1A

What’s behind Donald Trump’s ongoing battle with the Federal Reserve? [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/31/business/how-trump-could-overhaul-the-fed.html] That’s the question on some analysts minds as the White House proposes staff shakeups at the historically independent central bank. [https://time.com/7314186/danger-trumps-attacks-federal-reserve/] Trump has been attempting to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook since Aug. 25. Cook was nominated by Joe Biden and confirmed by the Senate in 2022. The administration is attempting to fire her based on allegations that she committed mortgage fraud before joining the Fed – that’s despite the fact that she hasn’t been convicted or charged with any crime. On Tuesday night, a federal judge temporarily blocked the president from removing Cook from the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors. [https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/09/09/lisa-cook-federal-reserve-governor-donald-trump/86068178007/] She’ll continue to serve as she contests her dismissal. The Fed has operated independently since its inception more than a century ago. How do the Trump administration’s proposed changes threaten that independence? And what effect could changes at the Fed have on the U.S. economy? Find more of our programs online [https://the1a.org/shows]. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a [https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://plus.npr.org/1a__;!!IaT_gp1N!wOhW79EX-aPWlb0ult1k1kEov2nvCTjFuiZMsf2ABB1n7-WUz4Pfe0q1L1HdmIfb2xbIvng$].  Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices] NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

President Donald Trump has tested the limits of the law since the day he took office at the start his second term. This includes signing an executive order to end birthright citizenship, [https://www.aclu.org/news/immigrants-rights/trumps-birthright-citizenship-executive-order-what-happens-next] terminating or freezing billions of dollars in federal funding, [https://www.splcenter.org/resources/guides/trump-funding-freeze-faq/] and enacting sweeping tariffs on foreign goods [https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/08/trump-tariffs-supreme-court] without congressional approval. But these actions have not been met with silence. Over the last eight months, hundreds of lawsuits have been filed by state attorneys, physicians, media organizations, international students, and others to challenge the Trump administration’s policies. We check in on major lawsuits against the administration. Where do they stand now? What do they mean for our country’s system of checks and balances? Find more of our programs online [https://the1a.org/shows]. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a [https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://plus.npr.org/1a__;!!IaT_gp1N!wOhW79EX-aPWlb0ult1k1kEov2nvCTjFuiZMsf2ABB1n7-WUz4Pfe0q1L1HdmIfb2xbIvng$].  Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices] NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

In recent weeks, we’ve seen a seismic shakeup inside the Department of Health and Human Services [https://www.cnn.com/2025/07/16/health/rfk-hhs-aides-fired] and unprecedented discord between the agency, scientists, and doctors. HHS Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. is bucking the science-backed guidance of physicians on vaccines. [https://www.politico.com/news/2025/08/19/rfk-jr-attacks-pediatricians-covid-vaccine-recommendations-00515609] That’s angered some Democrats. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren went after Kennedy over his pseudoscientific approach to running the agency during a Senate hearing Thursday. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DNQZ6f_ls0] So, what happens when political ideology outweighs medical consensus? Find more of our programs online [https://the1a.org/shows]. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a [https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://plus.npr.org/1a__;!!IaT_gp1N!wOhW79EX-aPWlb0ult1k1kEov2nvCTjFuiZMsf2ABB1n7-WUz4Pfe0q1L1HdmIfb2xbIvng$].  Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices] NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

Jobs numbers are out. They indicate a stalling [https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/jobs-report-august-stock-market-today-09-05-2025?gaa_at=eafs&gaa_n=ASWzDAhn8kZlHMRSWVsayfBIeO70v84o72Pg9Qz0XfcCfK_yqGk3pyasOTLrGLR_2NY%3D&gaa_ts=68bae456&gaa_sig=fMr_kVyqdtmXs3pSXKziv0acWdrovisFAtLci6PN8r0K4f9mSStk8h3YAgXBX4kmS5dxrXDREWU0I426gj-tqw%3D%3D] labor market, with U.S. employers adding just 22,000 jobs in August [https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/09/05/business/jobs-report-august-economy] and unemployment rising to 4.3 percent. After rumors about the president’s supposedly failing health swirled online last weekend, Donald Trump appeared in public at a press conference this week announcing the relocation of the Space Force headquarters from Colorado to Alabama. [https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/02/trump-space-command-alabama-00539888] Florida announced this week that it’s set to become the first state in the U.S. to end vaccine mandates in schools, including for young children. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/09/03/florida-vaccine-mandates-ended/] The leaders of China, India, Russia met this week in a display of friendship meant to signal unity to the world. [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/01/world/asia/china-xi-putin-modi.html] Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Chinese President Xi Jinping convened in China for a summit of powers not aligned with the West. Meanwhile, Putin told officials in Kyiv he was willing to try and negotiate the end the war in Ukraine [https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/putin-tells-ukraine-end-war-via-talks-or-i-will-end-it-by-force-2025-09-03/] should “common sense prevail.” However, he also threatened that he was prepared to continue should he not find terms agreeable. Find more of our programs online [https://the1a.org/shows]. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a [https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://plus.npr.org/1a__;!!IaT_gp1N!wOhW79EX-aPWlb0ult1k1kEov2nvCTjFuiZMsf2ABB1n7-WUz4Pfe0q1L1HdmIfb2xbIvng$].  Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices] NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

Every August, New York City becomes the headquarters for all things tennis thanks to the U.S. Open. [https://www.usopen.org/index.html]And a lot has happened for the sport in the Big Apple. This year marks 75 since Althea Gibson broke the tennis color barrier at the tournament [https://www.tennisfame.com/hall-of-famers/inductees/althea-gibson]. [https://www.tennisfame.com/hall-of-famers/inductees/althea-gibson] So, ahead of the finals this weekend, we sit down with a panel of experts to talk about the biggest takeaways from this year’s event and the future of the sport. [https://sports.yahoo.com/article/fight-tennis-future-takes-center-120000886.html] Find more of our programs online [https://the1a.org/shows]. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a [https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://plus.npr.org/1a__;!!IaT_gp1N!wOhW79EX-aPWlb0ult1k1kEov2nvCTjFuiZMsf2ABB1n7-WUz4Pfe0q1L1HdmIfb2xbIvng$].  Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices] NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]