My Country, 'Tis of Thee

Did Trump Win the Battle Over the Smithsonian?

Sun, 13 Sep 2026 08:26:34 PDT

Throughout his second term, President Trump has criticized the Smithsonian Institution for what he says is an insufficient celebration of American history. A presidential aide derided the Smithsonian's secretary, Lonnie G. Bunch III, as a "rabid partisan," a liar and a failure. So when Bunch announced on Tuesday that he would be resigning, it was another victory for the Trump administration, which had previously forced the resignation of the director of the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery and the alteration of wall text that referred to Trump's impeachments. But even a presidential pressure campaign has its limits.

Federal Judge Rules Trump DHS Plan for 50 Pct. FEMA Staffing Cuts Was Unlawful

Sun, 13 Sep 2026 08:13:32 PDT

A federal judge has ruled that a plan by the Trump administration to slash staffing at the federal agency tasked with responding to disasters by 50 percent was unlawful. U.S. District Judge Susan Illston wrote in her opinion that top Homeland Security officials late last year directed FEMA's leadership to submit a staffing plan that included a 50 percent staffing cut even though the agency's own supervisors objected. "Frankly, the FEMA staffing plan number appears as if pulled from thin air," wrote Illston. In the opinion, Illston wrote that it was clear that the government violated rules established after 2005's Hurricane Katrina that put decisions on staffing levels squarely in the hands of FEMA, not the Department of Homeland Security and that prevented DHS from "substantially" reducing the "functions" of FEMA.

The Secret Ballot Has Been an Article of Faith in U.S. Elections. That's Being Tested in Georgia

Sun, 13 Sep 2026 08:11:19 PDT

Security researchers say rapid advances in artificial intelligence are making it more critical to address a flaw in Georgia's voting equipment that can allow voters to be matched to their ballots after they have been cast. The vulnerability does not allow votes to be changed or cast doubt on election results, but it could let someone see how others voted. That is important because ballot secrecy is a fundamental right under the state constitution and violations could create an opening for legal challenges. Georgia, a presidential battleground with one of the nation's most closely watched U.S. Senate races this year, is the only place where the system is used statewide. That, combined with an open records law that has allowed access to key documents, creates a "perfect storm."

The Immigration Briefing: Chaos at Miami Courts, the End of TPS, Body Cameras on ICE

Sun, 13 Sep 2026 08:06:29 PDT

South Florida immigration courts descend into upheaval; Haitians there meet the end of TPS with fear and resilience; and we check in on the long-delayed promise to outfit ICE agents with body cameras.

Could AI Kill Us All? Professor Weighs in on Former Anthropic Employee's Claim

Sun, 13 Sep 2026 08:05:14 PDT

NPR's Ayesha Rascoe asks University of Southampton's Thomas Dekeyser about worries AI is becoming fatally out of control.

How Trump Is Wielding Power to Stifle Speech

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 08:17:48 PDT

The Justice Department has sent F.B.I. agents to reporters' homes to serve subpoenas and, in at least one case, flashed a warrant to seize devices. The Pentagon has fired the editor and publisher of its traditionally independent newspaper, Stars and Stripes and blocked access to other journalists who refused to sign pledges that would limit their reporting. Regulatory agencies are using their powers to pressure media organizations over their content. The administration has stripped funding from public television and radio. Angry over stories he does not like, President Trump has sued major news organizations and the White House has taken control of the previously independent press pool that tracks the president, deciding which outlets can participate. Almost 20 months into Trump's second term, his long-running media clashes have grown into a sweeping campaign to control speech in America that stands out for applying so many levers, so fast, all at once.

Calls for Investigation After Video Shows ICE Officers Using Batons on Protesters

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 08:15:48 PDT

Political leaders in Maryland are calling for investigations into the conduct of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers as they clashed with protesters during a federal operation in a local community. Residents of Frederick, a city about 50 miles north-west of Baltimore, are still shaken more than a week after ICE officers arrived in numerous vehicles and could be seen on video footage using batons on members of the public and driving their cars on to the sidewalk toward people.

As DOJ Went After Protesters for Felony Assault, Juries and Judges Were Unconvinced

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 08:12:20 PDT

The U.S. Justice Department failed to secure felony convictions against most of the 102 protesters arrested in four major cities last year on charges of assaulting federal authorities -- a record far below the norm in federal assault prosecutions. All of the dozen cases that made it to trial, mostly in Los Angeles, ended in acquittal, mistrial or dismissal. Experts say that's surprising for a department known for its ability to win at trial. The last three felony assault cases, in LA and Portland, will go to trial this fall. The dismal record has raised questions about rushed investigations and aggressive charging tactics by prosecutors under pressure to show the Trump administration is cracking down on people who assault law enforcement. The fact that the government failed to win any felony assault convictions at trial calls into question "whether or not these charges should have ever been brought in the first place," said Mary Fan, a former federal prosecutor and law professor at the University of Washington.

Trump Asks Smithsonian to Install George Washington Statues and Exhibit

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 08:08:36 PDT

In late Friday night social media posts, President Trump called on the Smithsonian to install a colossal statue of George Washington outside the National Museum of American History and a special exhibit honoring the nation's first president. Trump asked for an exhibit beginning now and continuing through Feb. 22, 2032, the 300th anniversary of Washington's birth. For Constitution Day on Sept. 17, Trump asked the institution to install the 11-foot statue of Washington featured at the recent Freedom 250 IndyCar race in the museum's Flag Hall. He also wanted a 30-foot statue of Washington to replace the current "Infinity" sculpture by New York artist Jose de Rivera, commissioned by the federal government and installed in 1967. The Smithsonian operates outside the executive branch and its leadership is overseen by a Board of Regents that includes Vice President JD Vance, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, a bipartisan group of lawmakers and a group of citizens. Trump in March revealed his intention to force changes at the Smithsonian Institution with an executive order that targeted funding for programs that advanced "divisive narratives" and "improper ideology."

Democrats and Republicans Can Agree: There Should Be More Monetary Support for Child Care

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 08:04:35 PDT

The Trump administration is eyeing a proposal to give childcare subsidies to married couples with a stay-at-home parent. Some Democrats have a similar proposal, with one major difference.

Saudi Arabia Forced to Shut Down Crucial Red Sea Pipeline After Attacks

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 08:02:10 PDT

The Iran-backed Houthi militia captured a strategic Red Sea port city this week. NPR's Scott Simon talks to April Longley Alley of the Washington Institute.

Twenty-five Years On, a Nation Still Mourns

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 08:00:16 PDT

The attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, were attacks on America. But America is made up of the world. The 2,977 people who were killed that day included people from more than 90 nations -- Canada, India, Great Britain, South Korea, the Dominican Republic and more. That's America.

Week in Politics: Trump Attends Republican Midterm Convention and Pentagon's 9/11 Memorial Service

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 07:54:11 PDT

President Trump attended a 9/11 memorial service at the Pentagon on Friday after speaking on both nights of a Republican gathering in Dallas.

Hillary Clinton Reflects on the Losses and Lessons of 9/11

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 18:09:17 PDT

Twenty-five years ago, Hillary Clinton was the junior senator for the state of New York. This week, she is reflecting on what's been lost and what she has learned since. In her essay for The Atlantic, "What the Aftermath of 9/11 Taught Me," Clinton looks back at how leaders handled public health, national security and transparency after the attacks. She joined Amna Nawaz to discuss more.

Contractor Blames Its Own Repairs, Not Vandals, for Reflecting Pool Failure

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 18:07:22 PDT

The contractor that renovated the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool has told the Trump administration that errors in its own work and flaws in the repair plan, not vandalism, caused the pool's new blue liner to peel and break loose, according to government documents reviewed by The New York Times. President Trump has repeatedly blamed vandals wielding knives or box cutters for damage to the pool's "American flag blue" liner, even after the Justice Department dropped charges that it had brought against people accused of vandalizing the national landmark. But the documents, which have not previously been reported, make clear that the contractor, Atlantic Industrial Coatings, found problems in both the design and the execution of the renovation. The documents include Atlantic's reports to the government as well as daily progress updates from the National Park Service over the past two months.

Saudi Arabia Shuts Down a Pipeline as Houthis Seize an Island, Opening a New Front in the Iran War

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 18:04:05 PDT

Saudi Arabia said Friday it shut down a major pipeline a day after it was attacked by drones and Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi rebels captured a strategic island at the southern entrance to the Red Sea, two officials said, opening a new front in the Iran war. The Houthis made their biggest territorial gains in years along the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, one of the world's key shipping lanes. The advance could boost Iran's strategy of driving up world oil and gas prices to pressure the United States.

As Diseases Loom, CDC's Response to Measles Deaths Stirs Fears About Agency's Reliability

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 18:03:10 PDT

The worst measles resurgence in the U.S. in decades keeps growing. Vaccination rates keep falling. Flu, Covid-19 and RSV keep coming back. Against this backdrop, many public health experts are worried about the reliability of health information coming from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Federal Civil Rights Data About Students Is Finally Out. It's Different Under Trump

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 08:05:41 PDT

A massive trove of data about the civil rights of American students was quietly published on the U.S. Education Department's Web site this week. The Civil Rights Data Collection includes information about which groups of students are being bullied, which students across the country can access Advanced Placement classes and how students with disabilities are treated at school, among other things. The CRDC was supposed to be published at the end of last year, according to the agency's own deadline. The Trump administration did not answer questions from NPR about what was behind the delay. The Office for Civil Rights, which oversees the CRDC, cut its staff by half after the second Trump administration took office. The administration has also announced it will move OCR to the Justice Department. In another departure from the past, the Trump administration has been using OCR to prioritize actions such as cracking down on initiatives related to diversity, equity and inclusion and investigating schools that allow transgender athletes to compete in women's sports.

Trump Administration Allows TPS to Continue for Salvadorans -- for Now

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 07:52:04 PDT

Roughly 170,000 immigrants from El Salvador covered by Temporary Protected Status can still legally work and live in the U.S. -- for now. The Trump administration declined this week to terminate TPS for Salvadorans, even though it has done so for people from other countries like Haiti and Syria. But it also hasn't said whether it will extend the protection in the future. In a statement, the Department of Homeland Security said it will make an announcement on Salvadoran TPS, "at the appropriate time." The lack of action means that TPS recipients still have legal status, but their lives remain in limbo.

Nancy Pelosi Reflects on How the World Has Changed Since 9/11

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 07:50:44 PDT

The last person NPR's Steve Inskeep interviewed before the 9/11 attacks was an up-and-coming Democratic lawmaker named Nancy Pelosi. Now, they discuss how the world changed after that day.

Iran-Backed Houthis Capture Red Sea Port, Putting More Pressure on Oil Markets

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 16:09:21 PDT

Yemen appears to be spiraling back to war after the Iran-backed Houthis seized a strategic port city from allies of the internationally recognized government. Mokha lies on the Bab el-Mandeb, a critical shipping chokepoint that is the gateway to the Red Sea.

Appeals Court Hands Trump a Loss on Mail Voting as Supreme Court Considers His Executive Order

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 16:03:29 PDT

An appeals court on Thursday upheld a block on President Trump's executive order limiting mail voting, a decision that comes as the Supreme Court considers the same case and states have already started sending out ballots for the high-stakes midterm elections. The three-judge panel refused to lift a preliminary injunction against the order issued last week by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani. It prohibits the U.S. Postal Service from implementing Trump's directive. The Postal Service has said it would not deliver ballots from states that did not pre-clear their envelope design with the federal government and submit a list of voters to an online portal, which has yet to be activated. Election officials warn that it's impossible to comply with those terms, especially with the first mail ballots already being sent out in Alabama, North Carolina and Wisconsin.

Denver Sues to Block Armed ICE Agents at Voting Sites

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:24:48 PDT

The City of Denver, Latino civil rights organizations and government watch groups asked a federal judge on Thursday to block the Trump administration from allowing armed federal immigration agents to serve warrants at polling sites. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., asserts that Markwayne Mullin, the homeland security secretary and David Venturella, the acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, are allowing federal agents to enforce civil immigration laws at polling locations as a matter of policy. The plaintiffs argue that the practice violates federal laws protecting free and fair elections. "The presence of federal force at the polls interferes with the smooth administration of elections at the local level," the lawsuit states. "It disrupts voting and makes it more difficult for state and local election officials and law enforcement to do their jobs by making polling places spaces of confrontation." The Department of Homeland Security and ICE did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

D.O.J. Escalates Threats to States in Battle for Election Records

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:23:45 PDT

The Department of Justice sent threatening letters to at least 30 top election officials across the country, expanding its efforts to gain access to private voter data and election records. The letters warned states not to destroy any records related to the 2024 election, explaining that their chief election officials "are currently under investigation" and subject to "ongoing litigation." The notices come amid a barrage of efforts by President Trump and his administration, which have been fruitless so far, to find evidence of widespread voter fraud. It is not clear what the department is investigating, nor whether its probe is criminal or civil in nature. The letters do not cite any criminal statutes. Instead, they point to some of the same claims made previously as part of the administration's ongoing effort to identify fraud in the nation's elections, including machine anomalies and noncitizen voting. In court, the Justice Department has tried to force states to hand over unredacted voter lists, including personal information like driver's license numbers and partial Social Security numbers. The Justice Department has sued 30 different states for this data. They've lost 23 of those cases and have won none. Decisions are pending in the rest.

ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Says Interview With Senate Candidate Talarico Will Not Air on Network

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:20:03 PDT

ABC late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel said an interview with Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico on Thursday will air on YouTube and not during the network broadcast, citing threats from the Federal Communications Commission. In January, the ‌Republican-led FCC said that daytime and late-night TV talk shows are no longer considered "bona fide" news programs that are exempt from equal time rules that require them to give airtime to opposing candidates. Kimmel noted that for decades talk shows have been free to interview political candidates without being subject to those rules. Talarico is running in Texas against Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton in a race that could decide control of the U.S. Senate in ⁠November. Kimmel noted that he had previously interviewed U.S. President Trump as a candidate in 2016. "Now that he is president, his FCC threatened me, threatened our show, threatened our network ABC, our affiliates, our local stations, based on simple traditional editorial decisions -- guest bookings it would seem they don't like," Kimmel said on Wednesday's broadcast. ABC declined to comment. The FCC did not immediately comment.

Houthis Seize Key Yemeni Red Sea Port, Sources Say, Threatening Global Energy Flows

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:17:33 PDT

Iran-aligned Houthis seized control of Yemen's port city of Mocha on Thursday, military sources said, posing a further threat to global energy supplies hours after President Trump said he expected the war to end after mid-term elections. Four Yemeni government military sources said the Houthis had ‌gained further leverage over the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the southern outlet of the Red Sea and one of the world's most important shipping routes and were launching attacks on the strategic islands of Hanish. Later, two Yemeni government sources reported the Houthis had reached the islands. If the Houthis impose a stranglehold over the waterway, on the opposite side of the Arabian peninsula from the Strait of Hormuz, it could give their sponsor Iran a critical advantage in the war with the United States, reducing supplies through a second major transit corridor and sending oil prices surging.

U.S. Home Sales Weaken to Slowest Pace in More Than a Year as Mortgage Rates, Home Prices Climb

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:15:52 PDT

Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes declined in August to their slowest annual pace in more than a year as home shoppers grappled with rising mortgage rates and home prices. Existing home sales fell 2 percent last month from July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.98 million units, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday. This is the third straight monthly decline. Sales also fell 1.2 percent compared with August last year. The latest sales tally is just shy of the 4 million pace economists were expecting, according to FactSet. "It's not a surprise home sales and mortgage rates move in the opposite direction and we have seen mortgage rates rising, rising, rising from February," said Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist. Home sales have been mostly hovering close to a 4-million annual pace going back to 2023, far short of the historic norm that is closer to 5.2-million. The last time the annual sales pace came in below 4 million was June 2025.

Trump Promises $500 Obamacare Rebate Checks for 1M Enrollees in 30 States

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:12:11 PDT

The Trump administration is promising $500 rebate checks to an estimated 1 million Affordable Care Act enrollees across 30 states, whom the White House alleges were overcharged by the Biden administration for exchange fees. The promise comes after Trump pledged Wednesday to send every American adult $5,000 if Republicans retain control of the House and Senate in the midterm elections and as affordability has become a central issue for voters heading into November. In a fact sheet, the White House claimed that former President Joe Biden's administration "accumulated a significant surplus of funds that were not used to benefit the Americans who paid these higher premiums." It is unclear where the money for the rebates would come from and whether it requires congressional approval for disbursement.

U.S. Supreme Court Again Rejects Push to Use Trump-Backed Congressional Map in Missouri

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:09:34 PDT

The U.S. Supreme Court again rejected a push to use Missouri congressional maps backed by President Trump on Thursday, a loss for Republicans trying to maintain control of the House in the pivotal midterm elections. The decision appears to clear the way for the state to use the old map. There were no noted dissents in the brief order. It comes after a pitched court battle shortly before ballots begin going out for the November elections. The new map was drawn to help Republicans gain an additional seat. The Supreme Court order came hours after a federal judge allowed Missouri's top court to proceed with a contempt hearing against Republican Secretary of State Denny Hoskins. Missouri's battle over its congressional districts has spanned more than a year and spawned confusion over which districts will be in place for voters.

Immigration Court's Unusual Locations Raise Due Process Concerns

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:06:17 PDT

Unusual locations for immigration court hearings appear to be another tactic in a broader strategy to short-circuit immigrants' already-limited due process.

Missouri Secretary of State Could Be Held in Contempt Over Redistricting Map Fight

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:03:39 PDT

The Missouri Supreme Court is holding a hearing to determine if the Republican secretary of state should be held in contempt of court for using a redistricting map it rejected.

Missouri Clerk on What the Battle Over the State's Electoral Maps Means for Voters

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:00:22 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin asks Boone County, Missouri, clerk Brianna Lennon what the legal battle over the state's electoral maps means for voters there.

Missouri's Congressional Map Is Back Before the U.S. Supreme Court, Sowing Still More Confusion

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 07:56:39 PDT

A battle over Missouri's congressional districts vaulted back to the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday, two months before a pivotal November election that will determine control of Congress and affect the fate of President Trump's agenda. A series of conflicting court rulings has left a scar on Missouri -- and left voters befuddled and unsure which U.S. House districts they will be voting in and which candidates will appear on their ballots. Time is rapidly expiring to figure it out. Federal law sets a Sept. 19 deadline to mail absentee ballots to overseas citizens and military voters.

Trump, Hoping to Salvage Midterms, Makes Dubious Pledge to Give Every U.S. Adult $5,000 if GOP Wins

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 21:31:07 PDT

President Trump pledged Wednesday to send every American adult $5,000 if Republicans retain control of the House and Senate in the midterm elections, an extraordinary gambit to reverse his party's sagging fortunes in November. The dubious promise would likely cost more than $1 trillion and require congressional approval and would further exacerbate the country's nearly $1.8 trillion annual budget deficit and concerns about inflation. Within an hour, Vice President JD Vance appeared to try to walk back Trump's proposal -- at least in part -- by suggesting the dividend payments would not go to the wealthy. Vance suggested it could be paid for by U.S. tariff revenues, though the suggested payment dwarfs what the U.S. has taken in through the protectionist measures. The White House did not respond to a message seeking details.

As Midterms Approach, New Poll Finds That Few Americans Trust Campaigns or Trump

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 21:29:47 PDT

Americans are more skeptical of government information than they were a few years ago, with majorities now saying they have little or no trust in federal government information about elections and politics, foreign affairs or the environment, a new poll finds. The survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and USAFacts shows that while mistrust of government information has grown since 2024, it's also higher than it was at the end of President Trump's first term, underscoring how his recent attempts to dismantle parts of the federal bureaucracy may have affected public confidence in the executive branch, particularly among Democrats.

Trump Officials Propose Sweeping Changes to the Census That Would Reshape Voting Maps

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 21:27:44 PDT

The Trump administration is proposing major changes to how the U.S. government produces census results for the next national head count in 2030. While the plan faces likely legal challenges, such changes would affect the population numbers used to determine each state's share of representatives in Congress and votes in the Electoral College, redraw maps of voting districts for all levels of government and distribute federal funding for public services. The administration's proposal, which was released online Wednesday, calls for an unprecedented exclusion of non-U.S. citizens without a green card from a key set of 2030 census results that the 14th Amendment says must include the "whole number of persons in each state." Trump officials are also proposing to stop using the census to ask about people's race and ethnicity, a topic that the national tally has included since the first count in 1790.

Iran Signals Readiness to Escalate Fight in Face of Rising U.S. Pressure

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 08:00:37 PDT

Iran has signaled that it is willing to escalate its fight with the United States, with senior leaders issuing increasingly sharp warnings in recent days after attacking American warships for the first time. The country's leaders are taking a more aggressive approach as Iran faces mounting economic pressure and they worry that their grip on the Strait of Hormuz is slipping. The American blockade is making it nearly impossible for Iran to ship oil, its main money source. And in effect, Iran sees escalation as the primary leverage it has against the United States, analysts said, warning that the recent clashes could reignite a full-blown war.

Electronic Shelf Labels Likely to Cost Jobs and Drive Up Grocery Prices, Report Warns

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 07:54:36 PDT

The universal adoption of electronic shelf labels in grocery stores across the U.S. could cost tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in lost wages while further driving up grocery costs, according to a report released on Tuesday. An analysis by the AFL-CIO Tech Institute of the label manufacturers' own marketing materials found the universal adoption of electronic shelf labels, which are marketed to retailers as a cost-cutting measure, could cost workers between $1.6bn and $6.9bn in lost wages annually and affect between 44,223 and 191,633 jobs. The policy brief -- Priced Out, Pushed Out: Electronic Shelf Labels Raise Prices and Shrink Paychecks -- calls for a ban on electronic labels to protect consumers and workers. Manufacturers have hailed the labels as a way to collect huge amounts of personal data from customers, increase profits and cut labor costs.

Pills Are Keeping Abortion Accessible Even Where It's Banned. A Court Is Considering Restrictions

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 07:47:18 PDT

A panel of federal judges is set to hear arguments Wednesday over whether prescribing rules should be tightened for a key drug used in the most common abortion method in the United States, one of several ongoing efforts to restrict abortion access four years after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed states to decide the issue. The case before the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is one of three making its way through courts as abortion opponents try to clamp down on providers in states where abortion is legal from sending drugs for medication abortions into states where it is not. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration also says it's reviewing the rules and could call for a change.

Oil Rises Past $100 a Barrel After the Latest Wave of Middle East Attacks

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 07:46:08 PDT

The price of oil surpassed $100 a barrel for the first time since July after attacks on oil facilities and ships in the Middle East threatened to debilitate an already weakened supply chain. Brent crude, the international standard, jumped nearly 3 percent to $100.72 early Wednesday. U.S. benchmark crude gained 2.4 percent to $95.25 a barrel and U.S. gasoline prices rose sharply overnight. The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline ticked up 7 cents overnight to hit $4.22, now more than a dollar above what it cost at this point last year, according to AAA. Diesel prices, which can have an outsized impact on consumers because it is used in shipping and production, hit an all-time high Friday and has continued to climb since. The average price for a gallon reached $5.94 overnight and is now 9 cents higher than it was Friday.

Colin Kaepernick Talks About His New Memoir, 'The Perilous Fight'

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 07:44:41 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with former NFL player, author and activist Colin Kaepernick about his new memoir, "The Perilous Fight."

Ballot Seizures Seemed Impossible. Now Judges Are Training on What to Do if It Happens

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 07:42:24 PDT

The idea of federal law enforcement seizing ballots in the middle of an active election would have once been considered impossible. Now, as President Trump continues his unprecedented hunt for voter fraud, ballot seizures and search warrants are scenarios voting officials and the legal community are actively preparing for. One state election official, who did not have permission to speak publicly, told NPR their office has led three separate statewide trainings this year to prepare for the possibility of law enforcement seeking to take possession of ballots or election materials while the election is ongoing. And UCLA's Safeguarding Democracy Project released a guide Wednesday, shared first with NPR, to help judges navigate search warrant affidavits related to the voting process.

Missouri's Redistricting Fight in Turmoil After Two Different Federal Court Decisions

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 07:39:31 PDT

The redistricting that Republicans hoped would help them win a key House seat in Missouri is in limbo after contradictory court rulings.

Fighter Pilot Reflects on Order to Sacrifice Herself to Stop Flight 93 on 9/11

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 07:38:42 PDT

On 9/11, the passengers of United Airlines Flight 93 stormed the cockpit, forcing the hijacked jet to crash in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. But before the world knew of their bravery, members of Washington, D.C.'s Air National Guard were prepared to make their own sacrifice. Nick Schifrin brings us the story of pilot Heather "Lucky" Penney.

Lonnie Bunch on His Legacy and Protecting the Smithsonian From Political Pressure

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 16:06:13 PDT

Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch announced that he is stepping down as the institution he leads faces an escalating battle with the Trump administration over how it tells the American story. Geoff Bennett spoke with Bunch about the political pressure, what's at stake for the Smithsonian and how he sees his legacy. It's for our Art in Action series exploring the intersection of art and democracy.

How the U.S.-Canada Trade Dispute Is Impacting the Economy on Both Sides of the Border

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 16:04:05 PDT

To discuss the impact of the tariffs on the United States and Canada, Amna Nawaz spoke with Matthew Shoemaker. He is the mayor of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, a Canadian city just across the border from its sister city, Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.

Iceland Summons U.S. Ambassador Over Provocative Trump Map

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 14:23:49 PDT

A day after summoning the American ambassador for a formal rebuke, Iceland's leaders on Tuesday publicly condemned a social media post from President Trump showing the American flag covering their nation along with Greenland, Canada, Mexico and Caribbean states. "It is an insult to Icelanders, Canadians, Greenlanders," Prime Minister Kristrun Frostadottir of Iceland told reporters on Tuesday, referring to Trump's Monday post, which did not include any written commentary. "There is nothing funny or normal about making fun of the sovereignty of states," she added.

