The World and Everything in It: February 13, 2025

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Good morning!

President Donald Trump wants to return education to the states. If the Department of Education goes away, what about the most vulnerable students?

DIGGLE: I don't think that ultimately education for people with disabilities is going to be considered waste once they really, like, look at everything.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: Also, efforts to streamline the federal government workforce.

ANSLOVER: No one is saying that the President can't do that. They're just asking the president to check in with Congress.

Plus, WORLD contributor Cal Thomas puts in his two cents about the penny.

REICHARD: It’s Thursday, February 13th. This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Mary Reichard.

MAST: And I’m Lindsay Mast. Good morning!

REICHARD: Time for the news now with Kent Covington.

KENT COVINGTON, NEWS ANCHOR: Ukraine war negotiations-1 » President Trump says Russia’s Vladimir Putin is ready to talk peace.

Trump said he had a lengthy phone conversation with Putin about ending the war in Ukraine.

TRUMP : He wants it to end. And that's President Putin said that. He wants it to end. He doesn't want to end it and then go back to fighting six months later. We talked about the possibility—I mentioned it—of a ceasefire so we can stop the killing. And I think we'll probably end up at some point getting a ceasefire in the not-too-distant future.

Trump also spoke yesterday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who said he was thankful …

ZELENSKYY: … to the President for his message that he will support Ukraine and he really wants to stop this war. And I know that he's a strong man and, uh, and I'm sure that he will push Putin.

Hundreds of thousands of people have died … and nearly a million more wounded since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine three years ago.

Ukraine war negotiations-2 » But what might a peace deal to end the war look like?

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth provided some clues on Wednesday.

 HEGSETH: We must start by recognizing that returning to Ukraine's pre 2014 borders is an unrealistic objective.

Hegseth spoke from Belgium as he met with leaders from NATO allied nations and the Ukraine Defense Contract Group.

His remarks indicate that any peace deal likely would not require Russia to pull out of the Crimean Peninsula it invaded and annexed in 2014.

And Hegseth added…

HEGSETH: The United States does not believe that NATO membership for Ukraine is a realistic outcome of a negotiated settlement.

He went on to say that a durable peace must include security guarantees possibly to be backed up by a peacekeeping force in Ukraine on a non-NATO mission.

But he said such a force would not include U.S. troops.

Judge clears way for downsizing federal workforce » A federal judge has cleared the way for President Trump’s plan to downsize the federal workforce. WORLD’s Kristen Flavin has more.

KRISTEN FLAVIN: The ruling surrounds the Trump administration’s so-called ‘Fork in the Road’ federal employee buyout program. The administration made an offer to some 2 million federal employees … they can quit now and will still be paid through the end of September.

U.S. District Judge George O’Toole Jr. on Wednesday found that the labor unions that sued didn’t have legal standing to challenge the program.

The White House says well over 60,000 federal employees have already accepted the offer.

For WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin.

Inflation » U.S. inflation ticked up last month as the cost of groceries and gasoline rose.

The Labor Department reports that from December to January, inflation rose from 2.9, to an even 3.0 percent.

The January numbers continue a monthslong upward trend. Inflation has increased each month since October.

Gabbard » On Capitol Hill Wednesday, the Senate voted down party lines to confirm Tulsi Gabbard as Director of National Intelligence.

AUDIO: [Senate Gabbard vote] Yeas are 52, nays are 48. Nomination is confirmed.

She ultimately overcame the reservations of some Republicans over things like past remarks seemingly in support of government leaker Edward Snowden.

Gabbard is a former Democratic Congresswoman and an Iraq War veteran.

UK Christian teacher » In the UK A big legal victory for a Christian former school employee who was fired for speaking about her beliefs on her own personal Facebook page.

A British appeals court is siding with Kristie Higgs six years after she was fired from her job as a pastoral assistant.

HIGGS: This is not just about me. Too many Christians have suffered discipline or marginalisation at their work because of their Christian faith.

