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Trump: ‘America is Back,’ Millions Face Storms & Oscars Ratings - Wednesday, March 5, 2025
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The news to know for Wednesday, March 5, 2025! We’re talking about President Trump’s high-stakes speech in front of a divided Congress and how it was different from a typical presidential address. Also, trade war fallout as major retailers and...
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Today is Wednesday, March 5th. We're talking about President Trump's high stakes speech in front of a divided Congress and how it was different from a typical presidential address. Also, trade war fallout as major retailers and investors respond to new tariffs. Plus, a severe storm is impacting nearly half the country, a top newspaper is deploying new artificial intelligence tools, and the world's biggest award show is attracting an even bigger audience. Those stories and even more news to know coming up. Welcome. Welcome to the Newsworthy. All the day's news in around 10 minutes. Fast, fair, fun and on the go. I'm Erica Mandy. Thanks so much for being here. You ready? Let's do this. President Trump has officially declared a comeback. Or as he put it in his address to Congress last night, America's momentum is back. Our spirit is back. Our pride is back. Our confidence is back. Most presidents use these kinds of speeches to unveil some new initiatives or encourage Congress to pass new bills. But President Trump told Congress he's already done more in 40 days than other presidents do in their entire terms, and he wanted to talk more about those actions, for example, crackdowns on immigration, trade and government spending. Trump also spoke a lot about cultural issues like his opposition to affirmative action, diversity programs and transgender rights. And he listed several of the programs he and his top advisor, Elon Musk, have cut. But the president also repeated some claims that have been debunked, like about thousands of Social Security payments going out to dead people. Trump did not just focus on these first 40 days. He also spent a lot of time talking about his predecessor, President Joe Biden. In the speech, Trump actually described all Democrats as a lost cause and even called some by derogatory nicknames. He also criticized them for not clapping or smiling at what he considers to be his big accomplishments. Many of them were protesting, holding up signs, heckling, and even leaving the chamber altogether. One Democratic lawmaker even had to be removed from the chamber. The Dems also gave an official response through Senator Alyssa Slotkin. She accused the Trump administration of being reckless and of leading America into a recession. Slotkin also told her audience not to just tune out over the next four years. On the other side, Republicans seem largely supportive of Trump's agenda, standing, cheering and even chanting for the president. Throughout his speech, Trump joked about it, telling lawmakers he appreciated them even if they were on the opposite side. President Trump's new tariffs against Canada, Mexico and China already seem to be impacting the global economy just one day after taking effect. The International Chamber of Commerce says the trade war could sink the world into a new Great Depression unless Trump reverses course. At this point, Canada, Mexico, and China have all said they'll hit the US with their own tariffs. Both Target and Best Buy warned of price hikes because of the trade war, and Walmart says it's not going to be completely immune either. Stocks fell yesterday, extending a sell off from earlier in the week, now erasing all the gains they've seen since Trump was first reelected. Specifically, Bloomberg reports at least $3 trillion in value has been wiped out. But President Trump says a little bit of economic pain will be worth it, that the tariffs will convince Mexico and Canada to do more to stop the flow of fentanyl and drugs coming into the US and will help balance trade around the world to make it more fair to Americans. Either way, the trade war could be a quick one. Trump's new commerce secretary says the president will probably announce compromises soon, at least with Canada and Mexico. So to be continued, in another move that could impact global trade, a group led by American investment firm BlackRock agreed to buy a majority stake in key Panama Canal ports. For weeks now, President Trump has complained about the major shipping route being under Chinese control, saying it's a national security threat. The investment group says the sale was not political, and it's also buying several other ports around the world. But it could still alleviate Trump's concerns about Chinese influence. The thing is, though, that wasn't Trump's only issue. He also says American ships should not be charged across the Panama Canal, especially since the US Is obligated to protect it during times of conflict. As of this morning, no comment from the White House about next steps. Ukrainian President Zelensky is trying to smooth things over with the US and and get to the bottom of America's pause on military aid. As we told you yesterday, President Trump paused shipments headed for Ukraine, reportedly wanting to be sure the country was really committed to peace before supplying more weapons. Well, Zelenskyy says he has not heard about that from Trump, just from the media. So he's looking to confirm. But in the meantime, the Ukrainian president is making it clear he is absolutely ready for the war to end. He proposed his own partial ceasefire deal with Russia, in which Ukraine would release prisoners and stop long range attacks on Russian targets. So so long as Russia does the same. And from there, he says he wants to work with the US On a strong final deal, just one with security guarantees. Zelensky also specifically addressed the tense meeting he had with President Trump at the White House, saying it was regrettable, but that he's ready to reset, have some constructive conversations and sign a lucrative deal on rare earth minerals and security. So far, no response from the American or Russian governments. Today marks the first day of Lent for millions of Christians around the world. It's also known as Ash Wednesday. You may see Catholics, especially with smudges of ashes on their foreheads today, which is part of the tradition. Many will also choose to give something up for the next 40 days like chocolate, social media or alcohol. Lent is meant to be a season of reflection and preparation leading up to Easter, which this year falls on April 20. April 20 is also the last day of Passover in the Jewish faith and Muslims will still be observing Ramad. We have more news for you still coming up, but first a quick break to thank our sponsor. 