Trump Administration Asks Supreme Court to Allow Voter-Screening Tool

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 14:22:24 PDT

The Trump administration on Tuesday asked the Supreme Court to allow it to use a federal citizenship database to help spot invalid voters ahead of the midterm elections. The administration is currently blocked from rolling out the tool, which the administration proposed using as part of a larger effort by President Trump to enact additional screening of voters ahead of November. If the justices allow the administration to proceed, states could use the Department of Homeland Security database to check voter information against federal citizenship and Social Security records.

Lonnie Bunch to Retire From Smithsonian Leadership Following Clash With Trump Administration

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 14:19:03 PDT

Lonnie Bunch is stepping down from the leadership of the Smithsonian Institution following a tumultuous year in which President Trump tried to remake the portrayal of U.S. history by the Smithsonian museums and other cultural entities. Bunch's departure comes two months after a White House report branded the leaders of the Smithsonian Institution as radical activists who cannot be trusted. Anthea M. Hartig, the first female director of that museum, faced growing scrutiny from Trump and other Republicans over the summer after the White House Domestic Policy Council's report saying the museum's leadership doesn't tell history "in a way that is inspiring, unifying and worthy of our great republic." Three weeks later, Trump ordered his administration to install signs in front of the U.S. history museum telling visitors some of the exhibits are inaccurate. Hartig pushed back, telling lawmakers during congressional hearings the report "does not fairly or accurately characterize the full body of work at the museum." California Democrat Sen. Alex Padilla praised Bunch in a statement for not shying away from the nation's history. "In the face of Donald Trump's attacks on the Smithsonian, Secretary Bunch spoke truth to power and reasserted his commitment to defend and uphold American history and values. While I respect his decision to depart, the job now falls to the Board of Regents and Congress to ensure the success of his work will remain for generations to come."

New Report Shows the Economic Toll of ICE Raids

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 14:08:29 PDT

A new study shows that the widespread fear and isolation caused by the immigration crackdowns that began in early 2025 had a significant economic toll on Chicago commerce, draining over $1.26 billion from local businesses. The report, published by the University of Illinois Chicago, used anonymous cellphone GPS data to track movement between immigrant and non-immigrant neighborhoods throughout Chicago's Cook County. Researchers found that the routine back-and-forth between these areas collapsed almost immediately after President Trump took office on Jan. 20, 2025, amid rampant rumors and the subsequent sweeps that Chicago would be targeted for immediate Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. The report estimates that decreased consumer mobility cost retail shops and restaurants in non-immigrant neighborhoods roughly $1.26 billion, while costing the state of Illinois an estimated $107 million in lost tax revenue.

After 9/11, Documents Suggest, New Yorkers Were Misled About Air Quality

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 14:07:03 PDT

In the harrowing months that followed the attacks on the World Trade Center, New Yorkers were repeatedly assured that the air around the fallen towers was safe to breathe. But 10 months later, health officials were still finding evidence of asbestos as much as half a mile away, according to a sample of air quality records being released on Tuesday. The documents, reviewed by The New York Times in advance of their release, include more than 170,000 pages of air quality reports, contamination records and correspondence among city officials. The records were stored in 68 boxes in a city office, shielded from public view for more than two decades and, according to city officials, discovered only last year. Mayor Zohran Mamdani has directed his administration to release the records to the public through an online portal, timing it to the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the attacks in Lower Manhattan.

Navy Failed to Protect Pilots From Brain Injury, House Report Says

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 07:53:23 PDT

As concerns mounted that the extreme physical strain of flying fighter jets was causing brain injuries in pilots and may have led to the death of a number of career aviators, the Navy did almost nothing. It didn't even study its pilots to understand if it had a problem. That is one of the numerous findings in a harshly critical report released on Tuesday by the powerful House Oversight Committee. The report said that because the Navy had repeatedly failed to act, Congress should pass legislation requiring the military to create a specific program to study and care for the brain health of all aviators.

Near the Border, Americans Fear Losing Ties With Canadians

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 07:45:07 PDT

As Canada imposes retaliatory tariffs on the United States, Americans near the border say the trade war is deepening divisions between the two countries and hope the split does not turn into a more lasting breakup. Costs for American businesses are up. Border crossings are down as Canadians choose to spend their money at home. And many Canadians are downright outraged over the actions of President Trump. The trade war has threatened not only business but, sometimes, the very personal bonds that define America's northern border.

U.S. Police Fear Meta Smart Glasses Could Be Used to Secretly Record Them

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 07:41:34 PDT

In January, the New York police department's counter-terrorism unit sent out a memo warning police officers about a new potential "security and counterintelligence" threat: Ray-Ban Meta glasses. The memo directed officers to "conduct thorough inspections of all eyewear permitted within inmate cells" and cautioned that people who have been arrested could use these glasses, equipped with small cameras and microphones, to record inside police facilities. The memo cited two examples of such videos posted on social media. "The ability to covertly record inside a law enforcement or detention facility, could result in a security risk if proprietary information about cell layouts, camera placements or officer patrol/site protection routines are released," the memo read. The NYPD memo is one of a dozen, previously unreported and reviewed by the Guardian, that showed law enforcement agencies across the U.S. are increasingly concerned about the potential for smart glasses to be used against them.

Law Professor Discusses SCOTUS' Recent Approach on Who Can Sue the President

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 07:36:06 PDT

Who has the right to sue the president? NPR's Leila Fadel asks Georgetown Law professor Stephen Vladeck about the Supreme Court's approach to standing when it comes to the Trump administration.

Renovated Space at National Civil Rights Museum Connects the Past and Future

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 07:34:51 PDT

A new space at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis explores the recent past and future of the movement.

Former Canadian Minister of Finance Discusses Trade War Between the U.S. And Canada

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 07:33:56 PDT

NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with former Canadian Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland about Canada's retaliatory tariffs going into effect Tuesday.

As War Grinds on, Trump Relishes Renovation Projects

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 07:33:14 PDT

As the war with Iran grinds on, Trump finds reprieve by focusing on the minutia of an endeavor much more within his grasp: renovating Washington with ornate projects.

Trump Floats Renaming New Mexico as 'New America,' Prompting Pushback

Mon, 07 Sep 2026 08:38:06 PDT

President Trump appeared to suggest on Sunday that New Mexico should be renamed "New America," prompting swift backlash from the state's Democratic leaders over his latest effort to put an American stamp on geographic names. Trump has no legal authority to rename any state, which in New Mexico's case is written into its Constitution. Any proposed change would have to originate within the state, a prospect that New Mexico's Democratic leaders rejected forcefully on Sunday. "New Mexico's name isn't up for debate -- it's been ours since before the United States existed," Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham wrote on social media.

U.S. Labor Unions Saw Membership Gains in 2025, Mostly in States With Bargaining Protections

Mon, 07 Sep 2026 08:35:50 PDT

After years of decline, union membership in the U.S. increased by 411,000 members in 2025, the largest increase since 2008, according to a new report. The report makes clear the impact that "right to work" laws can have on union membership: most gains were concentrated in states that protect collective bargaining. Union membership rates in those states were nearly triple than the 26 states with so-called "right-to-work" laws that weaken union membership, according to the report from the Illinois Economic Policy Institute and the Project for Middle Class Renewal at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Legal Veterans Lead Fightback Against Trump's 'Full-Out Assault on Democracy'

Mon, 07 Sep 2026 08:34:07 PDT

A cluster of advocacy groups that boast veteran lawyers, voting experts and ex-judges have expanded legal challenges to Donald Trump's authoritarian executive orders on voting and other presidential actions they see as a "war" on the rule of law in the U.S.. Heavy legal opposition to Trump's two executive orders on elections to curb voting rights and supplant the authority of states on election matters has come from the Democracy Defenders Fund, the Campaign Legal Center, the American Civil Liberties Union and kindred groups. These legal outfits and like-minded allies have won key lawsuits on election issues, plus litigation thwarting Trump's moves to end birthright citizenship and a $1.8bn slush fund that could have paid money to allies including Jan. 6 rioters he deemed were unjustly charged.

U.S. Attempts to Link Trans Support to Authoritarianism in New Health Department Report

Mon, 07 Sep 2026 08:32:43 PDT

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently released a report linking "gender ideology" to leftwing authoritarianism and political violence -- a study scientists say was poorly conducted and "nakedly political," likely leading to greater politicization of science and health. It follows attempts by the administration to limit access to gender-affirming care -- including, on Friday, an agreement reached between the Department of Justice and a New York hospital to no longer offer pediatric gender-affirming care. Dozens of hospitals stopped offering gender-affirming care after the Trump administration began investigating them for offering the standard of care. Patients on Medicaid and government insurance plans have also been blocked from accessing care and a proposed rule would block any health system offering gender-affirming care from receiving federal funding.

Fuel Prices at Record Labor Day High in U.S. Thanks to Iran War and Refinery Issues

Mon, 07 Sep 2026 08:25:32 PDT

It's never been more expensive in the U.S. to fill up the tank and take one last summer trip over the Labor Day weekend. The average price of regular gas was $4.14 a gallon heading into the holiday, nearly a dollar higher than last year and well above the Labor Day weekend record of $3.82 from 2012, according to AAA motor club. Prices shot up after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran in February and have not settled down since. Crude oil traffic through the key Strait of Hormuz has plunged and Iran has refused to reopen the waterway. The national average for regular gas prices is still well below the record of $5.02 a gallon set in June 2022. But diesel is a different story: It hit a national average of $5.85 a gallon Friday, a record.

Labor Unions Nationwide Are Navigating the Explosive Growth of AI

Mon, 07 Sep 2026 08:23:49 PDT

Unions are trying to figure out where they stand on AI. While some are focused on greater protections for workers, the building trades unions are already reaping benefits from the data center boom.

Trump Administration Mulls Renaming USS Doris Miller

Mon, 07 Sep 2026 08:20:58 PDT

The Trump administration is considering stripping the name of an African American war hero from an aircraft carrier, even though President Trump himself praised the honor in his first term.

Diesel Prices Soar as U.S. Farmers Preparing for Harvest Continue to Feel Squeezed

Mon, 07 Sep 2026 08:19:53 PDT

Diesel prices have spiked just in time for corn and soybean harvests. Farmers need the fuel to bring in the crops and many were already hurting, but there are factors offsetting this latest setback.

Trump Officials Draft Plan to Pay at-Home Parents, Using Funds for Working Ones

Sun, 06 Sep 2026 07:53:30 PDT

The Trump administration is moving to allow married couples with a stay-at-home spouse to collect child care subsidies, a policy championed by Vice President JD Vance, using funds from a federal program intended to assist working parents, according to people familiar with the discussions. Under the draft new rule, parents who stay home with their children could benefit from the program, which typically provides about $9,000 per child each year, potentially reshaping which families get federal child care money. The move could end up redirecting money away from working parents and their child care providers, causing some to raise their rates or even close, critics said, potentially worsening what many experts say is a child care crisis in the country.

Iran War Likely to Drag on for Another Six Months, Ex-U.S. Defense Secretary Warns

Sun, 06 Sep 2026 07:47:17 PDT

Donald Trump's war with Iran is likely to drag on for another six months, Leon Panetta, the former U.S. defense secretary, has warned, as the U.S. president struggles to find his way out of the controversial conflict. Panetta declared in an interview that the war with Iran -- launched by Trump over six months ago -- risks becoming another "forever war in the Middle East," with no clear end in sight. "It's no mystery that the United States and Iran are caught in a terrible stalemate, in which there really are very few options available to bring this war to an end," said Panetta, who also served as CIA director under Barack Obama, suggesting the conflict is on course to become "another failed war" in the Middle East "like Iraq and Afghanistan." "I think the likelihood is this war is going to continue for another six months without being resolved," he added.

Politics Chat: First-Ever Republican Midterm Convention or Trump Rally?

Sun, 06 Sep 2026 07:40:31 PDT

A first-ever Republican midterm convention is taking place this week in Dallas, but are candidates interested in attending? Plus, Michigan's Democratic senate candidate apologizes to Jewish voters.

Former State Department Energy Envoy on How the War in Iran Is Impacting Gas Prices

Sun, 06 Sep 2026 07:39:17 PDT

NPR's Ayesha Rascoe talks to former State Department energy envoy David Goldwyn about how the war in Iran continues to affect gas and diesel prices.

Judge Orders Trump Officials to Divulge Names of Those Who Set Up $1.8 Billion Fund

Sat, 05 Sep 2026 08:48:31 PDT

A federal magistrate judge ordered the Trump administration on Friday to reveal the identities of the people who devised a contentious plan to create a $1.8 billion fund to compensate those who believed they were wronged by political prosecutions. The plan to create the fund, which could have funneled taxpayer money to the president's allies, drew repeated scrutiny. It prompted a rare rebuke from Senate Republicans and imperiled the confirmation of Todd Blanche as attorney general.

In Major Leak Hunt, Pentagon Gives Polygraph Tests to Joint Staff Members

Sat, 05 Sep 2026 08:47:19 PDT

U.S. government investigators have taken the extraordinary step of subjecting roughly 50 members of the U.S. military's Joint Staff to polygraph tests over leaks to journalists, including about how the Iran war has created a shortage of crucial munitions, according to officials briefed on the move. The investigators asked military officers and civilian employees on the Joint Staff if they disclosed classified information to members of the press and about whether they provided information about diminished U.S. munitions stocks.

Inside the D.O.J.'s Investigation of Fauci and Other Virus Scientists

Sat, 05 Sep 2026 08:46:02 PDT

As Dr. Anthony Fauci has faced public scrutiny from congressional Republicans, the D.O.J. has pursued a quieter and more expansive effort against a wider circle of researchers. As part of that effort, F.B.I. agents and federal prosecutors have sought evidence related to at least eight scientists, among them a Nobel laureate and influential former government researchers like Dr. Fauci. Investigators have demanded phone, email, grant and payment records, as well as grand jury testimony by scientists.

ICE Given Permission to Force-Feed Cuban Hunger Striker With Gastric Tube

Sat, 05 Sep 2026 08:41:30 PDT

Federal immigration officials quietly received permission from a judge in recent weeks to force-feed a detained Cuban hunger striker inside a Texas detention center, including with the use of a rare, nonconsensual surgical procedure, court records reveal. The man is likely the 19th hunger striker in Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention where the agency has had an application approved to conduct "involuntary medical procedures" since January 2025. The rising number of cases under the second Trump administration has alarmed advocates amid wide-ranging accusations of mistreatment inside facilities nationwide.

The Venezuelan Billionaire the U.S. Investigated for Money Laundering Now Has a Pentagon Oil Deal

Sat, 05 Sep 2026 08:39:34 PDT

The billionaire who helped broker the Trump administration's sweeping long-term oil deal with Venezuela was until recently a target of U.S. money-laundering investigations involving funds embezzled from the state-owned oil company PDVSA. Now, after assisting U.S. authorities ahead of the capture of authoritarian leader Nicolas Maduro, Alejandro Betancourt is Washington's key partner in an unusual oil agreement with Caracas.

Week in Politics: Trump's Face on the Coin; Reshaping the Capital; The Midterms

Sat, 05 Sep 2026 08:36:32 PDT

President Trump is the first living president to have his face on a coin. He's also reshaping Washington in his image and working to influence midterm elections.

Justice Department Issues Subpoenas for Voter Data in Nevada

Sat, 05 Sep 2026 08:27:31 PDT

The Justice Department has subpoenaed the Nevada secretary of state for voter information, according to a person familiar with the operation, at a time when the government is rapidly escalating efforts to prove President Trump's baseless claims of voter fraud. The office of Cisco Aguilar, Nevada's secretary of state and its chief election officer, confirmed receiving seven "voter-related" subpoenas from F.B.I. agents over the last three months, but declined to offer details. With less than 60 days to go before the midterm elections, the Trump administration has deployed hundreds of investigators to hunt for voter fraud, despite decades of evidence that it is exceptionally rare in the United States. The administration is also aggressively trying to shape how the midterm elections are run, demanding private voter information across the country and seeking to change election rules.

U.S. Immigration Judges Told to Slash Time Given to People Awaiting Visas or Green Cards Before Being Deported

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 15:10:56 PDT

Immigration judges across the United States have been instructed to deny some of the most vulnerable people appearing in court the time needed for their visas or green cards to arrive -- putting them at imminent risk of being thrown out of the country as the Trump administration continues to intensify its mass deportation campaign, the Guardian has learned. Among the immigrants affected are abused and abandoned children and survivors of violent crime, according to the U.S. government's own training materials, which were shared exclusively with the Guardian. Judges also appeared to be discouraged, under a hardline interpretation of existing policy guidance and laws, from giving people more than 10 days to find an attorney before proceeding with a case, a deadline that made critics balk.

Supreme Court Grants Republican Emergency Appeal on TV Ad Rates Before Midterms

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 15:09:09 PDT

The Supreme Court granted an emergency appeal from Republicans in a dispute over campaign ad prices on Friday, clearing a legal roadblock to political parties getting cheaper TV ad time ahead of the midterm elections. The justices halted for now a lower-court ruling in favor of Democratic candidates who argued that cheaper broadcast ads should be limited to candidates. One justice publicly dissented from the unsigned order. It's the latest election-related appeal to come before the high court ahead of the pivotal November contests.

Federal Judge Extends Block on Trump Executive Order Seeking to Limit Mail Voting in the Midterms

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 15:07:50 PDT

A federal judge on Friday extended her prohibition against the U.S. Postal Service implementing President Trump's executive order seeking to limit mail voting during the midterms, putting another major obstacle in the way of the administration as the first states begin sending out mail ballots. U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani granted a preliminary injunction, replacing a temporary order she had granted blocking the Postal Service's plan. The Trump administration has already asked the Supreme Court to lift Talwani's temporary order and will likely appeal her latest order as well.

U.S. Nonfarm Payrolls Surge in August; Unemployment Rate Steady at 4.1 Pct.

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 15:06:18 PDT

U.S. job growth accelerated sharply in August while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.1 percent. Nonfarm payrolls surged by 162,000 jobs last month after an upwardly revised rise of 21,000 in July, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast payrolls would increase by 56,000 after a previously reported drop of 23,000 in July. Leisure and hospitality employment surged 62,000, with payrolls at restaurants and bars increasing by 59,000 jobs. Local government education added 42,000 jobs, reversing a decrease in the prior month. Manufacturing payrolls increased 16,000. Healthcare employment rose 13,000. That was, however, slower than the average monthly gain of ⁠32,000 over the last year and could reflect the revocation of Temporary Protected Status for hundreds of thousands of Haitian immigrants, which impacted their work permits. Construction payrolls increased 22,000.

Election Expert on the Impact of Trump's Appeal to SCOTUS on Mail-in Ballots

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 08:05:19 PDT

NPR's Steve Inskeep asks David Becker, an elections administration expert, what effect the Trump administration's appeal to the Supreme Court on mail-in ballots could have on the midterms.

Wesleyan University President on Administration's Efforts to Revoke Tax-Exempt Status

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 08:04:21 PDT

NPR's Steve Inskeep asks Wesleyan University president Michael Roth about U.S. Treasury and IRS efforts to revoke tax-exempt status from private schools that help students based on race.

Gloria Steinem, Journalist and Women's Rights Activist, Remembered

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 08:02:37 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Letty Cottin Pogrebin, who cofounded Magazine with Gloria Steinem about Steinem's legacy.

Remembering Gloria Steinem and Her Trailblazing Fight for Women's Rights

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 16:29:32 PDT

Gloria Steinem, the pioneering journalist and activist who became one of the most recognizable voices of the modern women's movement, has died at the age of 92. For more than half a century, Steinem challenged entrenched ideas about gender and power, helping bring the fight for women's equality from the margins of American life into the mainstream. Jeffrey Brown has this remembrance.

Steinem Stayed True to Herself Despite Intense Pressure, Julie Taymor Says

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 16:28:27 PDT

To discuss the life and legacy of Gloria Steinem, Amna Nawaz spoke with Julie Taymor. She's the director of the 2020 film "The Glorias," a biopic that spans eight decades of Steinem's life.

Plans Announced to Break Ground on Trump's Triumphal Arch Before Final Approval

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 16:22:19 PDT

President Trump is breaking ground on his 250-foot-tall triumphal arch near the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, even before a federal review panel has approved the project. Doug Burgum, the interior secretary, on Thursday announced plans for the excavation work. The rush to push ahead with work on the arch follows a familiar pattern for Trump. He has frequently embarked on large-scale changes to historic properties in Washington without approvals from Congress or anyone else. The president last year abruptly tore down the historic East Wing of the White House after saying he would not touch the building. In this case, Trump has proposed building a 250-foot triumphal arch near Arlington National Cemetery that he has said must be taller than the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. He has said the arch is meant to celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence, though he has also said that the arch is for himself.

Mortgage Rates Climb to Highest Level Since July 2025

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 16:20:36 PDT

Mortgage rates climbed to their highest levels in more than a year, as recent turmoil in the bond market continued to spread, putting pressure on consumers already struggling with persistent inflation and compounding the housing crisis in the United States. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, the most common home loan in the United States, hit 6.71 percent, the mortgage finance giant Freddie Mac said Thursday, up from 6.66 percent the week before and the highest since July 2025.

Maryland's Top Court Allows Democratic-Backed Congressional Redistricting Measure on November Ballot

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 16:19:12 PDT

Maryland voters will get to decide in November on a congressional redistricting amendment being pushed by Democrats as part of nationwide battle for control of the U.S. House in future elections. The Maryland Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the proposed constitutional amendment must be placed on the November ballot, reversing two lower court rulings that had blocked it from going to voters. But the court directed the ballot summary to be rewritten. The decision marks a notable victory for Democrats, who are trying to counter a Republican redistricting movement pushed by President Trump.

Missouri Court Blocks Trump-Backed U.S. House Map and Orders It to Be Put to a Vote

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 16:17:56 PDT

The Missouri Supreme Court has unanimously blocked new congressional districts backed by President Trump from being used in the November election and ordered a statewide vote on whether to uphold or reject the new map. Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, a Republican, said she would immediately appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, asserting that the decision "has thrust our state into a full‑fledged constitutional crisis." Missouri's new districts were used in the August primaries. But the state Supreme Court said they cannot be used in the November general election -- or ever again, unless voters first uphold the new districts passed by the Republican-led Legislature.

Oil Jumps for Fourth Straight Day and Diesel Nears Record High

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 14:51:34 PDT

The global oil price rose for a fourth straight session on Thursday and the cost of U.S. diesel fuel came within pennies of its highest level ever, as renewed strikes by the United States and Iran strained the flow of energy. "Escalation in the Middle East dashes any hope for a recovery in refined product flows, leaving markets tight," analysts at the bank ING wrote in a note on Thursday.

Trump Moves to Strip Tax Exemption From Schools That Aid Minority Students

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 08:07:49 PDT

The Trump administration released new rules that could revoke tax-exempt status from any school offering targeted support to Black or other minority students, a sweeping change that opens another front in the president's campaign to reshape American education. The proposed regulations, which the Treasury Department published on Thursday, would add another element to the guidelines schools and other organizations must follow to qualify for tax-exempt status with the Internal Revenue Service. The rules would deny tax-exempt status to any school, including secondary schools and universities, if it has any policy or program, including admissions and scholarships, that the I.R.S. finds to be racially discriminatory.

Critics Question Legality of Venezuela Oil Deals

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 08:03:27 PDT

Chevron's $7 billion Venezuela bet deepens U.S. ties to the country's oil industry. Critics say the deal poses risks to democracy and could fuel discontent over Washington's embrace of the government.

Former Top Military Leader on Dismissals in the Pentagon Under Secretary Hegseth

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 08:01:46 PDT

NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with retired 4-star General Peter Chiarelli about Pentagon leadership and the departure of top officials.

Ex-Military Officials Raise Alarm Over Leadership Departures From the Pentagon

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 08:00:51 PDT

Former U.S. military officials are raising alarms about the exodus of experienced leaders from the Pentagon, against the backdrop of the conflict with Iran and concerns over depleted stockpiles.

Hawaii Fire Survivors in Bureaucratic Trap as U.S. Ends Mail Delivery

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 07:54:57 PDT

As fire victims have started to return to Lahaina after going through the process of rebuilding their homes, dozens of their mailboxes have become useless. Residents say they are not getting mail service. They see mail carriers drive by without stopping, only to make deliveries a couple of blocks away -- to houses that didn't burn. "All dwellings that were affected by the fires in 2023 that have been rebuilt will no longer receive street delivery," reads an email from a customer relations specialist for USPS's Hawaii district, seen by the Guardian. Lahaina's reconstruction is being treated as "new development," and under current USPS policy that means no door-to-door mail service.

Attorneys Rally to Free Children Held in U.S. Immigration Custody

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 07:49:31 PDT

About 1,900 kids who arrived in the U.S. unaccompanied by a parent or guardian were under the federal government's control across the country as of the end of August. From babies to teenagers, children have spent an average of 183 days -- roughly six months -- in shelters or long-term foster care, according to the government's own data, despite many of them having family members in the United States anxiously awaiting their release as their legal cases proceed through the immigration system. Now, more than 50 legal organizations, firms and law offices have mobilized to join a mission they are calling the Children's Due Process Project, where lawyers working pro bono head to federal courts to argue case-by-case that these kids are being detained unlawfully. The immediate goal is to use highly effective habeas corpus petitions to force federal officials to justify their actions in keeping the children in their custody or let them go, the Guardian has exclusively learned.

Whistleblower's Attorney Details Concerns Over USPS Mail-in Ballot System

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 16:10:55 PDT

A whistleblower inside the U.S. Postal Service says the agency is rushing to implement a new system for handling election mail that has not been adequately tested and could put mail-in ballots at risk. The whistleblower is remaining anonymous, but is represented by the organization Whistleblower Aid. Geoff Bennett spoke with David Kligerman of Whistleblower Aid about the allegations.

Prolonged Iran War Creating Major Dent in Global Economy, Cliff Kupchan Says

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 16:09:42 PDT

To discuss the latest flare-up in the war with Iran and the impact on the global economy, Geoff Bennett spoke with Cliff Kupchan. He's chairman emeritus at the consulting company Eurasia Group and senior fellow at the think tank Center for the National Interest.

