Iran Attacks Energy Targets, DHS Confirmation Hearing, Cesar Chavez Abuse Allegations

0:01Israel and Iran struck both sides of the world's largest natural gas field. Energy prices spiked. Even President Trump kept his distance from the attacks. How much farther will the escalation go? I'm Steve Inskeep with Leila Faddle, and this is Up First from NPR News.

0:20The president's pick to lead the Department of Homeland Security faced a tense confirmation hearing. Oklahoma Senator Mark Wayne Mullen promised a, quote, better approach on immigration enforcement. I can have different opinions with everybody in this room, but as Secretary of Homeland, I'll be protecting everybody. What, if anything, does he want to change? And allegations that the late labor leader Cesar Chavez sexually abused girls are leading to a reexamination of his legacy. How are people responding to these revelations? Stay with us. We'll give you the news you need to start your day.

0:57This message comes from Stamps.com. Shipping, billing, admin, you're managing all these things. Why waste time sending important documents the old-fashioned way? Mail and ship when you want with Stamps.com. Print postage on demand and schedule pickups from your office or home. That's why over 1 million small businesses trust Stamps.com. Go to Stamps.com and use code NPR to try Stamps.com risk-free for 60 days. An exchange of fire across the Persian Gulf has exposed the danger to the world's energy supplies. The market showed it, too, as oil prices spiked again. First, Israeli airstrikes hit an Iranian complex that is part of the world's largest natural gas reserve.

1:41Then Iran retaliated, blasting the world's largest liquefied natural gas plant in Qatar. How much farther could this go? To talk about that, we're joined by NPR's international correspondent, Aya Batraoui, in Dubai. Good morning, Aya. Good morning, Leila. So Aya, how did all this unfold? So Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps says the Israelis attacked the South Pars gas field, And they called this a big mistake. And then they published a list of oil and gas sites in Saudi Arabia, the UAE where I am, and Qatar that it would target in response. And sure enough, last night, its missiles hit some of those targets.

2:15And that includes the Ras Lafayne industrial site in Qatar. This is the world's largest liquefied natural gas complex. And it is Qatar's crown jewel. I mean, this is the wealth of this tiny nation. And it burned last night. Many countries have investments in this complex, totaling tens of billions of dollars. Qatar Energy says the damage was extensive. Now, Qatar says Iranian missiles also struck other gas facilities in the country last night. And Laila, this is far bigger than the scale of tit-for-tat attacks on energy that we've seen over the past two and a half weeks of this war, which had already halted Qatar's gas production and disrupted oil exports from the Gulf.

2:49Iran's Revolutionary Guard says the attack on its gas field marked a new stage of the war. And even Arab Gulf states said Israel's attack risked global energy security and they called it a dangerous escalation. It's interesting because President Trump is distancing the White House from this Israeli attack, which Israel has not yet commented on publicly. In a post on social media, he said the U.S. knew nothing about it. What else did he have to say? Right. He said Israel, out of anger, had violently lashed out at this major gas facility. But he said there would be no more attacks made by Israel on what he called this extremely important and valuable gas field in Iran.

3:25But Trump also said that if Iran continues attacking Qatar, the U.S. will not hesitate to, quote, blow up the entirety of the South Paris gas field. But, Leila, this is an underwater gas field Iran shares with Qatar, and a U.S. attack like that would threaten global supplies. But for its part, anyway, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard said if an attack like that happens again on it, it will strike energy infrastructure in the region until it is completely destroyed. And anyways, the attacks last night, they set back Qatar's ability to resume gas production after the war. countries like China and India rely on this gas, and it is already disrupting the production of fertilizer and polymers needed to make plastics.

4:01And so through these counterattacks, what Iran is doing is it is inflicting pain on countries around the world, and this could lead to pressure to end this war. Now, huge consequences to these attacks that we saw. Gulf Arab states have not responded militarily to Iran's attacks since the start of the war. Is that about to change? I mean, so far, what we saw Qatar do was expel the Iranian embassy military attachés, but they haven't cut ties with Iran. It did have warm ties with Iran before the war. Qatar was also a mediator between the U.S. and Iran before the war. I want you to have a listen to Qatar's foreign ministry spokesman, Majid al-Ansari.

