:33
of the United States' closest trading partners, Trump cited flows
22:37
of drugs and unauthorized migrants. Canada and Mexico responded by
22:43
surging forces to their borders. The President this week had
22:47
described the tariffs as a means both to combat the
22:50
scourge of fentanyl and to encourage carmakers to relocate plants
22:54
to the United States. Asked if Trump expected allomakers to
22:58
relocate during the next month, Levitt said yes. Quote, he
23:02
told them they should get on it, start investing, start moving,
23:06
shift production here to the United States of America where
23:09
they will face no tariff. That's the ultimate go unquote,
23:12
Levitt told reporters. Automakers could begin beginning, could begin planning
23:17
potential production moves and communicating those changes to their suppliers
23:22
within that thirty day window. Assuming there is idle capacity
23:27
at an existing plant in the United States, some work
23:31
could shift from a Canadian or Mexican plant with several
23:34
months within several months, said Bill Hurlis, a retired auto
23:38
industry supply chain executive with thirty eight years of experience,
23:43
but at any short term production move would be limited
23:47
by union contracts, a manufacturer's commitment to local governments that
23:52
may have offered tax breaks, and supplier capacity. Mexican suppliers,
23:57
for example, have a dominant market share in production of
24:01
wire harnesses. Dramatic increases in US automaking capacity will not
24:07
happen quickly or inexpensively. Quote. You're talking billions of dollars
24:12
to build a new assembly plant and a two to
24:14
three year lead time unquote. Hurlis said most automakers are
24:19
rethinking their supply chains in light of the shifting US
24:23
policy environment. Stillanthas, for example, decided to reopen it shuttered
24:28
Bellevue excuse me, Belvedere assembly plan in Illinois in twenty
24:32
twenty seven. The United Workers Union announced this week the
24:36
automaker also reversed plans to shift some engine work out
24:40
of the United States and will instead perform it in
24:42
existing facilities in Indiana and Michigan. Still, a gradual increase
24:50
in tariffs over several years would be a better way
24:53
of achieving the repositioning of automaking capacity that the President desires.
25:00
According to Mark Wakefield, the alex Partner's global automotive market lead,
25:05
abruptly increasing taxes on import will only result in unnecessary
25:09
expenses and automaker's rush to retool before production cycles for
25:14
specific models have run their course. Quote. To try to
25:17
make the changes earlier means you're basically spending the money twice.
25:22
You're going to retool things, You're going to revalidate things.
25:25
It's very expensive and wasteful to do it off cycle.
25:28
You're basically repeating costs that you've already paid for, unquote,
25:32
he said. Trump's decision this week to impose twenty five
25:35
percent of tariffs on all merchandise from US neighbors threatened
25:39
to effectively tear up a treaty he wants celebrated as
25:42
quote the largest, fairest, most balanced, and modern trade agreement
25:46
ever achieved unquote. Now he is relying on it as
25:50
the rationale for his auto industry reprieved. The industry's stay
25:54
of execution may be brief. Trump has vowed to move
25:58
ahead April two with a new plan for quote reciprocal
26:02
unquote tariffs, which is expected to result in sharp increases
26:06
in US border levies. The Dow Jones industrial average rose
26:10
on the White House announcement and finished the day up
26:13
more than one percent. Leading automakers were among the industrial
26:17
firms hit hard by Tuesday tariff news, but they regained
26:22
around Wednesday. General Motors closed up more than seven percent,
26:25
while Ford gained almost six percent and Stilanthes jumped more
26:28
than nine percent. Earlier Wednesday, Commerce Secretary Howard Lupnik previewed
26:34
the president's announcement, saying that Trump administration could exempt some
26:38
products from the tariffs that were imposed the day before,
26:41
with details expected later in the day. Quote the president
26:46
is listening to offers from Mexico and Canada. He's thinking
26:48
about trying to do something in the middle unquote, Lutnik
26:51
said in an interview on Bloomberg TV. But the President's
26:54
erratic conduct of trade policy, threatening and posing, delaying and
26:58
modifying tariffs seemingly on a whim, has angered some of
27:02
the closest US allies. Trump's latest switch lifting a burden
27:06
from the continent's auto sector, but only temporarily drew little
27:09
a pause. Trump and his address to Congress on Tuesday,
27:13
said he had recently met with automakers, but warned that
27:17
there will be some short term pain associated with the tariffs.