Democrats Sink Republican Bid to Cap Supreme Court at Nine Justices

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 16:04:42 PDT

Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives defeated a constitutional amendment on Wednesday to permanently cap the Supreme Court at nine justices, voting against a Republican proposal designed ‌to make the court's conservative majority a campaign issue ahead of Nov. 3 elections. House Republicans staged the vote to highlight the potential for Democrats, angered by rulings on issues such as abortion and voting rights, to expand the court and weaken its conservative majority if they regain control of Congress in November's midterms. The measure failed 212-206, far short of the necessary two-thirds majority to pass in the House.

Trump's 'Lightning Speed' Outpaces the Courts

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 08:51:03 PDT

The courts cannot keep up with President Trump. In cases on immigration, spending, mass firings and restructuring agencies, the administration has barreled ahead in the face of slow-moving legal challenges. If Trump loses when those lawsuits are finally resolved, it may be too late as a practical matter to undo what he has achieved. The challenge to Trump's enormous White House ballroom project is just the latest example of a mismatch between a judicial system characterized by unhurried deliberation and a presidency built for speed. "Trump is going to get his ballroom -- even if courts conclude it's illegal," said Leah Litman, a law professor at the University of Michigan. "He really has decided that he can just go ahead and do what he wants," said Pamela Karlan, a law professor at Stanford, "daring courts to stop him across a huge range of subject matters."

'Pitiful': Experts Condemn Initial U.S. Aid Contribution for Nepal Flood Victims

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 08:44:04 PDT

Aid experts have denounced the U.S.'s "embarrassing" and "pitiful" initial response to the Nepal flood disaster after the U.S. state department announced it was releasing $500,000 in emergency funds to help the relief effort. The modest sum -- which has since been increased -- allocated in response to the devastation caused by mudslides in the mountainous Asian country was mocked on social media, where users contrasted it with the amount spent on other Trump administration priorities. The U.S. contribution has been upped to $3.6m, which state department officials say will be used to deliver food assistance to feed 10,000 affected households for up to three months and pay for emergency items such as blankets, mosquito nets and shelter sheets. However, seasoned humanitarian aid specialists suggest even that contribution is inadequate and say the U.S. response has shrunk to a shadow of its previous capacity by the dismantling of USAID, the country's main foreign assistance organization, after Donald Trump's return to the White House last year.

U.S. May Ask Parents to Prove Citizenship or Immigration Status to Get Passports for Their Children

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 08:41:56 PDT

The U.S. State Department has proposed requiring parents applying for passports for their children to provide proof of their own citizenship or immigration status as part of President Trump's latest effort to limit birthright ‌citizenship. The draft guidance, reviewed by Reuters, is the first detailed look at how the State Department could enforce Trump's Aug. 6 executive order targeting what it calls "birth tourism" and broadening historical exceptions to birthright citizenship.

Top U.S. Doctors Offer Updated Flu and COVID Vaccine Recommendations, Aiming to Ease Confusion

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 08:38:16 PDT

Leading U.S. medical groups are urging people to get updated flu and Covid-19 vaccinations this fall, banding together Wednesday to issue shot guidelines -- and highlight the science behind them -- saying they hope to ease confusion caused by the Trump administration's changing advice. Flu vaccinations are beginning and Covid-19 shots are starting to arrive after the Food and Drug Administration approved this year's updated versions last week. Winter also brings another vaccine-preventable risk called RSV. Exactly who should get one or all of these vaccines and when? That advice usually comes from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with help from its independent advisers. But despite no new scientific evidence, Trump health officials last year began pulling back on some longstanding recommendations for fall virus protection and routine children's vaccinations. Doctors' groups are filling the gap: the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Family Physicians, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Infectious Diseases Society of America each released vaccination guidelines for their patient populations.

Whistleblower's Lawyer Warns USPS Plan for Trump's Order Could Keep Ballots From Voters

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 08:34:57 PDT

David Kligerman, the official's lawyer at Whistleblower Aid, a nonprofit that provides legal support to whistleblowers, said the USPS process would place several new requirements between states and voters. States would submit voter information for batches of ballots, which USPS would then sample and verify. "You've got a 0 percent failure rate, which, by the way, is unprecedented. No other part of the mail system has this," Kligerman told Morning Edition. A single problem in a sample of ballots, from a smudged barcode to a scanner that fails to read one, could send the whole batch back to the state, Kligerman said. The whistleblower alleges the IT system was built in a matter of weeks, has not been adequately tested and has crashed during testing. The whistleblower says the IT system's rushed development creates a central concern: The technology could flag a mistake even when the ballots themselves are correct, sending states through the process again and potentially delaying ballots from reaching voters.

Advocates Say Cities' Aggressive Clearing of Encampments Has Caused More Problems

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 08:30:20 PDT

A Supreme Court ruling two years ago allowed bans on sleeping outside. Homeless people and advocates in the Midwest say aggressive encampment clearing has caused problems.

Ex-National Security Council Advisor on the Latest Strikes Between the U.S. And Iran

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 08:29:42 PDT

NPR's Steve Inskeep asks retired Rear Admiral and Biden administration National Security Council advisor John Kirby about the latest exchange of fire between the U.S. and Iran.

Springfield's Haitian Community Braces for Deportations After Protected Status Ends

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 16:42:00 PDT

In June, the Supreme Court cleared the way to end temporary protected status for Haitians and Syrians living in the U.S. The Trump administration let that TPS expire last month and about 350,000 Haitians became at risk of deportation. The impact is now hitting the small city of Springfield, Ohio, long a political flashpoint in the debate around immigration. Stephanie Sy reports.

Hegseth Has Created 'Climate of Fear' at Pentagon, Former Air Force Secretary Says

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 16:40:59 PDT

To discuss the resignation of Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll and the tension inside the Pentagon under Pete Hegseth, Geoff Bennett spoke with Frank Kendall of the Center for American Progress. He was Air Force Secretary during the Biden administration and co-wrote "Lethal Autonomy: The Future of Warfare Whether We Like It or Not."

Army Secretary's Resignation Adds to Turmoil at Pentagon Under Hegseth

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 16:40:00 PDT

There are questions about the future of the Pentagon after another central member of the military team has stepped down.

Forest Service Chief Faces Scrutiny Over Logging Ties as Trump Plans to Scrap Protections

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 16:35:41 PDT

Donald Trump this month announced plans to rescind a landmark rule that has protected old-growth forests in the U.S. for 25 years. If finalized, the rollback is expected to benefit the companies that Tom Schultz, chief of the U.S. Forest Service, represented in his previous roles as a timber industry lobbyist and executive, according to research by consumer advocacy non-profit Public Citizen. The Roadless Area Conservation Rule, more commonly known as the "roadless rule," was adopted in 2001 to limit development in roughly 45m acres of national forest. Industry interests and Republican representatives have long lobbied for the rule's rescission, which would open up those swaths of untouched land to road construction, drilling and logging.

MapQuest App Reaches No. 1 on U.S. Apple List After Defying Trump's Lake Ontario Order

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 08:11:50 PDT

MapQuest, which was openly dismissive of the president's 27 August executive order directing federal agencies to refer to the smallest of the Great Lakes as "Lake America" amid a trade spat with Canada, leapfrogged rivals Google Maps and Apple Maps to top the most-downloaded list, as first reported by TechCrunch. The app held the No. 1 spot on Apple's App Store as of Tuesday morning, the Guardian confirmed. Google quickly capitulated to Trump's demand, showing Lake America to U.S. customers, while Apple is reportedly mulling a decision under pressure from the White House to make the same change. But MapQuest, a 30-year-old company that bills itself as "the OG" (original) of the Internet mapping era, appears to have been rewarded for standing firm.

U.S. Refusals of Crucial Newborn Vitamin Spike, Raising Risk of Dangerous Bleeding

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 08:09:43 PDT

The percentage of parents and caregivers in the United States refusing a standard vitamin K shot for infants at birth has accelerated sharply this year, an exclusive data analysis for Reuters found, putting more newborns at risk of life-threatening bleeding episodes. The data confirms what a dozen pediatricians, neonatologists and pediatric critical care specialists told Reuters is a top concern: rising refusals of a ‌life-protective shot and a growing wave of mistrust toward vaccines and other newborn interventions. For decades, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has stoked that mistrust, sowing doubt about vaccines and other established medicines. The acceleration in vitamin K refusals this year aligns with his January announcement dropping recommendations for the birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine and five other standard childhood vaccines, from routine use. The rate of newborns not receiving the vitamin K shot within a day of birth in hospitals jumped more than 57 percent from January through June, a review of health records for more than 1 million births nationwide by health data and analytics company Truveta revealed.

U.S. Bonds Sell Off as Rising Oil Prices Create Inflation Anxiety

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 08:00:21 PDT

Rising oil prices and persistent inflation fears pushed bond yields higher Tuesday, weighing down stocks on Wall Street. The weak start to September follows a shaky, but mostly positive month for Wall Street. Every major index notched monthly gains in August. The same worries continue to hang over Wall Street, though, including anxiety over stubborn inflation, rising government debt and the impact on the economy from global conflicts. The S&P 500 fell 0.5 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 105 points or 0.2 percent, as of 10:16 a.m. Eastern time. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.9 percent. Technology stocks were among the heaviest weights on the market. Nvidia fell 1.1 percent and Micron Technology fell 2.2 percent. Much of the pressure being felt by Wall Street is coming from an ongoing sell-off in U.S government bonds. The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which tends to impact mortgage rates, rose to 4.76 percent from 4.75 percent late Monday.

Postal Service Work to Comply With Trump's Executive Order Is Rushed and Sloppy, a Whistleblower Contends

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 07:58:50 PDT

The U.S. Postal Service is poised to launch a hastily built, error-riddled computer system that could jeopardize the process of mail voting relied upon by one-third of all voters, according to a whistleblower statement released Tuesday by Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal. The disclosure from the unidentified whistleblower contends that the Postal Service has been scrambling to try to build a complex system that would normally take a year or more in only three months, sometimes in defiance of the judge's orders halting work. The goal is to have it ready for use in the midterm elections. The disclosure contends that, due to the new procedures, a single scanning error in a batch of tens of thousands of ballot envelopes could prevent any from reaching voters. It details a system that election officials have already warned could not be implemented before the first mail ballots begin going out Friday in North Carolina. "The Postal Service has designed a system to disenfranchise millions of Americans," Blumenthal told reporters in advance of releasing the whistleblower information. "This administration seems hell-bent on changing the framework on casting ballots in this country clearly for political reasons."

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll Resigns

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 07:56:12 PDT

The Army's top civilian leader has resigned. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is stepping down after 18 months on the job, the White House says. It's the latest in a series of military leadership shakeups.

Law Professor on SCOTUS Decision to Allow Trump to Continue Ballroom Project

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 07:53:02 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel asks Georgetown Law professor Stephen Vladeck about the separation of powers issues raised by the Supreme Court's decision on the White House ballroom.

Angry Ohio Voters Could Turn Their State Purple Again

Sun, 23 Aug 2026 08:51:52 PDT

Across Ohio, a state that receded from the nation's political battle zone as its voting patterns turned an ever deeper shade of red, signs of discontent this year are everywhere. In packed public forums, residents rage about data center projects. In grocery store aisles, shoppers lament to cashiers how little they can get for $50. In the soybean and corn fields, farmers express anxiety and pessimism. The basics of life and business have gotten punishingly expensive and many have come to doubt that relief is coming anytime soon. "It's all dumpy. Businesses are closing, the roads look like crap," Kim Hall, 59, said as she shopped at a Dollar General in North Ridgeville, Ohio, on Wednesday. "Grocery prices are outrageous and I can barely afford to live."

Trump Laying Groundwork to Impose National Emergency by Sowing Election Distrust

Sun, 23 Aug 2026 08:47:48 PDT

A series of moves by Donald Trump's administration to sow doubt in the integrity of U.S. elections have intensified concern among voting experts -- and sparked hope among election deniers -- that it could declare a national emergency. The White House and U.S. federal agencies have released a string of documents this summer -- including disputed analyses of alleged voting by noncitzens and historical intelligence memos -- stoking expectations that the U.S. president could move to exert greater control over November's U.S. midterm elections. Trump used a primetime television address in July to claim -- again -- that U.S. elections were vulnerable to foreign manipulation and repeat the lie that the 2020 presidential election, which he lost to Joe Biden, was stolen. While Trump and his allies could try to use a national emergency declaration to delegitimize results of November's results, experts say such a declaration would not supersede the constitutional restrictions on executive power on election administration. No president has ever attempted to invoke an emergency to assert control over voting. The administration is "trying to lay the groundwork to declare some sort of emergency to nationalize elections," said Aria Branch, a partner at the Elias Law Group, who led a lawsuit blocking Trump's previous executive orders on election administration. "I think the president is looking for any opportunity to do that."

Postal Service Publishes Finalized Plan to Restrict Mail Ballots

Sun, 23 Aug 2026 08:33:18 PDT

The Postal Service on Friday published regulations in a 95-page final rule that would restrict mail voting, its latest effort to comply with President Trump's call to restrict the popular practice just months before the midterm elections. In the rule, the Postal Service said that it would deliver mail ballots only in states that shared voter data with the federal agency. In a filing to the Supreme Court, the Justice Department said that the government would not enforce the final rule unless the Supreme Court ruled in its favor. The Supreme Court is reviewing the issue and could rule at any time.

U.S. Kindergarten Vaccination Rates Dip as Exemptions Hit Record High

Sat, 22 Aug 2026 08:46:17 PDT

A week after Donald Trump made a series of misleading claims about vaccines -- including that some injections look "like the size of a soda bottle" -- the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the latest data on national kindergarten vaccination rates. CDC communications downplayed the changes -- a three-sentence announcement said, "overall vaccination rates among kindergarteners remained high" -- but medical experts immediately saw cause for concern in the trends. "There's been a decrease in immunization rates in all vaccines. There's a decrease in immunizations in more than half the states, as opposed to the year before. There are at least 280,000 kindergarteners who did not get the [measles, mumps and rubella vaccine]," said Dr Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center and an attending physician in the division of infectious diseases at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Additionally, non-medical exemptions for vaccines for kindergarteners grew by 17 percent over the last school year -- the highest single-year increase ever, from 3.6 percent to 4.2 percent nationwide. "If we had a secretary of Health and Human Services who was an actual secretary of HHS instead of an anti-vaccine activist and science denialist, he would stand up in front of the American public and say, 'Vaccinate your children.' -- please, vaccinate your children," he said.

U.S. Imposes Deep Colorado River Water Cuts to California, Nevada and Arizona

Sat, 22 Aug 2026 08:43:40 PDT

The U.S. government on Friday finalized a two-year plan to slash water supplies to California, Nevada and Arizona to manage the drought-stricken Colorado River, while leaving open the ‌possibility of far deeper cuts later in the decade. The three so-called lower basin states will take around a 21 percent reduction in water from the river in 2027 and 2028, but cuts could nearly double in later years, according to the plan signed by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. Arizona and Nevada have said any move to double the cuts after 2028 would devastate their economies, with Arizona threatening to sue the federal government to defend its water rights. The four so-called Upper Basin states -- Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Wyoming -- face no mandatory cuts under the new 10-year plan, which is up for review every two years.

Federal Judge Vacates Trump Policy That Suspended Processing of Immigration Visas From 75 Countries

Sat, 22 Aug 2026 08:41:06 PDT

A federal judge in New York has vacated a Trump administration policy that suspended the processing of visas from 75 countries, including Afghanistan, Iran, Russia and Somalia, whose nationals the Trump administration deemed likely to require public assistance in the United States. U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas, an appointee of former President Joe Biden, set aside the policy Friday as "contrary to law and in excess of statutory authority." Secretary of State Marco Rubio exceeded his authority by issuing the policy, which "runs afoul" of the Immigration and Nationality Act by mandating "the refusal of visas to eligible applicants without any basis in law," the judge ruled. Vargas said the policy also undermines the congressional requirement that puts consular officers at the forefront of any visa decision. "Congress imbued these officers with exclusive authority and discretion to determine if an immigrant is eligible for a visa based upon review of specific and detailed criteria set forth in the statute," she wrote. "The Policy, which categorically prohibits the issuance of immigrant visas based upon the nationality of the applicant, represents a direct abrogation of this statutory scheme."

Foreign Policy Expert Andrew Gawthorpe on Trump's New Financial War on Iran

Sat, 22 Aug 2026 08:39:12 PDT

NPR's Scott Simon speaks with international studies professor Andrew Gawthorpe about President Trump's pattern of shifting between military and economic action against Iran.

CBC Senior Business Correspondent Peter Armstrong on U.S.-Canada Trade Talks Collapse

Sat, 22 Aug 2026 08:35:46 PDT

NPR's Scott Simon talks to Peter Armstrong, senior business correspondent at the Canadian Broadcasting Corp., about the collapse in U.S.-Canada trade talks.

'Stars and Stripes' Editor Says He Has Been Fired for Insubordination After Doing Interview

Sat, 22 Aug 2026 08:29:30 PDT

The Pentagon on Friday fired the editor-in-chief of Stars and Stripes, as well as its publisher and a reporter, the editor said. He said he was dismissed for insubordination after an interview he gave that objected to potential censorship by the U.S. military. Erik Slavin, editor-in-chief of the military newspaper, told The Associated Press he and the others had received notices of separation. The moves come at a time when the Trump administration, in its second term, has been increasingly aggressive and combative toward the news media, including sharply curtailing Pentagon access for the press corps that covers the Defense Department. Slavin said he was being fired "for stating in a CBS interview that hypothetical censorship of news for service members would constitute a red line." He said he stands by the principle "that Stars and Stripes must remain editorially independent." Earlier this week, publisher Max Lederer announced his retirement effective at the end of September. He too received a separation notice, according to Slavin, as did Middle East reporter Lara Korte, who was cited for the same CBS interview as Slavin.

Why More Than 400,000 Kids Are on Waitlists for Federal Childcare Assistance

Fri, 21 Aug 2026 14:38:52 PDT

For low-income working families in the United States, the federal government offers financial aid to help pay for childcare. That is, if families can get off the waitlist for it. In the second half of last year, there were an estimated 400,000 children on waitlists for childcare assistance programs across the U.S., according to a report by the National Women's Law Center released in May. That's nearly the size of the population of Minneapolis. That figure has more than tripled over the past two years. Around 118,800 kids were on waitlists in early 2024, the group found. But there has not been nearly enough money available for caregivers looking for financial help, especially recently, as childcare costs have ballooned nationwide.

Trump's Ballroom Construction Can Continue for Now, Supreme Court Says

Fri, 21 Aug 2026 14:36:28 PDT

The Supreme Court will allow construction on President Trump's controversial White House ballroom to continue for now, avoiding today's deadline, giving the justices time to consider the issue. The administration says the renovations are needed for national security.

Trump Threatens Suit Over Report He Doesn't Like, Aiming to Intimidate a Critic

Fri, 21 Aug 2026 08:59:21 PDT

President Trump has opened a new front in his campaign to intimidate political foes, threatening a prominent liberal think tank with a $5 billion defamation lawsuit over a report concluding that his deployment of the National Guard to cities across the country has had little effect on reducing violent crime. The threats against the think tank, the Center for American Progress, were Trump's latest effort to use the legal system to punish critics for voicing unflattering facts and opinions generally protected by the First Amendment. And while it is unclear how far any suit the president might ultimately file will get in court, it could force the organization to spend money fighting it off and make it even more of a target of his allies and supporters.

Voting Rights Experts Skeptical Over Trump Pledge of 1,000 Election Monitors

Fri, 21 Aug 2026 08:57:04 PDT

Former officials and voting rights experts have expressed skepticism over a pledge by the Trump administration to dispatch 1,000 monitors across the country to scrutinize November's U.S. midterm elections. While the Department of Justice has expressed hope that the operation will be the largest in its history, its plan raised questions over its ability to recruit so many people -- and what they would do. Harmeet Dhillon, who leads the justice department's civil rights section, told Bloomberg News of the plan to send out 1,000 election monitors earlier this week, which she claimed was "probably going to be a historic number for a Republican administration." But experts suggested the justice department's target should not spark alarm. "This DoJ has amply earned the public's distrust, but this announcement isn't reason to freak out," said Justin Levitt, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles who has worked on voting rights issues at the justice department and White House. "I'm skeptical they'll actually get to 1,000. Even if they did, that wouldn't be so different from the number in prior years; that's a national number suitable for observing but not nearly enough to disrupt; and local election officials can and will, toss anyone who makes trouble," said Levitt. "As in the primaries, the most anyone should expect from this group is a handful of suits standing quietly in the back of the room."

Lawyer Discusses the Ongoing Battle Over the White House Ballroom

Fri, 21 Aug 2026 08:48:46 PDT

NPR's Sacha Pfeiffer speaks with Greg Werkheiser of the law firm Cultural Heritage Partners about the future of the White House ballroom.

Investors Sell Stocks and Bonds as Government Efforts Fail to Soothe Market

Fri, 21 Aug 2026 08:48:05 PDT

Stocks fell and bond yields jumped on Thursday. The Treasury Department is trying to keep a lid on government borrowing costs but with limited success so far.

Trump Boasts of Declassifying Secrets, but Withholds Key Election Files From Public

Fri, 21 Aug 2026 08:46:38 PDT

The White House in recent weeks has made public a steady drip of previously classified intelligence about foreign threats to elections and other matters, offering President Trump and his allies ammunition for baseless conspiracy theories about potential vote rigging. But one crucial document has not been among the releases, despite a congressional requirement for it to be: the assessment by U.S. intelligence agencies of foreign meddling efforts during the 2024 election. The document would provide the public with a holistic look at foreign attempts to influence voters and sow division around the presidential contest and other federal races that year.

Homeland Security Made a Big Claim About Noncitizen Voting. Now It Can't Prove It.

Thu, 20 Aug 2026 16:06:41 PDT

A month after the Trump administration declared without evidence that thousands of noncitizens had illegally registered to vote in Nevada, officials with the Department of Homeland Security were unable to substantiate the claim. The administration claimed to have identified 278,000 noncitizens registered to vote in four states, including an exact number of 15,903 in Nevada. But during a meeting last week with state election administrators, Homeland Security officials said they had identified just 185 potential noncitizens in the state so far, according to emails as well as recordings of the meeting obtained by The New York Times.

How Trump Is Trying to Crush California's Environmental Policies

Thu, 20 Aug 2026 16:04:05 PDT

The Trump administration has taken a series of extraordinary steps to attack California's position as a national leader in environmental protection, enlisting at least a half-dozen federal agencies to undermine the state's efforts to pivot away from fossil fuels. The stakes are high. Because of its market muscle as the world's fourth largest economy, California's environmental regulations have influenced the manufacturers of automobiles and other consumer goods. And its green policies have spread to some other states in what's known as the "California effect." But President Trump has marshaled the full power of the federal government to clamp down on the state's climate initiatives. There are almost too many examples to list.

Trump Plan to Allow Drilling Near U.S. World Heritage Site Sparks Alarm

Thu, 20 Aug 2026 07:56:20 PDT

The Trump administration's push to expand oil and gas extraction across the U.S. is set to bring drilling near cherished natural and cultural sites, raising alarm among conservationists and prompting questions from the UN's heritage body. Unesco said it has received information on the administration's plan to scrap a drilling-free buffer zone around the Chaco Culture national historical park in New Mexico, a world heritage site and one of the most important cultural areas in the U.S.. A Unesco spokesperson said it has procedures regarding "potential threats" to a world heritage property and was awaiting a response from the federal government as to its impact. "The world heritage committee has consistently considered extractive activities to be incompatible with world heritage status," a Unesco spokesperson said.

A Quiet Channel Between ICE and Iran Shaped Deportation Flights, Newly Released Emails Show

Thu, 20 Aug 2026 07:51:44 PDT

U.S. immigration officials worked with Iran to deport Iranians in 2025, newly released emails show, revealing a working relationship between the U.S. and Iranian governments despite tensions mounting between the countries. Hundreds of emails exchanged between U.S. immigration officials, which were obtained by the National Iranian American Council and made public Tuesday, offer the most transparent play by play yet of how the two countries worked together to arrange for more than 100 Iranians to be flown back to Iran on three separate immigration flights in September and December 2025 and January. The emails show that Iranian officials had some influence over which Iranian immigrants in the U.S. were sent back to their home country and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials apparently heeded some last-minute changes to deportation lists at the request of Iran. The deportation of Iranians to a country whose government has a pattern of violent persecution against women, religious minorities and political dissidents has drawn significant criticism from human rights activists.

Pressure Builds Anew in the Bond Market as Walmart Drags the U.S. Stock Market Lower

Thu, 20 Aug 2026 07:48:32 PDT

A rise in oil prices on Thursday is sending worries about inflation and yields in the bond market higher, erasing some of the relief the U.S. Treasury Department created the day before. A drop for Walmart following its latest profit report helped drag the U.S. stock market lower. The S&P 500 slipped 0.4 percent and is on track for a fourth loss in the five days since setting its all-time high last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 430 points or 0.8 percent, as of 10:15 a.m. Eastern time and the Nasdaq composite was 0.7 percent lower. The bond market remains the center of action after yields charged higher through the summer on worries about high inflation, gargantuan government debts and other factors.

Historian Discusses Impact of Trump's Approach to Iran on Gulf Allies

Thu, 20 Aug 2026 07:41:59 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel asks historian Bader Al-Saif about how Gulf leaders contend with President Trump's approach to Iran. "we've been witnessing the birth pains of a new Middle East," he says.

What to Know About Dr. Heidi Overton, Trump's Pick to Lead the FDA

Wed, 19 Aug 2026 16:53:06 PDT

President Trump has tapped one of his top White House health policy aides, Dr. Heidi Overton, to lead the Food and Drug Administration. Overton has been a strong supporter of the president's health agenda, including efforts to overhaul the childhood vaccine schedule, changes that have drawn sharp criticism from medical experts. Geoff Bennett discussed more with Lauren Gardner of Politico.

