NPR News: 02-27-2026 6PM EST

This week on the NPR Politics Podcast, the CBS Stephen Colbert dust-up is part of a pattern. Corporations are changing to avoid angering President Trump and his administration. It's really the first time I can remember so many of these organizations have bent because of their own business interests. This week on the NPR Politics Podcast. Listen on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Rylan Barton. President Trump says the U.S. government will stop using Anthropics products. It comes after the AI lab insisted that they not be used for mass surveillance or to create autonomous weapon systems. Trump posted that, quote, the left wing nut jobs at Anthropic have made a disastrous mistake trying to strong arm the Department of War. And in a statement, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he had declared Anthropic as a supply chain risk to national security, which means that all military contractors are barred from working with the company after its contract is phased out. President Trump is holding a rally in Corpus Christi, Texas, amid a contested Senate Republican primary featuring incumbent John Cornyn, Attorney General Ken Paxton, and Congressman Wesley Hunt. All three are highlighting their ties to Trump but Trump hasn endorsed anybody in the race saying he supports all of them Trump is highlighting his energy and economic policies during the rally We witnessing a historic American energy boom like we never seen and this port is right at the center of the action He says Venezuelan oil would be refined in Texas before being exported to other parts of the world. The Trump administration is now seeking the forfeiture of an oil tanker that was seized by the U.S. in December. The vessel was carrying oil supplied by Venezuela's state-owned oil company. NPR's Ryan Lucas has more. The Justice Department alleges in court papers that the motor tanker Skipper was involved in the shipment and sale of oil products for the benefit of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The U.S. has designated the IRGC a foreign terrorist organization and also placed it under U.S. sanctions. The Justice Department says since 2021, the Skipper has moved crude oil from Iran and Venezuela and has tried to hide its activities by spoofing its locations and flying false flags. The U.S. seized the vessel in December as part of the Trump administration's pressure campaign against Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro. At the time of its seizure, the tanker was allegedly carrying Venezuelan crude oil en route to Cuba. Ryan Lucas, NPR News, Washington. Stocks tumbled today after a hotter-than-expected report on wholesale inflation. NPR's Scott Horsley reports the Dow slid more than 1 Wholesale prices jumped by half a percent last month a bigger increase than investors had expected Stubborn inflation means the Federal Reserve is likely to take its time before ordering any additional cuts in interest rates Shares of the fintech company Block bucked the downward trend in the market and launched big gains after the company announced plans to lay off about 40% of its workforce. CEO Jack Dorsey says the company, formerly known as Square, will use artificial intelligence to make up for the thousands of laid-off workers. The AI boom is generating both excitement and anxiety. OpenAI says it's attracted more than $100 billion worth of investment from Amazon and other tech giants. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington. The S&P 500 fell nearly half a percent and the Nasdaq fell nearly one percent. This is NPR News. Pakistan and Afghanistan have traded attacks in an escalation of tensions between the countries. Pakistan's defense minister says they're now in open war. Pakistan accuses Afghanistan's Taliban government of harboring militant groups and an allying with its rival India. President Trump's name and image are appearing on federal buildings, a move critics say blurs the line between government messaging and political promotion. NPR's Tamara Keith reports. Trump face looms large on banners outside of agency buildings including the Justice Department Then there the newly renamed Trump Kennedy Center and Trump Institute of Peace the Trump Gold Card Trump Rx and Trump Accounts And I didn name it I did not name it I did not name that That was Trump earlier this week, insisting he had nothing to do with it. Nobody believes me, but I did not name it. Normally, U.S. presidents are out of office or even dead before they're honored in this way, if ever. The author of the book, Strongman said the current trend mirrors what autocrats have done for a century. Tamara Keith, NPR News. Sometimes former presidents are just like us. Joe Biden got stuck in delays while flying commercially from D.C.'s Reagan National Airport. Travelers noticed him because Secret Service agents and local police surrounded him. Keeping a low profile, he sat with a newspaper as he awaited his flight to South Carolina for a Democratic Party event. Passengers thanked the former president shook his hand as they filed past him on the plane. Federal law gives former presidents lifelong Secret Service protection, but not special travel. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. Listen to this podcast sponsor free on Amazon Music with a Prime membership or any podcast app by subscribing to NPR News Now Plus at plus.npr.org. That's plus.npr.org.