27:20
He called on manufacturers to move more of their operations
27:25
to the United States while bailing recent while hailing recent
27:29
announcements from Apple and Taiwan semiconductor manufacturing company. The administration
27:34
shifting message about tariff policy led many investors to cash
27:37
out their positions admid the pervasive uncertainty, said Michael Farr
27:42
of the DC based investment firm far Miller. In Washington,
27:45
markets quaked Tuesday after Trump imposed the tariffs on Canada
27:49
and Mexico, with the now shifting one point sinking one
27:53
point five percent for the day. Well, fortunately, that's the
27:56
end of the article, and that's the end of our
27:57
first twenty eight minute segment. Will take a break and return.
28:02
Welcome back to the reading of the Washington Post for today, Thursday,
28:07
March six, twenty five. We are reading the six headlines
28:12
from the front page of Today's Washington Post. We've had three,
28:15
We have three more to go. Here's the fourth article.
28:18
Supreme Court says judge can force Trump administration to pay
28:22
four and eight. The five to four order prompted a
28:26
blistering dissent from conservative justices, who said the judge may
28:30
have overstepped the authority his authority. Here's the article. A
28:34
sharply divided Supreme Court on Wednesday denied the Trump administration's
28:39
request to block a lower court order on four and
28:42
aid funding, clearing the way for the State Department and
28:45
the US Agency for International Development to restart nearly two
28:49
billion dollars in payments for work already done. Chief Justice
28:53
John G. Roberts Junior and Justice Amy Cony Barrett joined
28:58
the Court's three liberal justice in the five to four order,
29:02
which was the High Court's first significant move on lawsuits
29:05
related to President Donald Trump's initiatives in his second term.
29:10
As is customary in emergency orders, the majority did not
29:14
explain the reasoning for its decision. It directed the lower
29:17
court to clarify what obligations the government must fulfill to
29:22
global health groups, with consideration of the feasibility of any
29:26
compliance timelines. Soon after the ruling, US District Judge Amir H.
29:32
Ali ordered the government to develop a schedule for restarting
29:36
the payments. Eight groups had argued that the Trump administration
29:40
was flouting Ali's order to pay its bills and held
29:43
the High Court's decision as a sign that the president
29:47
cannot ignore the law. The majority decision drew a vigorous
29:51
dissent from four conservative justices who question whether the lower
29:56
court has the power to compel the federal government to
29:59
make such payments. Quote. Does a single district court judge,
30:03
who likely lacks jurisdiction, had the unchecked power to compel
30:07
the government of the United States to pay out and
30:10
probably lose forever to be in taxpayer dollars. The answer
30:14
to that question should be an emphatic no. But a
30:17
majority of this Court apparently thinks underwise. I am stunned,
30:21
wrote Justice Samuel A. Alito Junior, joined by Justices Clarence Thomas,
30:26
Neil M. Gorsic, and Brett M. Kavanaugh. Alito said the
30:31
majority should have put the enforcement order on hold until
30:34
the government could petition the Supreme Court to consider the
30:36
case more fully, signaling what could be the opening chapter
30:41
in a longer fight over whether the administration can freeze
30:45
such payments. The High Court's conservative majority, including Alito, has
30:50
taken steps in recent years to expand presidential power, most
30:54
notably as twenty twenty four ruling to shield Trump from
30:57
criminal prosecution for his official actions. Last month, when the
31:02
Court refused to immediately allow Trump to fire the head
31:05
of an independent government watchdog agency, Alito said Gorsic. The
31:10
Senate excuse me. Alito and Gorsic descend, saying the court
31:14
should have intervened to consider the issue. The administration is
31:18
facing more than one hundred lawsuits challenging its other actions
31:22
in lower courts, and a number of those are expected
31:25
to eventually reach the High Court. The court in the
31:28
USAID case was issued the morning after Trump's speech to
31:33
a joint session of Congress in which he touted a
31:35
number of his efforts to reshape the bureaucracy. Jenny Breen,
31:40
an associate professor of law at Syracuse University, said it
31:43
was difficult to draw sweeping generalizations from a single case.
31:47
But quote, if we are getting to take away anything,
31:51
it might be that the Supreme Court is going to
31:53
pay attention when the government does not comply with court orders. Unquote.