Revealed: FCC Chair Brendan Carr's Close Coordination With White House and Rightwing Media

Wed, 19 Aug 2026 16:45:26 PDT

A trove of FCC documents -- obtained via a Freedom of Information Act request and lawsuit filed by the advocacy group Democracy Forward and provided to the Guardian -- shed light on the close working relationship between Carr, his top staffers and members of Trump's White House team. Between 12 March 2025 and 11 February, Carr attended at least eight meetings at the White House, according to the records and had at least three scheduled calls with administration officials, including two conversations with the chief of staff, Susie Wiles. He also spoke by phone with administration officials such as the controversial health secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr. In addition, the files provide insight into Carr's media strategy, including communications with producers at Fox News, and make public previously undisclosed meetings he has held with media titans such as the Fox Corp chief executive, Lachlan Murdoch and Sinclair Broadcast Group chair David Smith. "These records show a remarkable breadth of access to FCC leadership for this administration's political allies, conservative media figures and powerful industry interests, including companies and organizations with business before the commission," said Dan McGrath, special counsel, oversight at Democracy Forward. "This raises serious questions about whether the FCC is operating as an independent regulator or whether political relationships and industry influence have become too intertwined with its decision-making."

Trump's Bid to Inscribe Name on Kennedy Center Faces Renewed Court Test

Wed, 19 Aug 2026 08:21:05 PDT

A Democratic board member of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts said she will seek a court order blocking Republican President Donald ‌Trump's name from being newly inscribed on the building's facade, months after a federal judge said only Congress could rename the iconic Washington venue. In a court filing late on Tuesday, Democratic U.S. Representative Joyce Beatty said the board had acted in "naked defiance" of the judge's prior decision in the case. The center's board, stocked with Trump-appointed allies, voted 20-3 on Aug. 13 to alter the building's signage to read "The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump," while naming the center's grounds ⁠the "President Donald J. Trump Plaza." The board also voted to close the center for two years. Beatty asked for additional proceedings in the case in order to seek a ruling halting the return of Trump's name to the building, which could happen as early as Sept. 8. "Adding the words 'Restored and Renovated by,' or 'Endowed by,' before President Trump's name and renaming the ground on which the building sits, provides no lawful basis to ignore this Court's decision and impose Donald Trump's name on a memorial dedicated by the Congress exclusively to a different President," the filing said.

Most Americans Believe Trump Has Inappropriately Profited Since Returning to Power, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

Wed, 19 Aug 2026 08:13:42 PDT

A majority of Americans believe President Trump and his family have inappropriately profited from cryptocurrency since his return to power and that his policy decisions are influenced by his private business dealings, a new Reuters/Ipsos poll found. The four-day poll, completed ‌on Monday, found that half of Trump's own Republicans believe the president allows considerations for his business interests to influence his decisions, a striking finding for a leader who pledged to clean up corruption in Washington.

FCC's Lone Democrat Says Disney 'Has Found Its Courage' in Lawsuit Against Agency

Wed, 19 Aug 2026 08:08:51 PDT

ABC and Disney's decision to sue the Federal Communications Commission over what the companies allege is retaliation for the network's news coverage and programming highlights the importance of protecting the First Amendment, said FCC commissioner Anna Gomez, the agency's lone Democrat, in an interview with Morning Edition on Wednesday. "Disney has found its courage and it is pushing back," Gomez told NPR's Leila Fadel. "And this is good. It's good for the First Amendment. It's good for the public and it's good for broadcasters in general."

Groups Sue Trump Administration Over New Foreign Student Visa Rule

Wed, 19 Aug 2026 08:07:40 PDT

A coalition of labor unions and higher-education groups sued the Trump administration to stop a new rule limiting the time foreign students, exchange visitors and journalists can stay in the U.S.

Minnesota Sues Texas Over ICE Agent's Extradition

Wed, 19 Aug 2026 08:06:33 PDT

Minnesota is suing Texas to force the extradition of an ICE agent who shot and wounded a man in Minneapolis earlier this year.

Trump's Ballroom Is Rising at Breakneck Speed: 20 Hours a Day, 7 Days a Week

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 16:14:21 PDT

With the fate of his ballroom tied up in court, President Trump is racing against the clock. He has enlisted a team of 250 workers to push ahead with construction 20 hours a day, seven days a week to complete as much work as quickly as possible. This week, there are plans to install one million pounds of rebar and pour 3,000 cubic yards of concrete for a project that is now two-thirds complete, the administration said in a court filing. Now, with the matter pending before the Supreme Court, the Trump administration is making a practical appeal to the justices: The ballroom is simply too far along to be stopped now. "His strategy clearly is to change the reality on the ground so that instead of preserving the status quo, those who rightly invoke the law against what he's doing are put in a position of having to undo something that is already a fait accompli," said Laurence H. Tribe, an emeritus university professor of constitutional law at Harvard.

Trump Administration Moves to Rescind Rule That Protects Millions of Forest Acres

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 16:11:01 PDT

The Trump administration took a step ‌toward rescinding a decades-old rule that protects undeveloped forests on Tuesday in a move it says will help manage wildfire risk, but which environmental groups oppose, saying it would do the opposite. President Trump has rolled back environmental regulations and taken land out of conservation for purposes such as energy extraction. The proposed rule filed by the U.S. Forest Service would rescind ⁠the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, which bans logging, roads and mining in undeveloped forests, and move authority to local national forest managers, according to a press release from the Department of Agriculture.

Preservation Group Urges Supreme Court to Suspend Trump's White House Ballroom Project

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 16:09:18 PDT

A historic preservation group that sued to block construction of President Trump's White House ballroom urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to suspend the project while it considers whether the work can continue. The National Trust for Historic Preservation filed its request less than a week after the Trump administration asked the nation's highest court to allow the White House to continue construction on its $400 million ballroom project during the appeals process. Lawyers for the trust accused the administration of trying to "outrun judicial review" rather than obtain permission for the work from Congress, as required by federal law. The administration "cannot identify any statute granting them 'express authority' to destroy a third of the White House and replace it with a massive, privately funded ballroom, because none exists," trust attorneys wrote.

Senator Presses Hegseth, Caine for Commitment to Keep U.S. Military Out of the Midterm Elections

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 16:07:30 PDT

Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin asked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday to confirm he won't send U.S. troops to polling places during November's midterm elections, as Democrats have raised concerns that the Trump administration could use the military to interfere with the vote. "I'd ask you to confirm a simple statement: the Department of Defense will not send Federal troops to the polls or to seize election materials of any kind," Slotkin wrote to Hegseth and to Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in letters Tuesday. The Pentagon said in an email that it will respond directly to Slotkin, as it does with all congressional correspondence. The Joint Chiefs did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Slotkin told The Associated Press that Trump has been laying the groundwork to claim the midterms were stolen. She noted that Trump contemplated using the military to seize voting machines after his loss in 2020 and has deployed the National Guard to cities against the wishes of Democratic leaders. He also deployed active duty Marines to Los Angeles during his immigration crackdown in 2025.

Trump's Broken Promises, in 11 Charts

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 08:11:53 PDT

"Promises made, promises kept." Other presidents have employed variations of that phrase, although few with the gusto of President Trump; he even proclaims it on the White House Web site. When it comes to the economy, though, "promises not kept" would be a more apt description of the first 19 months of Trump 2.0. And many of the promises he has kept are causing as much damage as critics predicted. All in all, while Trump continues to boast about the "greatest economy we've ever had, by far," the record to date falls far short of that lofty pronouncement.

White House Launches Personal Attack on CNN Reporter Over Question to Trump

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 08:05:30 PDT

The White House launched a personal attack against a CNN reporter on Monday with a social media post that mentioned her children and accused her of asking a "disgusting and inhumane question." A White House post targeted Kristen Holmes, a senior White House correspondent for the network, after she asked Donald Trump to respond to a widely shared comment by the Democratic senator Jon Ossoff in a speech on Sunday. The Georgia senator told a crowd that Trump "doesn't want to do the job" and instead "wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace gifted by the emir of Qatar." The comment was an apparent reference to Natalie Harp, the president's executive assistant, fueling scrutiny of her perceived closeness to Trump. When Holmes asked Trump in the Oval Office to respond to Ossoff's remark, the president dismissed her, calling the senator a "Pee-wee Herman lookalike."

ABC Sues Trump's Media Regulator Over Demand for TV License Renewals

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 08:03:33 PDT

ABC has sued the Federal Communications Commission, arguing that it is being retaliated against for content-based reasons in a move it warns threatens the independence of the press. The network filed the lawsuit on Tuesday after being forced to apply early to renew its license to broadcast on the eight local television stations it owns. It is waiting to hear whether the Brendan Carr-led FCC approves its renewal requests or, more likely, holds a hearing on their merits. "Acting through the Federal Communications Commission, the Administration has waged a retaliatory campaign against ABC for a single reason: it disapproves of what ABC broadcasts," the network said in the suit, filed on behalf of its eight local stations in district court for the District of Columbia. "That campaign began in this Administration's earliest days and has only intensified since. Again and again, the Administration has attacked ABC's speech -- the stories its journalists report and the viewpoints its network programs air. Over time, those attacks have escalated into express demands that ABC be stripped of its broadcast licenses because of its speech."

Trump 2.0 Has Deleted or Altered Nearly 400 U.S. Datasets, Endangering Public Health, Education and More

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 08:01:49 PDT

A database of federal law enforcement officer misconduct records. A survey measuring physical, sexual and emotional violence against children and youth. Real-time pollution readings collected by air quality monitors from U.S. embassies around the world. These are among the hundreds of federal datasets that the Trump administration has taken down or altered as part of its aggressive campaign to wipe all mentions of data findings that do not align with the administration's priorities. Over the past year and a half, at least 28 federal datasets have been deleted and another 338 data collections have been modified, according to an online tracker released last week from dataindex.us, a group of data policy experts, researchers and developers that formed last year to monitor changes to government data. "We're at a very vulnerable point as a nation," said Denice Ross, former U.S. chief data scientist under the Biden administration and a co-founder of dataindex.us. "We're facing a future where we are not going to have the information that we need to make decisions that will save lives and benefit American communities."

Bond Markets From U.S. to Japan Whacked as Inflation and Fiscal Worries Take Hold

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 08:00:16 PDT

Long-term borrowing costs from the United States to Japan and Germany hit their highest levels in decades on Tuesday, as renewed inflation worries added to nagging concerns about the fiscal pressures facing some of the world's biggest economies. Thirty-year bond yields in the United States, the world's most systemically crucial government bond market, ‌hit their highest since 2007 as oil prices -- up 50 percent so far this year -- rose back above $90 a barrel, fanning inflation worries as U.S.-Iran peace hopes faded. In Japan, inflation angst and expectations that Japan could hike interest rates as early as September pushed 10-year borrowing costs to a three-decade high just under 3 percent. In Europe, Germany's 10-year Bund yield touched its highest since 2011 , French yields were at their highest since 2009 and Britain's 30-year borrowing costs neared peaks hit in May that marked the highest levels since 1998. When a bond's yield rises, its price falls.

Former U.S. Ambassador on Kushner's Meeting With Israel's Prime Minister

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 07:57:52 PDT

President Trump's envoy Jared Kushner met with Israel's prime minister in an effort to revive the stalled Gaza agreement. NPR's Michel Martin talks to former U.S. ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro.

A Look at the Trump Administration's Evolving Relationship With Asia

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 07:50:05 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Jung H. Pak, former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, about the Trump administration's evolving Asia policy.

Families Struggle With the Financial Impact of Fighting Trump's Deportation Campaign

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 07:46:11 PDT

Fighting immigration detention can be expensive and some families now struggle with the financial fallout from the mass deportation campaign.

Border Construction Paused at Big Bend National Park After Public Outcry

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 07:44:21 PDT

U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott says he is "pausing all construction activity" on border infrastructure in Big Bend National Park, ahead of a visit to the area this week.

Trump Votes by Mail Again in Florida

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 18:19:49 PDT

President Trump voted by mail ahead of Florida's Republican primary on Tuesday, according to the White House, participating for at least the third time in a practice that he has railed against for years and has equated to cheating.

National Debt Nears $40 Trillion: How We Got Here and Why It Matters

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 17:57:03 PDT

The national debt is expected to hit a record high as soon as this week, crossing a major threshold of $40 trillion. Congressional correspondent Lisa Desjardins explains why that milestone is a warning sign for many economists.

Trump Lashes Out at South Korea Over Its Refusal to Join Iran War

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 16:25:59 PDT

Exercises between the American and South Korean militaries began as scheduled on Monday, even after President Trump demanded they be scaled back. Trump said the war games were unnecessarily provocative and a challenge to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, despite recent praise of South Korea by the administration.

Where the Iran War Stands as 60-Day Window to Reach Peace Deal Expires

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 16:24:48 PDT

President Trump lashed out at U.S. allies on Monday as the deadline to reach a deal to end the war with Iran expires. Trump threatened to bomb Oman, which has been mediating negotiations and called for military exercises with South Korea to be scaled back, in part for refusing to join the war. Amna Nawaz discussed where the war stands and what happens next with Alan Eyre and Reuel Marc Gerecht.

Judge Rules Trump Administration Can't Scrap F.B.I. Move to Maryland

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 16:22:20 PDT

A federal judge in Maryland blocked the Trump administration from abandoning a planned move for the F.B.I. from its crumbling headquarters in Washington to a new facility in Prince George's County, Md. In a 47-page ruling, Judge Theodore Chuang of the Federal District Court in Maryland wrote that "the F.B.I. erroneously concluded" that it could select a new headquarters for itself without consulting Congress. In reality, Judge Chuang wrote, Congress had already approved the Biden administration plan for the F.B.I. to move to Maryland.

Appeals Court Rejects Trump's Strategy of Picking U.S. Attorneys

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 16:20:15 PDT

A federal appeals court on Monday rejected the Trump administration's strategy of circumventing Congress to more freely appoint politically aligned federal prosecutors, casting fresh doubt on the practice. The ruling from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco was the second appellate decision within the last year to take issue with the administration's custom of leaving interim prosecutors in place instead of appointing permanent U.S. attorneys who require congressional confirmation. Within hours of the ruling Monday, the Trump administration said it would appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Trump's Move to Gut South Korea Alliance Is 'Inane, Haphazard Decision', Lawmakers Say

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 16:12:32 PDT

Donald Trump's move to gut Washington's 73-year-old military alliance with Seoul has been called "inane" and "shortsighted" as lawmakers warned it risked strengthening Russia's hand in Ukraine. The U.S. president abruptly ordered the Pentagon to scale back joint exercises with South Korea just days after North Korea test-fired ballistic missiles, justifying the decision by citing his "very good relationship" with Kim Jong-Un, the nuclear-armed dictator such exercises exist to deter. Trump framed the decision as a courtesy to Kim, writing that the drills "send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile" to a country he described as "unthreatening and respectful," despite North Korea's continued missile testing and its expanding nuclear arsenal. Democrats in Congress said the move handed Kim a propaganda win for nothing, while an ally was left paying the price for a war in the Middle East it never agreed to fight. Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate armed services committee, called it "another inane, haphazard decision by President Trump and his chaotic administration."

Trump Approval Falls to 33 Pct., Lowest of His Presidency, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 16:10:07 PDT

President Trump's approval rating fell to the lowest level of his presidency, ‌with an overwhelming majority of Americans concerned the U.S. war with Iran will last a long time, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll that concluded on Monday. Just 33 percent of respondents in the four-day survey said they approved of Trump's performance in the White House, while 64 percent disapproved. Trump's approval rating, down from 35 percent in a poll that closed earlier this month and lower than at any point in his current term, has now tied the lowest level of his prior term reached in December 2017. Some 80 percent of Americans -- including 87 percent of Democrats and 71 percent of Republicans -- think U.S. involvement in Iran "will go on for an extended period of time," the Reuters/Ipsos poll found. Just 16 percent said the conflict would likely end in a few weeks.

Alzheimer's Research Is Latest Casualty in Trump Administration War Against 'DEI'

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 09:03:27 PDT

A new round of scientific grant cancellations has hit brain health and Alzheimer's disease research at two leading research institutions, Emory University and the University of Pittsburgh. The latest cancellations are the Trump administration's most recent effort to remove disfavored topics from the National Institutes of Health $47bn scientific portfolio -- and appear to target the study of the impacts of racism. "This kind of clear political interference -- that's not a good way to do science," said Ann Cohen, an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh, whose grant was canceled. "I haven't even thought much about the why this is being done because it's so scientifically wrong that I can't get past that piece." At least three grants were canceled between the two institutions. In total, the cancellations represent $15m in grants that were meant to study how discrimination affects long-term brain health -- millions of which have already been invested in the work.

U.S. Gas Prices Reach Highest Ever Recorded for August Amid Stalled Talks With Iran

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 08:59:59 PDT

U.S. gas prices this month are so far the highest ever recorded for August as peace talks between the U.S. and Iran have stalled and Donald Trump launched fresh threats against Oman. The national average price of gas was $4.06 per gallon on Monday, according to data from AAA, $0.05 higher than last week and $1 more expensive than a year ago. In California and Hawaii, averages hit about $5.50 a gallon. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, reached $112 a barrel in March, a high not seen since 2022. While prices have since come down closer to $85 a barrel, they are still about 30 percent higher than a year ago. On Monday, the U.S. and Iran missed their 60-day diplomatic deadline to end the war, as both countries failed to reach an agreement on Iran's nuclear program. Trump on Monday threatened to bomb Oman, a key strategic partner for the U.S. that has historically served as a backchannel between the two countries, if it "gets in the way."

After Killing Hundreds in Boat Strikes, U.S. Military Expands Campaign on Land in Latin America

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 08:54:55 PDT

Hundreds of people have been killed in the year since the U.S. military began bombing boats it accused of ferrying drugs off Latin America's Caribbean and Pacific coasts. Now, the Trump administration says it is seeking to extend that lethal campaign to land, pursuing deals that would put U.S. forces on the ground in allied nations across the region. Trump's defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, announced last week during a visit to Panama that Colombia, Guatemala and Honduras had agreed to allow the U.S. to carry out joint military operations against criminal groups on their soil, following Ecuador, which launched similar missions with the U.S. in March. Guatemala, however, has denied reaching such an agreement.

Supreme Court Again Rebuffs Trump's Push to Toss Out $5 Million Verdict in E. Jean Carroll Case

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 08:52:54 PDT

The Supreme Court on Monday again rebuffed President Trump's push to throw out a jury's $5 million finding that he sexually abused the writer E. Jean Carroll at a New York City department store in the mid-1990s and later defamed her. The Republican president's lawyers had asked the justices to reconsider their refusal to hear his appeal. The court denied Trump's petition along with several others.

Trump Orders Pentagon to Scale Back Joint Exercises With South Korea

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 08:51:18 PDT

President Trump ordered the Pentagon on Sunday to scale back annual joint military exercises with South Korea, saying the ally declined to help with the war against Iran and citing his good relationship with North Korea's Kim Jong Un. Trump said in a social media post that the exercises, which began Monday, are not only costly but "send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile" to North Korea, which he said "has been unthreatening and respectful" during his time in the White House. The move is the latest example of the president appearing to turn against an ally in favor of a leader that previous administrations have cast as an adversary.

States Hope Federal Funds Will Help Offset Medicaid Cuts for Rural Hospitals

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 08:49:20 PDT

Over the next five years, states hope to get an influx of federal funds to invest in rural health care. Some hospitals say the funding won't offset what they'll lose in Medicaid cuts.

Trump Wants to Build an Expanded Bunker Under the White House. A Historian Weighs In

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 08:35:06 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with author and presidential historian Garrett Graff about President Trump's plans for an expanded bunker beneath the White House.

Attorney General Todd Blanche Won't Commit to a DOJ Free From White House Influence

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 08:32:17 PDT

NPR's Sacha Pfeiffer asks ProPublica reporter and author Aaron C. Davis about Attorney General Todd Blanche's "ground-breaking" refusal to pledge Department of Justice independence.

Sen. Mark Kelly Discusses Conditions Aboard the USS Lincoln

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 08:29:18 PDT

NPR's Sacha Pfeiffer asks Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona about conditions aboard the USS Lincoln and President Trump's multi-billion dollar plan to restore older tech on aircraft carriers.

Years of Trump Support Came Undone in 15 Minutes in an Airport.

Sun, 16 Aug 2026 09:12:44 PDT

After she got off a flight in Burbank, Calif., a young man in a brown hooded sweatshirt stopped Galina Bobreneva. He was a federal agent and after questioning Bobreneva for about 15 minutes, he led her away in handcuffs to an unmarked vehicle. So began a 16-day ordeal: a night on the floor of a basement holding cell in downtown Los Angeles; two weeks in a Mojave Desert detention center and a frantic legal effort to win her release. Freed on a $35,000 bond with an electronic monitor clamped to her ankle, she is now fighting to stay in the U.S. against federal charges of overstaying her visa. Bobreneva, who is from Russia, has a pending green card application and her lawyer asserts that she was never out of lawful status. As the Trump administration seeks to nearly double its daily arrests to 2,000 people, it is detaining and attempting to deport thousands of people who believed they were following the rules. "The allure of the MAGA campaign was around illegal entries of criminals," said Jindra, Bobreneva's husband, who voted for Trump three times. "There was never a mandate for this president to turn the barrel of the gun and start going after people who legally entered."

Families of U.S. Sailors Denounce Trump and Hegseth for 'Dismissing Their Experiences and Calling Them Liars'

Sun, 16 Aug 2026 09:01:40 PDT

Naval families with loved ones deployed for months on U.S. warships amid the Iran war have reacted with fury to Donald Trump and the defense secretary Pete Hegseth's dismissal of their concerns about the extreme pressures and dire conditions they are enduring. The Guardian has talked to three naval families who have been following the physical and mental stresses bearing down on their relatives with mounting alarm. The families, with loved ones on board the USS Abraham Lincoln and USS Tripoli, all spoke anonymously for fear of retribution against their active duty relatives. They spoke of insufficient nourishment that has led to close relatives losing 20-30lbs in weight since they were sent to the Middle East five months ago, leaving one sailor "emaciated," according to his mother. They spoke also of low-quality drinking water and scarce mental health counseling and support despite the intense burden of being at sea for months on end without making land.

Massachusetts Anti-Hunger Advocate Fasts to Protest Trump Food Stamp cuts

Sun, 16 Aug 2026 08:55:48 PDT

Anti-hunger advocate Liz Wills-O'Gilvie, 63, said she has not eaten for 15 days in a bid to push Governor Maura Healey to raise funding for Massachusetts' shrinking food stamp program. By consuming only water, ‌electrolytes and glucose pills, Wills-O'Gilvie, whom Healey last year appointed to an anti-hunger task force, aims to draw attention to rising food insecurity due to cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. More than 5.3 million people across the U.S. have lost SNAP benefits since President Trump made sweeping changes to the program in his 2025 tax and spending law, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data.

U.S. Oil Reserves Hit the Lowest Level Seen in Over 40 Years

Sun, 16 Aug 2026 08:51:08 PDT

NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben speaks with Kevin Book of ClearView Energy about the United States' dwindling oil reserves as they hit the lowest level seen in more than four decades.

Prosecutors Examined Firm With Tie to Judge in Trump Hush Money Trial

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 09:19:23 PDT

The U.S. attorney's office in Chicago has spent the past year investigating a Democratic fund-raising firm once co-owned by Loren Merchan, the daughter of the judge in President Trump's hush-money trial in New York, according to court filings and people familiar with the inquiry. The Merchan family has been a frequent target of Trump and his allies, who have made unsubstantiated claims that the judge was out to get him and that his daughter profited from accusations aired at the trial. The trial ended with Trump's conviction in 2024, in the midst of his campaign for a second term, on 34 felony counts stemming from his efforts to keep a porn star from publicizing her story of a liaison with him. The inquiry is the latest indication of the extent to which U.S. attorneys offices across the country, once largely removed from political machinations in Washington, have increasingly been drawn into the Trump's effort to target his adversaries.

The Buck Stops Somewhere Else: A Look at Trump's Tendency to Avoid Blame When Things Go Awry

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 08:35:00 PDT

It is among the most famous phrases in presidential history: " The buck stops here." Except with President Trump, it almost never does. Concerns about a weak economy and still-high inflation? His predecessor, Joe Biden, saddled him with that, he says, even though the Democrat has been out of office for 18-plus months and despite Trump once promising an immediate turnaround. The problem-plagued revamp of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool? That was marred by vandalism, the Republican president insists, even though the office of a prosecutor he put in the job has said the damage was due to shoddy workmanship. The increasingly unpopular war in Iran that has kept oil prices high, Trump's approval rating low and sent shock waves through the global economy? Actually, this was Trump making up for timid earlier presidents who, he argues, squandered nearly 50 years of opportunities to curb Tehran's nuclear ambitions. Accepting the 2016 presidential nomination, Trump said, "Nobody knows the system better than me, which is why I alone can fix it." But as president, he has often suggested that the solution and blame rest elsewhere.

We Learned Five Important Things About the Economy This Week

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 08:28:01 PDT

How is inflation showing up on supermarket shelves and at the gas pump? How are families coping? What are they splurging on? These were among some of the insights delivered this week about the economy. Here are the key takeaways about the economy we've gleaned this week from government and industry reports covering everything from debt to housing.

Week in Politics: USS Lincoln; Latest Primaries and Democrats; White House Ballroom

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 08:23:49 PDT

A shortage of some munitions as well as the problems with the USS Lincoln have the Trump administration on the defensive. Meanwhile, what the latest primaries show about Democratic enthusiasm.

Trump Urges Americans to Accept Higher Gas Prices as He Escalates Iran Rhetoric

Fri, 14 Aug 2026 16:28:44 PDT

President Trump on Friday urged Americans to accept "slightly" higher gasoline prices as the cost ‌of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and said he would soon declare the Strait of Hormuz a U.S territory. In a speech in Garden City, Trump said Americans who had to "pay a tiny little bit more for your gasoline" should remember that this was the cost of ensuring "a very evil country" could not have a nuclear weapon. "What we're doing is a great service for the world, not only for ourselves ... and we're really doing a great ‌job," ⁠said Trump, adding he would never apologize for attacking Iran. Oil prices have risen this week, with Brent crude approaching $90 a barrel, while U.S. gasoline prices have climbed to around $4 a gallon.

