Bank Rescues, California Central Valley Floods, Imran Khan Rally in Pakistan
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Bailout is a dangerous word in American politics. Yeah, so how's President Biden making his administration's banking sector intervention palatable to voters? It's all about branding, and right now, no one's using the word bailout. I'm Steve Inskeep with Leila Fadl, and this is Up First from NPR News. ♪

Wind, snow, and relentless rain have drenched California. We'll keep continue fighting. We're just at the mercy of what the water wants to do. How bad is the damage to farmlands and the breadbasket state? And supporters of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan gather for a rally. What are their demands? Stay with us. We'll give you the news you need to start your day.

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The history of bank bailouts seems to be informing the way President Biden is approaching banks today. It's a history of anger. You may recall this. In 2008, the United States spent hundreds of billions of dollars to face the financial crisis, and people really did not like the spending. Congress even rejected the bailout once before passing it.

And that anger lasted. It was the backdrop to the rise of the Tea Party movement on the right, Occupy Wall Street on the left, and the years that followed. And what came after that was Donald Trump's presidency built in part on anger against the government. Which could explain something the Biden administration is doing now. They've intervened in the banking sector after two regional banks failed, but have insisted this is not a bailout.

out. And PR's Asma Khalid has been reporting on this political strategy and she joins me now. Hi, Asma. Hi there. Good morning. Good morning. So let's start with what the White House has been doing.

Well, they stepped in the other week to rescue these two mid-sized banks, Silicon Valley Bank and Signature. And the White House explanation for this is that they did that not because they were specifically targeting those two banks, but broadly to stabilize the economy, the banking system as a whole, that they were worried about workers, jobs and small businesses. And they are also repeatedly insisting from the president on down that there are not taxpayer dollars on the hook.

I will say, you know, that is up for debate. There are some, you know, who would say that indirectly consumers might end up footing some of this bill. But arguably, I think that this messaging is a keen, you know, sense that there is a lesson learned from 2008. I spoke with Jim Messina, who led Barack Obama's re-election campaign, and they had to navigate some of the fallout of the financial crisis at that time. The average voter views 2008 as...

as a bunch of rich Wall Street people did a bunch of bad things. No one went to jail and the taxpayers had to pay for it. And Layla, look, you know, I think as a result, Washington politics are still haunted by those decisions from 08. Yeah, and American voters don't really like the idea of a bailout. But whether you use the word bailout or not, the government is stepping in to prevent a bank from failing, which is kind of the definition of a bailout.

And some Republicans are pouncing to point that out and blame the Biden administration for all that led to this, right? Well, we're certainly seeing Republicans make that point, right? In the last week, I will say a number of Republicans who are specifically eyeing the 2024 presidency have made this argument. Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, former Vice President Mike Pence, and former President Donald Trump himself all refer to the intervention as a bailout.

Some Republicans are also trying to conflate the bank situation with broader economic anxiety around inflation. And a White House official I spoke with sees this as a distraction, they will say, from the Trump era, loosening of rules on smalls to midsize banks. And of course, Leila, that is the argument that some Democrats are making for why these two banks failed. But look...

People are negative about the broader economy. A Democratic pollster told me that even though the country is not in a recession, two-thirds of Americans think we are, and that is a concerning point for Democrats. Okay, so talk to me about the political consequences then for Biden.

Yeah, you know, it's not just the semantics around the word bailout. It's about containing the crisis itself. You know, multiple political analysts told me one of the key lessons from 2008 is that the government responded too slowly. Brendan Buck was an aide to former Republican House Speaker John Boehner. I think this administration probably realizes that the biggest risk is erring on the side of doing too little. And that if this is a moment that

we get through because they act aggressively and it's forgotten about in a few months, then this is not a problem for them. In other words, the biggest risk in doing too little is that bank failures could spread and that could alter the course of Biden's presidency. And PR's Asma Khalid, thanks so much. Happy to do it. California is drenched and it's not over yet. The latest of many storms moved over much of the state yesterday, bringing more snow, more wind and more rain.

I've never been in a hurricane, but I can't imagine this is much different right now. That's reporter Evan Cernofsky of local station KTVU reporting on the scene. State officials are just now trying to assess the damage, including to farms. NPR's Jasmine Garst traveled through affected parts of California, and she joins us now. Good morning, Jasmine. Good morning. So, Jasmine, I know there's not a full picture yet, but can you give us an idea of what the damage has been to California's farms? Yeah.

Well, agriculture is one of the main industries in California. And we know that the Central Coast, for people who don't know, that's north of Los Angeles and south of San Francisco. That area has been hit particularly hard. We're talking about 20,000 acres of land.

highly productive farmland underwater. That was complicated by a levee break. And it's berries season right now. A lot of those crops are underwater. So if you love raspberries and blackberries, brace yourself. Experts say consumers nationwide can expect higher prices for the next month or so.

