Comey and James Indictments Dismissed, New Ukraine Peace Plan, Pressure On Venezuela

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🗓️ 25 November 2025

⏱️ 13 minutes

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Summary

A federal judge dismissed the indictments President Trump ordered up against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. The judge found the prosecutor in the case was improperly appointed.

Europeans have offered their own proposal to end the war in Ukraine. How is it different from President Trump’s 28-point proposal?

Also, the Trump administration named Venezuela’s president the leader of a terror group.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	A federal judge dismissed the indictments President Trump ordered up against two people he didn't like.
0:06.9	The judge found the prosecutor was improperly appointed. What does the ruling mean for Trump's
0:11.5	campaign of retribution against his critics? I'm Michelle Martin with Steve Inskeep, and this is up first from NPR News.
0:20.9	Europeans have offered their own proposal to end the war in Ukraine.
0:24.6	Ukrainian President Zelensky said it's a plan that his country could work with.
0:28.4	How is it different from President Trump's 28-point proposal?
0:31.7	Also, the Trump administration named Venezuela's president the leader of a terror group.
0:36.6	One analyst sees a pretext for a
0:38.8	possible attack. We're definitely closer to military intervention. How far has an anti-drug
0:45.1	campaign evolved toward something else? Stay with us. We've got the news you need to start your day.
1:00.7	President Trump's bid to prosecute his critics ran afoul of the law.
1:08.6	A judge throughout the criminal case against former FBI director James Comey, she did the same for the indictment of Latisha James, the Attorney General of New York State.
1:11.5	Both had been indicted by a lawyer who was willing to follow Trump's demand to pursue criminal charges after other prosecutors found no reason for a case.
1:17.0	The judge found the lawyer was improperly appointed. NPR's Kerry Johnson has been following this
1:21.6	story. Carrie, good morning. Good morning, Steve. Okay, why was the prosecutor not legitimately
1:26.2	in that job?
1:33.7	The judge found the process was invalid that if the Trump administration wanted to pick a U.S. attorney, it had to go through the right steps.
1:36.4	Typically, that would be nomination and confirmation by the Senate.
1:40.7	This woman, Lindsay Halligan, has no prior experience as a prosecutor, but she was
1:45.9	installed as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. That's one of the most important
1:51.2	offices in the country on orders from President Trump. And she got the job only after the White
1:57.3	House forced out a career prosecutor. He expressed doubts about bringing criminal charges against the former FBI director Jim Comey and New York Attorney General Tish James, both prominent critics of the president who played a role in investigating him.
	...

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