Trump Says USS Abraham Lincoln Deployment 'Not Nearly Long Enough'

Fri, 14 Aug 2026 16:23:05 PDT

President Trump on Friday dismissed concerns about the toll on U.S. sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, saying the aircraft carrier's more than ‌260-day deployment in support of the war with Iran was "not nearly long enough" even as families and lawmakers raised concerns about mental health and deteriorating conditions aboard the ship.

They Fought for the U.S. In Afghanistan. Now They Worry About Losing Their Green Cards

Fri, 14 Aug 2026 16:19:55 PDT

Five years after the U.S. withdrawal, Afghan allies who resettled in America are facing new fears as the government retroactively revokes their Special Immigrant Visas.

Little Thefts, Big Charges: Trump's Justice Dept. Targets Lesser Fraud

Fri, 14 Aug 2026 16:18:29 PDT

As the White House expands its "war on fraud," the Justice Department announced criminal charges in recent days against a new symbol of that battle -- a food truck in Santa Ana, Calif. Soriano Produce, a weathered white food truck advertising ice cream treats as well as fruits and vegetables, drew the attention of undercover agents at Immigration and Customs Enforcement for what investigators said was a startlingly high number of food stamp transactions for such a small business. The case against the food truck owner, Esmeralda Soriano, is an example of the Trump administration's push to show that "no fraud is small enough or big enough to look away from," as Vice President JD Vance said in a speech in April. The new emphasis on small-dollar fraud comes as the administration has issued pardons and commutations to white-collar convicts, pulled back from pursuing criminal cases against multinational corporations and dropped high-profile charges against wealthy executives.

Trump Orders the Navy to Return to an Older System of Launching Jets Off Aircraft Carriers

Fri, 14 Aug 2026 08:45:27 PDT

President Trump is ordering the U.S. Navy to remove the advanced system used to launch fighter jets from its newest type of aircraft carrier and return to using older steam catapults that he has long said he prefers, according to a directive issued Thursday. The new mandate would likely cost billions of dollars and revert the Navy's most advanced ships to a system that takes more sailors to operate and is more difficult to maintain. The move comes after years of Trump railing against the new, magnetically powered catapult system that shoots fighter jets off the deck of the carriers. It also comes at a time when the U.S. military is trying to find funding from Congress for all its desired equipment and as the Navy is struggling to fill its ships with enough sailors.

At Big Bend National Park, Bulldozers Begin Clearing Pristine Desert Land for Border Barrier Work

Fri, 14 Aug 2026 08:43:36 PDT

At the foot of Santa Elena Canyon -- perhaps the most iconic and photographed stretch of Big Bend National Park -- Joan Stutts Escamilla sits in silence by the edge of the Rio Grande. "It's such a god-given gift," the 70-year-old said, looking up at the canyon's 1,500-foot tall limestone cliffs. "There's just nothing, there's nothing else like this." But within the last week, federal contractors have moved heavy machinery into the national park, bulldozing through desert shrubs and clearing ecologically sensitive land. Bright pink ribbons now mark a construction path where willow and mesquite trees once stood.

Doctors Say Medicaid Change to Gender-Affirming Care Will Harm Vulnerable Youth

Fri, 14 Aug 2026 08:42:40 PDT

Federal Medicaid dollars can no longer pay for gender-affirming care for youth. Doctors who treat trans kids say it will harm vulnerable people.

DOJ Deploys Tactic to Strip Naturalized Americans of Citizenship

Fri, 14 Aug 2026 08:42:06 PDT

Earlier this month, federal prosecutors moved to strip citizenship from 25 naturalized Americans, accusing them of lying about their pasts and hiding serious crimes. It's called denaturalization and the Justice Department now calls it one of its top priorities.

How Trump's Construction Projects Are Changing Washington and Costing Taxpayers

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 17:56:25 PDT

President Trump is pressing ahead with an ambitious effort to reshape Washington with new construction and renovations. The White House projects alone are now estimated to cost at least $900 million, with taxpayers funding a significant portion, despite earlier promises that private donors would cover most of the bill.

Judge Dismisses Federal Government's Antisemitism Case Against Harvard

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 17:53:01 PDT

A federal judge in Boston on Thursday dismissed the Trump administration's antisemitism lawsuit against Harvard University, dealing a blow to the government's efforts to force the school to make a deal. Judge Richard G. Stearns of the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts granted Harvard's motion to throw out the case, saying that the antisemitic incidents cited in the administration's March lawsuit were "too isolated and episodic" to show that Harvard is breaking the law.

U.S. Conducted 'Mass Spying Campaign' Against Leftwing Groups and Anti-ICE Protesters, Records Reveal

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 17:50:32 PDT

Newly disclosed records reveal the U.S. government extensively spied on prominent leftwing organizations and on protesters as part of a vast operation into groups opposing the immigration crackdown in Minnesota earlier this year. Internal investigative reports show the Department of Homeland Security sent undercover agents to community meetings in the Twin Cities and New York City, infiltrated Signal chats and obtained financial records of mainstream unions and left-leaning non-profit groups. Nearly 30 internal law enforcement reports were released on Thursday as part of a criminal case the Department of Justice has filed against 15 Minneapolis protesters. The defendants are accused of a "conspiracy" to "impede" U.S. immigration officers during the Trump administration's surge in the region.

Kennedy Center Board Votes Again to Shut Main Building Down -- and Add Trump's Name Back

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 17:47:08 PDT

On Thursday, the board of the Kennedy Center voted a second time to shut down most of the Washington, D.C., arts complex for what is being described as a two-year major renovation plan, according to a person briefed on the vote. In March, the center's board approved a full shutdown of the complex for major renovations, but a federal judge later ruled to temporarily block the planned closure, saying that no board members had "sufficient information" to make such a decision. In a test of both the same judge's previous ruling and a related appeals court ruling, the board also voted on Thursday to put President Trump's name back on the center's entry, calling the complex, "Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump." The board's decisions will be subject to the federal judge's approval. Thursday's board meeting was held by Zoom and was not public.

Trump Administration Lets Key Gun Law Lapse Following Court Ruling

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 08:46:38 PDT

The Justice Department declined to appeal a court ruling that effectively dismantled longstanding restrictions on owning short-barreled guns and suppressors, bowing to pressure from Republicans and gun advocates. Gun rights groups and gun businesses, many of which had filed and supported the lawsuit, celebrated the overturning of the law. Groups supporting gun restrictions criticized the government's inaction, arguing that the ruling had deregulated dangerous, easily concealable firearms and accessories that had been restricted since 1934.

Trump Administration Accused of 'Bullying' Union Leader at Consumer Protection Agency

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 08:43:53 PDT

The Trump administration has been accused of "bullying and intimidation" after a labor union leader and critic was put under investigation and suspended from his job at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Stephen Wheeler, a data scientist at the agency since 2022 and chair of the CFPB union organizing committee, was placed on administrative leave effective immediately earlier this month. The union said it was not provided with any specific violations or given any details of the investigation. The CFPB -- conceived by the Democratic senator Elizabeth Warren to protect consumers after the 2008 financial crisis -- has long been a target of Republicans. "An investigation with no stated scope or scale is no investigation -- it's a fishing expedition," Wheeler said. "I have nothing to hide and when the facts are examined this will be seen for what it is: bullying and intimidation for union activity and protected speech."

Trump Promised a Sex-Trafficking Crackdown. His Justice Department Hasn't Delivered

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 08:32:06 PDT

The Trump administration has repeatedly said the fight against sex trafficking is one of its top priorities. But investigations have stalled and prosecutions declined in the past six months because of staffing shortages, funding cuts, immigration enforcement and growing distrust of the government among victims, according to Reuters interviews with 25 former prosecutors, current agents and victims' advocates and a review of federal court records. "You can't say something is a priority and then not provide the resources to make that happen," said Jacqueline Kelly, a former federal prosecutor in New York who led the prosecution of rapper and actor Sean "Diddy" Combs, who was accused of sex trafficking and was convicted last year on two counts of transportation for prostitution.

Reflecting Pool's Botched Repairs Threaten to Tarnish the National Park Service's Reputation

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 08:26:26 PDT

President Trump's botched repairs at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool have landed the National Park Service in a political predicament. The beloved federal agency, its iconic park rangers and other employees have been serving the public while managing controversial demands by the Republican president -- from revising exhibits at parks and other sites to the demolition of important structures under its stewardship, such as the White House's East Wing, to arresting visitors for alleged vandalism at the pool. Critics say the monthslong Reflecting Pool saga and other demands by Trump risk undermining the integrity of a federal agency that has long been held in high esteem by the American public. "Never -- not once in decades -- have I witnessed such systematic degradation, disrespect and dismantling of the National Park Service as I see today under the thumb of President Trump and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum," said Bill Wade, a former park ranger and superintendent.

Trump's Vaccine Plan Would Require Millions of Individual Shots Last Used Decades Ago

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 08:22:31 PDT

Public health experts have been quick to condemn an executive order from President Trump aimed at upending childhood vaccinations in the U.S., but the biggest obstacles may be the unprecedented financial and logistical challenges it would impose on parents, health providers and drugmakers. Monday's announcement by the Republican president calls for separating combination shots -- including the measles, mumps and rubella or MMR, vaccine -- into separate injections. Appointments for that and other vaccinations should be spaced out whenever possible, the order states. To accomplish that, drugmakers would need to revive a slate of individual vaccines that have not been marketed separately in the U.S. for decades. They would also have to build new manufacturing plants capable of producing millions more vaccine doses than the nation currently uses. For parents, unbundling the MMR vaccine and spacing out the shots would mean returning to the doctor's office many more times than is currently needed. Those appointments could also strain pediatricians who typically administer the shots, while driving up costs tied to syringes and other medical supplies. Studies in the U.S. and other countries have shown that combination vaccines increase the likelihood that children will be fully protected from infectious diseases before starting school. Health experts say there is no scientific basis for changing course.

How Inflation Is Affecting Consumer Spending

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 08:18:42 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Investopedia's Editor-in-Chief Caleb Silver about the impact of inflation on consumer spending.

Trump Administration Again Urges U.S. Supreme Court Intervention on Mail Ballots

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 08:16:34 PDT

President Trump's administration again asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to intervene to fully ‌implement his executive order restricting the use of mail-in ballots ahead of the November midterm elections that will decide control of Congress. The Justice Department filed a request asking the justices to put on hold a decision made on Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston that blocks the U.S. Postal Service from nationwide enforcement of the directive's tighter rules for voting by mail.

Trump's Justice Department Arrests Expert on Far Right as Part of SPLC Crackdown

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 16:38:24 PDT

The Justice Department on Wednesday arrested a leading expert on far-right extremism, charging her with financial crimes as part of the government's ongoing case against the Southern Poverty Law Center. Federal prosecutors charged Heidi Beirich, who formerly served as the group's chief financial officer, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to submit false statements to a federally insured bank and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering. Without ruling on the merits of the case, a federal judge in Alabama allowed the case to proceed last week, rejecting an argument from the SPLC that the case should be dismissed because it was a vindictive prosecution.

USS Abraham Lincoln Sailors Tried to Jump Overboard Amid Extended Deployment -- Reports

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 16:35:48 PDT

Military families and Congress members are sounding the alarm about an intensifying mental health crisis onboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, as its 5,000 sailors and marines endure a record-breaking deployment at sea tied to the war with Iran. Two leading specialist military papers, the Navy Times and Stars and Stripes, are reporting that there have been multiple attempts by sailors to jump overboard as poor conditions and mental stresses on the Lincoln reach the breaking point. The crew is in its ninth month at sea and has spent 250 days consecutively without making land -- a record for an aircraft carrier in modern times.

Lawsuit Seeks to Ban Trump Media From Charging for Early Access to President's Posts on U.S. Policy

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 16:30:33 PDT

President Trump was sued in federal court Wednesday to stop him from making money off a new, paid service at his Truth Social company offering early, exclusive access to his posts on U.S. policy. The lawsuit alleges the service offering paying customers sneak peeks of his posts about U.S. policy on war, tariffs and other issues violates the Constitution and that official announcements should be made available to everyone at the same time. The new subscription service rolled out earlier this month is charging Wall Street firms as much as $100,000 a month to trade off the market-moving posts before others. "A president selling priority access to news he himself generates for the benefit of a private company he controls is so blatantly corrupt and unconstitutional that it would have been hard to even fathom just a few years ago," said Seth Stern, chief of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, a plaintiff in the case along with news outlet The Intercept.

Budget Cuts Have Reduced Efforts to Find and Recover Vietnam War Troops

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 16:29:09 PDT

Budget cuts have gutted the Pentagon's efforts to find and identify troops still missing from the Vietnam War, even as aging family members run out of time to see their loved ones brought home.

ICE Plans to Outfit Officers With Electric Shock Gloves

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 16:27:36 PDT

Immigration and Customs Enforcement is planning to purchase high-tech gloves that deliver electric shocks to people they're trying to detain. Immigrant advocates are concerned.

U.S. Credit Card Debt Climbs to $1.26tn, Nearing Last Year's Record High

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 08:12:32 PDT

Credit card debt in the United States is growing close to a record high, having creeped up from $54bn to $1.26tn between April and June compared with the same period last year, according to a report by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. An increase in credit card debt more than 90 days past due, from 7.6 percent in late 2022 to 12.8 percent early this year, raised concerns about household stress in "rates not seen since the Great Recession."

U.S. to Offer 81 Million Acres in Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Lease Sale

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 08:03:23 PDT

The Trump administration on Wednesday will offer more than 81 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico to oil and gas drillers as part of an effort to ‌boost domestic energy production with regular offshore lease sales. The sale is the second since the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran disrupted global crude flows and sent oil prices to four-year highs. It is the third of 30 mandated by U.S. President Trump's tax cut and spending ⁠law passed in 2025.

Wall St Gains as AI Earnings Lift Tech, Inflation Data Supports Rate-Hold Bets

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 08:02:01 PDT

Wall Street's main indexes rose on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq outperforming peers as upbeat earnings from AI infrastructure firms boosted technology stocks, while largely in-line ‌inflation data reinforced bets the Fed will hold interest rates steady. Data showed U.S. consumer prices increased slightly in July, weakening the argument for the central bank to hike interest rates next month.

Groups Sue the Trump Administration Over Its Targeting of the International Criminal Court

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 07:54:19 PDT

Human Rights Watch and three other advocacy groups sued the Trump administration on Tuesday to challenge its campaign against the International Criminal Court, arguing that sanctions against ICC judges and prosecutors are undermining the ability to prosecute people responsible for humanity's worst crimes. The complaint -- filed in the Southern District of New York -- says that President Trump's executive order last year targeting the Hague-based criminal court and the U.S. sanctions issued against a U.N. human rights expert and three Palestinian rights groups represent a "blatantly illegal attack on international justice and should be struck down," according to a press release. The lawsuit is the latest example of organizations pushing back on what they call the Trump administration's efforts to undermine international law and prevent efforts to combat impunity by governments around the world.

Trump Administration to Give Faith-Based Groups $2B in Funding for Global Health Work

Wed, 12 Aug 2026 07:52:08 PDT

The Trump administration announced $2 billion in funding to faith-based groups for global health work. The White House says these groups work more efficiently. Experts question that claim.

Judge Again Bars Trump Administration From Implementing Order That Sought to Limit Mail Voting

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 19:21:29 PDT

A federal judge on Tuesday ruled against President Trump's executive order that sought to create a federal voter list and directly involve the U.S. Postal Service in election operations in a way that would limit mail voting. U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani had already halted the order Trump signed in March, his second one attempting to set national election rules. On June 25, she sided with Democratic state attorneys general in granting summary judgment, preventing the core parts of Trump's order from taking effect. "The executive branch has no authority to regulate elections," she wrote. "This ruling is a victory for voters and for the Constitution," Marcia Johnson of the League of Women Voters said in a statement. "Neither the president nor the U.S. Postal Service has the authority to rewrite election rules."

The Effectiveness and Cost of the National Guard Deployment in D.C.

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 16:30:04 PDT

It has now been one year since President Trump declared a "crime emergency" in the nation's capital and deployed thousands of members of the National Guard to its streets. Questions continue to mount over the mission's cost, its legality and its effectiveness in fighting crime. Lisa Desjardins discussed more with Richard Hahn of the Niskanen Center's Criminal Justice Department.

Trump's Decoy Flight and the Role of the White House Press Corps

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 16:25:50 PDT

New reporting contradicts what the White House told the press traveling with the president during a recent trip to Turkey. It was also a breach of protocol and public trust with the passengers on the decoy plane.

Home Sales Fall in July Amid High Mortgage Rates

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 16:23:41 PDT

The housing market is stuck in a slump. Sales of existing homes fell by 1.7 percent last month, even as the average selling price rose. High prices along with rising mortgage rates are putting a squeeze on affordability.

Trump Administration Kills a Flagship Annual Report on the Arctic

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 16:22:29 PDT

The Trump administration has pulled federal funding for an annual report chronicling the changing environment of the Arctic, where rapid warming is upending ecosystems, reconfiguring trade routes and scrambling Great Power strategy. Every year for the past two decades, the Arctic Report Card has provided a checkup on the health of the region, which is heating up at several times the pace of the rest of the globe. Sea ice has dwindled. Snow cover has shrunk. Glaciers are thinning out. Tundra vegetation has grown more abundant, leading to wildfires that burn through huge areas. Now, the report's coordinator and publisher, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is withdrawing its support for the report card. In a statement on Tuesday, Kim Doster, the agency's director of communications, didn't provide a reason.

As Credit Card Debt Mounts, Home Becomes a Piggy Bank

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 16:21:24 PDT

Household debt increased 3 percent in the first quarter of 2026, to $18.8 trillion, from a year earlier, according to a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, using data not adjusted for inflation. Mortgages made up the biggest chunk of that total, but credit card balances climbed 6 percent to $1.25 trillion from the year before. In the same three months, homeowners withdrew an estimated $47 billion in equity, up 2 percent from the same period in 2025, according to a report from the Intercontinental Exchange, a financial services company. Second mortgages amounted to $25 billion, a 1 percent increase from a year earlier, but refinancing existing mortgages to take cash out jumped 18 percent year over year to $22 billion.

New Evidence Shows Agents Using Slurs, Bolstering Profiling Claims

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 08:30:58 PDT

Since immigration agents began carrying out a string of big, aggressive sweeps last year, civil rights groups have argued that the Trump administration's mass deportation campaign has been defined by brazen racial profiling. Now, body-camera footage, text messages and other documents emerging from lawsuits around the country reveal how race and ethnicity have figured in the dragnets that unfolded in Los Angeles, Chicago, Minneapolis and other U.S. cities.

Trump Boarded Secret Turkey Flight via Catering Truck Due to Iran Threat, Reports Say

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 08:23:50 PDT

President Trump took a secret military flight from Turkey last month in an operation that involved him being moved between aircraft in a catering truck, an extraordinary deception prompted by an Iranian assassination threat, the Washington Post reported. The White House said at the time that the president was flying aboard Air Force One from Turkey, where he had attended a NATO summit, to Britain. But moments after Trump had boarded the ‌plane, he left it in secret via the catering truck and boarded another aircraft for the flight to Britain, the Post said on Monday, quoting unnamed sources. Before departing Ankara, ⁠Trump said on Truth Social that he would use an older baby blue Air Force One plane "for old time's sake" to RAF Mildenhall in Britain while the new plane stopped at the same base so U.S. service members stationed there could tour the aircraft. After Trump boarded the old Air Force One in front of cameras in Ankara, he was secretly shuttled by the airport catering truck to a smaller plane, an Air Force C-32A, the Post reported citing a U.S. official familiar with the operation and corroborating material it reviewed.

Fewer Resources and Funding Cuts Contributing to Spike in Foodborne Illnesses

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 08:17:50 PDT

It's been a bad summer for foodborne illnesses -- from a record-breaking cyclosporiasis outbreak tied to iceberg lettuce to salmonella infections linked to jalapeños.

Armed Troops Have Patrolled D.C. For One Year Now. It's Challenging Democratic Norms

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 08:16:50 PDT

Thousands of National Guard members have been patrolling the streets of Washington D.C. for a year now, in an anti-crime deployment that was quietly extended until Inauguration Day of 2029. Armed and uniformed troops have become a ubiquitous -- and controversial -- part of the city scenery, appearing on busy streets, in farmer's markets, metro stations and around the national monuments. And while activists have hung signs throughout the city urging "National Guard Go Home" and "Troops Out," life in D.C. has largely settled to coexist around their presence. It is both the longest and the largest of such deployments under this administration, which has repeatedly used the military domestically in unprecedented ways. All of those deployments have been challenged in court -- but it's a pattern that constitutional experts and former military officials have been ringing the alarm bells about for more than a year.

Author Max Boot Says Trump's Approach to Iran Is 'Guaranteed to Fail'

Tue, 11 Aug 2026 08:14:28 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with author Max Boot about President Trump's recent foreign policy setbacks. Boot writes that Trump's "zigzagging" approach to Iran is "guaranteed to fail."

State Voting Officials Join CISA Security Call With Election 85 Days Away

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 16:53:42 PDT

CISA, the federal agency tasked with protecting the cybersecurity of the nation's critical infrastructure, held a conference call with state election officials to discuss the upcoming midterms. Despite President Trump's claims about the risk of hackers targeting voting systems, this was one of CISA's first broad outreach efforts with Election Day just 85 days away.

Iran Demands U.S. Pay for War Damage Before Agreeing to Reopen Strait of Hormuz

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 16:50:30 PDT

Iran doubled down on keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed until the U.S. meets a sweeping list of demands. President Trump scoffed at those conditions, especially paying reparations to Iran for damages caused by five months of U.S.-Israeli bombardments. The impasse comes as war appears closer in Yemen between a Saudi-backed coalition and Iran-backed Houthi rebels. Nick Schifrin reports.

Washington Grapples With a National Guard Deployment Extended Until 2029

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 16:41:51 PDT

It's been 12 months since President Trump announced a crime emergency in Washington, pledging to make the city "safe and beautiful" and deploying the National Guard. But a mission that seemed temporary has been extended through January 2029. Residents and a new cadre of local officials see in it an unacceptable attempt by the federal government to restrict the heavily Democratic city's autonomy and, a year in, still question why having troops on the streets of the nation's capital is necessary. "There's a deep irony that here we are in the capital of the free world and our president is treating it like a police state," said Scott Michelman, legal director of the ACLU of the District of Columbia. "D.C. residents have lived with our National Guard troops in our neighborhoods for about a year, despite the absence of any genuine emergency and really any reason for them to be here."

ICE Crackdown in Minnesota Changed the Race for Open U.S. Senate Seat

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 16:39:56 PDT

President Trump's immigration crackdown in Minnesota earlier this year is a key issue going into that state's competitive Democratic primary for an open U.S. Senate seat.

Trump and RFK Jr. Try Again to Upend Vaccines for Kids

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 16:37:59 PDT

President Trump signed another executive order aimed at trying to upend the way U.S. children are vaccinated against dangerous infectious diseases. The new executive order, signed Monday afternoon in the Oval Office, calls for reducing the number of childhood vaccines recommended by the federal government from 17 to 11. The order tries to accomplish similar goals that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention enacted in January, a move which was later blocked by a judge. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has long questioned the safety and effectiveness of many childhood vaccines. Monday's order is also likely to be challenged in court.

America Is Atomizing

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 16:36:52 PDT

A report in June by Pew Research Center of more than 10,000 a.m.ericans found that the two-party system has basically split into nine groups, ranging from the "unconventional right" to the "left-out left" to the "tuned-out middle." Each embodies "a complex mix of values and beliefs" that belie -- and bedevil -- traditional Democratic and Republican alignments. Cultural critics and historians say our atomization is driven by many forces, including the nation's foundational pledge of personal freedoms, its proud and sometimes stubborn streak of individualism and its regional and ethnic diversity. Perhaps most important is the Internet, offering anything to everybody, no matter how niche -- and often leading to a distracted, fragmented and overstimulated online world. Poll after poll has found Americans less likely to know their neighbors, to trust other people, to have faith in the modern family. America is the only country where a majority of people think their fellow citizens are "morally bad," according to Pew.

Trump Officials Offer Cities Tens of Millions for Memphis-Style Police Surges -- With Conditions

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 08:36:59 PDT

The Trump administration is offering grants of tens of millions of dollars to cities across the U.S. to create more Memphis-style enforcement surges -- on the condition that they abandon progressive ideologies on policing. The U.S. Department of Justice says it will announce up to four finalist cities that will split $300m in grant funding under a federal "Model Cities" policing initiative next month, setting the stage for some of the largest federal policing grants ever awarded to individual U.S. cities. In exchange for the funding, cities are required to comply with federal immigration enforcement requests, enact conservative policies on anti-homelessness rules and potentially repay millions of dollars in the event of a surge in violent crime or "civil unrest," according to a grant document. Steven Reed, the mayor of Montgomery, Ala., said he had seen the grant and passed on applying. "Everybody wants a quick fix and no one wants to invest in the root cause of the issue," he said.

Congressional Democrats Launch Probe Into Efforts to Deport U.S. Military Members and Their Families

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 08:30:44 PDT

Congressional Democrats said they are investigating the Trump administration's efforts to deport military service members and their families after The Associated Press found more than 50 active-duty troops' spouses and parents have been detained by immigration authorities. In a letter sent Sunday evening to the Department of Homeland Security, the Defense Department and the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Democrats said they will investigate whether the Pentagon and DHS are coordinating to deport military service members and their families. "These efforts imperil military readiness, weaken service members' morale and betray America's promises to the people who put their lives on the line for our nation," according to the letter, which was signed by more than 60 lawmakers and provided to the AP.