The Farmors School in Gloucestershire terminated her after an anonymous person reported two of her Facebook posts as being supposedly homophobic and transphobic.

That came after she shared concerns about pro-LGBT ideologies being taught at a Church of England school her son attended.

The three-judge panel said Higgs’ statements and beliefs were protected by the Equality Act.

I’m Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: possible cuts to the Department of Education. Plus, President Trump’s plan for reducing the federal workforce runs into court challenges.

This is The World and Everything in It.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: It’s Thursday the 13th of February.

This is WORLD Radio, and we thank you for listening. Good morning, I’m Mary Reichard

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: And I’m Lindsay Mast. Up first, dismantling the US Department of Education.

President Donald Trump says he intends to do just that.

How will families with children in public schools be affected, if at all? WORLD’s Anna Johansen Brown brings us the story.

ANNA JOHANSEN BROWN, PRESENTER: Like many 9-year-olds, Sylvia Diggle loves spending time with friends, dancing, and eating french fries. But as a student at Southbury Elementary in Oswego, Ill., she has more teachers than most children her age have.

LINNEA DIGGLE: So like at Christmas, when, when we think about sending gifts to her teachers, we have to send them to like 20 people. It’s like, it’s like an army of people that serve her.

Linnea Diggle says her daughter has Mosaic Down Syndrome, which is a milder form of the chromosomal disorder.

DIGGLE: She does struggle with speech. It’s hard to understand her sometimes. So she gets a lot of help with speech at school. And that would be, that would be a big loss if that ever got threatened.

Some public school funding for students with students with disabilities comes from the U.S. Department of Education. After reports surfaced that the agency could be shut down, members of congress made speeches outside of the Department of Education headquarters in Washington. New York Rep. John Mannion:

JOHN MANNION: The parents of the children that require individualized services in a public school setting, they want answers.

Lawmakers like Mannion and mainstream media outlets have been quick to point out that disadvantaged and disabled students could stand to lose important programs. But that’s not necessarily true.

MIKE PETRILLI: But it's unlikely that they're going to get rid of these things. They would again have to convince Congress to cut funding for students with disabilities or for disadvantaged kids. That is highly unlikely to happen because it's hugely unpopular.

Mike Petrilli is the president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a conservative-leaning think tank specializing in education policy.

PETRILLI: I think they will put out an executive order.

If that comes, it will likely follow the Senate’s confirmation of Trump’s pick for education secretary, Linda McMahon, today.

DONALD TRUMP: I believe strongly in school choice. But in addition to that, I want states to run schools. I want Linda to put herself out of a job.

The Department of Education is involved in much more than programs for students with disabilities. Roughly 66% of its $103 billion budget goes to loan programs and civil rights enforcement at the college level. $20 billion funds elementary and secondary education for low-income students and students with disabilities. But for the most part, the federal government only provides a small fraction of funding for local schools.

SHERI FEW: What most people don’t understand is that each state only receives on average about 10% of their education budget from the federal government. So while it might be large in dollars, percentage-wise it's not.

Sheri Few is president of U.S. Parents Involved in Education, an organization that has advocated for eliminating the Department of Education for over a decade. Conservatives have criticized the agency since President Jimmy Carter established it as a cabinet-level agency in 1979.

FEW: And the very next president, Ronald Reagan, said that he was gonna close the Department of Education. Unfortunately, he did not complete that task, but I have heard elected officials and candidates state this as a part of their platform for many years.

Few says there are several problems with the Department of Education, starting with the fact that it provides loans to college students.

FEW: So that's why our country is on such a huge debt situation with unpaid college loans because anybody can get them. They don't necessarily have to pay them back.

According to Few, distributing funds gives the government leverage over what’s taught in schools across all grade levels, even though it’s not technically in charge of curriculum. Like when the Biden administration introduced changes to Title IX of the Civil Rights Act and expanded the definition of sex to include gender.

