Ukraine Talks, U.S. Health Agency Cuts, NYC Mayor Eric Adams Fallout

Summary

NPR's Up First – February 18, 2025

In this episode of NPR's Up First, hosts Leila Fadel and Amy Martinez delve into three pressing stories shaping the day: high-stakes negotiations between the U.S. and Russia over Ukraine, sweeping federal health agency cuts by the Trump administration, and escalating political turmoil in New York City surrounding Mayor Eric Adams. Below is a detailed summary of each segment, enriched with notable quotes and timestamps to provide comprehensive insights.

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1. High-Stakes Negotiations: U.S. and Russia Convene in Saudi Arabia

Overview: Top foreign policy officials from the United States and Russia have convened in Saudi Arabia with the primary objective of ending the war in Ukraine. Notably absent from the negotiations is Ukraine itself, raising questions about the inclusivity and potential outcomes of the talks.

Key Points:

• Meeting Details:

  • Leaders Involved: Senior Trump administration officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, are leading the U.S. delegation. Russia's team is headed by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, with White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff also present.
  • Agenda Focus: The talks are centered on negotiating an end to the conflict in Ukraine, following a phone call between Trump and Putin last week that set the stage for these negotiations. (00:03–05:50)

• Exclusion of Ukraine:

  • Ukrainian Stance: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has declared that Kyiv will not recognize any negotiated outcomes that exclude Ukraine's participation. This sentiment is echoed by European leaders who view the war as a critical European security issue. (03:16–04:24)

• European Sidelines:

  • European Reaction: Europe's exclusion from the talks has caused frustration among European nations. Russia has publicly criticized Europe, suggesting they are only interested in temporarily freezing the conflict to allow Ukraine to rearm. (03:47–04:24)

• Potential Reset in U.S.-Russia Relations:

  • Diplomatic Shift: The negotiations indicate a possible reset in U.S.-Russia relations, moving away from the Cold War-era dynamics of isolation and non-communication. Lavrov highlighted the desire to move past a period where Moscow and Washington had minimal dialogue. (04:24–05:07)

• Negotiation Dynamics:

  • Russian Demands: The U.S. delegation, under Trump, has signaled that Ukraine must relinquish its NATO ambitions and territory to Russia—key Russian demands. This contrasts with Ukraine and Europe's pursuit of a "just peace," raising concerns about the comprehensiveness and fairness of any potential agreement. (05:07–05:50)

Notable Quotes:

• Sergei Lavrov: "We are looking to end what has been an abnormal period where there was no communication between Moscow and Washington." (05:07)
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky: "Kyiv won't recognize any negotiated outcomes here that are about Ukraine without Ukraine." (03:41)

Analysis: Charles Mains, NPR's Russia correspondent, emphasizes the complexity of these negotiations and the potential implications of excluding key stakeholders like Ukraine and Europe. The talks appear to favor a Russian advantage, given their current standing both on the battlefield and at the negotiating table.

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2. Federal Health Agency Cuts: Trump Administration's Broad Job Reductions

Overview: The Trump administration has initiated significant job cuts across federal health agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Over a thousand employees have been terminated, raising concerns about the impact on public health initiatives and agency operations.

Key Points:

• Scope of Cuts:

  • Affected Agencies: More than 1,000 employees have been let go from the FDA, CDC, and NIH. Specifically, around a thousand employees from NIH and 750 from CDC have received termination letters. The exact number from FDA remains unclear. (06:06–06:16)

• Criteria for Layoffs:

  • Probationary Employees: The cuts primarily target probationary employees—those new to the agencies or within their one to two-year trial periods—who have fewer worker protections. (07:03–07:05)

• Reasons for Termination:

  • Official Explanation: Letters cite that employees are "not fit for continued employment" due to inadequate performance. However, many affected workers had recently received excellent performance reviews, leading to confusion and skepticism about the true reasons behind the layoffs. (07:58–08:44)

• Impact on Agencies:

