by Suzanne Nuyen

February 12, 2026

Good morning. Thousands of people gathered this week to see Buddhist monks complete their 108-day, 2,300-mile journey on foot from Texas to Washington, D.C. Here's the news we're following today:

President Trump's tariff agenda is under threat after six House Republicans bucked party leaders and joined Democrats to successfully vote against Canadian tariffs. It's a rare rebuke of one of the president's favorite tools for pressuring foes and allies alike.

A "Prepared in Canada" tag in a grocery aisle at the Real Canadian Superstore on March 3, 2025, in Toronto.

Katherine KY Cheng/Getty Images

🎧 NPR's Franco Ordoñez tells Up First that this was a stark message from the six Republicans who voted against the tariffs. "It’s another example of how Republicans are starting to stand up to the president" he adds. Tariffs are expected to help reduce deficits by over $3 trillion over a decade, according to a new Congressional Budget Office report. But it also shows that companies are passing off 90% of those costs to consumers. Ordoñez says Republicans have faced increasing pressure from their constituents about high costs, and the business community is afraid to invest amid economic uncertainty.

U.S. employers unexpectedly added 130,000 jobs in January, according to a new Labor Department report. That's more than double the hiring pace in November or December. But once a year, the Labor Department updates its job tally with more accurate, yet less timely information from unemployment tax records. That revision shows that there were nearly 900,000 fewer jobs in the economy last March than originally counted. On average, employers added only 15,000 jobs a month in 2025.

🎧 Last month's hiring boom was concentrated in a handful of industries like health care, which is generally immune to the ups and downs of the wider economy, NPR's Scott Horsley says. Wells Fargo economist Sarah House tells him there aren't as many job openings as there used to be, and it's still a tough jobs market to break into if you're unemployed. Wages are still rising, but not as quickly as they have in the past. Horsley says that with this softer job market, workers generally don't have the kind of bargaining power they previously had to command higher wages.

Today, the Trump administration is expected to revoke a Clean Air Act finding from 2009 that has long been the basis for the U.S.' climate pollution regulations. The finding determined that pollutants from developing and burning fossil fuels, such as methane and carbon dioxide, could be regulated under the Clean Air Act. The Environmental Protection Agency now argues that the Clean Air Act does not give it the legal authority to regulate greenhouse gases. The administration's decision comes after three of the hottest years ever recorded.

Top officials from three federal immigration enforcement agencies are expected to testify before a Senate committee today, after testifying before House lawmakers earlier this week. The Department of Homeland Security is one day away from a potential shutdown. Committee Chairman Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., called for the hearing after federal agents shot and killed 37-year-old Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. Paul said at a town hall that he wanted to focus on the federal agents' use of force. Most Democrats say they won't support another short-term DHS funding measure. A shutdown would affect agencies like the Transportation Security Administration and the Federal Emergency Management Agency — potentially affecting travel and disaster response. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection both received large infusions of cash last summer, making ICE the highest-funded U.S. law enforcement agency.

Newsletter continues after sponsor message

An illustration of three people standing in line, clutching diplomas.

James Heimer for NPR

Roughly a million borrowers defaulted on their federal student loans last year, according to federal data and the latest Household Debt and Credit Report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Millions more are delinquent on their payments. New York Fed researchers say they expect the number of borrowers in default to continue to grow. The stakes are high for borrowers — and for the broader U.S. economy.

💵 After 270 days of missed payments, a borrower is considered in default. The government restarted that count when student loan repayments resumed after the COVID-19 pandemic. This means no borrower could have newly defaulted on their loans until last June at the earliest.
💵 A whopping 9.8 million borrowers, many of whom are low-income, have loans in forbearance. Their payments are paused, but their loans still accrue interest, putting them at extra risk of defaulting.
💵 The Trump administration announced mid-January that it would delay involuntary collections on defaulted borrowers. If the Department of Education returns to garnishing wages and tax refunds, experts say consumer spending, home sales, auto loans and more could drop.

A cat takes a nap in the sun on the American University of Beirut campus.

Tamara Saade for NPR

At the American University of Beirut, your classmate could have four paws and a penchant for napping in sunbeams over taking lecture notes. The school's cat rescue started during the Lebanese civil war in the 1980s, when the animals sought shelter from street fighting. The country has seen more than its share of war since. Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah saw a year of fighting that began in late 2023. Israel is still launching attacks. Many people abandon their pets as they flee their homes. Veterinarian Rana Bou Khalil estimates there are now between 1,200 and 1,600 cats on campus. See photos of the furry friends, and read more about the joys and challenges of seeking an education among these campus cats.

A postcard graphic showing a dog on a bike wearing a helmet and goggles.

Eyder Peralta/NPR

NPR international correspondent Eyder Peralta says one of his favorite weekly rituals in Mexico City is when the Paseo de la Reforma shuts down to car traffic every Sunday. During that time, tens of thousands of people on bikes, skates and rollerblades roll past iconic parts of Mexico's capital. For this week's Far-Flung Postcards, Eyder shares a picture of Benji, a very good boy who has been riding in his owner's basket for two years

U.S. ice dancing power couple Madison Chock and Evan Bates claimed silver medals at the Olympics yesterday. Their first individual medal win was bittersweet, as the seasoned couple lost to the newly paired Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron of France by 1.43 points.

The Federal Aviation Administration abruptly closed the airspace around El Paso late Tuesday night for ten days — only to reopen it hours later after the Pentagon authorized use of a laser to shoot down what it believed to be a Mexican drone.

Stream your local NPR station.

Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream.

This newsletter was edited by Yvonne Dennis.

Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here.

Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Music, Politics, Health and more!

You received this message because you're subscribed to Up First emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002

Unsubscribe | Privacy Policy