FEW: That's the way the federal government has been used as a hammer to force states into complying with their education agenda.

Few is confident that getting rid of the Department of Education is possible by transferring programs to other agencies and sending funding right to the states via block grants.

FEW: It will be far more efficient than citizens sending their money to the federal government. They siphon off the majority of it for their huge bureaucracy and then send pennies back to the states.

Mike Pitrelli isn’t so sure that eliminating the bureaucracy is possible.

PETRILLI: So there’s really these two different questions, right? One is what do you do with the programs, the policy, the funding? Does that stay or does that go? And then there's a second question, which is where should all of that live?

He says an executive order alone won’t answer these questions.

PETRILLI: It has to work through Congress to make these big changes, and I think that’ll be very difficult to do.

Even if a shutdown doesn’t get the green light from Congress, it’s likely the Department of Education will experience budget and staffing cuts, and certain internal agencies could be relocated. Some of that is already happening.

On Monday, the Department of Education terminated almost $1 billion worth of grants and research contracts, some related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives. Still, Petrilli doesn’t anticipate a complete dismantling in the near future. He’s not sure that Trump does, either.

PETRILLI: I think the point is that President Trump promised on the campaign trail to get rid of the Department of Education. He has to show that he's at least trying so that they can check that box and say that they gave it their all. And in the end, I think the Department of Education will still be here four years from now.

Still, some families are concerned about the future of public school education. The Diggles aren’t worried for Sylvia’s sake.

DIGGLE: I don't think that ultimately, like, education for people with disabilities is going to be considered waste once they really, like, look at everything.

But they’re trusting the Lord either way.

DIGGLE: I kind of feel like, when you go through the airport security and they like, pull you over and check on you, you could be mad because you're innocent and they're checking on you, or you could just be glad to be part of a country that's trying to keep you safe, right? So, like, we could be upset if her services get affected, or we could just be glad that the government is trying to figure out how to do it better.

For WORLD, I’m Anna Johansen Brown.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: Now, from department shutdowns to federal worker buyouts.

On January 28th, President Trump made an appeal to more than two million federal employees: resign and still be paid through September. The administration says that about 60,000 workers have taken him up on the offer so far.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: But a federal judge blocked the plan after labor unions representing federal employees filed for an injunction.

WORLD’s Mary Muncy reported this story, but is still under the weather, so here’s Paul Butler with her report.

PAUL BUTLER, PRESENTER: This week, President Donald Trump told reporters that his federal employee buyout plan has two goals. First:

DONALD TRUMP: What we're trying to do is reduce government. We have too many people.

And second, to encourage workers to return to the office.

TRUMP: We have office space. It's occupied by 4%. Nobody's showing up to work because they were told not to.

Those who don’t return may find their employment terminated.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, since 2020, the number of federal employees has increased from 2.8 million to over 3 million. For years, job reports have been bolstered by the number of new government hires across the board. Since the 1950s, the federal government has grown by about a third, though the US population more than doubled during that same time.

President Trump says he has a mandate to significantly reduce the federal workforce. Over the past few weeks, he’s shut down U-S-A-I-D, asked people in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and with roles in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion not to come to work, and he signed an executive order limiting federal hiring.

TRUMP: They're getting a good deal. They’re getting a big buyout.

But not everyone agrees they’re getting a good deal.

DOREEN GREENWOOD: They're being asked to sign an agreement that is unclear, does not provide any guidance for them, and there's no guarantees for it.

Doreen Greenwood is the National Treasury Employees Union President—representing many federal employees.

She’s encouraging workers to decline the offer among her reasons? Well, there’s been very little guidance about what will happen to the services the employees provide.

GREENWOOD: Nobody has taken the work away. Nobody has said what will happen to the services that the American people depend on.

She also believes that the White House is sending mixed messages. For instance, IRS employees got a letter last week after the initial buyout offer saying their resignation terms wouldn’t kick in until after the 2025 tax filing season indicating that perhaps the IRS agents in question provide a critical service and should stick around.