31:58
But Breen said, the fact that for Justice is signed
32:00
on to the scent indicates quote a tolerance for a
32:03
very expensive notion of executive power in a significant segment
32:08
of in a significant segment of the court. Quote the
32:11
five to four split here makes clearer. There is definitely
32:14
turbulence ahead here and there is going to be division
32:18
closed to quote. The lawsuit seeking to restart the funding
32:22
was brought by the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition and the
32:26
Global Health Council. The groups said the Trump administration's ninety
32:31
day freeze on foreign aid had pushed organizations to the
32:34
brink of insolvency, forced layoffs, and delayed the delivery of
32:39
life saving HIV drugs and food assistants to unstable regions worldwide.
32:46
ALI had ordered the money to begin flowing last week
32:49
after the Trump administration appeared to defy an earlier ruling
32:53
that the freeze was imposed too hastily and should be
32:56
lifted for the time being, But the government appealed the
33:00
February twenty six deadline sent by ALI, saying it would
33:03
take weeks longer for USAID and the State Department to
33:08
resume payments for work completed before February thirteen. The Global
33:13
Health groups said in court filings that the government created
33:16
an quote emergency of its own making unquote by failing
33:20
to comply with the restraining order immediately after it was issued.
33:24
Since Trump first issued his executive order pausing funding for
33:28
foreign assistance in January. Humanitarian Workers at Planned International, a
33:34
global organization that advocates for children's rights and equal opportunities
33:37
for girls have found themselves stopping and restarting programs in
33:43
respar in response to the whims and court battles in Washington.
33:48
Last week, the group received word that its work in
33:50
sixteen countries would be terminated, along with thousands of other
33:54
contracts deemed not in keeping with Trump's quote America First
33:58
unquote agenda on Tuesdays. On Tuesday, officials learned that the
34:03
decision about one of their projects, a four million dollar
34:06
grant to disperse food and medicine to refugees fleeing conflict
34:10
in northern Ethiopia, had been reversed, but they still have
34:15
not received any expected payments from USAID, officials said, adding
34:19
that quote tens of thousands unquote of doses of essential
34:23
medicine to assist malnourished children and others in refugees camps
34:28
are stuck in warehouses in t Gray and Amhara, far
34:32
from the seventy five health clinics that needed for days.
34:35
Officials said, whatever they have, whenever they have logged into
34:40
USAID's payment system, they have gotten to notice that their
34:43
payments are quote pending unquote quote. It's truly been like
34:48
quiplash unquote, said Michelle Michelle Van Aiken, Associate director of
34:53
Humanitarian Programs. Quote. We applaud the decision by the Supreme
34:57
Court to honor those commitments. However, we have not seen payments.
35:02
We know that the payment system is still offline, and
35:05
we are hoping with this recent decision, we will see
35:08
movement forward unquote. In ruling against the government, the Supreme
35:13
Court turned aside arguments by Acting Solicitor General Sarah M. Harris,
35:18
who called Ali's deadline and quote impossible order unquote because
35:22
it gave officials only about thirty six hours to comply.
35:26
Harris also said the judge exceeded his authority and argument
35:29
the Trump administration has made repeatedly as the President seeks
35:33
to significantly expand executive power. That position drew sympathy from
35:38
the dissenters. In a blistering assessment, Alito said Ali had
35:42
issued an overly broad ruling quote brushed aside unquote the
35:46
government's position that the judge had issued a quote lawless
35:50
order unquote and hamstrong officials by giving them so little
35:53
time to object to his decision. The quote must apparently
35:58
pay the two billion dollars posthaste, not because the law
36:02
require it requires it, but simply because the district judge
36:05
so ordered unquote. Alito said, quote, as the nation's highest court,
36:09
we have a duty to ensure that the power entrusted
36:12
to federal judges by the Constitution is not abused. Today,
36:15
the court fails to carry out that responsibility. Close the quote.
36:22
In a statement after the ruling, the group said it
36:25
quote confirms that the administration cannot ignore the law to
36:30
stop needless suffering and death. The government must now comply
36:33
with the order issued three weeks ago to lift its
36:36
unlawful termination of federal assistance unquote. The International Rescue Committee,
36:41
a global relief agency, said in a statement that quote
36:45
access to this funding is critical to enable organizations like
36:50
the RS to continue crucial life saving work. Close the quote.