4:36He was speaking to reporters last week about the need to contain this war. Right now, as we speak, you can put a map of the region in front of you, and you will not be able to find a finger-pointing space where escalation is not happening. This is exactly what we have said from day one. This is the biggest I told you so in the history of I told you so in the world. And by day one, he's talking about Israel's response to the Hamas attack of 2023 and the devastating Israeli war on Gaza that has spilled over across the region. And so while he's calling for containment of the war, there might be other Arab states that are pushing for further degradation of Iran's military and missiles.

5:10But last night, Qatar's prime minister was in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with other foreign ministers from across the region, including Turkey. And they were discussing the war and Iran's growing isolation. And as they were meeting in Riyadh, there were big explosions on the outskirts of the city. Iran's Revolutionary Guard says it struck an oil and gas site being used to fuel U.S. fighter jets. That's NPR's Aya Batraoui in Dubai. Thank you for your reporting, Aya. Thank you, Leila.

5:42President Trump's nominee to lead the Department of Homeland Security, Oklahoma Senator Mark Wayne Mullen, faced a panel of his colleagues on Wednesday. The agency that he would lead is technically shut down as Democrats push for changes to immigration enforcement. Still, much of the attention of this hearing was on Mullen's personal differences with the Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman, Rand Paul. NPR congressional correspondent Claudia Grisalis joins us now to explain. Good morning, Claudia. Good morning, Leila. So Mullen seemed like he might have an easy path to confirmation. Did that assumption change after his testimony in front of Congress?

6:17Yes, definitely. This was a pretty rocky start. And really, it began with Mullen and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, both Republicans. They have a long-running personal beef. And earlier this year, Mullen called Paul a snake and said he understood why Paul was attacked by a neighbor back in 2017. That attack left Paul with serious injuries, including broken ribs and a punctured lung. So Paul started the hearing by calling Mullen out for not apologizing, not speaking to him after. And Mullen, for his part, said he tried to reach Paul to clear the air, but Paul wouldn't have it. I can have different opinions with everybody in this room, but as Secretary of Homeland, And I'll be protecting everybody, including Kentucky, as much as I will my own backyard in Oklahoma.

7:01Mullen tried to move past it and said he is determined to bring a new level of peace of mind to the agency. But Paul made the connection between their differences and Mullen's fitness for this job, right? Right. It was a big theme of his questioning. Let's take a listen to Paul. Explain to the American public why they should trust a man with anger issues to set the proper example for ICE and Border Patrol agents. And he's talking about Mullen's reputation there. But really, the agency, DHS, has taken a hit as well because of the actions of its agents. Yeah. And this issue of trust, that's something Democrats brought up as well, right?

7:40Right. Democrats took Mullen to task for his comments, blaming two U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Preddy, for their own deaths at the hands of immigration law enforcement agents. Mullen said he should have retracted those statements, but Connecticut Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal reminded him DHS faces some massive issues. And reckless agency that has broken into homes without judicial approval, shot United States citizens, detained them without any cause. So even if senators of both sides of the aisles may have been personal fans of Mullen, it's a different ballgame now because of the moment that DHS finds itself in.

8:19Tell us more about Mullen. Why did President Trump nominate him to take Christine Ohm's place? Well, he's been a big Trump defender, particularly on immigration. He's also a first-term senator who describes himself as a family man who grew up in Westville, Oklahoma. He's a former MMA fighter. He's also an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation, and he was elected to the House in 2012 and then to the Senate a decade later. But he's faced plenty of controversies. Like what? Well, he's known for using violent rhetoric and in a more serious moment challenged a leader of a union to a fight during a Senate hearing in 2023.

8:59And during yesterday's hearing, Democrats accused Mullen of withholding information in his nomination paperwork about his work with the military. But Mullen argued he was not required since it overlapped his time as a House member. He's also facing questions over his family's stock portfolio. But we know President Trump and Republican leaders have been able to get controversial nominees approved in the past. What do you expect comes next for Mullen? Well, the committee will vote today on his nomination. And even if Paul votes no, Mullen could draw support at least from one Democratic senator. That's John Fetterman of Pennsylvania.