  • Operational Challenges: The sudden and broad cuts have created a chaotic environment within the agencies. Employees report feeling demoralized and vilified, with concerns about future cuts and the overall functionality of these critical health institutions. (08:44–09:16)

• Employee Reactions:

  • Morale and Trust: Former CDC official Steve Monroe criticized the approach as "shortsighted," highlighting the negative effects on development and morale. Employees are taking precautionary measures, such as canceling personal subscriptions and reducing retirement contributions, anticipating further instability. (07:36–09:16)

Notable Quotes:

• Steve Monroe, Retired CDC Official: "We're just going to fire everybody who's been here for less than a year. It’s bad for development and for morale." (07:03–07:05)
• Termination Letters Excerpt: "You are not fit for continued employment with the agency." (07:58)

Analysis: Ping Wong, NPR’s health correspondent, highlights the abrupt nature of these cuts and the lack of transparency regarding the selection criteria. The administration's decision appears to undermine the operational integrity and effectiveness of federal health agencies during a critical period for public health management.

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3. Political Turmoil in New York City: Governor Hochul Targets Mayor Eric Adams

Overview: New York Governor Kathy Hochul has announced her intention to use her authority to potentially remove Mayor Eric Adams from office amid a surge of resignations from his top aides. The controversy intensifies following the Department of Justice's decision to drop corruption charges against Adams, which critics argue was a strategic move to secure his cooperation with the Trump administration's deportation policies.

Key Points:

• Resignations Trigger Action:

  • Top Aides Depart: Four of Mayor Adams' most trusted aides, including the city's first deputy mayor, have resigned, signaling a significant leadership void and prompting Hochul to consider drastic measures. (09:27–10:00)

• Governor Hochul's Statement:

  • Unprecedented Move: Hochul acknowledged that no governor in the past 235 years has attempted to oust an elected NYC mayor. However, she cited the "crisis in City Hall" and the unprecedented number of high-level resignations as justification for her potential intervention. (09:58–10:00)

• Background on Corruption Charges:

  • DOJ Allegations: In September, the DOJ accused Adams of using his office to solicit lavish vacations and improper campaign contributions over nearly a decade, including bribes from foreign agents linked to Turkey. Adams has denied these allegations, labeling them as political retribution without providing evidence. (11:11–11:27)

• DOJ Case Suspension:

  • Strategic Decision: The DOJ recently decided to shelve the criminal case against Adams, citing the need for his assistance with the Trump administration's policies on migrants without legal status. This decision has sparked outrage, leading to the resignation of at least seven top federal attorneys. (11:27–12:12)

• Mayor Adams' Response:

  • Defiant Stance: Despite mounting pressure and calls for his resignation, Adams remains defiant, publicly stating, "I am going nowhere," and expressing disappointment over the resignations. He maintains that the city will continue to function despite the turmoil. (12:15–12:39)

• Implications for New York City:

  • Leadership Vacuum: The departure of key aides disrupts essential city functions, including infrastructure management and migrant assistance programs. Hochul plans to meet with Manhattan's key leaders to discuss the future path, indicating potential significant changes in the city's governance. (10:36–12:52)

Notable Quotes:

• Governor Kathy Hochul: "Serious questions about the long term future of this mayoral administration." (10:00)
• Mayor Eric Adams: "I am nowhere. I am going nowhere." (12:26–12:39)

Analysis: Brian Mann, NPR’s political correspondent, underscores the gravity of the situation in New York City. The unprecedented move by Governor Hochul, combined with the controversial DOJ actions and mass resignations, paints a picture of deep political instability. The outcome of Hochul's planned meetings could significantly alter the city's leadership landscape.

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Conclusion: Today's episode of Up First provides a comprehensive look into critical global and domestic issues. From the potential reshaping of international relations between the U.S. and Russia affecting the Ukraine conflict, to substantial cuts undermining federal health agencies, and intense political battles within New York City, these stories underscore the complex and often turbulent nature of current events. Notable quotes and expert analyses offer listeners nuanced perspectives on the implications of these developments.