36:54
The abrupt halting of AID touched off turmoil within USAID
36:58
as well. A senior official with the agency was placed
37:02
on leave Sunday after circulating memos saying the spending freeze
37:05
will result in quote preventable death, destabilization, and threats to
37:10
national security on a massive scale unquote. In a filing Monday,
37:16
the Global Health Group wrote that his membos quote further
37:19
confirmed that defendants have taken no steps toward compliance with
37:23
the court February thirteen temporary restraining order, and to the contrary,
37:28
have actively taken steps to prevent compliance. Close to quote,
37:32
the membos estimate that the pause in foreign aid could
37:35
lead to as many as one hundred and sixty six
37:38
thousand more malaria deaths annually, two hundred thousand more cases
37:43
of polio, and two million to three million more deaths
37:46
a year from shuttering immunization programs. The filing said the
37:51
February twenty sixth deadline ALI imposed required the government to
37:55
begin paying for all humanitarian relief work completed before February thirteen.
38:00
The Supreme Court was only considering whether to delay the
38:03
February twenty sixth deadline, not the merits of Ali's broader
38:07
temporary restraining order, which remains in effect until March tenth.
38:12
The order bars the government from freezing a wider range
38:15
of payments and taking other steps to dismantle USAID. The
38:19
Trump administration told ALI that it could continue to put
38:23
a hold on the funds and trim USAID in spite
38:26
of its temporary restraining order, based on statute and regulations
38:30
that exist separately from Trump's first day directive on foreign aid.
38:35
An administration spokesman has set a review of foreign aid
38:38
has identified five thousand, eight hundred usaid awards worth about
38:43
fifty four billion dollars and forty one hundred State Department
38:47
grants that will be cut. After a tense hearing on
38:50
the matter on February twenty five, ALI told officials to
38:54
restart funding one day later. The legal battle over the
38:57
foreign aid freeze will now continue in the lower courts,
39:01
where the global health groups have asked for a preliminary injunction,
39:05
a more permanent stop than a temporary restraining order against
39:08
the against the pause. ALI will hold a hearing on
39:12
the issue Thursday and discuss with the parties the timelines
39:16
for restarting payments. That's the end of that article. Will
39:19
now go to the fifth article. Peace through Strength. GOP
39:23
aims to retrofit Reagan's Peace through Strength in Trump's GOP,
39:28
a twist on Reagan's Peace through Strength. The late Republican
39:32
president's foreign policy mantra has become a talking point for
39:35
both the Trump administration and its critics, but there is
39:39
disagreement on what it means. Now Here's the article. When
39:43
Senator Elisa Slotkin, Democrat of Michigan, appeared on Americans TV
39:48
screens late Tuesday night to offer a rebuttal on behalf
39:51
of her party to President Donald Trump's address to Congress,
39:55
she invoked a leader not often praised by Democrats, the
39:58
late president and report publican folk he role, Ronald Reagan. Quote.
40:03
President Trump loves to say peace through strength. That's actually
40:07
a line he stole from Ronald Reagan unquote, Slotkins said,
40:10
referring to the signature Cold War era doctrine that envisions
40:14
the combined deterrent effect of a powerful US military and
40:18
strong Democratic alliances. Quote but let me tell you, after
40:22
the spectacle that just took place in Oval Office last week,
40:26
Reagan must be rolling in his grave unquote. A curious
40:29
rhetorical and ideological struggle has been playing out on Capitol
40:33
Hill and in the White House in recent weeks, as
40:37
the Trump administration has sought to apply Reagan's quote peace
40:40
through strength unquote mantra of the president's unprecedented break with
40:45
the traditional US allies and embraces an embrace of longtime
40:51
adversary Russian critics, including GOP centrists, have worried about the
40:56
corruption of a long held foreign policy doctrine, while Democrat
41:00
that's increasingly find themselves waxing nostalgic for a Republican president
41:04
from the nineteen eighties. Quote. President Trump made clear to
41:09
the Ukrainian president that America, which has funded the largest
41:13
share of Ukraine's defense, will not be taken advantage of,
41:16
and the only long term solution is peace unquote, the
41:19
White House said in a Tuesday night news release title
41:23
quote President Trump is leading with peace through strength unquote
41:26
after Trump cut off US weapons and intelligence assistance to
41:30
Ukraine in its war against Russia. When Trump moved last
41:35
month to launch a protectionist trade war on US allies
41:38
and adversaries alike, infuriating Canada and Mexico and alarming US
41:43
farmers and manufacturers, he told the annual gathering of the
41:47
