--:-- [Up First theme music plays]
--:-- Leila Fadel: Did you notice that we're working on President's Day? Did you agree to this? I made it part of my renegotiation. That you work every federal holiday like me?
--:-- A Martinez: That's right, Leila.
--:-- Leila Fadel: European leaders hold an emergency summit in Paris today. The future of Ukraine's on the line and why are European securities also under threat? So what do they have to fear from the U.S. meeting with Russia if they are not also at the table?
--:-- A Martinez: That's right, Leila. I'm A Martinez, and this is Up First from NPR News.
--:-- Leila Fadel: The U.S. Secretary of State is in the Middle East, promoting President Trump's vision to push Palestinians in Gaza out and take it over. The president's also been very bold about his view of what the future for Gaza should be. Not the same tired ideas of the past. But will Arab allies be supportive of Trump turning Gaza into a seaside real estate development?
--:-- A Martinez: And here in the U.S., Trump follows through on promises to reshape the federal government. On this President's Day, we take a look at his first four weeks in office. Stay with us.
--:-- [Up First theme music continues]
--:-- Leila Fadel: This message comes from BetterHelp. It's only human to ask others for advice, like turning to your barista, hairdresser, or a taxi driver for life advice. But when you're looking for help about relationships, anxiety, depression, or other clinical issues, they may not have all the right answers. Instead, get guidance from a licensed therapist online with BetterHelp. Visit betterhelp.com slash NPR for 10% off your first month.
--:-- A Martinez: This message comes from NPR sponsor AARP. Where do you see your career in 12 years? What are you doing now to help you get there? The sooner you start enhancing your skills, the sooner you'll be ready. That's why AARP has management, finance, and small business reskilling courses, all to help your income live as long as you do. Because the steps you choose to take today will help you love what you do in the future. Learn more at aarp.org slash skills.
--:-- Leila Fadel: This message comes from NPR sponsor, Adobe. Introducing the all-new Adobe Acrobat Studio, now with AI-powered PDF spaces. Need to turn 100 pages of market research into five insights with a click? Templates for a sales proposal that'll close that deal? Or an AI specialist to tailor the tone of your market report? You can do all that with the all-new Adobe Acrobat Studio. Learn more at adobe.com slash do that with Acrobat.
--:-- A Martinez: As high-level American and Russian delegations are expected to gather in Saudi Arabia in the coming days to begin negotiations to end the war in Ukraine, European leaders are meeting in Paris today after being cut out of those negotiations. After Trump officials traveled to Europe last week, it became clear the post-war security order in Europe that's been in place 80 years is no more.
--:-- Leila Fadel: We go now to NPR's Eleanor Beardsley in Paris to hear more about this. So, Eleanor, why has this shook up Europe?
--:-- Eleanor Beardsley: Well, you know, Europeans knew the Trump administration was going to be a rougher ride than the Biden administration, but they still held out hope that the U.S. and Europe could work together, especially on ending the war in Ukraine. But that illusion burst this week.
--:-- A Martinez: First, there was U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's visit to NATO. He basically told European allies the U.S. has bigger priorities in Asia and Europe needs to take care of itself.
--:-- Eleanor Beardsley: That was followed by the Munich Security Conference this weekend, where Vice President J.D. Vance gave a scathing criticism of European democracy, a speech one European leader called, quote, fascist and anti-European.
--:-- A Martinez: Vance also met with a far-right opposition leader in Germany while refusing to meet with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
--:-- Eleanor Beardsley: Then there were the comments of U advisor to Ukraine and Russia General Keith Kellogg who told the Europeans we take your interests into account but you won be at the negotiating table to end the war.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Now what about President Trump? How was his call with Russian President Vladimir Putin received there?
--:-- Eleanor Beardsley: Well, that was the cherry on the cake, eh? President Trump gave no heads up to European allies or Ukraine before holding by all accounts what was a friendly hour and a half phone call with Putin, who Europeans consider an aggressor and pariah.