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This summary was crafted based on the transcript provided from the February 18, 2025, episode of NPR's Up First. For detailed reporting and ongoing updates, subscribe and listen to Up First on your preferred podcast platform.

Transcript

[Amy Martinez]

Top foreign policy officials from the US And Russia meet in Saudi Arabia today.

[Layla Fadel]

Yeah, Ukraine isn't invited, but ending the war is a primary focus. What's on the bargaining table without Ukraine present?

[Amy Martinez]

I'm Amy Martinez. That's Layla Fadel. And this is up first from NPR News. The country's health agencies have not been spared from federal job cuts, regardless of.

[Brian Mann]

Whether they were filling an important role or how they were performing in that role.

[Amy Martinez]

We'll hear what people were told about why they were let go.

[Layla Fadel]

And the governor of New York may try to remove New York City Mayor Eric Adams from office. Controversy surrounding the mayor has deepened since four of his top aides and deputy mayors announced that they will resign. What Mayor Adams is saying about his own future. Stay with us. We'll give you the news you need to start your day.

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[Layla Fadel]

At ending the war in Ukraine began today in Saudi Arabia.

[Amy Martinez]

Senior Trump administration officials will meet with their Russian counterparts.

[Layla Fadel]

Joining us to talk about this is NPR's Charles Mainz, who's been covering the war from Russia. Good morning.

[Charles Mains]

Good morning, Layla.

[Layla Fadel]

So Charles set this up for us. What can we expect from these talks?

[Charles Mains]

Well, you know this meeting is a direct outcome of the Trump Putin phone call from last week during which the two leaders agreed to pursue a negotiation negotiated end to the war in Ukraine. Secretary of State Marco Rubio heads the US Delegation with Moscow's top diplomat. That's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov Leading the Russian mission, the teams also include foreign policy, national security, and economic advisors, and notably White House special envoy Steve Witkoff, who met with Russian officials in Moscow last week to negotiate that prisoner exchange. The freed American schoolteacher Mark Fogel. Now, talks are already underway this morning, and it's the only thing they've got on the schedule, so they really should have some time to suss each other out.

[Layla Fadel]

So these negotiations are about Ukraine, and yet I haven't heard you mention Ukrainian officials. Will they be there?

[Charles Mains]

Yeah, that's right. Ukraine is not invited, although both Trump and the Kremlin say Ukraine will be involved in some way at some point. We'll have to see. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is, however, already warning that Kyiv won't recognize any negotiated outcomes here that are about Ukraine without Ukraine.

[Layla Fadel]

Now, that's a message we've also heard a lot recently from European leaders. Where are they in this process?

[Charles Mains]

Well, Europe is completely sidelined here, which, of course rankles them because they see the war in Ukraine as fundamentally a European security issue. You know, last week, Trump's envoy to Ukraine was very upfront. He said to European leaders their diplomatic efforts in the past had failed miserably in Ukraine, and the US Wasn't looking to repeat. Moreover, Russia agrees. In comments yesterday, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov poured scorn on Europe, saying, quote, he didn't know what they would even do at the negotiating table, arguing they were only interested in freezing the conflict to help Ukraine rearm to fight another day.

[Layla Fadel]

Okay, given that Moscow and Washington seem to be cutting everyone out of these negotiations, is this a reset between the US And Russia, or are we witnessing something more here?

[Charles Mains]

Well, it certainly feels like a reset. You know, in his remarks yesterday, Lavrov reminded that Trump and Putin in their phone call had agreed to end what he called this not normal period, when Moscow and Washington basically refused to talk to one another. And let's remember, Trump and Putin have now agreed to meet face to face, including possibly visits in Moscow or Washington. So from that perspective, Russia's isolation over its actions in Ukraine appear over. And frankly, it suits Moscow, which has always preferred the Cold War optics of big powers making big chessboard decisions and leaving everyone else on the sidelines.

