Trump's Racist Attacks, Hegseth's Classified Leaks, and CDC Vaccine Policy Shifts

Key Quotes

"president trump has offered two days of racist rampages about somali americans specifically targeting a minnesota lawmaker ilhan omar she's garbage her friends are garbage these aren't people that work what's behind trump's latest tirade"

NPR's Steve Inskeep introduces President Trump's recent attacks on Somali Americans and specifically Congresswoman Ilhan Omar. Inskeep highlights the harsh language used by the President, framing it as a "racist rampage" and questioning the motivation behind this rhetoric.

"yes i think even by trump's standards of nativism and xenophobia these attacks were pretty harsh you know congresswoman ilhan omar has been one of trump's favorite targets for quite some time he belittled her on social media recently saying she's quote always wrapped in her swaddling hijab he's told her to go back where she came from even though she's an american citizen"

NPR's Mara Liasson comments on the severity of President Trump's attacks against Somali Americans and Ilhan Omar. Liasson notes that these remarks exceed Trump's usual nativist rhetoric and points to a pattern of targeting Omar, including past comments about her attire and citizenship.

"the two days of remarks so far began when a reporter asked about a fraud investigation in minnesota where some somalis among others were convicted of defrauding social service programs npr's mara liason is here to tell us more about all this good morning mara good morning so you know mara we've heard trump target immigrant groups before from the first day of his first campaign for president in fact but calling an entire community of people garbage i mean is there something different here"

NPR's Steve Inskeep sets the context for President Trump's remarks by referencing a fraud investigation involving some Somali Americans. Inskeep then prompts NPR's Mara Liasson to discuss whether these attacks are different from Trump's previous targeting of immigrant groups, particularly given the use of the word "garbage" to describe an entire community.

"this report comes from the pentagon's inspector general who says hegseth risked endangering us troops by using the signal messaging app to share military plans before the first attack in yemen now npr has not seen the report but we've been in touch with people who have and they've described it on condition of anonymity the report says hegseth shared information labeled secret as he described details of the us bombing campaign that was just about to begin against the houthis in yemen"

NPR's Greg Myre explains that a Pentagon Inspector General's report criticizes Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for using the Signal messaging app to share classified military plans before an attack in Yemen. Myre notes that the report, based on information from individuals who have seen it, indicates Hegseth shared "secret" information detailing the upcoming bombing campaign against the Houthis.

"so a few things first of all the group is going to be voting on whether to drop the recommendation that hepatitis b vaccines be given to babies at birth this is a policy that's been in effect for more than 30 years and it's something that came up at the last meeting where some members wanted to push the vaccine back to when kids are older and others said it would be a mistake now since that meeting independent researchers have found that delaying the hep b vaccine by even a couple of months could lead to hundreds of preventable deaths each year that's from liver cancers and health problems that are prevented by getting the 15 vaccine"

NPR's Ping Juan discusses a key agenda item for the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices: a potential change to the recommendation of giving Hepatitis B vaccines at birth. Juan explains that this policy has been in place for over 30 years and highlights concerns raised by independent researchers about potential increases in preventable deaths from liver cancer if the vaccine is delayed.

"milhone the new committee chair told the washington post that they're going to be looking into whether vaccines are causing asthma eczema and other autoimmune diseases in children this is even though large long term studies have found no evidence for this dr sean o'leary with the american academy of pediatrics says that every vaccine on the schedule is vetted and it's based on the age at which a child's immune system can provide optimal protection after vaccination balanced with the age the child is at highest risk for a disease"

NPR's Ping Juan reports that the new chair of the vaccine advisory committee, Dr. Kirk Milhone, intends to investigate potential links between vaccines and autoimmune diseases in children. Juan contrasts this with existing scientific consensus, citing Dr. Sean O'Leary of the American Academy of Pediatrics, who states that extensive studies have found no such evidence and that vaccine schedules are based on optimal immune response and risk periods for diseases.