--:-- Tracy Mumford: From the New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today's Thursday, January 30th.
--:-- [Sound of sirens and spotlights]
--:-- Tracy Mumford: I'm standing outside along the banks of the Potomac River just south of Reagan National Airport, probably half a mile from where a passenger airplane collided with a military helicopter just a few hours ago.
--:-- Robert Jemison: My colleague Robert Jemison has been reporting from the Potomac near Washington, D.C. after a passenger jet and an Army helicopter collided in midair last night and crashed into the water.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: I see about half a dozen spotlights that have been put up, shining bright lights into the water. You can see tons of sirens and lights going off, blue and red lights all along the banks of the river there. There's a ton of news crews.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: The plane was an American Airlines flight from Wichita, Kansas, headed to Reagan National Airport. 64 people were on board. The helicopter was a Blackhawk on a training flight out of a base in Virginia with three crew members.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Officials haven't confirmed any casualties, but many are feared to be dead. We're told by law enforcement that the plane is in the water in two pieces, and they are coming through every inch of the river between the collision site and the airport.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: I talked to one law enforcement official who said there are dive teams en route, But they might have to wait until the sun comes up because the conditions are too dangerous to enter the water. Not only is it dark, but it's also very cold.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: The Times has learned that some of the passengers on board were figure skaters from the U.S. and Russia who were heading back from a training camp. The International Skating Union released a statement saying it was heartbroken to hear that the flight likely included skaters as well as their families, friends, and coaches.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Mr. Kennedy, you have spent years pushing conflicting stories about vaccines. You say one thing and then you say another On Capitol Hill today Robert F Kennedy Jr will continue to face questions from the Senate as they consider whether to confirm him as Secretary of Health and Human Services
--:-- Robert F. Kennedy Jr.: News reports have claimed that I am anti-vaccine or anti-industry. I am neither. I am pro-safety.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Kennedy was grilled for three hours yesterday, with protesters interrupting him at some points. But he appears to have won over most of the Republicans whose support he'll need to get confirmed.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: The Senate is also holding confirmation hearings today for two other contentious nominees. Kash Patel will be making his case for why he should lead the FBI. He's promised to reshape the bureau by firing its top officials and vowed to go after those who've opposed Trump.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: He previously published a list of people who he said were Trump's enemies. And Tulsi Gabbard will be questioned about her qualifications to be director of national intelligence, overseeing the country's spy agencies.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Gabbard is a former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii who broke from her party and embraced Trump. If Tulsi Gabbard is confirmed in this role, she'll become one of the most influential advisors to Donald Trump, talking to him every day about critical foreign policy issues.
--:-- Julian Barnes: I cover national intelligence for The Times. He says Gabbard's confirmation hearing today is expected to be rocky. Multiple senators, including Republicans, have raised concerns about her lack of relevant experience and about some of the positions she's taken on foreign policy, including her vocal support of the Russian government.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Not only is Tulsi Gabbard a defender of Vladimir Putin's positions, she's been actively hostile to Ukraine and has parroted much of what Russia has said to justify their war in Ukraine.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Tulsi Gabbard has also been a supporter of the Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, who was in power until rebels drove him out of Damascus. She famously went to meet him years after the U.S. had cut diplomatic ties and while the CIA had a covert program to drive him from power.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: That has raised questions about her judgment questions about who she has chosen to meet with And these are the kinds of things lawmakers are going to be pushing her on today
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Last night, President Trump signed a series of executive orders targeting the country's public education system. The most sweeping one aims to promote, quote, patriotic education by changing how race, gender, and American history are taught in schools.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: It pushes schools to eliminate any instruction about topics like white privilege and unconscious bias, as well as transgender issues. It also restarts an effort from Trump's first term to challenge how slavery is taught and to condemn left-wing political movements.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: The order threatens to withhold federal funding from schools that don't comply. But it's not clear how much leverage the White House has. 90% of public schools are funded by state and local governments, and they're the ones who control curriculums and teaching methods.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Plus, individual classroom teachers have significant say over what they cover. Previous efforts to control the curriculum like this at the state level haven't had much effect, even in some of the most conservative parts of the U.S.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Surveys of teachers in states with laws that echo Trump's order show that the majority of them did not change their teaching methods, even after restrictions were put in place.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Meanwhile, the White House has dropped its effort to freeze trillions of dollars in federal funding in the first significant reversal by the White House since Trump took office.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: The president had tried to temporarily cut off the money until his administration could root out so-called woke ideology in federal agencies. A judge paused the plan, and yesterday the administration withdrew its order altogether.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Another judge also weighed in, saying the funding freeze was so disruptive that he plans to issue a restraining order blocking the Trump administration from trying similar moves in the future.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: In Israel this morning, people are celebrating the release of another group of hostages who've been held since the October 7th attacks. Eight people are being set free by Hamas in exchange for the release of over 100 Palestinian prisoners The trade is part of the fragile ceasefire agreement that has paused the fighting in Gaza
--:-- Tracy Mumford: But a new Israeli law that kicks in today could worsen the humanitarian situation for people in the territory. The law targets the UN agency known as UNRWA that provides food, water, and shelter to millions of Palestinians.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: It bans the group from operating in Israel, making it effectively impossible for UNRWA to continue delivering aid. Israel has accused the group of employing members of Hamas. UNRWA has fired several staff members amid the claims, but said Israel has provided little evidence to back up its accusation.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: UNRWA says the effect of the ban won't be felt immediately, since it already has several weeks of supplies on the ground in Gaza. But the head of the group said that over time, the law will, quote, immeasurably worsen already catastrophic living conditions.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: And finally, scientists looking at the origins of life in the universe have a long-running debate. Is Earth just special? Did this planet just have the perfect combination of exactly the right ingredients and conditions for life to form? Or did those conditions exist elsewhere? In which case, what other life might be out there?
--:-- Tracy Mumford: A pinch of grit from a distant asteroid is now offering some small clues. In a paper published yesterday in the journal Nature, researchers said that they analyzed dust collected from a probe NASA sent into space.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: They found that it included organic molecules that are some of the crucial building blocks for life. That suggests maybe Earth isn't so unique. One NASA researcher who studied the samples told The Times, our odds of finding life elsewhere are increasing.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: Those are the headlines. Today on The Daily, a look at how Robert F. Kennedy Jr. became the face of the health freedom movement and what that could mean for public health in America if he's confirmed. That's next in the New York Times audio app, or you can listen wherever you get your podcasts.
--:-- Tracy Mumford: I'm Tracy Mumford. We'll be back tomorrow.