[Layla Fadel]

So as these negotiations get underway, do we have any sense of what the outlines of a deal might look like?

[Charles Mains]

Well, these are obviously complex negotiations, but the US Team comes in with President Trump on record agreeing that Ukraine must give up its NATO ambitions and territory to Moscow. Those are two key Russian demands. The US Is already ceded. Now there are all sorts of questions about where borders are drawn and whether there could be a peacekeeping contingent and who that might involve. But fundamentally, the concern in Europe and certainly in Kyiv is that while they want what they call a just peace, Trump just wants peace. And that's the apparent difference here as and it suits Russia just fine, I might add, because Moscow appears to hold the upper hand both on the battlefield and around the negotiating table.

[Layla Fadel]

NPR's Russia correspondent Charles Mains. Thanks for your reporting.

[Charles Mains]

Thank you.

[Layla Fadel]

The Trump administration has begun making broad cuts to federal health agencies.

[Amy Martinez]

More than a thousand employees got letters terminating their employment at the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the national institutes of health.

[Layla Fadel]

NPR's Ping Wong joins us now to discuss. Good morning, Ping.

[Ping Wong]

Good morning, Leila.

[Layla Fadel]

So what will staffers of these agencies find as they get back to work from the three day weekend?

[Ping Wong]

You know, they're not really clear. They're going back to the office today and they don't really know who to expect or who they're going to see. That's because over the weekend around a thousand people got fired from NIH, around 750 from CDC. Some people are also let go from FDA, though we're not sure how many at this point. And I do want to note that those numbers are quite a bit lower than what was expected. We heard some people that told us that they had been told on Friday they were going to lose their jobs, but haven't gotten a letter yet. And we heard that some of those jobs were saved at the last minute because they were considered essential. But people in leadership say they're really not clear what the criteria was.

[Layla Fadel]

Do we know who was cut?

[Ping Wong]

So we know some were people that were working to ensure medical devices are safe at fda. Others were diagnosing the causes of outbreaks at cdc. And there were many, many others. What they seemed to have in common was that were mostly probationary employees. So people who are new to the agency or just moved to different job, they were serving one a one or two year trial period and they have fewer worker protections. He spoke with Steve Monroe, a senior official who retired from CDC in 2021. He says it seems shortsighted to just ask the people that are easier to.

[Brian Mann]

Fire, regardless of whether they were filling an important role in the organization or how they were performing in that role. We're just going to fire everybody who's been here for less than a year.

[Ping Wong]

He says it's also bad for development and for morale.

[Layla Fadel]

Well, on that point of performance. How much do we know about why they were fired?

[Ping Wong]

Well, the letters that they received, and we've seen a few of them, they're all very similar. They came from the Department of Health and Human Services, which is the agency that oversees all the health agencies now, led by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. And the letters do say, quote, unquote, you are not fit for continued employment with the agency, end quote. Your performance has not been adequate. It ends their employment on March 14th and says they're going to be put on administrative leave until then. But we know for a fact that many of the people who got this letter had recently received stellar performance reviews from their workplace. One from CDC had recently received an award of excellence for their work preventing animals with infectious diseases like rabies from entering the country. It's not clear why these employees were told their performance was inadequate, but many have responded with documentation of their high.

[Layla Fadel]

So where does this lead the agencies?

[Ping Wong]

Well, it's been a really confusing and chaotic time. Workers say that they feel demoralized, vilified, characterized as lazy by some in the Trump administration when they and their colleagues say that they work really hard to serve and protect the public. And they see this as just the first wave. They're expecting more cuts, deeper restructuring to come. Even workers with full protections think they could be next. You know, they've been canceling their Netflix accounts, reducing retirement contributions to save a little money in case they find themselves fired, too.

[Layla Fadel]

NPR's Ping Wong. Thank you, Ping.

[Ping Wong]

You're welcome.

[Layla Fadel]

New York Governor Kathy Hochul says she may use her authority to force New York City Mayor Eric Adams from office.