9:35Plus, leaders could advance his nomination to the full Senate even without a recommendation from the committee. So he could be on track for confirmation by next week. And he's already talking about reforms he would enact if confirmed, such as requiring federal immigration agents to use judicial warrants in certain cases as opposed to administrative warrants that are signed off by agency officials. That's NPR's Claudia Grisales. Thank you, Claudia. Thank you.

10:08People are reassessing the legacy of labor activist Cesar Chavez. The New York Times published an investigation into the co-founder of the United Farm Workers Union. The Times spoke with two women who said Chavez began abusing them in the 1970s when they were 12 and 13 and he was in his 40s. One said he raped her. Dolores Huerta, who founded the union with Chavez, also says she was abused. She says Chavez pressured her into having sex and then later raped her, according to the Times. She got pregnant both times, concealed the pregnancies, and had other families raise those children. These allegations are coming to light less than two weeks before the federal holiday honoring Chavez, who died in 1993.

10:51Houston Public Media's Michael Atkinson has been looking into how governments and labor groups are deciding what to do next. Good morning, Michael. Hey, good morning. So Chavez began his work as a labor organizer in California. What are politicians there saying about these accusations? Well, one of the most prominent politicians to weigh in so far is California Governor Gavin Newsom. He says that now is a, quote, sensitive, sensitive moment. And he said that it's very important to support these victims who are coming forward with their stories. But he stops short of condemning Chavez outright.

11:24He and other progressive Democrats are in something of a tough spot, balancing the work that Chavez did for Latinos and laborers while reconciling that with these new allegations. But Newsom and others have said that the movement that Chavez built is bigger than just one man. It's about the movement. It's about farm workers. It's about labor. It's about social justice, economic justice, racial justice, all things that that the movement has inspired. And we should all be celebrating. Newsom is, of course, a Democrat. Have we heard from any prominent Republicans on this? Yes, we have. Here in Texas, Republican Governor Greg Abbott issued an order yesterday prohibiting state agencies from observing Cesar Chavez Day.

12:10Texas has observed that holiday since 1999, and Abbott says he wants the legislature to work on bringing an end to that in the next legislative session. He also made a note of the politics of the situation, saying that the allegations, quote, rightfully dismantle the myth of this progressive hero and undermine the narrative that elevated Chavez as a figure worthy of official state celebration. Cesar Chavez Day is celebrated across the country. So what's happening to all the other events that were planned? Right. Well, right here in Houston, organizers canceled their own Cesar Chavez Day event and other cities have taken similar steps, both in Texas and across the country.

12:46But it's important to note that not every single event has been canceled. For example, our colleagues at Arizona Public Media talked to organizers in Tucson, and their own Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta march and rally will go on, but now under a new name. It's going to be called the Comunidad y Labor Unity Fair. Organizers say that that event is primarily about educating workers and immigrants about their rights, so it's going to continue to go on. But lots of organizations are looking at similar initiatives in the future, potentially just changing the name or whether or not to outright end the marches entirely.

13:19Meanwhile, those cities are also reconciling what to do with streets and buildings that are named after Cesar Chavez. Have we heard from Cesar Chavez's family since these allegations became public? Yesterday, Chavez's family praised the victims for having the courage to come forward. But they also said in a statement they, quote, carry our own memories of the person we knew, someone whose life included work and contributions that mattered deeply to many people. And his family said that they are committed to continuing to champion the causes Chavez stood for in the wake of these allegations. That's Houston Public Media's Michael Atkison.

13:52Thank you so much for your reporting. Thank you.

13:59And that's Up First for Thursday, March 19th. I'm Leila Faldin. And I'm Steve Inskeep. Today's Up First was edited by Hannah Block, Kelsey Snell, Eric Whitney, H.J. Mai, and Alice Wolfley. It was produced by Ziad Bacch, Nia Dumas, and Christopher Thomas, our director. We get engineering support from Nisha Hines, and our technical director is Carly Strange. Our deputy executive producer is Kelly Dickens. You know what, Layla? I like being the one to say the credits, because I like giving credit to these people. I mean, we can't do anything without them. Exactly. Join us tomorrow.

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