Now, there’s always turnover and realigned priorities with a new administration, but does it usually affect this many people?

NICOLE ANSLOVER: This approach of, you know, tons of firings within a very short span is-is not typical.

Nicole Anslover is a professor of history at Florida Atlantic University. She specializes in the modern presidency.

ANSLOVER: Even for agencies that have been ordered to pause their work, that also certainly has happened in the past. But again, that's after months of study, months of getting feedback from Congress and all of those sorts of things.

The White House is doing more than offering buyouts, they’re also shutting down whole departments and cutting federal employees from both sides of the aisle.

Anslover says the FBI, the Treasury Department, and the Justice Department usually have some change in personnel and staffing. But there’s normally a longer transition period and feedback from Congress.

ANSLOVER: What we're hearing out of President Trump's second term is that people are getting emails that say you are fired effectively immediately, and that's very not typical.

The president usually appoints about 4,000 people, 1,200 of which have to be confirmed by the Senate. Most of those are top and mid-level employees. Positions changed out almost every administration.

Then there are the lower-level employees. They’re usually regarded as apolitical and as such, are protected by law.

TODD SCHAEFER: They are protected from firing and so on, in order to better administer what the government does.

Todd Shaefer is a professor of political science at Central Washington University.

SCHAEFER: They're supposed to be hired, not for political reasons, but because they know things.

Trump’s plan to buyout these lower-level workers may be a way to meet requirements of a couple laws on the books including a 1974 law that basically says a president can’t pause funds or significantly change approved spending because that’s Congress’ job.

ANSLOVER: Congress passed a law in 1974 called the Impoundment Control Act.

Nicole Anslover once again.

ANSLOVER: Since 1974 no one explored that, until Bill Clinton.

He proposed eliminating about 300,000 federal employees from the payroll to try to streamline government and tighten spending.

ANSLOVER: And then actually worked with Congress and Congress then passed a law that was called the Federal Workforce Restructuring Act. And so under that act, which had been worked on by both branches of government, then some federal employees did take a buyout.

So, the buyout plan is not unprecedented. However…

ANSLOVER: What's being offered here is again different.

This time, employees were only given just a few days to decide whether they would like to resign, and with very few details about how the plan would be worked out, or what protections were in place.

So, federal labor unions sued, and a Boston judge placed an injunction on the deal last Thursday, extending the deadline indefinitely.

ANSLOVER: And so what we're seeing now is courts and federal judges are pushing back and saying the President does not have the authority to ask workers to so quickly make this decision.

Right now, the government is funded through March 14th. So one of the details that needs to be worked out is making sure these employees will actually be paid through September as promised, and that they have recourse if the government doesn’t uphold its end of the bargain.

ANSLOVER: No one is saying that the President can't do that. They're just asking the president to check in with Congress…Congress controls the purse strings.

The founders created checks and balances so that the government would move slowly, limiting its power.

For now, the buyout offer is in the hands of the courts, and employees continue to show up to work. Nicole Anslover says it will be up to the President and his team to come to a viable solution that balances government efficiency with the rule of law.

ANSLOVER: The President and Congress need to work together. Both houses of Congress need to work together to make sure that the government is functioning as intended.

For WORLD, I’m Paul Butler.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Last December, it was just another night in Columbus, Ohio ahead of the College Football Playoffs. Until…

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: Hold on there! That’s the Tennessee Volunteers’ fight song!

REICHARD: You got that right, and Buckeye fans were not amused.

The mastermind behind this outrage? Nowhere near Columbus.

Logan Bartlett is a New York venture capitalist by day, and a jukebox troll by night! With a few taps on the TouchTunes app, he hijacked bar playlists 500 miles away!

Some music choices set the vibe, but others? They just set people off.

Ohio State had the last laugh though, winning that game and then going on to win the championship.

MAST: That’s the best revenge.