[Amy Martinez]

That announcement came after four of Adams most trusted aides, including the city's first deputy mayor, announced yesterday they're quitting. Turmoil in New York escalated after the US Department of Justice dropped corruption charges against Adams. And critics say that move was part of the deal to secure Adams's help with President Trump's deportation policies.

[Layla Fadel]

NPR's Brian Mann has been following all of this and joins me now. Hi, Brian.

[Brian Mann]

Hi, Layla.

[Layla Fadel]

So what did Governor Hochul say?

[Brian Mann]

Well, in a statement, Hochul said she spoke with Deputy Mayor Maria Torres Springer, one of Adams top aides who's resigning. And that conversation left Hochul with, and I'm quoting here, serious questions about the long term future of this mayoral administration. Hochul acknowledged no governor in the last 235 years has used their authority to oust an elected mayor of New York City. But Hochul then pointed to the crisis in City hall, which she said is troubling and cannot be ignored. So Hochul now says she'll meet with key leaders in Manhattan later today for what she describes as a conversation about the path forward.

[Layla Fadel]

Now four top Adams aides are quitting. How big a deal is that?

[Brian Mann]

Yeah, it's huge. It's a wipeout of Mayor Adams top leadership. And this clearly got Hochul's attention. New York City is a complicated place. Govern under the best of circumstances, and those departing hold key roles dealing with everything from the city's infrastructure to the ongoing challenges from migrants arriving in the city. These were really the people keeping things on track while Adams faced those DOJ criminal charges. Now they're headed out the door. It's important to remember, too, Layla, this isn't the first wave of departures. Other key city leaders have also gone.

[Layla Fadel]

Yeah, I mean. And this case has been mired in controversy. Brian, we saw a slew of resignations at the Department of Justice over its decision to drop the charges against Mayor Eric Adams. Just remind us what Adams was accused of and why the DOJ suspended the case.

[Brian Mann]

Yeah. In September, the DOJ laid out a sweeping case against Adams, alleging he used the power of various city offices over nearly a decade to solicit lavish vacations and improper campaign contributions. Some of the bribes allegedly came from foreign agents working for Turkey. Adams has denied any wrongdoing and said the charges were political retribution for his criticism of the Biden administration's immigration policies. He never offered any evidence to support those claims. This month, the DOJ moved to shelve this case, saying a criminal trial would prevent Adams from helping the Trump administration deal with migrants in the city who don't have legal status. As you say, that decision by the Justice Department was so controversial, at least seven top federal attorneys have resigned.

[Layla Fadel]

Any sign that Adams plans to step down?

[Brian Mann]

You know, he's facing intense pressure to go. Hochul's statement. And these latest resignations raise the temperature even more. But speaking on Sunday at a Baptist church, the mayor was defiant.

[Charles Mains]

And I want you to be clear. Come on. You want to hear so many rumors and so many things. You're going to read so much. I am going nowhere. Nowhere.

[Brian Mann]

And in a statement, Layla said to npr, Adams said he's disappointed by these latest departures, but the city will keep functioning. The situation, of course, moving very quickly. We'll see what moves Governor Hochul makes later today.

[Layla Fadel]

NPR's Brian Mann following developments in New York City. I'm sure we'll have you back on soon. Thank you, Brian.

[Brian Mann]

Thank you.

[Layla Fadel]

And that's up first for Tuesday. February 18th.

[Amy Martinez]

I'm Layla Falden and Amaie Martinez. How about giving consider this a try. The team behind NPR's All Things Considered goes deep into a single news story in just 15 minutes. Listen now on the NPR app or wherever you get those podcasts.

[Layla Fadel]

Today's episode of up first was edited by Riley Barton, Jane Greenhal, Denise Rios, Rena Advani, and Janaya Williams. It was produced by Ziad Butch, Nia Dumas, and Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Arthur Laurent, and our technical director is Carly Strange. Join us again tomorrow.

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