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Chapter 1: What are the new resignation offers for federal employees?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear. Some federal agencies are giving employees a new offer to resign ahead of sweeping job cuts mandated by the Trump administration. NPR's Shannon Bond reports workers have been given a short window to resign and keep getting paid through September.
Chapter 2: Which federal departments are affected by the resignation program?
The Departments of Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development, and Transportation said this week they're reopening their deferred resignation programs. Similar notices went out on Friday at the Defense Department and the General Services Administration. The new round mirrors the fork-in-the-road offer sent in February to nearly all 2.3 million civilian federal employees.
The Trump administration has said about 75,000 employees elected to resign under the program's first round. But many workers who tried to accept the offer were later told they were ineligible. Some of the new agency notices exempt jobs considered critical. Shannon Bond, NPR News.
Chapter 3: What is the significance of the Wisconsin Supreme Court election?
It's Election Day in Wisconsin, where voters are determining the ecological balance of the state Supreme Court. Mayan Silver of member station WUWM reports on what's at stake in today's technically nonpartisan race and its political implications.
How Wisconsin tips on abortion, labor rights, and redistricting all hang in the balance. But who wins could also reveal where national political winds are blowing, says Wisconsin politics professor Anthony Chergosky.
Chapter 4: How are national politics influencing Wisconsin's Supreme Court race?
A state Supreme Court election has basically become a stand-in for the popularity of a president and the popularity of the world's richest man.
President Trump has endorsed conservative-backed candidate Brad Schimel, and Elon Musk and his outside groups have spent millions in support. Democrats, who back Susan Crawford, are trying to harness anger over Musk's campaign spending and the Trump administration's whirlwind past two months. For NPR News, I'm Ayaan Silver in Milwaukee.
Chapter 5: What is the humanitarian situation in Myanmar after the earthquake?
Humanitarian needs in Myanmar were huge even before last week's earthquake. That's according to the United Nations World Food Program. Now WFP says it will need far more aid to help millions in need. NPR's Michelle Kalman reports.
Within 48 hours of Friday's earthquake, WFP was delivering emergency food to thousands of people in Myanmar. That's according to spokesperson Melissa Lee Hine, who spoke via video to UN reporters in New York.
The devastation is really alarming. Colleagues are reporting buildings turned to rubble, homes destroyed and significant damage to roads and bridges and other infrastructure.
The Trump administration is offering up to $2 million in humanitarian assistance. WFP is seeking $20 million in international donations. and says the broader earthquake relief effort will cost much more than that. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, the State Department.
Another shaky day of trading ahead of the imposition of President Trump's reciprocal tariffs. The Dow was down 11 points today. This is NPR. A deadline is fast approaching for a deal to be struck by China's ByteDance to divest itself of the popular online video app TikTok. President Trump signaling he's confident his administration will broker an agreement with the Chinese parent company.
Talking to reporters aboard Air Force One over the weekend, Trump said there is, quote, tremendous interest in TikTok. There's a deadline this month for ByteDance to either sell TikTok or see a ban on its use in the U.S., Ukrainians awoke today from a rare silent night, one with no drones in the sky. That's according to officials there.
And Arizona Beardsley reports it marks the first night of 2025 Russia has not attacked Ukrainian cities with drones.
Ukrainians may have slept a little better overnight Monday without the buzzing of Iranian Shahed drones and the explosions of air defenses shooting them down. The attacks, which can also include missiles, are almost a nightly event. Officials at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv say more than 4,000 drones were launched over Ukraine's cities in the month of March alone.
Ukraine, too, has targeted Russian border region cities like Bolgorod and Bryansk, from which Russian forces launch attacks against Ukraine. Some pundits wondered if the overnight pause was a gesture from the Kremlin, given President Trump's recent criticism that Vladimir Putin may be stalling in ceasefire negotiations. Eleanor Beardsley, NPR News, Kiev.
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