Economist Discusses the Current State of the U.S. Economy

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 08:28:04 PDT

Following a weak jobs report and looking ahead to Wednesday's inflation data, NPR's A Martinez speaks to Diane Swonk, chief economist at the accounting firm KPMG U.S., about the state of the economy.

Amid Cost of Living Stress, Many Parents Are Supporting Children Well Into Adulthood

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 08:27:32 PDT

According to polls, a majority of Americans think it's more difficult for young adults today to achieve financial independence than it was for their parents. It's a view that's grown sharply in recent years, as prices for essentials such as housing, food and energy have shot up and inflation has stayed stubbornly elevated. Such concerns partly explain why most parents help support their grown children in some way, many well beyond the traditional age of financial independence. The share of 25- to 34-year-olds living with parents has also nearly doubled since 2005, to about 20 percent, according to the Urban Institute. One analysis found a third of all those under 35 are living back at home, just shy of the record peak during the Covid-19 pandemic, even though most are employed.

U.S. Diplomat Discusses Israel's Netanyahu Rejecting Trump's Proposed Gaza Peace Plan

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 08:25:17 PDT

NPR's A Martinez asks longtime U.S. diplomat Richard Haass about peace plans for Gaza after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected an agreement with Hamas proposed by President Trump.

Greenland Issues 'Strong Warning' as Trump-Linked Oil Firm Prepares to Drill

Sat, 08 Aug 2026 08:29:39 PDT

An American oil company connected to Donald Trump is preparing to sink wells in remote Greenland despite not having received permission from the local authorities. As the U.S. president renews his threats to claim the vast Arctic territory, materials to prepare for drilling were brought ashore in recent days on Greenland's eastern coast. That has prompted Greenland's government to issue a "strong warning" that no approval had been granted to land the kit. "All future logistical matters must be advised and approved by the mineral resources authority -- before they are carried out," the government said in a statement.

Democrats Plan Trump Investigations Over Impeachment if They Win House, Sources Say

Sat, 08 Aug 2026 08:27:53 PDT

U.S. House Democrats preparing for a possible return to power are developing a broad investigative strategy targeting companies and financial firms surrounding President Trump, instead of trying to impeach him immediately, according to four people familiar with the discussions. Senior Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives and committee aides have discussed using hearings, subpoenas and document requests to obtain records from entities tied to Trump's political and business orbit, the sources said. It is a bet that investigating ‌private companies and outside financial players will prove more fruitful than directly confronting a White House they expect to resist oversight, they said. "We're not going into this to impeach," said a senior Democratic aide, describing the thinking among party leaders and committee staff. "No one wants a failed vote on day one. The focus is on building a body of evidence through investigations that can hold Trump accountable."

Senators Head for the Exits Without Meeting Trump's Demands for Voting Bill

Sat, 08 Aug 2026 08:23:19 PDT

Senators headed for the exits in the predawn hours Saturday, ending for now a crushing standoff over President Trump's demands that they stay in session to pass a strict proof-of-citizenship voting bill before the summer recess. While they wrapped up many key priorities in the overnight votes, advancing Trump's SAVE America Act was not among them. Instead, Republican senators who had brought the chamber to a standstill spoke to Trump late in the evening about an alternative plan: They would try again to approve elements of the voting bill as part of a broader GOP budget package to fund the Iran war and replenish the Pentagon when they return to work in September.

Todd Blanche Is Narrowly Confirmed as Trump's Attorney General in an Overnight Senate Vote

Sat, 08 Aug 2026 08:21:54 PDT

The Senate confirmed Todd Blanche as attorney general in a vote early Saturday, cementing the command of President Trump's former personal lawyer at a Department of Justice that Trump has sought to bend to his will. The Republican-led Senate voted 50-49 to make Blanche the second confirmed attorney general since Trump returned to the White House last year with a stated desire to use the law enforcement agency to investigate his political enemies. The vote followed a tumultuous confirmation fight that exposed deep concerns -- from some Republicans as well as Democrats -- about installing Trump's close ally atop a Justice Department that historically prided itself on its independence from the White House. In the end, Blanche was confirmed by the narrowest of margins, opposed by two Republicans -- Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska -- and by every Democrat.

Yo-Yo Ma Unites Musicians and Civil Rights Leaders to Reframe America's Story

Sat, 08 Aug 2026 08:20:04 PDT

Cello superstar Yo-Yo Ma brought together, musicians, civil rights leaders and intellectuals to reflect on America, past and present, using classical music to help imagine a hopeful future.

Week in Politics: Blanche Confirmed as Attorney General; Iran-Oman Strait Deal Stalls

Sat, 08 Aug 2026 08:16:47 PDT

We look at what it took to get Todd Blanche confirmed as U.S. attorney general, as well as the proposed deal between Iran and Oman to control the Strait of Hormuz.

What the July Jobs Report Reveals About the Strength of the Economy

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 17:09:26 PDT

New labor data shows the U.S. economy lost 23,000 jobs in July, when economists had predicted modest growth. Revised numbers for May and June also show 103,000 fewer jobs created than originally reported. The unemployment rate ticked down, from 4.2 percent to 4.1 percent, a function of fewer people seeking jobs. Amna Nawaz discussed the numbers with Heather Long, chief economist with Navy Federal Credit Union.

Why So Many in Maui Are Still Displaced and Unable to Rebuild 3 Years After Wildfires

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 17:08:19 PDT

It has been three years since the deadliest wildfires to hit the U.S. in more than a century swept through Lahaina on the island of Maui. The fires consumed thousands of structures, killed 102 people and destroyed an important site of Hawaiian history. Hundreds of homes have been rebuilt and permits for hundreds more have been approved. But as Stephanie Sy reports, many residents remain in limbo.

What's Holding Up the Iran-Oman Proposal to Reopen the Strait of Hormuz

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 17:06:49 PDT

There is a new partnership in the Middle East and South Asia. Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan signed an agreement similar to NATO's Article 5, pledging that a strike against one of them would be considered a strike against all of them. But despite reports that it was close, no deal was announced between the United States and Iran. Nick Schifrin explains.

New Jersey Opens Civil Rights Investigation Into Delaney Hall

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 17:04:03 PDT

The New Jersey attorney general has opened a civil rights investigation into a 1,000-bed migrant detention center in Newark, ramping up the state's fight against the Trump administration. The attorney general, Jennifer Davenport, said on Friday that her office had issued subpoenas and would investigate whether employees at the center violated the civil rights of detainees. The announcement was made days after a detainee died and his family denounced the center, known as Delaney Hall, for failing to tend to his medical needs.

Trump Administration Moves Ahead With Efforts to Fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 16:59:55 PDT

The Trump administration is moving ahead with its efforts to fire Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook, two months after the Supreme Court allowed her to retain her job while she fights the president's effort to terminate her over mortgage fraud allegations that she has denied. The justices in a 5-4 decision in June said Cook, who was nominated to the Fed's Board of Governors by President Joe Biden, could remain in her post at least as long as her lawsuit challenging her firing goes on. The Trump administration is appealing a lower-court ruling in Cook's favor. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in a footnote in his opinion that nothing forbids President Trump from "trying again" to fire Cook provided she is given proper notice and a chance to contest it. "These allegations are as baseless now as they were a year ago when President Trump tried to remove Governor Cook and interfere with the independence of the Federal Reserve," her attorney said in a statement.

Infections From Raw Milk Have Sickened More Than 100 in Idaho

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 16:57:25 PDT

Cyclosporiasis has been getting all the headlines, but infections from Raw milk have sickened more than 100 in Idaho this summer.

Redistricting Played a Part in Tennessee's Primary Election Results

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 16:52:11 PDT

Tennessee's primary election put its redistricting from earlier this year on display at the ballot box as results questioned President Trump's endorsement.

How the Reflecting Pool Came to Mirror Trump's Washington

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 16:50:37 PDT

A hospitality manager for the Trump Organization traveled to Las Vegas to find a solution to problems at a national landmark. This is the untold back story of the fallout. Many of the details of the saga are reported in this article for the first time. They show that the pool, which was supposed to reflect the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument, became a striking reflection instead of the second Trump administration's willingness to skirt laws, expend millions of dollars, ignore facts and punish truth tellers in service of the president's demands to put his mark on the capital.

The Amateur Archivists Racing to Save U.S. History in National Parks Against Trump Administration Censorship

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 08:49:53 PDT

Hundreds of people around the world sprang into action last year when the Trump administration started deleting government datasets and Web pages because they included information about "gender ideology," environmental justice or diversity, equity and inclusion. The Data Rescue Project mobilized volunteers to archive critical government datasets at risk of deletion by the Trump administration. And the University of Minnesota libraries launched Save Our Signs, a crowdsourced project that aims to document every sign in the more than 400 national parks and historic sites across the country before the Trump administration removes them. Hundreds of volunteers, many of whom are anonymous, have submitted photos of national signage to the Save Our Signs digital archive. As of Aug. 3, the site had compiled 17,236 photos, including at least one in nearly every national park and historic site in the country.

Trump Loses 21 Straight Court Battles for State Voter Rolls as Midterms Near

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 08:36:50 PDT

The Trump administration's streak of courtroom defeats in its effort to obtain state voter rolls reached 21 this year when a judge ruled this week that states are not required to share the records with the federal government. With PRepublicans defending slim majorities in both chambers of Congress, the administration has mounted an aggressive effort to expand federal oversight of elections before the Nov. 3 midterms. Trump argues that widespread noncitizen voting is benefiting the Democratic Party, even though state audits ‌and independent studies have found noncitizen voting to be rare. A Reuters investigation found that just 129 people have been prosecuted for noncitizen voting since 1996 and that most of those cases stemmed from voter confusion or miscommunication with election officials. Repeatedly judges have found the U.S. Constitution gives states primary responsibility for running federal elections and that federal voting laws do not require them to hand over the records.

Appeals Court Rules Trump Can't Build White House Ballroom Without Congressional Approval

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 08:33:16 PDT

A federal appeals court on Friday ordered the Trump administration to halt construction of its $400 million ballroom at the White House without congressional approval. President Trump doesn't have the unilateral authority to construct a 90,000-square-foot (8,400-square-meter) ballroom where the White House's East Wing stood before he ordered its demolition, according to the decision by a three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. In a 2-1 decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals sided with historic preservationists who sued to stop construction. The court said it would stay its own ruling for two weeks to allow the administration to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Legal Scholar Weighs in on Trump's Executive Orders Targeting Birthright Citizenship

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 08:30:48 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel asks legal scholar Kim Wehle about the ramifications of President Trump's newest executive orders targeting birthright citizenship.

Former U.S. Ambassador to Oman Talks About the Negotiations Over the Strait of Hormuz

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 08:22:03 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Marc Sievers, former U.S. ambassador to Oman, about the negotiations between Iran and Oman over the Strait of Hormuz.

Group Pushes for Ban on Using Campaign Funds for Legal Fees in Misconduct Cases

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 16:24:58 PDT

After Graham Platner ended his Senate campaign, activists launched an effort to claw back donations so the money wouldn't be used on legal fees related to Platner's alleged misconduct. The group behind the effort, Reckoning Action, is working with lawmakers to create a ban on using campaign cash for legal fees in sexual misconduct investigations. Liz Landers discussed more with Cheyenne Hunt.

Senator Rand Paul Asks Justice Department to Prosecute Fauci After Contempt Vote

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 16:20:55 PDT

Republican U.S. Senator Rand Paul on Thursday asked the Justice Department to prosecute Dr. Anthony Fauci for refusing to answer questions about the Covid-19 pandemic after a Senate committee voted to hold the former top infectious disease official in contempt of Congress. Paul sent the referral after the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, which he chairs, approved a contempt resolution on a party-line vote. But the Kentucky senator, a longtime Fauci antagonist, bypassed a referral vote by the full Senate. He described a full Senate vote as unnecessary. Democrats said Paul was violating Senate rules by skipping the vote, which would likely fail to achieve the necessary 60-vote majority and called the move dangerous and unprecedented. "Dr. Fauci has committed no crime -- and Senator Paul knows it," Fauci's attorney David Schertler said, describing the resolution as a continuation of a "personal vendetta."

Union Representing IRS Workers Asks Judge to Block Trump Tax Audit Immunity Deal

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 16:14:41 PDT

The labor union representing Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service workers asked a judge Thursday to block a sweeping tax audit immunity agreement for President Trump, arguing it would force career employees to choose between following a political order and abiding by the law. The group joined a lawsuit filed in May that sought to block the proposed $1.8 billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund," which the Trump administration later scrapped after bipartisan pushback. The updated lawsuit, filed by legal advocacy group Democracy Forward, now also targets the audit immunity deal conferred on the president, his sons and the Trump Organization, which remains in place. The updated lawsuit says Trump and his family are "obligated to pay taxes owed, just like every other taxpayer." But under the immunity order, IRS employees will be forced to drop ongoing audits of the president and his businesses, giving Trump "a lucrative and unconstitutional emolument," the lawsuit says.

DOGE Overstated Savings on Federal 'Receipts' Web site, Auditors Find

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 16:12:59 PDT

Some of the savings touted by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency are incorrect or lack supporting evidence, according to federal auditors. DOGE began posting its estimated savings on a Web page known as the Wall of Receipts. Lawmakers asked the Government Accountability Office to evaluate the accuracy of the estimates and the watchdog found them lacking in some cases. Auditors found that 108 of 264 leases identified for termination on the Wall of Receipts were already in the process of termination when DOGE was established. In another case, DOGE reported $1.7 billion in savings on a Department of Defense contract for IT services, but in the end, no action was taken to terminate the contract, so no savings were achieved. More broadly, DOGE was not transparent regarding the methodologies used to calculate savings. The GAO said DOGE officials did not respond to requests for information. The report concluded by saying the data quality issues found limit the value of the Wall of Receipts for policymakers. "In addition, when government data are not reliable, it can hinder the public's trust in government," the report stated.

Trump Administration's Latest Buyback of Offshore Wind Leases Brings Total to Nearly $4 Billion

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 16:10:09 PDT

An offshore wind company said Thursday that it reached a $1.2 billion settlement with the Trump administration to walk away from projects under development off New York, California and Louisiana. This latest agreement brings the total amount spent on such settlements to nearly $4 billion. The administration adopted this strategy after federal courts thwarted Trump's efforts to stop offshore wind development through executive action. Roughly $3.9 billion has been spent. States that are losing offshore wind energy are suing. California intends to sue.

Trump Signs Two Immigration Actions to Limit Birthright Citizenship and Curb 'Birth Tourism'

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 16:08:08 PDT

President Trump said Thursday that he is once more trying to limit the number of people who are born in the country who can become American citizens. The first written executive order released Thursday was narrower in scope than the previous one shot down by the Supreme Court and appeared to focus on restricting automatic citizenship to specific categories of people, including children born to adults with connections to foreign embassies or organizations as well as anyone considered an "alien enemy" of the United States. It also aimed to restrict birthright citizenship to anyone whose parents "engaged in fraudulent activity to obtain citizenship." A second order seeks to curb what Trump called "birth tourism" by increasing restrictions on visitors to the U.S. who want to obtain visas to give birth while in the country.

States Are Passing Their Own Clear Water Laws to Counter Trump Admin Rollbacks

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 16:04:26 PDT

A 2023 Supreme Court ruling removed Clean Water Act protections for wetlands. The Trump administration is moving to weaken remaining rules. Some states are passing their own clear water laws in response.

At Trump's DOJ, Watchdogs Gutted as Misconduct Complaints Soar

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 08:03:12 PDT

In one courtroom after another, federal judges have accused U.S. President Trump's Justice Department of an extraordinary spate of misconduct, including making false statements, failing to comply with court orders and improperly using the legal system to harass political opponents. Such rebukes might be expected to trigger a flurry of activity within the department's two internal watchdogs tasked with policing the government's most powerful law-enforcement agency. But shrinking staffs and fears of political retribution have largely sidelined the offices, limiting new investigations into the administration, according to Reuters interviews with four former DOJ staffers and a review of ‌department employment and investigations data. Nearly half the workforce at the Office of Professional Responsibility has left during Trump's second term, while about 17 percent have departed the Office of Inspector General, government records show. The number of new OPR investigations has declined to a 20-year low even as misconduct complaints soar, the review found. The government watchdogs are "afraid of doing any watching," said one former DOJ official who left last year.

Iran Warns Gulf States: Tell Trump to Desist or We Hit You Hard

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 08:00:56 PDT

Iran has made a concerted diplomatic push with Gulf states, warning them explicitly that Tehran will hit their oil, power and water plants unless they convince Donald Trump to end U.S. strikes on Iran and instead seek a negotiated end to the war. The ‌warning envisaged attacks on the energy facilities, oil fields, refineries, electricity grids, water infrastructure, transport networks and other strategic assets of Washington's closest Arab allies, according to a senior Iranian official. Two senior Iranian officials, two Gulf sources and a senior regional diplomat with knowledge of the discussions said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi spoke with his Saudi, Turkish and Qatari counterparts, as well as Pakistan's army chief. All spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

Former Middle East Adviser Discusses the Negotiations Over the Strait of Hormuz

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 07:56:28 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin talks to Michael Singh, a former Middle East adviser during the George W. Bush administration, about negotiations over the Strait of Hormuz.

Senate Finance Committee Wrestles With How to Sustain Social Security Benefits

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 07:55:57 PDT

The Senate Finance Committee held a hearing yesterday on how to prevent deep cuts to Social Security benefits in a few years. The math is simple but the politics are not.

Senate Homeland Security Committee Votes to Hold Fauci in Contempt of Congress

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 07:55:25 PDT

The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has voted to hold Anthony Fauci in contempt of Congress. Thursday's vote was along party lines and came after Fauci refused to answer lawmakers' questions in a hearing last week about the government's response to the Covid-19 pandemic, citing his Fifth Amendment right to avoid self-incrimination. In an opening statement during that hearing, Fauci said that the committee's chairman, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., has "an unhinged obsession" with him and suggested the hearing was convened in an attempt to trick Fauci into lying under oath. Fauci told the committee he had answered many of their questions already during previous testimony. In a statement following Thursday's vote, an attorney for Fauci, David Schertler, said, "Today's partisan committee vote is a crude political stunt intended to punish Dr. Fauci for exercising his constitutional rights."

Trump Touts Economy During Vegas Speech, but Workers Say His Policies Aren't Helping

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 07:54:18 PDT

President Trump gave a speech in Las Vegas Wednesday, where he praised the U.S. economy but workers in the city say his administration's policies aren't helping.

Trump Team Pushes to Block Court Order Giving BBC Access to Financial Records

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 16:40:25 PDT

Donald Trump's legal team is making an 11th-hour attempt to block a court order that would grant the BBC access to the president's financial records, as part of his multibillion-dollar lawsuit against the British broadcaster. Trump claims that the BBC's 2024 documentary on the Jan. 6 attacks have damaged the president's business interests. In July, a Miami-based judge ruled that the president would have to start handing over detailed financial records to the BBC by 6 August. The records would reveal details into the hundreds of businesses owned by the U.S. president's family trust. The lawsuit against the BBC is one of Trump's several recent attempts to wage legal battles against media outlets that publish critical coverage of him.

Dr. Erica Schwartz Confirmed as CDC Director, Filling a Leadership Vacuum

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 16:35:14 PDT

The U.S. Senate confirmed Dr. Erica Schwartz 51-44 as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly a year after the last permanent director was fired in a dispute over vaccine policy with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. She will take command of a public health agency that has lost thousands of employees in the second Trump administration amid layoffs, resignations and leadership shakeups.

Trump Administration Targets Children Amid Push to 'Deport at All Costs'

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 16:33:39 PDT

The Trump administration is deliberately targeting children who came to the U.S. unaccompanied by a parent or guardian as it pushes to quickly return them to the countries they fled -- amid "drastic policy changes" in immigration courts, according to allegations in a federal lawsuit shared with the Guardian. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit are trying to prevent imminent deportation to the places from where they escaped danger or harm. "This case is about the most vulnerable in our immigration system: abused, abandoned, neglected and trafficked children," the lawsuit reads. "One would assume it would be a priority of our immigration system to protect, at least, these children. However, protecting vulnerable and trafficked children conflicts with an agenda of 'deport at all costs'."

Judge Criticizes the Justice Department as He Dismisses Jan. 6 Seditious Conspiracy Case

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 08:28:56 PDT

A federal judge decried efforts to rewrite the history of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol as he reluctantly dismissed the seditious conspiracy case against members of the far-right Oath Keepers extremist group at the Trump administration's request. "This is the last of the prosecutions seeking to hold accountable those responsible for the events of Jan. 6. That book is now closed," wrote U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta. "Today's epilogue diminishes the gravity of that day, denigrates the work of the prosecutors and law enforcement officers who secured these convictions and excuses criminal acts that caused a centuries-long pillar of our democracy -- the peaceful transfer of presidential power -- to buckle. The court cannot write a different ending," he wrote.

Trump's Immigration Crackdown Has Detained More Than 50 Military Spouses and Parents

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 08:25:43 PDT

President Trump's administration has detained dozens of parents and spouses of active-duty U.S. troops as it rolls back immigration protections for military families to pursue its mass deportation agenda, an Associated Press investigation found. More than 50 parents and spouses of active-duty service members have been detained since Trump took office for a second term and at least six have been deported and one self-deported, the AP found in the first accounting of such detentions, which the government does not track. At least eight immediate family members of U.S. service members remain in federal immigration custody. Parents and spouses of people in the military have generally been shielded from deportation under bipartisan consensus for decades. But the AP found they're now routinely being detained for months as they try to adjust their legal status through the policies available to service members' close relatives and even as the military continues to recruit by advertising immigration benefits for enlistees' families.

FDA Is Poised to Decide Whether to Approve the First mRNA Flu Vaccine

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 08:21:43 PDT

The FDA will soon decide whether to approve the first flu vaccine that uses the same mRNA technology as Covid-19 shots. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has long questioned mRNA vaccines.

Expert Discusses Dwindling U.S. Munitions Reserve and the Effect on the Iran War

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 08:21:05 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Center for a New American Security senior fellow Stacie Pettyjohn about the shortage of U.S. long-range precision missiles in the wake of the war against Iran.

U.S. Federal Judge Blocks New York's Ban on ICE Officers Wearing Masks

Wed, 05 Aug 2026 08:16:27 PDT

A New York law banning U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from wearing face coverings and requiring that they wear visible identification has been put on hold by a federal judge. But a state law prohibiting cooperation between local police departments and ICE has been allowed to stand. U.S. district judge Mae D'Agostino of the federal court in Albany, New York, wrote that while the state "appears to be well-intentioned in its pursuit of transparent policing," her decision was made on constitutional arguments. "The United States has demonstrated a likelihood that it will succeed on its claim that [New York's] face covering and identification acts directly regulate federal officers in violation of the supremacy clause," D'Agostino wrote. "Whether federal law enforcement agencies have chosen to carry out such operations in a sufficiently transparent manner is an important question. But that question is not for this court to answer at the present time."

U.S. Has Used 'Virtually All' of Its Long-Range Precision Missiles During Iran War, Sources Say

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 08:41:55 PDT

The U.S. Army has used up much of its stockpile of highly accurate long-range missiles during its five-month war with Iran, according to three people familiar with the data, raising concerns about the military's readiness for future conflicts. The missiles are principally the Army's surface-to-surface weapons, known as Army Tactical Missile Systems and Precision Strike Missiles. The U.S. has used "virtually all" of these weapons, according to ‌two of the sources. The degree to which the military is running out of ATACMS and Precision Strike Missiles has not been previously reported.

FBI Agents Fired Over Trump Investigation Get Broad Backing in Lawsuit Against Administration

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 08:34:05 PDT

An association of thousands of FBI agents and other groups are backing a lawsuit filed by three bureau employees who were fired last year for their roles in an investigation into President Trump's efforts to undo the results of the 2020 presidential election. A legal brief by the FBI Agents Association is one of five filed by outside parties in the last week in support of the agents, who were terminated as part of a broader personnel purge by FBI Director Kash Patel that has targeted employees who investigated Trump or are perceived as being against the administration's interest. Taken together, the filings, including from former FBI and Justice Department alumni, underscore a concerted and bipartisan pushback to the waves of terminations that have roiled the FBI in the last year and a half as Patel has sought to remake the bureau in his own image.

Trump Administration Expected to Release Proposed Changes to Head Start Program

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 08:32:42 PDT

The Trump administration is proposing changes to Head Start rules, delivering on the administration's promise to deregulate the early education program for children from low-income families.

What We Know About the Cyberattacks on Water Systems in 7 States

Tue, 04 Aug 2026 08:30:39 PDT

According to the FBI, at least seven states have now been targeted in a growing wave of cyberattacks on critical water infrastructure across the country. Federal officials now reportedly believe Iran is the likely culprit. Liz Landers discussed more with Cynthia Kaiser, a former deputy assistant director of the FBI's cyber division currently at Halcyon.

Trump Says New Talks Are Iran's 'Last Chance' to Make Deal 'Before Decapitation'

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 16:26:21 PDT

President Trump said his decision not to escalate the war in Iran over the weekend was Iran's "last chance" to make a deal. He also said he called off attacks because Gulf allies asked him to do so. Threatening new strikes and then calling them off is something Trump has done many times. Nick Schifrin discussed the latest with Dania Thafer, executive director of the Gulf International Forum.

Documents Undercut Trump's Claims About Utah National Monument

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 16:25:07 PDT

When President Trump sharply reduced the size of Bears Ears National Monument in Utah by more than 1.2 million acres, he claimed it was necessary because recreation was virtually impossible within the site's boundaries. But recreation has been allowed in Bears Ears since President Barack Obama designated the monument in 2016. And government documents reviewed by The New York Times show that Trump administration officials were briefed on recreational opportunities inside the monument about a month before the Oval Office event. The documents suggest that the administration was "lying or spreading misinformation about these fantastic public lands" when it justified cutting the protected areas, said Steve Bloch, the legal director at the nonprofit Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, who reviewed the records at the request of The Times.

