Politics and views in the United States.

Trump's meeting with Putin could impact Taiwan's security as well as that of Ukraine. Iowa labor unions and faculty band together to defend academic freedom, and two Texas cases could decide the fate of 'blue' state abortion medication shield laws.

TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to 2025 Talks, where we're following our democracy in historic times.

President Trump will end this war in a way to prevent a third invasion and not to entice China to take Taiwan.

We're not out to humiliate Putin.

We're out to get a deal to make sure there's no third invasion.

South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham tells Meet the Press that the U.S. should take a stance with Russia on Ukraine that will warn China away from invading or blockading Taiwan.

Donald Trump will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska Friday, the first time the Russian president has been on U.S. soil in a decade.

Putin says Ukraine should give up some of its eastern territory in return for an initial ceasefire.

Trump has seemed open to that, but Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and European allies have flatly rejected it, arguing Putin is untrustworthy and the deal would give him what he wants before negotiations start.

Republican Iowa lawmakers say new legislation there aims to combat liberal indoctrination at public universities.

Educators say they're trying to limit academic freedom and speech.

Labor unions, graduate students and faculty at the state's three public colleges have formed the Iowa Higher Education Coalition in response.

University of Northern Iowa journalism professor Chris Martin says they want to especially defend the independence of faculty not protected by tenure.

You want to have discussions in classrooms where professors feel they can talk about anything that's related to that class and they shouldn't feel like they can't say certain things and risk getting fired.

Board of Regents has already gotten new authority to accept or reject curriculum.

Two Texas court cases could decide the fate of out-of-state telehealth abortion services.

Both cases challenge blue state shield laws, which protect medical professionals who provide abortion medicines.

A Texas man is suing a California doctor for prescribing and then sending his girlfriend the medication.

And a Texas judge already ruled in favor of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's civil suit against a New York doctor.

Both cases could end up being appealed all the way to the Supreme Court.

Natalie Birnbaum is with the Reproductive Health Initiative for Telehealth Equity and Solutions.

These health care providers are operating and utilizing the protection of their shield laws in their states and the providers that are the targets of these lawsuits are operating under the scope of practice of their licenses in those states.

The North Carolina General Assembly has overridden a governor's veto of legislation, making it harder to approve new environmental regulations.

The legislature will now have to approve rules estimated to cost industry more than $20 million over five years.

Stephanie Schweiker with the North Carolina Conservation Network says it'll grind rulemaking to a halt and harm efforts to do things like remove dangerous chemicals from tap water.

Our state is really dealing with the impacts of chemicals in our drinking water, and the RAINS Act will make it a lot less likely that we get strong rules in place that will give families safe water to drink.

I'm Zamone Perez for Pacifica Network and Public News Service.

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