REICHARD: It’s The World and Everything in It.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Today is Thursday, February 13th.

Thanks for making WORLD Radio part of your day. Good morning. I’m Mary Reichard.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST:  And I’m Lindsay Mast.
Coming next on The World and Everything in It: Love.

REICHARD: Love.

MAST: Music reviewer Bob Case says the timeless tunes from the Great American Songbook capture the deep yearning of our hearts for lasting love.

SONG: ALL I DO IS DREAM OF YOU (1934) by Henry Busse and his orchestra

BOB CASE, REVIEWER: The Great Hebrew Songbook is like the Great American Songbook in that the Old Testament Church sang songs for every imaginable occasion and every imaginable emotion. The poetic and prophetic sections of the Old Testament are replete with a kaleidoscope of popular music.

Moses tells us the story in Genesis 24, of biblical waiting and yearning for “Mrs. Right.” Abraham said to his trusted servant, “Yahweh will send his angel before you, and you will take a wife for my son Isaac from there.” The servant said to Yahweh, “Let the young woman to whom I shall say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink, and whoever shall say, 'Drink, and I will water your camels, let her be the one you have selected as Isaac's wife’.”

And so, it is with the canon of the Great American Songbook. The American Songbook could not have sprung, as is often alleged, merely from an uncritical appetite for romantic fantasy. These wonderful songs describe many human experiences and their responses.

In this segment we look at just one – yearning for love.

SONG: WHO’S SORRY NOW (1923) by the Isham Jones Orchestra

In 1922, Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby wrote a little number called “Who’s Sorry Now?”

Who’s sorry now?
Who’s heart is breaking each vow?

Who’s sad and blue?

Who’s crying too?
Just like I cried over you.

This song is like a cat with nine lives: It was a big hit for my grandparents’ generation in 1923, and a big hit for my parents’ generation in 1946. And if they missed that version, they could get the 1950 version by Gloria DeHaven.

SONG: WHO’S SORRY NOW (1950) by Gloria DeHaven

And the biggest hit version of all was performed in 1958 by Connie Francis. Francis sang that despite a failed romance she is still in the market for the right companion.

SONG: WHO’S SORRY NOW (1958) by Connie Francis

And how about that Snow White? She is even more positive that Mr. Right is right around the corner. Even in an animated cartoon this yearning for love resonates with us.

SONG: SOMEDAY MY PRINCE WILL COME (1937) from Disney’s “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”

In l937, Frank Churchill and Larry Morey wrote this song for Walt Disney’s animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The song, “Someday My Prince Will Come” tells of Ms. White’s longing for a fulfilled life with the love of her life, her prince charming. Until then, she is waiting, sad and lonely. Amazingly, the American Film Institute recognized this song as number 19 on their 100 greatest movie songs, ever.

“My Prince” became a standard in the American Songbook only when Dave Brubeck recorded it in the 1950s.

SONG: SOMEDAY MY PRINCE WILL COME (1958) by Dave Brubeck Quartet

SONG: BUT NOT FOR ME (1986) by Linda Ronstadt

Another yearning and waiting song is a number by the Gershwin boys. They wrote, “But Not for Me” for their l930 Broadway musical, Girl Crazy. The song contains the verse telling of the singer’s weariness in hearing Pollyannish advice:

I never wanna hear

From any cheerful Pollyanna’s

Who tell you Fate supplies a mate

It's all bananas.

What does the singer have against this positive counsel? Gershwin’s lyric tells us: “They’re writing songs of love, but not for me.” This is shades of Proverbs 25: “Whoever sings songs to a heavy heart is like one who takes off a garment on a cold day and like vinegar on soda.”

In 1986 Linda Ronstadt sang a stunning version with Plas Johnson's mournful saxophone solo.