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Wild Grain is offering our listeners $30 off their first box plus free croissants in every box when you go to wildgrain.comnewsworthy to start your subscription. You heard me. Free croissants in every box and $30 off your first box when you go to wildgrain.com newsworthy. That's wildgrain.com newsworthy or use the promo code newsworthy at checkout. Now back to the news. A massive storm is moving across several states bringing with it bliz wildfires and tornadoes. It started yesterday in the middle of the country and into the deep South. Damage was reported, especially in places like Oklahoma and Texas that saw hurricane force winds and at least one tornado. Those conditions also heightened the fire risk and several wildfires did break out in central Texas. Meanwhile, in the upper Midwest, the winds combined with heavy snow made roads especially dangerous today. Blizzard warnings are still in effect in that part of the country, but the system is also expected to bring thunderstorms across the eastern US From Pennsylvania to Florida. When all is said and done, it could end up impacting up to 170 million people across more than 20 states. Disease experts from the CDC are now on the front lines of a growing measles outbreak in Texas. In yesterday's update, the state's health department confirmed nearly 160 measles cases and the outbreak is expected to be even larger. So the federal government sent in its so called disease detectives as well as thousands of measles, mumps and rubella sh and extra lab support. Health and Human Services Director Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Has called the outbreak a call to action. But some health experts raised concerns about his appearance on Fox News yesterday. There, he spoke about unconventional treatments like cod liver oil, vitamin A and a steroid that's more commonly used for ibs. Doctors say they're worried that could be sending the wrong message since there's actually no proven treatment for measles. Taking too much of a supplement like vitamin A could could be dangerous and none of the remedies are a replacement for a vaccination. Many healthcare workers in Texas are also combating certain dangerous misinformation. So for example, some parents believe the best bet is to hold so called measles parties. They've decided to purposely expose their young children to the virus so they get it and build up an immunity. But health experts say that's much riskier than getting a vaccine since you can't predict who might get an especially bad case that could be deadly, whereas the shots have proven to be mostly effective and safe. The Los Angeles Times is now among major news organizations bringing artificial intelligence into their newsrooms. This week it introduced a new tool that analyzes stories for their bias, ranking them somewhere from left to right. It's included in LA Times op eds. Now. Another way the paper is using AI is to offer different viewpoints on opinion pieces. So for example, when an op ed is critical of Trump, the artificial intelligence will offer some pro Trump points readers can also look at and vice versa. To be clear, the AI responses are not reviewed by LA Times journalists before they're published and the newspapers union is against it, saying AI analysis won't do anything to build trust in journalism. The Times has admitted its AI tools will get it wrong sometimes. In fact, within hours of the AI's debut, the paper had to remove the feature from an article because it defended the kkk. For the most part, though, the AI bot can still be found across the LA Times website Hollywood's biggest night had its largest audience in five years ABC released data showing nearly 20 million people watched the 97th Academy Awards, aka the Oscars, and that's about 1% higher than last year. Granted, the viewership is not even half of what it was at its peak in the 90s. One notable change this year, nearly 2 million people reportedly watched the Oscars from their phones or computers, since this was the first year people could stream the show while it was live. Even still, streaming was not without its hiccups. Some people could not log into the Hulu app and others reported that the live show ended too early. The uptick in Oscars viewership is also surprising since many of the contenders for Best Picture and other coveted awards were not big blockbusters, with the exception of Wicked. But the Academy has been trying to boost viewership for years by making changes like adding more Best Picture nominees and cutting some of the performances. So it's possible those updates plus streaming could be starting to turn things around. Well, that's it for the main news today. So now it's time for Work Wednesday when we break down one interesting career or work related news story every Wednesday. But first, this episode is brought to you by Quince. I admit that I love a little luxury now and then, but it doesn't mean I can always afford it. Then again, Quince lets me indulge in luxury items while still getting them at an affordable price. Quince has everything from high quality everyday essentials like 100% Mongolian cashmere sweaters from $50 to Italian leather handbags and 14 karat gold jewelry and more. I'm wearing my latest purchase all the time. Recently, it's a super soft, cozy and stylish wool quarter zip pullover sweater that I can dress up or down. And no matter what I get from Quince, one of the best things is that all the Items are priced 50 to 80% less than similar brands. They're able to do that by partnering directly with top factories and cutting out the cost of the middleman passing those savings onto you. Quince only works with factories that use safe, ethical and responsible manufacturing practices too. So give yourself the luxury you deserve with Quince. Go to quints.comnewworthy for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. That's Q-U-I-N C E.comnewsworthy to get free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.comnewsworthy okay, now back to work Wednesday American offices are fuller now than they've been at any time in the last five years. Property management company Castle Systems put out data from the last week of January. It shows average office occupancy hit a post pandemic record high of about 54% in 10 major cities and that trend is only expected to continue. Many federal workers have already gone back to the office under an executive order signed by President Trump, and major Companies like Amazon, AT&T and JP Morgan have their own return to office orders. And with that, downtowns and business districts are starting to flourish again, especially in cities like Washington, D.C. chicago, Houston, Philadelphia and San Francisco. Workers have noticed more traffic and more crowded public transportation. Plus there are longer lines at stores, restaurants and coffee shops in city centers. So a lot of those businesses are hoping to get a boost and help workers ease their way back into the in person grind. Thank you so much for listening today and sharing the show. We'll be back tomorrow. Until then, have a great day.
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