Iran Ceasefire Deadline, Labor Secretary Out, Hearing For New Fed Chair

Talks to extend the ceasefire between Iran and The US are still up in the air. Iran says it won't negotiate under threat, but president Trump says he's sending negotiators anyway. Will Iran send a delegation for talks? I'm Leila Faudel. That's Michelle Martin, and this is Up First from NPR News. Another Trump administration official is out. Labor secretary, Lori Chavez de Rima, resigned amid an investigation of misconduct. Some outlets reported it included drinking on the job and an alleged affair with her bodyguard. She's the third cabinet member gone in less than two months. And president Trump's pick to lead the Federal Reserve faces his confirmation hearing today, but a key Republican senator is threatening to block Kevin Warsh's confirmation until the justice department drops its investigation of the current Fed chair. Stay with us. We'll give you the news you need to start your day. This week on sources and methods, the latest on a Pentagon controversy. Defense secretary Pete Hegseth takes the highly unusual step of personally intervening to block military promotions, plus the latest escalation in Iran after an American helicopter is shot down. We digest the week's biggest national security headlines on sources and methods from NPR. The ceasefire agreement between The US, Israel, and Iran expires tomorrow. President Trump told CNBC this morning that he does not want to extend the ceasefire. Well, I don't wanna do that. We don't have that much time because by the time both parties get theirs, you know, they just got the okay to go forward, which I knew they were gonna do anyway. That's as the status of further peace talks to extend that agreement remain unclear. And in Lebanon, a different temporary ceasefire agreement to pause the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah is in place, but people there are watching what happens between The US and Iran. For more on all that, we're joined by NPR's Kat Lansdorf, who is in Southern Lebanon. Kat, welcome. Thanks for joining us. Hey. Good morning. So let's start with the possible peace talks between The US and Iran. Where do those stand right now? Yeah. President Trump has said that he is sending a delegation to Islamabad in Pakistan where those talks are supposed to happen. But as of now, Iran has not confirmed that it will be participating. Yesterday, Trump said that a ceasefire extension between The US and Israel and Iran is, quote, highly unlikely, but also said that he's not under pressure to make a deal and that one with Iran will happen, quote, very quickly. Meanwhile, Iran's parliamentary speaker said Tehran is, quote, prepared to reveal new cards on the battlefield. And this is all happening as the Strait Of Hormuz is still closed to most commercial vessels. Yeah. Basically, The US is blocking the transit of Iranian cargo ships in international waters around Iran as Iran is blocking most ships from passing through the strait. Neither seems to be budging on those …