SONG: THE MAN I LOVE (1928) by Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra, v. Vaughn De Leath

And that reminds me of one more Gershwin tune. “The Man I Love” is an evergreen written by the Gershwins as part of the 1924 score for their musical comedy, Lady be Good. The most popular rendition of the wonderful song was by the Paul Whiteman Orchestra in 1928 packed with marvelous musicians. Twenty years later, in 1947 the song was featured prominently in the film noir, The Man I Love, and once again it became a national hit.

The yearning and searching for love in our lives and the sadness when that love is missing is an age-old problem, caused by our finiteness and our Fall. We wait for everything, including human love, and the full expression of God’s Love.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: Today is Thursday, February 13th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Lindsay Mast.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: And I’m Mary Reichard. Pennies are poised for permanent purging. WORLD commentator Cal Thomas posits political practicality prevails.

CAL THOMAS, COMMENTATOR: President Trump has ordered the Treasury Department to stop minting pennies to save money. It costs almost four cents to make one and as the president seeks to reduce federal spending, the penny is a good, if largely symbolic, target. The nickel is even more expensive. It costs nearly 14 cents to make. One doesn’t have to have studied Economics 101 to understand this is a complete waste of money and part of the inefficiency and overspending Trump is trying to expunge from government.

The U.S. Mint began full-time production of the penny in 1792. Then, the coins were the size of today’s half-dollar and called “large cents.” The penny also became embedded in popular culture and its value endured until modern times. Older people will remember penny candy and slogans like “a penny for your thoughts” and “penny wise and pound foolish.” Songs about the penny inspired “Pennies from Heaven” and a road made famous by The Beatles, “Penny Lane.”

As for “a penny for your thoughts,” back then, thoughts and a penny were worth more than they are today. Just look at the misspending being revealed by DOGE and you’ll be shocked at the waste.

Though he never actually said it, Benjamin Franklin is often credited with “coining” the phrase “a penny saved is a penny earned.” In 1737 he did write in his Poor Richard’s Almanac: “A penny saved is twopence clear.” The 1768 version of the Almanac revised the saying: “A penny saved is a penny got.”

Other coinage attracted slogans of their own, including “nickel and dime you to death,” “not a dime’s worth of difference” and two bits…also known as a quarter. There are dozens of slang words for money.

Like the penny, many of these words—and coins—were created decades, even centuries ago, and have now outlived their usefulness. How many of us get frustrated fumbling for coins while we are paying for groceries or other retail shops while we hold up the line and test the patience of those behind us? Even that experience is increasingly becoming old school.

The best solution would be to stop minting all coins. We are quickly transitioning to a cashless society. Why not go all the way? One idea—if an item costs under 50 cents (including tax), round it off to the dollar below. The same for anything costing more than 50 cents. Round it off to the higher dollar.

A store near me has a machine that turns my coins into a paper receipt that I can then use to apply to merchandise. It’s fun to watch and hear the device swallow the coins and see the screen light up like a slot machine in Las Vegas as it counts the money. As entertainment it provides a few seconds of diversion. It could serve as a transition to cashless purchasing.

Increasing numbers of us are using debit, mobile payments, or crypto currency cards to buy things. Collectors can gobble up the various existing coins and save for future generations. The savings that would come from abolishing coinage would be significant, along with avoiding the inconvenience of counting out change. It just makes sense…c-e-n-t-s.

I’m Cal Thomas.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: Tomorrow: John Stonestreet joins us once again for Culture Friday.

Plus, WORLD’s arts and culture editor Collin Garbarino reviews a couple of new movies; Paddington, and Captain America.

And Word Play with George Grant.

That and more tomorrow.

I’m Lindsay Mast.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: And I’m Mary Reichard.

WORLD’s Bekah McCallum wrote today’s story on the Department of Education.

The World and Everything in It comes to you from WORLD Radio.

WORLD’s mission is biblically objective journalism that informs, educates, and inspires.

The Bible records that when the Devil tried to lure Jesus to worship him,.... Jesus answered him, “It is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’” Verse 8 of Luke chapter 4.

Go now in grace and peace.

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