Voters Prefer Democrats Over Republicans on Economy for First Time in a Decade, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 14:31:11 PDT

Americans picked Democrats over Republicans as better stewards of the economy for the first time in nearly a decade in a Reuters/Ipsos ‌poll, which also found their approval of President Trump's performance falling to 35 percent. The finding, in a poll conducted Wednesday through Monday, showed how Trump's handling of the economy, including rising energy prices resulting from the Iran war, could weigh on his party's chances in the November midterm elections that will determine control of Congress for the next two years. Some 37 percent of registered voters responding to the poll said the Democratic Party has a better approach to the U.S. economy, compared with 36 percent who picked the Republican Party. Another 27 percent said they were not sure or that a different party would do a better job.

Inside the Secretive Boards Deciding Trans Troops' Fate

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 14:27:57 PDT

Last year, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued an order that effectively forced all trans troops out of the military. Many of the more than 4,000 who were serving accepted that the Pentagon was going to force them out and took a cash payout to leave quickly. But others decided to stay and fight, taking their cases to special separation boards set up by the military. The boards operate like court proceedings, with lawyers and a panel of three officers who decide whether to retain or remove the service member. At least six of attorney Priya Rashid's clients were barred from attending their own separation board hearings because they refused to cut their hair and appear in the uniform of their sex assigned at birth. One was a master sergeant in South Korea with 17 years of service who was allowed to testify by video, but only if she turned off her camera. "It's in a lot of ways a public humiliation ritual," Rashid said in an interview. "Going in, I had hoped I was paranoid and boards' outcomes were not predetermined. It turned out to be much worse than I thought."

Park Service Finds Trump's Arch Could Detract From Dozens of Historic Places

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 08:14:47 PDT

President Trump's proposed 250-foot-tall triumphal arch would change the skyline of Washington to such an extent that it would intrude on views at dozens of historic sites around the capital, according to an assessment by National Park Service staff. It would disrupt the symbolic relationship between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery, obstruct sightlines from the Kennedy Gravesite and Robert E. Lee's home and alter what official documents call "one of the most magnificent" views in Washington at the National Cathedral four miles away, the Park Service said. The assessment of the arch's impact on surrounding historic properties is a key step the administration must complete before the project can receive final approval by the National Capital Planning Commission, which could come as soon as its next meeting on Sept. 3.

'Stark Example of Brutality': Trump's ICE Used Court Orders in Plan to Force-Feed at Least 10 Hunger Strikers in Detention

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 08:02:37 PDT

Homeland security officials under the Trump administration have quietly attempted to subject at least 10 hunger strikers in U.S. immigrant detention to involuntary medical procedures, including force-feeding, a Guardian investigation has found. In 2025 and 2026, officials had definitely performed the procedures on at least three detained immigrants and probably subjected two more to the forced treatment -- widely considered torture by human rights groups. The other five people gave in and broke their hunger strike at the last minute as force-feeding procedures loomed.More people have gone on hunger strike in ICE detention centers to protest against conditions and demand resolutions to legal cases. The investigation, based on hundreds of pages of court records and interviews with multiple sources, reveals a clearer picture of the federal government's response to hunger strikes within secretive ICE facilities.

Firefighter Deaths Raise Questions About Available Resources for Western Wildfires

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 07:57:30 PDT

Five firefighters have died battling wildfires in the past six weeks, raising questions about how stretched firefighting resources are in a season that is expected to be both long and severe.

Political Strategist Weighs in on the Tension Between Trump and Senate Republicans

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 07:53:21 PDT

NPR's A Martinez speaks with political strategist Alex Conant about the tensions between the Senate and President Trump ahead of the long congressional recess that starts later this week.

With a Series of Big Donations, State Department Restores Some Global Health Aid

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 07:50:16 PDT

Over the past two months, the United States has made financial commitments that hint at a limited return to global health and humanitarian assistance partnerships, after the abrupt severing of many of those relationships a year and a half ago. In most cases, these payments move money that had been appropriated by Congress but which had been stuck since the Trump administration took office in January 2025 and instituted a freeze on foreign aid.

Capital One Says It Closed Trump Organization's Accounts After Anti-Money Laundering Probe

Sun, 02 Aug 2026 09:07:28 PDT

Capital One Financial hit back on Friday against a lawsuit over its decision to close ‌the Trump Organization's bank accounts years ago, stating that it did so after a review by anti-money laundering experts. The disclosure marks the first time a bank has formally tied money laundering concerns to U.S. President Trump's family business. Capital One is seeking to dismiss the case by casting doubt on claims of illegally debanking -- or denying services on religious or political grounds -- the Trump Organization.

Immigrant Families Sever Lifelong Ties to Flee Red State ICE Crackdowns

Sun, 02 Aug 2026 08:58:59 PDT

As red state leaders have embraced cooperating with ICE, immigrants with and without legal status are leaving, fearing for their safety and abandoning strong ties in rural American communities.

Trust in Public Health Institutions Is Eroding. What Can Officials Do?

Sun, 02 Aug 2026 08:57:30 PDT

NPR's Ayesha Rascoe discusses America's declining trust in public health officials with Marianne Udow-Phillips, a lecturer at the School of Public Health at the University of Michigan.

FBI Investigates as Michigan Joins Minnesota in Reporting Cyberattacks on Its Water Systems

Sat, 01 Aug 2026 15:07:41 PDT

Michigan on Saturday joined Minnesota in reporting cyberattacks on nine of the state's water systems but an official said all systems were operating "safely." Earlier this week, authorities said cyberattacks targeted over 30 water systems in Minnesota. The source of the attacks is being investigated, but they came amid warnings that Iranian hackers have been focused on such systems. The reports in Michigan surfaced after the state received a federal cyber alert Tuesday about attempts to tamper with operational technology at water systems.

Justice Dept. Subpoenas Times Freelancer in Effort to Identify Sources

Sat, 01 Aug 2026 11:38:00 PDT

Freelance reporter Matthew Cole has been fighting a subpoena from the Trump administration seeking to force him to reveal his sources for a New York Times article about a failed top secret mission in North Korea, according to people familiar with the matter. The subpoena, which has not been previously disclosed, reflects the administration's intensifying campaign to investigate leaks of government secrets by pressuring reporters to divulge their sources. Until President Trump began his second term, federal subpoenas to reporters were exceedingly rare. The investigators are seeking his testimony about two years' worth of information about Cole's contacts and conversations, as they try to identify his sources for the article about the operation in North Korea, the people familiar with the matter said.

DoJ Appears to Ignore New Mexico Deadline for Key Epstein Ranch Files

Sat, 01 Aug 2026 08:44:46 PDT

The U.S. Department of Justice appeared to ignore a Friday deadline set by Raúl Torrez, the attorney general of New Mexico, to share information about the abuse of girls at a remote ranch formerly owned by the disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Torrez's office asked the DoJ in February for unredacted files after he reopened a dormant criminal investigation into activities at Zorro ranch, a remote 10,000-acre property in desert scrub outside New Mexico. It set a 31 July deadline for the department to share relevant records. As it approached on Friday, the justice department did not respond to a request for comment.

Feds Mandate Historic Colorado River Cuts for Southwest Through 2036

Sat, 01 Aug 2026 08:35:19 PDT

Under a new federal plan out today to manage the Colorado river, Arizona, California and Nevada would share steep water cuts over the next decade. The plan by will deeply impact communities and farms across those states.

Trade Expert Scott Lincicome Breaks Down Legal Threats to Trump's Latest Tariffs

Sat, 01 Aug 2026 08:31:25 PDT

NPR's Scott Simon asks Scott Lincicome of the Cato Institute about President Trump's latest round of tariffs and the legal challenges they may face.

Week in Politics: Todd Blanche Nomination; Michigan's Democratic Senate Shakeup

Sat, 01 Aug 2026 08:28:48 PDT

Two nominations to watch: President Trump's of Todd Blanche to be U.S. Attorney General and who Michigan Democrats will choose Tuesday to campaign for the U.S. Senate.

Unaccompanied Migrant Children at Risk of Losing Legal Representation

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 22:43:44 PDT

Thousands of unaccompanied migrant children could lose legal representation, now that a federal contract with legal aid groups representing the minors is expiring. That contract, held by the non-profit Acacia Center for Justice, had funded legal services for unaccompanied children for the last five years. Ali Rogin discussed the developments with Shaina Aber, Acacia's executive director.

Iran War Drives Oil Profits to Highest Levels in Years

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 08:05:41 PDT

International oil prices averaged around $96 a barrel in the second quarter, up 45 percent from the same period last year. That rewarded the companies that remained able to extract oil and ship it around the world despite the fighting in the Middle East. Exxon Mobil, the largest U.S. oil company, said on Friday that it had earned $14.53 billion in the April through June period, more than twice as much as it did in the second quarter of 2025. Chevron's second-quarter profit soared to $12.07 billion, from $2.49 billion a year earlier. The longer the war drags on, the more profitable this year is likely to be for oil companies, which generally benefit when energy is scarce and prices are high.

Chinese Military Researchers Tap U.S. AI Models to Train Defence Systems

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 07:55:12 PDT

Chinese military researchers have used U.S. artificial intelligence models developed by OpenAI and Anthropic to train domestic AI systems to advance China's defense capabilities, according to a Reuters review of more than 80 Chinese academic papers and patents. The documents show widespread use of a technique known as "model distillation," in which outputs from a powerful AI system are used to train smaller, specialised models that can be deployed locally without the enormous computing requirements needed to build frontier AI systems from scratch. Reuters' review, which included research compiled by the Washington-based Jamestown Foundation and shared exclusively with the news agency, showed distillation is widely used by researchers linked to the People's Liberation Army and other military institutions. The papers suggest Chinese defense institutions see leading U.S. AI models as both a source of technical insight and a way to close the gap with American rivals.

Hamas Disputes Trump's Claim That a Deal Was Reached to Disarm the Militant Group

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 07:46:51 PDT

President Trump announced on social media what he called an historic agreement to disarm Hamas, but a senior Hamas official told NPR they will only disarm if Israel leaves Gaza first.

Trump's AI Review Order Raises Questions About Federal Oversight

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 07:45:03 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks to Punchbowl News tech reporter Diego Munhoz about President Trump's request for AI companies to share models with the government before their public release.

DOJ Activates Alien Terrorist Removal Court for the First Time in 30 Years

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 07:42:34 PDT

The Justice Department is turning to a never-before-used court to try to deport a woman accused of pledging allegiance to the Islamic State.

Blanche's AG Nomination on Hold Over Opposition to DOJ's 'Anti-Weaponization Fund'

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 16:07:06 PDT

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's nomination to lead the Department of Justice full-time is in limbo. Two Republican senators, John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, say they will oppose Blanche's nomination unless the DOJ kills a $1.8 billion fund to provide payments to people who believe they have been wrongfully prosecuted. Geoff Bennett discussed more with Devlin Barrett.

Missouri Couple Murdered in Guatemala After Husband Was Deported

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 16:05:26 PDT

A Missouri couple who had illegally immigrated to the United States was killed in Guatemala after the husband was deported and the wife self-deported. Now two communities in two countries are reeling and searching for answers. Lisa Desjardins discussed more with Brian Munoz of St. Louis Public Radio, who broke this story.

Trump Threatens to Withdraw Blanche as Attorney General, Dealing Blow to Nomination

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 14:34:16 PDT

Todd Blanche's nomination to become attorney general suffered a severe blow on Thursday when President Trump threatened to withdraw Blanche's name rather than scale back a tax immunity deal that would benefit himself and his family, as demanded by two Republican senators. Trump's threat, posted on social media, followed 24 hours of frenetic and fruitless negotiations among Blanche, the White House and the two senators, John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who are not returning to Congress next year. "I have no objection to temporarily withdrawing Todd's name, if they do not do the right thing and putting him back after Cornyn and Tillis are out of office," Trump wrote, in a fight that has exposed the limits of his power over Congress.

Trump Asks for Millions More to Cover American State Fair Disaster

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 14:31:33 PDT

American taxpayers are about to get hit with additional charges for the Trump administration's Great American State Fair. The Department of the Interior asked Congress for an additional $10 million to cover portions of the Freedom 250 event, including the state fair, a prayer event and a massive July 4 fireworks display that tried to break the world record (but has still not been recognized by Guinness three weeks after the fact). Trump's One Big Beautiful Act set aside $150 million last year specifically to cover the semiquincentennial's expenses. Most of that financial support was redirected to Freedom 250, a Trump-backed public-private partnership that largely replaced the congressionally created bipartisan America 250 group that was organizing the historic anniversary celebration. But that's not all the money that went into funding the president's highly politicized, poorly attended 250th celebration. In June, Trump officials diverted roughly $90 million away from the National Park Service, utilizing entry fees to some of the country's most popular parks -- such as Yellowstone and Yosemite -- to fund anniversary-related projects.

Uninsured Patients Rise Sharply, Hospitals Report, Citing Obamacare Cuts

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 14:22:09 PDT

More and more uninsured patients are showing up in hospital emergency rooms and clinics, having lost their coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Executives running some of the biggest hospital systems, including large for-profit chains spanning many states, expressed concern over the unexpectedly sharp rise in uninsured patients and the costs associated with treating them. And many executives said that the hospitals were also reporting more unpaid medical bills and providing more in the way of charity care. Some hospital systems also found that patients were forgoing or postponing lucrative elective surgeries like knee replacements in recent months. The significant increase in uninsured patients, about 20 percent in some cases, was disclosed in earnings reports in the past week and interviews with nonprofit hospital groups.

Republican Disenfranchisement Bid Drives Black Voters to Polls, Study Finds

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 08:04:01 PDT

A new analysis of Black voters in the south indicates that Republican attempts to dilute their political power is driving them to the polls in larger numbers and shifting their counties further left. The analysis by VoteHub, a data-focused election organization, indicates that the efforts have only motivated Black voters in the 78 Black belt counties it tracked. All but one shifted left in partisan turnout compared with 2024. Further, majority-Black counties that voted after Louisiana v Callais, the landmark supreme court decision that triggered the Republican-led redistricting efforts, had a surge in voter participation.

Trump's DOJ Charged Hundreds With Assaulting Officers. Many Cases Were Dropped, but the Damage Was Done

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 08:01:42 PDT

The Trump ‌administration has brought criminal charges against at least 851 people accused of attacking or impeding federal officers, only to abandon them at an unusually high rate. A Reuters review of federal court records found that 31 percent of these cases that have been completed so far have ended in dismissal. That compares to 8 percent of all federal criminal cases that typically end in dismissal, according to records compiled by the Federal Judicial Center. Reuters gathered the records of every person charged with assaulting or impeding federal officers between January 2025 and March, then followed what happened to those prosecutions. Many of the charges stemmed from the administration's aggressive immigration push, but the cases also included assaults on other federal employees, such as postal workers. Prosecutors fared especially poorly when bringing charges against people detained during immigration protests, dropping about 45 percent of the 86 such cases that had been completed by the end of May, Reuters found.

U.S. Government Map of Africa Mislabels Every Country at Global Conference

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 07:54:57 PDT

A U.S. government map of Africa mislabeled every country during a State Department presentation at ‌a global conference taking place in Brazil this week, causing a stir among attendees who took screenshots and posted them online. Reuters viewed a video of the presentation given at the AIDS 2026 conference in Rio de Janeiro, which shows the errant map displayed halfway during a presentation about the State Department's new health agreements. A Reuters analysis found the image of the map included in the presentation contained an artificial intelligence watermark that ⁠signals it was made with OpenAI tools. The company said it was investigating the report. "Whoever ⁠created and approved this slide did not know where countries in Africa are and did not care to check their work," wrote Matt Petit, who focuses on AI and geopolitics at the Atlantic Council, in the post.

U.S. Economy Grows at a Sluggish 1.5 Pct. in Second-Quarter With Inflation Remaining Stubbornly High

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 07:51:53 PDT

The U.S. economy expanded at a sluggish 1.5 percent pace from April through June as rising imports weighed on growth, yet consumers continued to spend. And the Federal Reserve's favored measure of inflation grew more slowly last month. But it remained above the central bank's 2 percent target at a time when Americans are frustrated about the high cost of living ahead of the midterm elections, now less than 100 days away. Growth in U.S. gross domestic product -- the nation's output of goods and services -- decelerated from 2.1 percent in the first three months of 2026, the Commerce Department reported Thursday, coming in below economists' expectations. But consumer spending -- which accounts for about 70 percent of U.S. economic activity -- increased at a 3.2 percent annual clip, up from 0.5 percent in the January-March period.

Senate Panel Delays Vote on Blanche's AG Nomination as Key Republicans Voice Concerns

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 07:48:52 PDT

Todd Blanche's nomination for attorney general is up in the air after concerns from two Republicans on the committee that must advance his nomination.

Journalist Details Weekend Spent With Far-Right Proud Boys

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 07:48:20 PDT

The Proud Boys were founded a decade ago, but the far-right group gained notoriety for being heavily involved in the Jan. 6 attack at the Capitol. Jen Golbeck, a University of Maryland professor whose research focuses on social media and online extremism, spent a weekend with the Cape Fear chapter of the Proud Boys. She wrote about the experience in Esquire and joined Amna Nawaz to discuss more.

Senate Unanimously Passes Resolution Opposing Pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell

Wed, 29 Jul 2026 16:06:17 PDT

The U.S. Senate on Wednesday unanimously passed a resolution declaring its opposition to any presidential pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime Jeffrey Epstein associate who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex-trafficking crimes. Introduced by Senator Jacky Rosen, a Democrat of Nevada, the resolution states that Maxwell "should not be granted a Presidential pardon or any form of clemency for her crimes with Jeffrey Epstein relating to the sexual exploitation and abuse of minors." Although Senate resolutions like these are non-binding and symbolic, Rosen's office noted in a news release in February when she introduced the measure that the resolution was "designed to put the Senate on record opposing the prospect" of Donald Trump of granting a pardon or clemency to Maxwell. "It's frankly horrifying that Trump would entertain the idea of clemency for even a second for a convicted sex trafficker," Rosen said in a floor speech on Wednesday.

Trump Demanded Details of Agents' Interview of Comey, New Filing Says

Wed, 29 Jul 2026 16:04:14 PDT

Secret Service agents who questioned the former F.B.I. director James B. Comey were told to send details of the interview to Air Force One so President Trump could review them, according to a new court filing by Comey's lawyers seeking to dismiss the criminal case against him. The filing is based on internal government documents turned over to Comey as he fights a criminal charge that a photo he posted online of seashells on a beach that said "86 47" amounted to a threat against the president. The disclosure is the most glaring example to date of the degree to which Trump now directs federal law enforcement actions and suggests his intense personal involvement in investigating his longtime nemesis.

Trump Overrode His Own Agencies to Deny Four Democratic Disaster Requests

Wed, 29 Jul 2026 08:40:19 PDT

President Trump overruled his own agencies when he denied disaster aid for four Democratic-led states this month. Emails between state and federal officials obtained by POLITICO along with more than 150 pages of documents submitted to FEMA by three states -- New Jersey, Massachusetts and Rhode Island -- provide new details about Trump's low rate of approving disaster aid for his political adversaries. He also denied a request by New York after administration officials verified that it had met federal standards for approval, according to state officials. Trump's rejections came after regional offices of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and NOAA determined that the states met government thresholds for receiving aid following a record-breaking snowstorm in February.

Montana Pushes Back Against Strict Federal Work Requirements for Medicaid Recipients

Wed, 29 Jul 2026 08:21:24 PDT

Deep red Montana offered to start making Medicaid recipients prove they work to receive benefits. Now it's pushing back against the Trump administration's stringent requirements, particularly as they apply to the homeless.

Anthony Fauci Invokes Fifth Amendment in Rand Paul Senate Hearing

Wed, 29 Jul 2026 08:12:11 PDT

Anthony Fauci declined to answer any questions before a Senate committee focused on the coronavirus pandemic Wednesday morning. "Although it pains me to do so, because of the respect I have for the legislative branch of government and my decades-long record of cooperating with Congress, under the advice of my attorneys, I will invoke my right under the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution to refrain from answering your questions," Fauci said in front of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. Fauci, who was subpoenaed to appear by Kentucky Senator and committee chair Rand Paul, has long sparred with the senator over the origins of the coronavirus that caused the pandemic. Days before Wednesdays' hearing, Paul released over 1,000 pages of Fauci's private writings, accusing him of covering up origins of Covid-19. At the hearing, Fauci pointed out that he has responded to similar questions in previous testimony. And Fauci accused the senator of being obsessed with trying to get him behind bars.

New Report Reveals Consequences of Trump Administration's HIV/AIDS Funding Cuts

Wed, 29 Jul 2026 08:10:53 PDT

A new report is detailing the impact of cuts to USAID and the program known as PEPFAR, which has been credited with saving over 26 million lives since 2003. The study from the HIV/AIDS non-profit amfAR found that more than 1,700 treatment sites have closed in the wake of funding cuts. William Brangham discussed more with Dr. Atul Gawande, the assistant administrator of USAID under President Biden.

Why Doctors Say Abortion Bans Are Worsening Medical Care During Miscarriages

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 16:31:45 PDT

It's been four years since the Supreme Court's Dobbs decision opened the door to state abortion bans. Now, a new study finds those bans are hurting women who aren't seeking abortions at all. Researchers found delays in miscarriage treatment increase the risk to a woman's health and fertility and prolong the grief of a lost pregnancy. Special correspondent Sarah Varney reports.

Board Packed With Trump Allies Votes to Weaken Protections for Historic Sites

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 16:30:47 PDT

An advisory council packed with Trump allies voted to weaken federal oversight of construction projects affecting historic sites. Critics are concerned that this move will open the floodgates to endangering preservation of historic and cultural places across the country. Jeffrey Brown discussed more with Phillip Kennicott of The Washington Post.

Emilee Hackney and Amna Nawaz Discuss Appalachian Stereotypes on 'Settle In'

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 16:29:26 PDT

Appalachia is often stereotyped as a region defined by struggling coal towns and substance abuse. Writer Emilee Hackney says those portrayals don't reflect her life growing up in southwestern Virginia. Her debut memoir, "All That's Unseen," covers growing up inside that world and the political influences that came to shape it.

ICE Arrests Surge at Airports, Opening New Front in Deportation Drive

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 16:26:24 PDT

The Trump administration has begun arresting foreign citizens with expired U.S. visas as they travel through airports, including spouses of Americans, according to documents obtained by The New York Times and interviews with immigration lawyers -- a tactic that opens up a vast new pool of people for deportation. Immigration agents in plain clothes have whisked away targets at check-in counters and arrival gates, with enforcement actions in at least 15 airports in recent weeks. Some of the arrests have occurred quietly, while others have happened as angry fellow passengers filmed the encounters.

California's Largest ICE Facility Neglected Detainees' Medical Needs, Monitor Finds

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 14:06:29 PDT

California's largest immigration detention center has failed to comply with a judge's orders to provide adequate healthcare, according to a court-appointed monitor who found the facility was struggling to meet a wide range of medical standards. The California City detention center, located north-east of Los Angeles, was found to have major flaws in the care it provides residents, including significant gaps in emergency care, failures to provide medications in a timely manner, inadequate screenings for health conditions and a lack of accommodations for people with disabilities. The facility was out of compliance with all eight areas identified by the judge, said the monitor, Dr. Muthusamy Anandkumar, in a report filed with the court on Monday, writing: "The facility lacks a reliable system to consistently provide adequate health care, placing individuals at serious risk of both immediate and long-term harm." The findings are significant as this is the first court-ordered investigation of the full scope of medical care at any Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in the U.S., according to lawyers for the detained immigrants.

Federal Funds Can't Be Spent on Giving Drug Users Test Strips, Raising Overdose Fears

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 14:00:57 PDT

Test strips can identify dangerous hidden additives in street drugs and help prevent overdoses. But the Trump administration says federal funds can't be used to provide the strips to drug users.

Trump Administration Needs to Stop 'Public Harassment' of Fauci and Scientists, Open Letter Says

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 08:07:31 PDT

More than 155 scientists, physicians and public health advocates have called for an end to what they describe as the "vilification and harassment of many American scientists" by the Trump administration and its allies. In an open letter published one day before Anthony Fauci, the former top U.S. government science adviser, is scheduled to appear at a high-profile hearing in U.S. Congress, after the Republican-controlled Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee compelled him to testify, the scientists and physicians dismissed allegations against the ex-National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director as "baseless." The letter signed by the group of scientists and public health advocates alleges that the Trump administration and its congressional allies are "waging a war on individual scientists, through public harassment, arrests, criminal indictment and ongoing threats of prosecution." The letter states that several scientists have come under scrutiny under this administration, but the signatories argue that "the most prominent target of the administration and its allies" is Fauci, who left the federal government in 2022 after leading the NIAID for 38 years.

Thousands of Children, Sponsors Arrested by ICE After Tips From U.S. Child Migrant Agency

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 08:04:48 PDT

More than 12,000 people have been arrested ‌by U.S. immigration authorities following tips from the Office of Refugee Resettlement during President Trump's second term, according to internal government data reviewed exclusively by Reuters. ORR was created in 1980 to resettle refugees fleeing war and persecution. Since the early 2000s, the agency has also been charged with housing unaccompanied migrant children arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border. The care of these children has historically been walled off from immigration enforcement. A 2008 law sought to ensure they were placed in the least restrictive setting and released from detention as soon as safely possible, regardless of their sponsors' legal status. That meant migrant families could be reunited without fear of being targeted by ICE, even if they were in the country illegally. The Trump administration has taken a drastically different approach. Since January 2025, the data shows, ORR has shared more than 460,000 "leads" with ICE about unaccompanied children, their sponsors -- usually parents or other relatives -- and additional household members, leaving them vulnerable to detention and deportation. While Reuters and others have reported on the growing cooperation between ORR and ICE, this story is the first to reveal the scale of the information shared for ⁠immigration enforcement.

Immigration Attorney on the Approaching End of TPS for Haitians and Syrians

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 08:01:06 PDT

NPR's A Martinez speaks with immigration attorney Ira Kurzban about the imminent end of Temporary Protected Status for Haitians and Syrians.

