This Week's News Roundup  

Written by Max Balzer, 02/03/2025

Planes down in the U.S., The Canada-U.S. Trade War, and The Grammys — Last Week’s News Roundup

January has been a crazy month in a lot of ways — aside, even, from feeling like a year long — and this past week had too much news to keep track of. If you fell out of the loop, here are a couple of things that went down around the world last week that you may have missed.

Planes down in the U.S.

On Wednesday, January 29, in the late evening, an American Airlines regional jet was on final approach at Washington D.C.’s Reagan National Airport when it collided with a large U.S. Army helicopter operating an evaluation flight. The incident occurred just before 9:00 P.M. EST as the plane was just a few hundred feet from landing at one of America’s most important airports.

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is the closest airport to the nation’s capital, just 4 kilometres from the National Mall in Virginia. Between the airport and the city lies the Potomac River, an essential part of the airport’s logistics. The airspace within the borders of the District of Columbia is very restricted to commercial and personal aircraft, so planes landing at the airport must make a complicated approach down the river avoiding the restricted airspace. 

This flight in particular, getting ready to land from Wichita, Kansas, was approaching from the southeast when it collided with the large military helicopter coming from the northeast. The aircrafts collided, there was a bright flash visible, and the aircrafts fell into the water. A total of 67 people died, 64 from the jet and 3 from the helicopter, in the worst aircraft accident in the U.S. since 2009. 

Just 48 hours later, when tensions were still high following the first major civil aviation disaster in years, another plane went down — this time in Philadelphia. An air ambulance carrying a child and her mother on their way back to Mexico after care at Shriners Hospitals for Children. The flight was regarded as an ‘angel flight,’ taking the girl and her mother home to Tijuana after receiving care at the non-profit hospital which relies on donations to treat children whose families would not be able to afford treatment otherwise.

The flight took off from a small airport in Northeast Philly, taking flight for 40 seconds before crashing into a local shopping centre. All 6 people on board died, as well as one person on the ground. Over 20 were injured, and homes and businesses were severely impacted by fire that ensued after the plane reached the ground.

The National Transportation Safety Board has ongoing investigations for both incidents. While it may sound as though two plane crashes in two days indicates differently, air travel is statistically the safest mode of transportation available today. These investigations will help get to the bottom of what exactly happened in these incidents, whether it was staffing shortages, pilot error, an emergency on board, or something entirely different.

The Canada-U.S. Trade War

One of the pillars of President Donald Trump’s campaign platform was encouraging “America First” manufacturing, retail, energy, and more. The President made good on his promise this week, announcing sweeping tariffs on Canada and Mexico, two of the U.S.’s biggest trading partners.

The tariffs President Trump announced included 25% on all goods imported from Mexico and 25% on most goods from Canada, with a lower 10% on Canadian energy imports. The problem with the use of tariffs is that the exporting country doesn’t exactly foot the bill — the importing country does. When a country charges a company from another country a tariff on a product the latter is exporting, the company will increase their price by the tariff percentage and the goods will become that much more expensive for the importer.

The President’s action this week will increase costs on products imported to the United States, putting further strain on the already expensive retail market. However, in retaliation, Canada and Mexico imposed counter-tariffs on the United States, trying to fast-track to the end of the trade war between three close trade partners. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau gave an ultimatum in a speech Saturday night, where he announced the counter-tariffs, saying “now is also the time to choose Canada. There are many ways for you to do your part. It might mean checking the labels at the supermarket and picking Canadian-made products. It might mean changing your summer vacation plans to stay here in Canada…”

Whether these tariffs will result in Canada being the 51st State, breaking off from its trade agreement with the United States, or something else entirely remains to be seen. After a call between U.S. President Trump and Mexican President Sheinbaum on Feb 3, the U.S. has agreed to rescind the tariffs as Mexico sends 10,000 troops to the Southern border. The U.S.’s remaining tariffs take effect tomorrow, February 4. 

The Grammys

Last night, Sunday, February 2, were the 67th Annual Grammy Awards. It was a long, action-packed show, clocking in at over 3 hours and 35 minutes, and there was no shortage of surprises. The recent Los Angeles wildfires cast a dark cloud over the ceremony, having destroyed entire neighbourhoods in the entertainment capital of the country. The show worked this in, with tributes to Los Angeles’ communities and the first responders who helped pull the city through the tragedy.

The recipients of the four big awards of the night were surprising to say the least — Best New Artist, the least surprising among them, went to Chappell Roan, known for songs like “Good Luck, Babe!” and “Pink Pony Club.” Record of the Year, presented by last year’s winner, Miley Cyrus, was won by Kendrick Lamar for “Not Like Us,” an upset in a category filled with the most popular songs from the last year. The Grammys’ songwriting award, Song of the Year, similarly went to Lamar’s “Not Like Us.”

This year’s Main Ceremony only included the presentation of nine total awards — the rest were presented during the Premiere Ceremony — so the show was chock-full of performances. All of the Best New Artist nominees — Benson Boone, Sabrina Carpenter, Doechii, Khruangbin, RAYE, Chappell Roan, Shaboozey, and Teddy Swims — performed their signature songs. Plus, performances by Billie Eilish, Charli xcx, Shakira, and The Weeknd, were interspersed throughout the show. Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars, fresh off their Record of the Year-nominated song “Die With a Smile,” performed The Mamas & the Papas’ “California Dreaming.”

There are 94 total Grammys, and with only nine presented during the Main Ceremony, the Academy went all out. Taylor Swift, dressed in a red Vivienne Westwood gown, presented the Grammy for Best Country Album. It was the Grammy Swift won 15 years ago, so presenting it felt all the more sentimental. She presented the Grammy to no other than Beyoncé for her country-inspired album “Cowboy Carter,” a recognition she remarked that even she did not expect. 

The biggest award of the night, Album of the Year, went to Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter,” in a shock presentation done by members of the Los Angeles Fire Department. “Cowboy Carter” wasn’t a frontrunner to win the award, though Rolling Stone predicted it would. This is Beyoncé’s first Album of the Year and comes just one year after her husband, Jay-Z, accepted an honorary award onstage at the 2024 Grammys and lamented that the woman with the most Grammy wins in history has never won album of the year.