Conservative Political Action Conference that terroriffs are quote a powerful
41:52
tool of diplomacy, and all around the world are moving
41:54
quickly to bring back peace through strength. Quote quote peace
41:58
through strength live from the old quote. Representative Nancy Mace,
42:02
Republican of South Carolina, wrote on x last week, posting
42:06
a video of Trump and Vice President JD. Vance publicly
42:09
berating Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky before the longtime US ally
42:14
was booted out of the Oval Office. Quote I do
42:18
worry a little bit that we're losing our view of
42:20
history and the lessons of history that taught us unquote,
42:24
said Senator Kevin Kramer, Republican in North Dakota, said in
42:29
an interview this week. Quote I do think that we
42:32
so we sort of oversimplified the conflicts of the world
42:35
that really do require us that the head of the
42:37
table closed the quote. But Trump's unconventional rhetoric has yielded results,
42:43
Kramer said, quote you see NATO stepping up, the European
42:47
country stepping up, which is long overdue unquote. And while
42:50
Trump's critics have accused him of showing weakness and closing
42:54
up to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kramer noted that Reagan,
42:58
who called the Soviet Union quote the evil Empire unquote,
43:02
also referred to then Soviet Mikhail Gorbachev as his quote
43:06
friend unquote. For decades, the Reagan doctrine has served as
43:10
the defining feature of Republican's foreign policy vision, with the
43:15
idea that adversaries, in Reagan's case Russia's precursor in the
43:19
form of the Soviet Union, would be deterred if they
43:22
believed that the United States had quote the capability unquote
43:25
and the quote willingness unquote to go to war at
43:28
any time, said Bradley Bowman, who leads the Center on
43:32
Military and Political Power at the Foundation for Defense of
43:35
Democracies of Washington think tank. Trump and his congressional supporters
43:41
say that the GOP is still the Party of Reagan
43:44
and that quote peace through strength unquote is the defining
43:47
characteristic of the Trump agenda, but some suggest that current circumstances,
43:52
with the threat of multiple quote near peer unquote adversaries
43:56
as opposed to the singular Soviet of old, means that
44:00
Trump faces different challenges than Reagan did. NATO, for example,
44:05
quote was in our interest then, unquote, said Senator Mark
44:09
Way Mullen, Republican of Oklahoma, said of the Cold War
44:12
era quote right now, I don't know if NATO is
44:15
in our interest anymore unquote. For all the funding that
44:18
the United States provides to NATO, Mullen fid quote, do
44:21
they really have our values at hand? Unquote. To critics,
44:26
Trump's reorientation of decades of Washington foreign policy amounts to
44:30
nothing less than an abdication of Reagan's central premise. Quote.
44:35
Imagine if Reagan could see his party now turning its
44:38
back on our ally and fellow democracy Ukraine unquote, Senator
44:43
adamir Senator Adam Schiff, Democrat of California said last week
44:47
after quoting Reagan on the Senate floor. Trump quote believes
44:51
in closing up to dictators like Vladimir Putin and kicking
44:54
our friends like the Canadians and the teeth unquote. Slutkin
44:57
said in her speech to j Night quotequote. As a
45:01
Cold War kid, I'm thankful it was Reagan and not
45:04
Trump in office in the nineteen eighties. Trump would have
45:07
lost us the colde warunquote. Quote. I don't know what
45:11
has happened to the Party of Reagan, but I wish
45:13
you would come back. Unquote quot Representative Jim Costa, Democrat
45:17
of California. Last week, when the bipartisan Congressional Ukrainiean Caucus
45:22
held a news conference to mark the third anniversary of
45:25
Russia's invasion of Ukraine, only one Republican showed up. Republican
45:31
analyst and centrist lawmakers say the dissonance over a central
45:35
Republican foreign policy tenant stems from the ongoing struggle for
45:39
the soul of the party between its rising isolationists and
45:43
its more traditional adherents. Quote. I feel like quote peace
45:48
through strength unquote hasn't changed, but what he's always been
45:52
contested is what quote America's First unquote actually means unquote,
45:56
said Michael Sibulik Abalik, a senior fellow at the conservative
46:02
Hudson Institute think tank and a former Republican congressional staffer. Quote.
46:08
There were people in the first administration who tried to
46:10
make America first and peace through strength interchangeable unquote sabolic.
46:15
Sablik said that effort has gained new rhetorical traction in
46:19
the second administration. He noted, while the quote America First
46:22
unquote movement promoted by Trump allies on the far right
46:26
has become something closer to nineteen thirties American isolationism quote,
46:31
much like the first Trump term. There are factions in
46:34
this one, but the people who seem to be more
46:37
influential at the moment are the entrenchers unquote, he said.
