NPR News: 02-24-2026 5PM EST

Greenland has said it is not for sale. Denmark has said it can't even legally sell Greenland. And whether Trump can or will or should try to control or purchase a territory that does not want to be sold is one question. But on Planet Money, we are more interested in how we even got to this moment and how we might gracefully get out of it. Listen to Planet Money on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton. House Democrats say they're investigating why some Epstein files that mention President Trump have not been made public. It follows an NPR investigation that found the Justice Department withheld documents related to sexual abuse accusations against the president. NPR's Stephen Fowler reports. A review of FBI case records, emails, and discovery logs released in the latest tranche of files finds more than 50 pages of documents haven't been published. These include what appear to be FBI interviews, as well as notes from conversations with a woman who accused Donald Trump of sexual abuse decades ago when she was a minor. Now, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee say they're launching an investigation into those files. The White House says in a statement that Trump is, quote, totally exonerated. Stephen Fowler, NPR News. President Trump will deliver the State of the Union address tonight. NPR Jasmine Garst has more on what the president expected to say about immigration President Trump won the 2024 election largely on the promise of a mass immigration crackdown Tonight he expected to talk about the fulfillment of that promise A year into his presidency, illegal border crossings are at a historic low. There are over 70,000 people in immigration detention. The president has often said his policy targets criminal immigrants. However, DHS data shows that of the people in immigration detention, over 70 percent have no criminal conviction. Polls show most Americans now disapprove of the way immigration is being enforced, especially after a month-long operation in Minneapolis ended with two American citizens killed by federal agents. Jasmine Garst, NPR News, New York. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he wants to hear President Trump say he's still on Ukraine's side during the State of the Union address. Today marks four years since Russia invaded its neighbor. Zelensky says Russia has not broken Ukrainians. We didn't lose our country, our independence and freedom. We have it. Now we speak in the capital. So Russia is not winning. This is very important. And everybody is asking how long we can hold the line and how long we can stay The anniversary comes as U peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have made little progress The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and created instability far beyond its borders Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is pressuring Anthropik to give the military broader access to its AI. Hegseth gave Anthropik a Friday deadline to open its technology for unrestricted military use or risk losing its government contract. Anthropic is the maker of the chatbot Claude, which is used in classified military networks, but the company has refused to allow its technology to be used for lethal attacks or mass surveillance. U.S. stock market rose today. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. Waymo is sending its robo-taxis to four more cities in Texas and Florida, expanding the territory covered by its fleet of self-driving cars to 10 major metropolitan markets. The move into Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Orlando, Florida, widens Waymo's early lead in autonomous driving, while rival services from Tesla and Amazon are still testing their robo-taxis in a few cities. Texas Republican Congressman Tony Gonzalez is under pressure from fellow Republicans to resign following a report alleging an affair with a former staffer who later took her own life. Gonzalez has denied the allegation Texas Public Radio David Martin Davies has more Republican Colorado Congresswoman Lauren Boebert was the first of Gonzalez colleagues to publicly demand the South Texas congressman step down over allegations of misconduct Boebert wrote on the social media platform X, at Rep. Tony Gonzalez, resign. Attached to her message was a screenshot of sexual text messages allegedly between Gonzalez and his staffer Regina Santos Aviles. Santos Aviles took her own life last September. South Carolina Representative Nancy Mace and Florida Representative Anna Paulina Luna echoed the call for Gonzalez to resign. House Speaker Mike Johnson is defending Gonzalez's right to due process and says the investigation process should play out. For NPR News, I'm David Martin Davies in San Antonio. Chicagoans took a jab at President Trump choosing to name a snowplow Abolish ICE in a contest. Trump sent ICE officers into the city during a crackdown last year. They arrested more than 4,000 people and clashed with protesters. This is NPR News from Washington. This week on Up First, the State of the Union address is a civic ritual and a political event. We'll be watching to see how a president with low approval ratings handles the moment. We are also watching the United States confrontation with Iran. Listen each morning for overnight developments. Up First on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts. Thank you.