The Headlines
Iowa Moves to Eliminate Trans Rights, and Zelensky Heads to the White House
Fri, 28 Feb 2025
Plus, Conan O’Brien on hosting the Oscars. On Today’s Episode:Iowa Lawmakers Pass Bill to Eliminate Transgender Civil Rights Protections, by Mitch SmithAfter Insults and False Claims, Trump to Host Zelensky for Minerals Deal, by Peter BakerTrump Says Canada and Mexico Tariffs Will Go Into Effect Next Week, by Ana SwansonMexico Transfers Dozens of Cartel Operatives to U.S. Custody, by Alan FeuerNetanyahu Sends Team to Cairo as Days Dwindle in Gaza Truce, by Aaron BoxermanIn Syria, Comedians Explore a Stage With No Limits. For Now, by Raja AbdulrahimConan O’Brien Is Terrified of the Oscars. (He’s Hosting Anyway.), by Melena RyzikTune in every weekday morning. To get our full audio journalism and storytelling experience, download the New York Times Audio app — available to Times news subscribers on iOS — and sign up for our weekly newsletter.Tell us what you think at: [email protected].
Chapter 1: What is happening with transgender rights in Iowa?
From The New York Times, it's The Headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today's Friday, February 28th. Here's what we're covering. On Thursday, Republican lawmakers in Iowa overwhelmingly passed a bill that would end state civil rights protections for transgender people.
Advocates for LGBTQ rights say if the governor signs the bill into law, as expected, Iowa will become the first state in the country to remove those kinds of broad and explicit protections against discrimination. Iowa had put them into state law almost two decades ago.
Back in 2007, when a Democratic trifecta inserted this gender language into our code, most could not have foreseen the ultimate ramifications of the change. Now we do.
Supporters of the bill say it's necessary to remove the protections because otherwise they could be used to mount a legal challenge to other state laws. Iowa has laws restricting gender transition treatments for minors and barring transgender women and girls from playing in women's sports. Critics of the bill held protests at the state capitol this week as it was up for debate.
Chapter 2: Why are Iowa's LGBTQ advocates concerned about the new bill?
They say they fear transgender people will face widespread discrimination and harassment without the protections. Some people pleaded directly with lawmakers not to go forward with the bill.
You have children. You have grandchildren. If their rights were taken away, would you stand up for them? I think you would. That's what I'm saying. Thank you. Thank you.
The Iowa bill comes as the Trump administration has moved to limit trans rights at a national level. The president issued an executive order saying the government will only recognize the gender people were assigned at birth. On social media last night, Trump posted, Thank you, Iowa.
Chapter 3: How is the Trump administration impacting trans rights?
So President Zelensky is coming to see me on Friday, Friday morning.
Today, President Trump is hosting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House to sign an agreement over mineral rights. Their meeting comes a week after Trump called Zelensky a dictator.
Chapter 4: What is the significance of President Zelensky's visit to the White House?
Did I say that? I can't believe I said that. Next question.
Chapter 5: What are the details of the mineral rights deal between the U.S. and Ukraine?
In the Oval Office yesterday, Trump brushed past that comment and said he and Zelensky are ready to work together. The exact terms of the mineral rights agreement haven't been released, but it will mark a clear shift for the countries, effectively turning their alliance into a business relationship.
you know, we're doing the deal, then we're going to be in there.
We're going to be actually in there, digging our hearts out. Ukraine will share some of the revenue from its valuable mineral resources. Trump has said that's payback for the military support the U.S. has already provided. Zelensky's made clear he wants a future guarantee of U.S. protection. But a draft of the deal the Times reviewed only vaguely referenced that, with no specific commitment.
Also on Thursday.
From the talks with Canada and Mexico so far, are you not seeing the progress that you wanted in order to extend that? I don't see it at all. No, not on drugs.
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Chapter 6: How will Trump's tariffs affect Canada and Mexico?
President Trump announced his plan for tariffs on Canada and Mexico is back on starting next week. The 25 percent surcharges have the potential to upend supply chains and drive up prices, especially for cars and some food products.
Trump first announced the tariffs last month, then almost immediately paused them, saying he was giving the country's time to meet his demands for border security, including stopping the flow of fentanyl into the U.S.
Now, Trump says neither country has done enough.
That has Canada unsure of how to appease the president, since very little fentanyl actually comes across the northern border. U.S. authorities only seized about 40 pounds of the drug coming in from Canada last year, compared to 500 times that amount from Mexico. On Mexico's part, it's been moving troops to the border and escalating its raids on drug labs.
And yesterday, Mexican authorities transferred 29 top cartel members into American custody — Turning over people U.S. authorities had been trying to prosecute for decades. The first phase of the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel is set to expire tomorrow night. And what comes next is a big question mark.
Phase one of the agreement was designed to pause the fighting and build momentum toward a more long-lasting deal. But Israel and Hamas are still as far apart as they've ever been on the crucial issues that need to be resolved, like if Hamas will agree to disband its forces and if Israel will agree to end the war completely.
If the deadline tomorrow comes and goes without a deal for phase two, it does not necessarily mean fighting will restart right away. Under the current plan, the truce can be extended if negotiations are actively ongoing. In Syria, my colleague Raja Abdulrahim has been reporting on what life has looked like there since the fall of the brutal Assad regime.
After decades of war and political repression, Raja says people have spent the past three months celebrating a newfound sense of freedom. There's music in the streets, families are having picnics in places the government had made off-limits, and Syrians are packing into small venues for comedy.
Syria is a country that I've covered for a long time, and one of the things that I've noticed is how much Syrians have this sort of dark, gallows humor, and that they used it as a way to cope and to sort of almost poke fun or laugh at their situation, which really was tragic.
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