46:41
Quote both sides are trying to use quote peace through
46:44
strength unquote. Representative Don Bacon, Republican of Nebraska's said of
46:48
the GOP refrain but quote isolationism does not make a
46:52
strong close to quote. Most of the GOP stalwart Reaganists
46:57
have sought to avoid direct criticism of Trump while settling
47:01
endeavoring to redirect him toward a more traditional foreign policy vision,
47:06
often conveying their support for Ukraine, NATO, and a strong
47:10
American presence on the world stage through the questions they
47:14
pose at confirmation hearings for the people Trump has selected
47:18
for top national security roles. This week, even as the
47:22
international fallout deepened following Trump's spat with Zelensky, Republican senators
47:28
pressed the main press deman Trump has picked to oversee
47:32
the nation's defense policy to spell out whether he values
47:36
American leadership in the world. They asked Elbridge A Colby,
47:41
Trump's nominee to be Under Secretary of Defense for policy,
47:44
if he was committed to counting the coalescing alliance of Russia, China,
47:50
North Korea, and Iran, and whether, in the words of
47:52
Senator Dan Sullivan, Republican of Alaska, this week, he is
47:56
quote a strong supporter of the NATO Alliance unquote Senator
48:00
Roger Wicker, Republican of Mississippi, pushed Kobe to say whether
48:05
it would be possible quote for a quote the United
48:08
States to enjoy a golden age of America with increasing
48:11
prosperity for our citizens in this century if we fail
48:14
to deter China in Taiwan. Close the quote. Wicker, who
48:18
chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, acknowledged during Kobe's hearing Tuesday,
48:23
that the fallout between Trump and Zelinsky was quote the
48:26
elephant in this hearing room unquote, and said he was
48:29
quote disappointed and dismayed unquote by what transpired in the overalls.
48:34
He noted that Russia bombed civilian targets in Ukraine in
48:37
the days following the White House confrontation. Quote not a
48:41
good weekend for peace in Ukraine or world peace, unquote,
48:43
he said. Then he asked Kobe to explain how he
48:47
would execute quote President Trump's Peace through Strength agenda. Close
48:51
the quote. That's the end of the article. I read
48:54
the entire article. Now we'll go to the sixth and
48:56
last article, and I will not be able to complete.
48:59
It's an it in its entirety. New limits on sharing
49:03
intelligence add to US pressure on Ukraine. US pauses sharing
49:07
of intelligence Ukraine uses for strikes on Russia. The rupture
49:12
and intelligence sharing, confirmed by the CIA director, involves the
49:16
targeting of longer range strikes inside Russia. Here's the article.
49:21
The United States has paused major portions of its intelligence
49:25
sharing with Ukraine, squeezing the flow of vital information that
49:28
Kiev is used to repel invading Russian forces and strike
49:32
back at select targets inside Russia. According to Ukrainian officials,
49:38
the rupture in intelligent sharing includes a halt in targeting
49:42
data that US by agencies supply to Kiev so it
49:46
can launch American provided weapons and Ukrainian made long range
49:50
drones at American targets. Ukrainian officials said. Most Ukrainian missile
49:56
operators say they are no longer receiving information needed to
50:00
hit targets inside Russia. The pause comes amid a decision
50:05
early this week by President Donald Trump to freeze future
50:09
deliveries of weapons to Ukraine to pressure Ukrainian President Vladimir
50:13
Zelensky into peace negotiations with Russia. CIA Director John Ratcliffe
50:19
confirmed the latest move Wednesday, telling Fox Business that the
50:23
United States has paused both intelligence sharing and weapons system.
50:27
In the aftermath of a contentious Oval Office meeting last
50:31
week between Trump and Zelensky, Ratcliffe said the pauses would
50:36
quote go away once it was clear Zelensky was committed
50:39
to peace. The move is another major reversal from the
50:43
approach of the Biden administration, which set up special systems
50:48
to share copious amounts of intelligence on Russian military forces
50:53
with Ukraine, officials said virtually unprecedented for a non NATO country.
