What to Know About the ICE Shooting, and a Rare Climate Pledge from China

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0:30From The New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today's Thursday, September 25th. Here's what we're covering.

0:41I can confirm at this time that the FBI is investigating this incident as an act of targeted violence. It is unfortunately just the most recent example we've seen of targeted violence. In Dallas, Texas, authorities say a sniper perched up on a rooftop fired at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office yesterday, hitting three detainees who were inside a transport van. One was killed, two others were critically injured. People who were waiting nearby for their relatives, who had immigration appointments at the office, told the Times they scrambled to take cover, saying, quote, it was one shot after another, after another, after another.

1:17The shooter then killed himself. He's been identified as 29-year-old Joshua Yan. What I can also share with you is that early evidence that we've seen from rounds that were found near the suspected shooter contain messages that are anti-ice in nature. On social media, FBI Director Kash Patel posted a picture showing what he said was ammunition from the scene. One of the bullets had the phrase anti-ice scrawled on it. The Times has not independently verified that detail. Jan grew up in a suburb north of Dallas and lived with his parents as recently as a few months ago, according to public records.

1:55On his social media accounts, he talked a lot about video games, cars, South Park and marijuana, but showed little obvious interest in politics based on what's been uncovered so far. Still, the Trump administration and Republican lawmakers quickly condemned the shooting as politically motivated. You know, we've always been operating lately with the increased rhetoric and the assault on ICE officers, a higher threat posture, if you will. They blamed what they called a surge in negative coverage of ICE operations amid President Trump's aggressive immigration crackdown. And they pointed to two other attacks on ICE and Border Patrol facilities in Texas this summer.

2:31We're being compared to the Gestapo, to the Nazis, and that's just not true. And it's dangerous rhetoric that puts us in situations like this. To every politician who is using rhetoric, demonizing ICE and demonizing CBP, stop. Trump himself quickly labeled the shooting as continuing violence from radical left terrorists and linked it to the assassination of Charlie Kirk. Vice President J.D. Vance echoed that. I think we all need to tone down the temperature a little bit. I think in particular, my Democratic colleagues need to ask some very hard questions about why it is that folks from their side of the political aisle seem to be engaged in these politically motivated attacks.

3:11And I think it's important for them to look in the mirror and say, wait a minute. In the week since Kirk's assassination, the Trump administration has spread baseless claims that there's a coordinated left-wing network carrying out political violence.

3:30The Times has learned that ahead of a potential government shutdown next week, the White House has ordered federal agencies to prepare for possible mass layoffs. In a memo, the administration told agency leaders to focus on eliminating positions that are, quote, not consistent with the president's political agenda and said, we remain hopeful that Democrats in Congress will not trigger a shutdown and the steps outlined above will not be necessary. It's effectively an ultimatum to Democratic lawmakers. Go along with Republican efforts to pass a temporary funding bill or risk another round of mass firings of government workers.

4:07To avert a shutdown, the two sides will need to reach an agreement by Tuesday. But tensions have been flaring, with Democrats trying to get concessions on health care funding, among other things. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer quickly hit back against the administration's order, saying it was an attempt at intimidation.

4:31At the United Nations on Wednesday.

4:39Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke to the General Assembly in a video message and announced a detailed target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the first time China has ever made that kind of pledge. The announcement is particularly significant because China is the world's biggest polluter. Xi promised that by 2035, China would cut carbon emissions and other pollution by at least 7 to 10 percent and boost its use of renewable energy. The country's already made major investments on that front. It makes more solar panels, wind turbines, and electric cars than any other country. China's pledge comes as the Trump administration has all but abandoned American efforts to invest in green energy and fight climate change, including promising to pull out of the landmark Paris Agreement to limit global warming that nearly every other country has signed.

5:28Would you like to see other countries follow the United States' lead and also withdraw from Paris? Oh, that's their choice, but absolutely, absolutely. Yesterday, Energy Secretary Chris Wright told my colleague David Gellis that he wants the world to follow the U.S.'s lead, downplaying the climate crisis and saying that the rush to renewable energy was putting countries' economies at risk.

5:59The Prime Minister of Denmark made a visit to the capital of Greenland yesterday to apologize in person for a brutal chapter in Greenlandic history when Danish doctors forced birth control on a whole generation of indigenous women and girls. Greenland is a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark. Starting in the 1960s, the Danish government ran a campaign to control population growth there. Doctors invited patients in for checkups and implanted IUDs in patients as young as 12. In a lot of cases, they weren't told what was being done and only found out years later, when the women started having health complications.

6:36Some were left infertile. Even after Denmark granted Greenland more autonomy, the Greenlandic government continued the birth control campaign into the 1990s. It remained largely undiscussed until a few years ago when some older women stepped forward to share what had happened to them. At the ceremony, which was attended by many of the women who lived through it, Denmark's prime minister said, quote, I know I cannot take away your pain or give back what you lost, but I hope it can stand as recognition that what you went through was wrong. Afterwards, she walked down a long line of survivors, hugging each one, some of whom were sobbing.

7:12But for some, the apology is too little, too late. Critics called it a transparent effort by Denmark to shore up relations with Greenland, ever since President Trump said the U.S. should take over the island. One Greenlandic social media influencer said, they're so afraid that we will become independent or a state under the United States. And she said Greenland would have had far more people if Danish doctors hadn't interfered, saying, quote, I would have had so many more cousins. I would have been so much richer in family.

7:51And finally, the numbers are in, and Jimmy Kimmel's return to the air scored big ratings. His episode Tuesday night averaged 6.2 million viewers, according to preliminary figures from Nielsen. That's nearly four times his usual audience, even though 20 % of ABC affiliates didn't air the episode. At least 15 million more people watched it online. It was Kimmel's first night back after his comments about the man accused of killing Charlie Kirk set off a controversy that engulfed ABC, Disney, and the FCC, sparking a tense national debate over free speech. While late night used to be a big draw, pulling in numbers in the six million range now is rare.

8:34Kimmel himself gave a little nod to the ratings situation in his monologue, playing President Trump's criticism of him. It's a whack job, but he had no talent. And more importantly than talent, he had no ratings.

8:52Well, I do tonight.

8:59Those are the headlines. today on The Daily. The question of whether the U.S. military's recent strikes on boats the president claims were smuggling drugs from Venezuela are legal. You can listen to that in the New York Times app or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Tracy Mumford. We'll be back tomorrow with the latest and the Friday News Quiz.

9:24This podcast is supported by Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Here's a story that's not getting nearly enough attention. Defunding Planned Parenthood has already caused chaos and harm, and access to essential reproductive care is plummeting. Right now, the Trump administration's backers in Congress want to permanently defund Planned Parenthood, forcing even more health centers to close, and millions at risk of losing access to care. It takes less than a minute to help. Go to plannedparenthood.org slash defend and make a gift of any size.