Okay, so that's the Central Coast, and you spent some time also in the San Joaquin Valley, which is in the middle of the state. Tell me what you found there. Well, it's been hit really hard as well. I spoke to one farmer. His name is Johnny Dykstra from Tulare, California. That's in the San Joaquin Valley, and he's mainly a dairy farmer. He provides milk for ice cream companies and restaurants nationwide, and he told me he's running out of dry land for his cows.

I call it like our Elmo. It's kind of our last stand is doing everything we can to make sure that the cows stay dry and stay safe. So, I mean, we'll keep continue fighting. We're just at the mercy of what the water wants to do. You know, he was very emotional, not just about his own situation, but about his workers whose livelihoods are being threatened. So what do farm workers do if they can't farm?

Well, farm work is not a job that pays a lot. And when I spoke to the United Farm Workers, they told me they estimate the storms have cost workers one or two months worth of wages. I spent some time for this assignment with the mayor of Lindsay, Hippolyto Angel Saros. His town is known for its olive groves, many of which are now just lakes.

And he told me he sees this firsthand. His own mother is an agricultural worker. And she couldn't even go to work because the streets were flooded. You know, a lot of these people, they're unfortunately living paycheck to paycheck, you know, barely getting

given a livable wage, you know, and so they can't just sit at home and wait until the weather passes. They have to bring some bread to the table. And so for farm workers, there's not insurance. There's not much of a safety net. California Governor Gavin Newsom has pledged

to assist farm workers. The details of how are still pretty unclear. What is clear in this area is that people need help and they need help fast. NPR's Jasmine Garst joining us from California. Thank you so much. Thank you.

And now to Pakistan, where political tensions are running high. You could almost say Pakistani politics are continuously tense, a history of coups and protests and executions and insurgencies and movements. But this latest episode is distinctive. The government has been investigating a former prime minister, Imran Khan. They've accused him of corruption, even as he tries to reclaim power.

His party has staged protests, which have continued up to now, prompting talks this week that the government could outlaw Khan's party. NPR's Dia Hadid is following the story in Islamabad, and she joins us now. Good morning. Good morning. Okay, so tell us what's happening right now.

Well, the Pakistani parliament is meeting today to discuss the political situation. But as Steve mentioned, local media suggests that they'll consider outlawing the party that's headed by the former prime minister Imran Khan. And that comes after clashes last week between Khan supporters and security forces when police tried to arrest the former prime minister. And there were clashes again on Saturday outside the courts in the capital Islamabad.

And since then, there's been mass arrests of Imran Khan supporters. And one of Khan's close allies is a fellow called Tamer Jagra. He's a former provincial finance minister. And his warning that outlawing Khan's party will be a mistake. It will further erode the political temperature in the country. And that's not good for Pakistan, given how volatile the political situation is.

It will make Imran Khan even more popular because it will make the bias of the government even more naked.

Even more naked. And as parliament plans to meet, Khan will be holding a large rally in Lahore. That's Pakistan's second largest city, so it's likely to be a show of muscle. So this sounds like a really worrying trajectory then. This is a popular political figure. How did it all get here? Well, let's step back a bit. Khan was ousted from power in April last year in a no-confidence vote. He didn't have the numbers. He's been calling for elections since then, but

A few months ago, it became increasingly clear that Khan's popularity is on the rise and the government's popularity was tanking. And so the government doesn't want to lose power. But also, analysts say the government's cracking down hard on Imran Khan because he pursued a crackdown against them when he was in power. And if there are free and fair elections, Khan's party now would likely have the largest number of votes. And so that cycle of revenge continues.

I hope better sense prevails. And I think at the moment we're really grasping at hope.

I fear more violence because obviously Imran Khan is not backing down, despite all his indications that he's willing to talk. Nadia, as we heard Steve say, Pakistan has faced many crises over the years. Why is this more worrying than other times?

So analysts say this is an important moment because Pakistan is facing multiple snowballing crises right now. The country's on the brink of default. Inflation's soaring. People are skipping meals to get by. Five million people are on the brink of famine. Climate change is battering the country with heat waves and floods.

And all the forces that once helped smooth over the country's problems just don't appear to be working. Pakistan's military appears to be openly divided about Imran Khan. So are the courts, so are lawyers, and so are people. NPR's Dia Hadid in Islamabad. Thank you so much. Thank you, Leila.

And that's Up First for Wednesday, March 22nd. I'm Layla Faldin. And I'm Steve Inskeep. Up First is produced by Katie Klein and Ben Abrams. Our editors are Olivia Hampton and Alice Wolfley. And our technical director is Zach Coleman. Join us tomorrow. And if you like your news on demand, you can check out the NPR One app where you get a mix of local, national, and international news wherever you go and whenever you want it. And hear podcasts based on what you like. Download NPR One.