--:-- A Martinez: Trump even went so far as to speak of lifting sanctions and bringing Russia back into the fold of nations.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Leaders left Munich Yesterday, morose and stunned, Elie Tenenbaum told me he's a security expert at the French Institute for International Relations. Let's listen.
--:-- Elie Tenenbaum: So this has been their sort of nightmare scenario that they were going to be bypassed by the United States to negotiate a peace deal over the heads. And he says without its European allies by its side, the U.S. might try to strong arm Ukraine into a bad deal.
--:-- A Martinez: And I know big meeting today in Paris. Who's going to be there? What's on the agenda?
--:-- Eleanor Beardsley: Well, the leaders of eight nations are meeting at Streamline so they can move quickly. France, Britain, Poland, Italy, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and Denmark, plus two top EU officials and the head of NATO on the agenda is increasing military spending, which might mean discarding long established EU limits on budget deficits and authorizing massive spending.
--:-- Leila Fadel: They will speak of how to guarantee any peace. In an editorial in a British newspaper yesterday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Britain would be ready to send troops to ensure a peace deal. This morning, Sweden said it too could send troops. And France has also said it would send troops.
--:-- A Martinez: But it will take more than a couple nations to guarantee a peace, Tenenbaum told me.
--:-- Eleanor Beardsley: What about Ukraine? What have they said about this?
--:-- Leila Fadel: Well, President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke forcefully at the Munich conference as soon as he saw what was happening. He says Europe must be at the negotiating table and he's pushing Europeans to join with battle-hardened Ukraine to build a European fighting force.
--:-- A Martinez: Let's listen.
--:-- Volodymyr Zelensky: We must build the armed forces of Europe so that Europe's future depends only on Europeans and decisions about Europe are made in Europe. You got applause for that, eh?
--:-- Eleanor Beardsley: French officials described today's meeting as informal and there'll be no final communique. They're trying to tamp down expectations for what is actually a very crucial meeting.
--:-- Leila Fadel: That's Eleanor Beardsley in Paris. Thanks a lot.
--:-- Eleanor Beardsley: Thank you.
--:-- A Martinez: Marco Rubio is in the Middle East, and his first stop as Secretary of State in the region was Israel.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Here's what Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had to say about their meeting.
--:-- Benjamin Netanyahu: We talked about how do we complete the change in the Middle East. Change in the Middle East.
--:-- A Martinez: Rubio today is in Saudi Arabia where he will be discussing President Trump's plan to turn Gaza into a seaside real estate development and displace all the Palestinians.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Let's bring in NPR international correspondent Eva Trawi in Dubai. So first walk us through Secretary Rubio's discussions in Israel.
--:-- Eva Trawi: Hey, good morning. So his main message is pushing Trump's plan for Gaza and ensuring the ceasefire there holds long enough to release all Israeli hostages held there by Hamas.
--:-- A Martinez: And he made clear the U.S.-Israeli alliance has never been stronger, particularly under Trump, of course.
--:-- Eva Trawi: Now, he arrived in Israel the day after another exchange of Israeli hostages and Palestinian detainees took place and prisoners.
--:-- Leila Fadel: And this ceasefire deal, it expires in two weeks.
--:-- A Martinez: All right. So Trump officials are saying now that there will be a second phase of this deal to bring home more hostages.
--:-- Eva Trawi: So while Rubio's visit is to see all of this through on the Israeli side, he's also in the region to reinforce Trump's plan after the ceasefire to rebuild Gaza under U.S. ownership and permanently displace Palestinians outside.
--:-- Leila Fadel: And after meeting Netanyahu in Israel yesterday, Rubio doubled down on the plan.
--:-- Eva Trawi: It may have shocked and surprised many, but what cannot continue is the same cycle where we repeat over and over again and wind up in the exact same place.
--:-- A Martinez: So displacing Palestinians outside Gaza was an idea relegated to the far right in Israel until recently I mean, now has the backing of Israel's prime minister.
--:-- Eva Trawi: Tell us, what's he saying?
--:-- Leila Fadel: Well, Netanyahu has called Trump's vision for Gaza revolutionary and says it did not come as a surprise because they'd spoken about it before it was announced by Trump earlier this month.