50:58
Trump administration of issues did not offer specifics on when
51:02
the United States began restricting intelligence sharing with Ukraine or
51:06
what the new limitations are. National Security Advisor Michael Waltz
51:10
indicated Wednesday that the pause comes in the context of
51:14
a deeper reassessment of US Ukraine ties. Quote. We have
51:18
taken a step back and are pausing and reviewing all
51:21
aspects of the relationship unquote. Walt's told reporters outside the
51:25
White House. He said he had just spoken with his
51:28
counterparts in Ukraine and thought there would be movement quote
51:32
in very short order. Speaking to Fox News, he said,
51:36
if Ukraine and Russia can quote move towards unquote peace
51:40
talks quote, then the President will take a hard look
51:43
at lifting this pause unquote. He hinted that Ukraine would
51:46
have to make some concessions or quote confidence building measures unquote.
51:52
Russian President Vladimir Putin meanwhile, has not budged from a
51:56
set of sweeping demands made to Europe, NATO, the United States,
52:00
and Ukraine to address what he termed the quote root
52:03
causes unquote of the conflict as his condition for ending it.
52:08
They include Ukraine dropping its bid to join NATO, that
52:12
the Military Alliance withdraw forces deployed to former Warsaw packed
52:15
countries since nineteen ninety seven, and that Ukraine withdraw troops
52:21
from four regions that Russia illegally annexed in twenty twenty
52:24
two but does not fully control. Quote. If there's one
52:28
thing that Russians understand, its leverage unquote, said Andrew Weiss,
52:32
a Russian a Russia specialist at the Carnegie Endowment for
52:36
International Peace. These demands quote represent nothing less than a
52:40
total overhaul of the European security landscape unquote. A US
52:45
defense official confirmed on Wednesday that most intelligence sharing via
52:49
military channels with Ukraine has been suspended. It was not
52:53
immediately clear what the exception to that decision were, but
52:59
they may include information related to self defense. Another person
53:03
familiar with the pause said the Trump administration had halded
53:06
all intelligence sharing with Ukraine other than information needed for quote,
53:11
force protection unquote protecting Ukrainian troops under attack. Both spoke
53:17
on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of
53:20
the issue. A Ukrainian military officer familiar with operations of
53:24
the long range multiple rocket launching system known as HIMARSMAARS
53:31
all ENCAPS, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to
53:34
speak freely about classified intelligence, said that for roughly the
53:39
past month, at least one of the Ukrainian groups responsible
53:42
for launching rockets from the US systems has not received
53:46
coordinates to strike more than about forty miles beyond the
53:49
line of contact between Russian and Ukrainian forces. Such intelligence
53:54
has allowed Ukraine to use the US provided Himais HIMAR
54:00
system to launch ATACMS all in caps, a longer range
54:06
US guided missile system, and strike targets deep inside occupied
54:10
Ukrainian territory or inside of Russia. The strikes have disabled
54:14
some Russian air defense systems and forced Moscow to move
54:18
its logistical hubs hundreds of miles from the front lines,
54:22
which has slowed down Russian resupply operations. But in recent
54:26
weeks these coordinates have stopped being delivered, the Ukrainian military
54:30
officer said, apparently signaling that such intelligence sharing had halted.
54:36
The officer said that suddenly limiting the intelligence to Ukraine
54:39
will clearly aid Moscow and allow Russian troops to regroup.
54:44
Quote what we were doing with Heimar's it's painful for them.
54:47
It's problematic they experienced casualties or lose their weaponry unquote,
54:51
the officer said of Russia. This paulse quote will speed
54:55
up the assault operations because the logistics can be much
54:59
much closer to the contact line. A second Ukrainian military officer,
55:04
who is working in Russia's Kirsk region, where Ukraine sees
55:08
territory in August and where Russia has since deployed North
55:11
Korean troops, confirmed that the last time he received a
55:16
US coordinate for a long range drone strike was on
55:18
March three. Since then, communications have been frozen. However, to
55:23
the extent the pause affects the longer range ATACMS strike,
55:29
the impact may be limited, as Ukraine was given a
55:31
limited supply of such missiles and is likely to husband
55:35
any remaining stocks, analysts say, but the move may embode
55:40
in Russia and prompt it to move its own weapons
55:42
closer to the front. This concludes the reading of the
55:47
Russian Post for today, Thursday, March six, twenty twenty five.
55:52
Your reader has been Mark Webster. If you have any questions,
55:55
comments or suggestions concerning this program, please feel free to
55:59
call us at eight five nine four two two six
56:03
three nine zero. Thank you for listening, and now please
56:06
stay tuned for continued programming on radio app