--:-- Eva Trawi: And while addressing the conference of major American Jewish organizations yesterday in Israel, Netanyahu said Gaza has been described as the biggest open-air prison, but that people there now should have the choice to leave.
--:-- A Martinez: And he said this.
--:-- Benjamin Netanyahu: The possibilities that loom today before us have never been before us before, have never been available to us as they are now. And we intend to pursue them to the full.
--:-- Eva Trawi: So the thing is, I mean, the plan for Gaza will need Arab buy-in, especially from the wealthy Arab Gulf states.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Tell us what Secretary Rubio might be hearing when he talks to leaders in Saudi Arabia for the UAE meeting today and tomorrow.
--:-- Eva Trawi: Well, today actually marks 500 days of this war since the deadly October 7th attack by Hamas on Israel in 2023.
--:-- A Martinez: And public sentiment here in the region has turned even harder on Israel.
--:-- Eva Trawi: And that's because of the tens of thousands of Palestinians killed by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza since.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Now, Saudi Arabia's crown prince was close to establishing ties with Israel two years ago, but he has since described Israel's war in Gaza as a genocide.
--:-- A Martinez: And so there's really no indication that ties with Israel and Saudi Arabia are on the horizon, at least for the moment.
--:-- Eva Trawi: Now, the thing to keep in mind is that Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries, A, rely on U.S. military support, and they have business ties with Trump and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, but they also have an oil pact and business ties with Russia.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Saudi Arabia and the UAE are also positioning themselves as brokers between the U.S. and Russia.
--:-- A Martinez: Now, you know, Rubio is leading a team of White House officials today to Saudi Arabia, where he will meet with Kremlin officials during their time there to discuss ending the war in Ukraine.
--:-- Eva Trawi: Now, these talks are ahead of what could be a Trump-Putin summit in Saudi Arabia. Ukraine says they're not part of the talks today, but Ukraine's president is in the UAE right now, and he's expected to head next to Saudi Arabia.
--:-- Leila Fadel: President Trump was sworn into office four weeks ago today.
--:-- A Martinez: And in those four weeks, he has gotten the Senate to confirm even his most controversial cabinet picks.
--:-- Leila Fadel: His executive actions have forced dramatic changes in the federal government.
--:-- A Martinez: And he's even tried to eliminate entire agencies.
--:-- Leila Fadel: The courts have put a pause on some actions where there are very real questions about whether what Trump wants to do is legal or even constitutional.
--:-- A Martinez: NPR senior White House correspondent Tamara Keith has been following all this.
--:-- Tamara Keith: Sam, so over the weekend, Donald Trump posted on social media, quote, he who saves his country does not violate any law.
--:-- Leila Fadel: What do you make of that?
--:-- Tamara Keith: Well, this is one of the biggest themes of the second Trump term. President Trump is taking a very expansive view of his executive authority.
--:-- A Martinez: He is blowing past statutes like the law requiring 30 days notice to Congress before firing inspectors general and running straight into significant constitutional questions.
--:-- Tamara Keith: He's trying to redefine birthright citizenship, something enshrined in the Constitution.
--:-- Leila Fadel: He's freezing federal funds and trying to erase agencies that were created by Congress without going back to Congress for the authority to do it.
--:-- A Martinez: And I should say he's trying to do much more, much faster, and going it alone in a way that he didn't in his first term.
--:-- Tamara Keith: But he has a lot less to lose this time.
--:-- Leila Fadel: He isn't running for re-election, and the Supreme Court has given presidents broad legal immunity for laws that are broken in the course of doing their jobs.
--:-- A Martinez: Sure, but what happens if courts do decide to step in and decide what the president is trying to do is maybe illegal or unconstitutional?
--:-- Tamara Keith: We're likely going to find out, and perhaps sooner than later.
--:-- Leila Fadel: President Trump did say last week that he will abide by the courts.
--:-- A Martinez: But already in at least one case a federal judge has found that the Trump administration defied a temporary order to unfreeze federal funding.
--:-- Tamara Keith: The administration has appealed.
--:-- Leila Fadel: You know, if a theme of the first Trump administration was that he was challenging norms, the theme this time around is that he is challenging laws and the common understanding of the balance of power laid out in the Constitution.
--:-- A Martinez: Yesterday, he shared an article on social media that argued the real threat to democracy is Democrats and federal judges trampling on the president's authority.
--:-- Leila Fadel: So, OK, in terms of foreign affairs now, what is the message that the Trump administration is sending the world so far?
--:-- Tamara Keith: There's a new sheriff in town and he is nothing like Joe Biden.
--:-- A Martinez: Biden was all about strengthening alliances. Trump is coming at it from a very different perspective.
--:-- Tamara Keith: He is skeptical of international organizations like NATO and doesn't think alliances are worth it much unless they are directly helping the U.S.
--:-- Leila Fadel: This week, we're expecting that meeting in Saudi Arabia with Russian officials and U.S. diplomats to discuss the end of the war in Ukraine.
--:-- A Martinez: At this point, Europe isn't at the table, and it's not clear just yet what Ukraine's role will be.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Add to this Trump's many tariff threats, the latest being reciprocal tariffs on friends and rivals alike, his talk of wanting to take back the Panama Canal or Greenland or even take control of Gaza.
--:-- A Martinez: I think it's safe to say the era of predictability in American foreign policy is over.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Seems so, yeah.
--:-- A Martinez: So how is all this playing with his supporters?
--:-- Tamara Keith: Well, generally speaking, his supporters are cheering him on all the way and Democrats are beside themselves.
--:-- Leila Fadel: But if you paid attention to what he said on the campaign trail, none of what's happened in this first month should be much of a surprise.
--:-- A Martinez: It's just a lot of people didn't believe he was going to do all these things or certainly not all at once.
--:-- Leila Fadel: That's Tam Rakeith.
--:-- Tamara Keith: Tam, thanks.
--:-- A Martinez: You're welcome.
--:-- Leila Fadel: And that's Up First for Monday, February 17th. I'm Amy Martinez.
--:-- A Martinez: And I'm Layla Falden.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Make your next listen, Consider This. The team behind NPR's All Things Considered goes deep into a single news story in just 15 minutes.
--:-- A Martinez: Listen now on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Today's episode of Up First was edited by Rylan Barton, Didi Skanky, Krishnadev Kalamor, Rina Advani, and Adriana Gallardo.
--:-- A Martinez: It was produced by Zia Butch, Nia Dumas, and Christopher Thomas.
--:-- Leila Fadel: We get engineering support from Arthur Laurent, and our technical director is Carly Strange.
--:-- A Martinez: Join us again tomorrow. The news is saturated with coverage of President Trump, but it is easy to get overloaded.
--:-- Leila Fadel: So on Trump's terms, we bring you short, digestible stories, five minutes or less, about the 47th president.
--:-- A Martinez: Listen for same-day developments on tariffs, the economy, and all of the ways that Trump is governing like no president ever has before.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Trump's terms. Listen on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.
--:-- A Martinez: I kind of miss being back in school.
--:-- Leila Fadel: I mean, you get assigned to read great books, and then you have time to talk about them?
--:-- A Martinez: It seems like a dream.
--:-- Leila Fadel: If you're in the same boat, NPR's Book of the Day has a whole week of interviews with authors big on high school syllabi.
--:-- A Martinez: Toni Morrison, Sandra Cisneros, Jason Reynolds, and more.
--:-- Leila Fadel: So listen to NPR's Book of the Day podcast on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.
--:-- A Martinez: Psst, psst.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Did y'all hear?
--:-- A Martinez: Code Switch is one of Time Magazine's top 100 podcasts of all time, baby.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Mm-hmm.
--:-- A Martinez: They called our show, quote, a kind of cultural compass.
--:-- Leila Fadel: Never preachy, always curious about the roots of inequality in people's lived experiences.
--:-- A Martinez: I mean, I'm biased, but we couldn't have put it better ourselves.
--:-- Leila Fadel: And we are digging into all this every week.
--:-- A Martinez: So make sure you catch the next episode of Code Switch on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.