Boat Strikes Have Not Reduced Drug Smuggling Into the U.S., DEA Finds

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 07:54:55 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Washington Post national security reporter Alex Horton about DEA and Pentagon conclusions that U.S. boat strikes have not reduced drug smuggling into the U.S. by sea.

U.S. Air Defense Supply Shrinks During Iran War, Leaving Experts Concerned

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 07:54:10 PDT

The exchange of fire between the United States and Iran has paused in the last few days. One challenge the U.S. has confronted in the war with Iran has been the shortfall in ballistic missile and drone defense systems. Nick Schifrin discussed more with Jerry McGinn. He was a senior official in the Defense Department's Office of Manufacturing and Industrial Base Policy.

Cyclospora and Salmonella Outbreaks Raise Concerns About U.S. Food Safety

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 17:02:31 PDT

Public health concerns are widening as cyclosporiasis cases surge and a salmonella outbreak across 17 states has many Americans raising concerns about U.S. food safety. Back-to-back cases where people are getting sick from food have put many on edge. William Brangham discussed the concerns with Caitlin Rivers, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University.

Documentary Explores Why U.S. Mothers Lack Support Systems Found in Other Countries

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 17:01:43 PDT

A new documentary explores the realities of motherhood in America, from the high cost of child care to the culture wars over parenting and raising a family. Amna Nawaz spoke with the filmmakers behind "No Country for Mothers" for our arts and culture series, CANVAS.

Trump Administration's Revision of Iran War Casualties 'Huge Disrespect', Say Veterans

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 16:59:24 PDT

A controversial move by the Pentagon to reclassify casualties in the Iran war is being taken by U.S. military veterans as a sign of disrespect for the dead. "It's such a huge disrespect for the families," said Michael E Smith, a retired U.S. rear admiral and the founder of National Security Leaders for America. "To claim that they weren't killed as a result of the war -- oh, it was just overseas operations -- is just ludicrous." In a quiet weekend update to the Defense Casualty Analysis System, a military database for displaying casualties, the U.S. Department of Defense -- renamed the Department of War under Donald Trump -- added more than 140 wounded service members. They also introduced a new casualty category labeled "Overseas Operations" for personnel killed and wounded "starting July 7" which splits the count from the beginning of the U.S.-Israel war on Iran.

Just One in Three Americans Back Iran War, Most Unsure of Trump's Goals, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 16:57:54 PDT

Just one in three Americans support the war on Iran, the lowest reading in a Reuters/Ipsos poll since the five-month-old conflict's early days, with most respondents saying that President Trump has failed to explain his goals. The poll, conducted Friday through Sunday, also showed the Republican president's approval rating ticking higher to ‌37 percent, up three points from last month when his rating tied the lowest of his presidency.

Trump Administration Urges Supreme Court to Allow Order Targeting Mail-in Voting Before Midterms

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 16:56:02 PDT

The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Monday to clear the way for an executive order from President Trump that could dramatically change mail-in voting ahead of November's midterm elections. The Justice Department asked the justices to halt for now lower court decisions blocking the sweeping changes in nearly half the country. The executive order calls for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the commissioner of the Social Security Administration to send state officials federal citizenship lists to determine eligible voters. It tells the U.S. Postal Service to deliver mail ballots only to people on the lists. The order also calls for ballots to have secure envelopes with unique barcodes for tracking. Federal funding could be withheld from states and localities that don't comply. A response to the appeal is due Aug. 3.

Former Wisconsin Democratic Chair Says U.S. Political System Must Change

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 16:53:31 PDT

Former chair of the Wisconsin Democratic Party, Ben Wikler, talks with NPR's Sacha Pfeiffer about his new book "This is the Plan: How to End America's Meltdown and Save Democracy."

Congress Budgeted Billions for Big Transit Projects. Trump Isn't Spending It.

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 08:43:44 PDT

For decades, the federal government has funneled big-ticket grants to local communities to help them take on ambitious construction projects to expand public transit. The grants, sometimes in the billions of dollars, have funded new railroad tracks, train stations and roads rebuilt for modern bus service. But since President Trump returned to office, the Federal Transit Administration has not signed a single new agreement under the program, known as Capital Investment Grants. Large projects ready to enter the final phase of the program's yearslong pipeline have stalled there. The administration also tried halting payments to the New York and Chicago projects, forcing courts to intervene.

Pentagon Reports More Than 600 Iran War Casualties in Quiet Database Update

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 08:39:10 PDT

The Pentagon updated its official war casualty database over the weekend, adding more than 140 wounded service members. The Defense Casualty Analysis System also introduced a new casualty category labeled "Overseas Operations" for personnel killed and wounded "starting July 7." According to the updated database, the official toll for the earlier phase of the U.S.-Iran war, known as Operation Epic Fury, now stands at 14 service members killed and more than 400 wounded in action. These figures have been a point of contention after the Pentagon previously reduced the totals from 18 deaths and 482 wounded that had been recorded just days earlier.

Trump Economy at 18 Months Is a Tale of Shocks, Resilience and Signs of Stalled Progress

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 08:36:45 PDT

The first 18 months of President Trump's second term in the White House have seen a series of policy-driven economic shocks, highlighted by the immigration crackdown and higher tariffs that he promised during his 2024 campaign and an unanticipated war with Iran that has boosted the price of oil and threatened global supply chains. While the U.S. economy overall has withstood the policy changes and Middle East war better than many economists expected, Trump's vow to lower prices, boost factory jobs and improve life for the middle class has yet to materialize, with the ‌midterm elections a little more than three months away. Resilient, yes, but the economy has also stalled in many of the areas where Trump said that mass deportations of undocumented people and higher import taxes would trigger a boom, with the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran intensifying some key risks.

Policy Expert on Trump Reversing Course on Plans for Large-Scale Attack Against Iran

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 08:32:32 PDT

Why did President Trump stand down U.S. forces after hinting at a massive attack on Iran? NPR's Leila Fadel asks Iran policy expert Suzanne Maloney of the Brookings Institution.

Venezuelan Men Sue Aviation Firms Who Flew Them to Notorious Salvadorian Jail

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 08:29:29 PDT

Venezuelan men sent last year to a notorious Salvadorian terrorism prison by the Trump administration are suing the U.S. aviation companies that transported them there. A lawsuit filed this week in federal court in Washington DC accuses the companies CSI Aviation and GlobalX of violating the Venezuelans' civil rights, false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence and other violations, for their role in flying the three planes that took the men to El Salvador. CSI and GlobalX "went to great lengths" to undertake the "rendition flights" to El Salvador, "in concert with the U.S. government, in flagrant violation of U.S. and international law," the lawsuit reads.

RFK Jr Urges Alzheimer's Screening but Blunts Key Panel That Could Drive Research

Sun, 26 Jul 2026 07:26:31 PDT

U.S. health secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, has called for better Alzheimer's screening -- but a critical federal panel that might have helped researchers find practical ways to do that has been prevented from meeting for more than a year. The panel, formally called the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, had planned to issue a recommendation on screening for cognitive decline this year, alongside 13 other topics as varied as autism screening and food allergy prevention. The taskforce is a group of expert volunteers who assess preventive services for health insurance coverage. The Trump administration has prevented the taskforce from meeting since March 2025, a political appointee fired two panel chairs and the administration has so far failed to appoint new members. Ruiz rotated off the taskforce in January.

Americans Rewire Their Grocery Shopping Routines While Digesting the Biggest Price Jump in 50 Years

Sun, 26 Jul 2026 07:22:12 PDT

Couponing, comparison shopping and cutting back on favorite foods are new habits for millions of Americans as they absorb the biggest jump in grocery prices in a half-century. Buying food to eat at home has gotten 33 percent more expensive in U.S. cities since the beginning of 2019, according to government figures. In the 7 1/2 years before that, prices rose 6.4 percent. The historic increase happened for numerous reasons. The coronavirus pandemic snarled supply chains and raised labor and transportation costs. Droughts, hurricanes and diseases like bird flu drove down production. Tariffs raised prices on foreign products like coffee, tomatoes and chocolate. Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine disrupted oil and fertilizer supplies. With a fresh conflict in the Middle East accelerating food price inflation again this year, the cost of filling their refrigerators, freezers and pantries has become a frustration for Americans and made affordability a central issue in the fall midterm elections.

Oil Prices Are Climbing Again. Here's Why This Time Could Be Different

Sun, 26 Jul 2026 07:19:09 PDT

Oil prices surpassed $100 a barrel last week. NPR's Ayesha Rascoe speaks to Bob McNally, founder of the research firm Rapidan Energy Group, about how the Iran war is disrupting oil supplies.

Trump Orders Warnings Placed at 'Inaccurate' Smithsonian History Museum

Sun, 26 Jul 2026 07:17:31 PDT

President Trump on Friday ordered warning signs and exhibits installed outside the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History to alert the public that the museum does not, in his view, accurately reflect American history. The unusual directive, made through an executive order, was a considerable escalation of the president's dispute with the Smithsonian and its history museum, which was the subject of a recent 162-page report. The report accused the museum's director, Anthea M. Hartig, of "radical activist ideology" and the museum of undermining "faith in American institutions." The order went so far as to suggest that the signage inform potential museum visitors of locations where American history is better presented. The administration did not explain where the public would be redirected.

Former Top U.S. Food Safety Official Says U.S. Mismanagement of Cyclospora Is Approaching 'A Catastrophic Level'

Sat, 25 Jul 2026 09:21:23 PDT

Donald Trump's former top food safety official has accused the administration of a near "catastrophic" mismanagement of the cyclospora outbreak that has sickened thousands of people in the U.S.. There should be an independent review of the federal government's response to the rash of illnesses caused by the spread of a parasite found on Raw produce, according to Frank Yiannas, who was deputy commissioner for food policy at the Food and Drug Administration across the presidencies of both Trump and Joe Biden from 2018 to 2023. "This one deserves a lot of questions and it is starting to approach a catastrophic level in terms of how mismanaged it's been on multiple fronts," Yiannas told Politico.

Trump Returns to Correspondents' Dinner for a Rambling, Insult-Filled Speech 3 Months After Shooting

Sat, 25 Jul 2026 09:19:39 PDT

President Trump returned to the rescheduled White House Correspondents' Association dinner Friday night, delivering a rambling, hourlong speech that praised some journalists, took potshots at others, made jokes about public figures' weight and intellect and quipped about a third presidential term. Trump's sometimes off-color speech, which lasted just over an hour, was full of potshots directed at various individuals -- from Bruce Springsteen to "Barack Hussein Obama" to familiar targets like journalist Kaitlan Collins of CNN, one of the evening's key award winners, whom he again accused of not smiling enough. The audience reacted at first with friendly laughs, but slowly quieted to scattered titters as the insults piled up. He also used the occasion to joke about the possibility of a third term -- something barred by the U.S. Constitution's 22nd Amendment.

White House Wants Veterans to Replace Immigrant Truckers Who Lost Their Licenses in Crackdown

Sat, 25 Jul 2026 09:16:18 PDT

The Trump administration wants soldiers to consider becoming truck drivers when they leave the military to help replace the tens of thousands of immigrant drivers who lost their licenses in a crackdown this year. A new campaign launched Friday will promote programs that let veterans who recently drove large military vehicles skip the required skills test for a commercial driver's license. Other soldiers can attend a commercial driving school during their last six months of active duty. The GI Bill will also pay for 100 percent of commercial driver's license training and for some people even pay a housing allowance while they are in school. The campaign will be part of a broader interagency effort to help veterans find good civilian jobs that the White House plans to announce on Monday.

Defense Strategy Expert Reviews How the Iran War Drains Vital U.S. Missile Inventories

Sat, 25 Jul 2026 09:08:52 PDT

NPR's Scott Simon asks Mark Cancian of the Center for Strategic and International Studies about concerns that the war with Iran is depleting stockpiles of key U.S. munitions.

Trump Administration Employs New Legal Paths for Tariffs After Supreme Court Defeat

Sat, 25 Jul 2026 09:07:03 PDT

The Trump administration has employed a number of new paths for its tariff regime after the Supreme Court invalidated earlier tariffs.

Week in Politics: Iran War; Trump Attends Solemn Ritual; Nuclear Deal With Saudi Arabia

Sat, 25 Jul 2026 09:05:48 PDT

The Trump administration is seeking tens of billions of dollars in supplemental appropriations for the Iran War, a war which the president and allies have repeatedly claimed is already won.

Trump Sets New Tariffs on Trading Partners, Covering Nearly All U.S. Imports

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 16:07:32 PDT

The latest set of tariffs from President Trump took effect on Friday for more than 80 countries, covering virtually all U.S. imports. They replace another set of tariffs, launched on what Trump called "liberation day," that the Supreme Court struck down earlier this year. Liz Landers reports.

Iranian Threat to Air Force One Prompted Plane Swap During NATO Summit

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 14:57:51 PDT

President Trump abruptly switched aircraft when leaving Turkey this month after what officials judged to be a credible threat that Iranian proxy forces were targeting him and Air Force One, according to multiple people briefed on the matter. The threat emerged while Trump was attending the NATO summit. He had flown into Ankara on the new Qatari-donated Boeing 747-8, which lacks the same advanced defensive capabilities of the old Air Force One, as The New York Times previously reported. After the U.S. government picked up on the threat, the Secret Service urged Trump to change planes. He later announced that he would be using the old plane to leave the country. The information about the nature of the threat, which has not been reported before, sheds light on why the White House moved swiftly to swap out the planes. It also underscores the concerns about the security of the donated jet, which Trump pressed to be ready as soon as possible for his use.

Justice Department Is Offering Billions in New Grants for Police Who Partner With ICE

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 14:52:37 PDT

The DOJ is offering state and local police $3 billion to cooperate with ICE on federal immigration enforcement, part of a broader effort to expand the administration's mass deportation campaign.

Democrats Prepare for Possible Election Clashes With Federal Government

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 14:51:43 PDT

Democratic state officials are ramping up their preparations to protect against what they view as a new threat to election security: the federal government. At a meeting in Milwaukee in May, staff members from the offices of every Democratic attorney general and about a dozen Democratic secretaries of state held tabletop exercises to prepare for hypothetical scenarios in the November midterm elections. "The sad reality now is that the federal government is our biggest concern," Nick Brown, the Democratic attorney general of the state of Washington, said, adding, "It used to be that the Department of Justice was our No. 1 partner, helping states prepare for election-related issues."

Measles Cases Hit New Record in U.S., as Vaccination Rates Wane

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 08:20:39 PDT

On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that there have been 2,318 confirmed cases of measles so far this year. The case count toppled the record set last year, when measles infected more than 2,200 a.m.ericans and killed two unvaccinated children. More measles cases have been reported in the United States in the last two years than in all the years from 2000 through 2024 combined. Reversing course on measles would require a nationwide push to improve vaccination rates, a prospect that experts said seemed unlikely under the leadership of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Crucial Interest Rate Jumps to Highest Level of Trump's Second Term

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 08:18:31 PDT

The yield on the 10-year Treasury bond, considered one of the most important interest rates in the world, jumped this week to 4.7 percent, up from less than 4 percent before the start of the war in Iran in late February. It was 4.6 percent on the day Trump returned to the White House in January 2025. The yield underpins borrowing costs across debt markets, from corporate bonds to mortgage loans and its rise complicates Trump's plans to keep costs affordable for companies and households across the United States. The impact is apparent in the housing market. Rising yields have driven up mortgage rates in recent weeks, dampening hopes that moribund home sales would rebound this year. The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, the most common home loan in the United States, is now 6.58 percent, Freddie Mac said Thursday. Mortgage rates had fallen below 6 percent in the week before the first U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran in late February.

New York Times Lawyer Talks About DOJ Withdrawing Subpoenas Sent to Times' Reporters

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 08:14:32 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks to the New York Times' lead newsroom lawyer David McCraw about the Justice Department withdrawing subpoenas it had sent to the Times' reporters.

Expert Shares How Trump's New Round of Tariffs Could Affect Americans

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 08:09:29 PDT

NPR's A Martinez speaks to Alan Wolff, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, about President Trump's new round of "retaliatory" tariffs.

NEH Announces Grants Supporting Projects Aligned With Trump's Agenda

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 08:07:49 PDT

The latest wave of grants announced by the National Endowment for the Humanities -- worth more than $40 million -- illustrates a Trump administration focus on such topics as the United States' founding.

End of Migrant Protections Creates Elder Care Staffing Challenges

Thu, 23 Jul 2026 17:39:47 PDT

Hundreds of thousands of migrants are facing uncertainty after the Supreme Court cleared the way for the Trump administration to end Temporary Protected Status for Syrian and Haitian nationals. It's raising alarm among leaders in the senior care industry, who say workers with TPS make up a significant part of a strained workforce. Geoff Bennett discussed more with Katie Smith Sloan of LeadingAge.

U.S. Withdraws Subpoenas Issued to New York Times Journalists

Thu, 23 Jul 2026 17:38:24 PDT

The Justice Department on Thursday withdrew the subpoenas that sought phone records and grand jury testimony from New York Times journalists who had reported on the security capabilities of President Trump's new Qatari-donated Air Force One jet. The government acted after a federal judge grilled Justice Department lawyers for nearly an hour over their handling of the subpoenas, which The Times had sought to quash. The news outlet called the subpoenas an effort to intimidate its reporters. The case was a high-profile instance of the Trump administration's efforts to escalate pressure on independent news organizations. The government issued the subpoenas, some of which were delivered by federal agents at reporters' homes, after Trump was angered by The Times's disclosures about his new jet, which he had flown to Turkey this month and eagerly showed off. On Thursday, Judge Subramanian zeroed in on whether the government had heeded the law and its own regulations on investigations involving the news media. He said subpoenas to reporters "are not the first thing you do -- they are the last thing you do." "It's a matter of basic compliance with the law," he added.

Trump to Impose New Global Tariffs

Thu, 23 Jul 2026 17:30:47 PDT

The Trump administration on Friday will impose new tariffs of 10 percent and 12.5 percent on goods from 60 trading partners, including the European Union, over allegations of lax enforcement of forced labor bans, just as ‌a temporary 10 percent global tariff expires. The move is the White House's latest effort to restore President Trump's campaign vision of a near-global tariff after the U.S. Supreme Court in February struck down his "reciprocal" duties of 10 percent to 50 percent imposed last year under a national emergencies law to try to shrink the U.S. trade deficit. The new tariffs, announced on Thursday in a Federal Register notice, will cover 99.4 percent of U.S. imports, but include numerous product exemptions, such as oil and gas, fertilizer and certain food items.

House Again Passes a Resolution Seeking to Halt Military Action in Iran as the Conflict Escalates

Thu, 23 Jul 2026 17:28:54 PDT

The House on Thursday narrowly passed a resolution to halt U.S. military action in Iran, sending a warning to President Trump for the second time as the war has escalated and the future of the conflict is increasingly uncertain. The 214-208 vote requiring congressional approval for the war came just before the Senate narrowly rejected a similar resolution, 47-49. Though the votes forced by Democrats are largely symbolic, they are meant as a signal to the Republican president that his support on Capitol Hill is chipping away as the war drags on and lawmakers in both parties have questioned his administration's endgame. The war has had "no clear mission, no strategy, no end goal," said Washington Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat who led the resolution on the House floor.

Over 4 Million People Are No Longer on SNAP Since Last July

Thu, 23 Jul 2026 17:27:40 PDT

SNAP participation has been declining consistently and rapidly since last July, when President Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill into law.

Space Datacenters Proposed by Musk and Bezos 'Catastrophic' for Planet, Experts Warn

Thu, 23 Jul 2026 08:12:09 PDT

Space datacenters proposed by SpaceX, Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin and others would release staggering levels of pollution that would probably alter the Earth's atmosphere and be "catastrophic" for the planet, space industry experts and environmental groups warn in a new petition demanding a review of their impacts. Tech companies have collectively proposed millions of "orbital datacenters" and are pressing forward with plans, which require Federal Communications Commission approval. Among other issues, pollution from satellites and rockets burning up upon re-entry appears to be accumulating in the stratosphere at alarming levels. The spacecraft release black soot, rare metals, aluminum oxides and other pollutants with unknown effects. Some scientists fear the pollution could destroy the ozone layer, potentially expose some people to higher levels of ultraviolet radiation or help further destabilize the planet during the climate crisis. The pollution could also end up back on Earth and millions of satellites would create a major source of light pollution. The petition submitted to the FCC calls for a pause on new licenses for space data center projects, arguing that the plans "violate federal law."

Trump Vows to Punish Iran for Houthi Attacks in Red Sea; Oil Surges Over $100

Thu, 23 Jul 2026 08:09:02 PDT

U.S. President Trump promised on Thursday "major military punishment" for Iran and its Houthi allies, after the Yemeni fighters struck two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, extending the ‌Middle East war to a second major shipping chokepoint. The prospect that disruption could widen to a second sea sent global oil prices surging in one of the steepest rises of the war. Brent crude rose more than 6 percent, breaking through $100 a barrel for the first time since May.

Former State Department Official on the Implications of the U.S.-Saudi Nuclear Deal

Thu, 23 Jul 2026 08:05:04 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin talks to Daniel Benaim, a former State Department official who worked on Gulf issues, about the U.S.-Saudi nuclear deal.

Economist Talks About Trump's Speech on the Economy and Affordability

Thu, 23 Jul 2026 08:03:50 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, about President Trump's latest speech on the economy and the issue of affordability.

A Year After Trump Funding Cuts, Public Media Finds Support From Audiences

Thu, 23 Jul 2026 08:03:12 PDT

A year ago, President Trump cut all federal funding for public TV and radio. Hundreds of public media staffers got laid off. But listeners and viewers are also stepping up with support.

The Implications of Trump Loyalists and Election Deniers Winning GOP Primaries

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 17:06:16 PDT

In Arizona, three prominent election deniers won Republican primaries for governor, secretary of state and attorney general. If they win in November, they'll play key roles in overseeing elections and defending voting laws. Amna Nawaz discussed more with Stephen Richer, the elections recorder in Maricopa County from 2021 to 2025.

Critics Warn U.S. Nuclear Power Deal With Saudi Arabia Could Fuel Proliferation

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 17:05:13 PDT

The U.S. and Saudi Arabia announced a landmark deal that would give the kingdom a civilian nuclear program using American technology and might allow for uranium enrichment in Saudi Arabia. Critics warn it could lead to further nuclear proliferation. Nick Schifrin reports and Geoff Bennett discusses more with John Wolfsthal.

'This Is About the Rule of Law': U.S. Attorney Fired by Trump Sues to Overturn Dismissal

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 17:03:51 PDT

A U.S. attorney in Washington state who was fired by the Trump administration is suing the government over his dismissal. Roger Rogoff was sworn in after a panel of judges unanimously selected him. Less than an hour later, he was fired via email. His lawsuit highlights the legal fight over Trump's power to shape the judiciary. Rogoff joined Justice correspondent Ali Rogin to discuss more.

Fired Federal Prosecutor in Seattle Sues Trump

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 14:54:07 PDT

Roger Rogoff, the top federal prosecutor in the Seattle area who was axed by President Trump, filed a lawsuit Tuesday that challenges not just his own firing, but a core tenet of the Trump administration's approach to top prosecutorial jobs. Since the start of Trump's second term, his administration has repeatedly sought to circumvent the Senate confirmation process traditionally used to install U.S. attorneys by using other procedural mechanisms to appoint loyalists. When district judges have exercised their authority to select someone else as the U.S. attorney, Trump has fired that person. "The President's actions violate the law and they ignore the protections of the Constitution of the United States," Rogoff said in a statement. "His removal of me, like his removal of other court-appointed U.S. Attorneys across the country, is illegal and cannot stand." Sen. Patty Murray, (D-Wash.), said Rogoff had been fired "because the President wants a sock puppet who puts Trump above the rule of law."

Iran Strikes on CIA Facilities Prompt Questions About Possible Russian Role

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 14:48:59 PDT

Iranian drone attacks on CIA facilities in the Gulf have prompted U.S. intelligence analysts to investigate whether Russia assisted by providing targeting information or advanced drone technology, said four people familiar with U.S. intelligence. These people, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss national security matters, said U.S. intelligence officials have ‌not yet reached firm conclusions about the possible Russian involvement in the attacks on CIA facilities. But they cited the strikes' effectiveness and apparent precision, as well as Russia's broader technical support for Iran, as possible evidence.

White House Admits It Used Keywords to Kill Billions Worth of California Research Grants

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 14:42:09 PDT

Federal agencies that terminated more than a thousand research grants at the University of California last year admitted that they used keywords related to diversity, gender, vaccine hesitancy and Covid-19 to screen for projects that ran afoul of the Trump administration's priorities. It's an admission that lawyers for the research professors say is proof that the agencies illegally cancelled nearly $2 billion in grants. And that's a major development in a lawsuit filed by UC researchers against the Trump administration to permanently get their grants back.

CDC Cuts Leave U.S. Less Prepared for Disease Outbreaks, Former Officials Warn

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 14:39:57 PDT

A series of health challenges -- hantavirus, screwworm, Ebola, cyclospora, measles, whooping cough, bird flu -- are exposing the widening gaps in America's ability to prevent, identify and halt infectious disease outbreaks. The rapid dismantling of the U.S. public health system at all levels means the U.S. is in worse shape than it was before the Covid pandemic, former top CDC officials say. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lost much of its funding for battling parasites, which are notable global killers, in the last year. Experts were tasked with monitoring potential outbreaks -- such as a previously rare parasite called cyclospora -- around the U.S. and the world, lending expertise to help stop crises in their tracks. But their funding was decimated and many people at the CDC were laid off or resigned without being replaced.

New U.S. 25 Pct. Tariff Hits Billions of Dollars in Brazilian Exports

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 08:29:14 PDT

A new 25 percent U.S. tariff will hit a range of Brazilian goods on Wednesday, including farm machinery, wood products, ethanol and apparel, escalating tensions in an already strained relationship between ‌the two most populous countries in the Western Hemisphere. The tariff is the first levied under the Trump administration's new strategy of using the Trade Act of 1974 to investigate what it considers unfair trade practices. The White House's blanket assertion of emergency powers to levy high tariffs against most global partners was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year. The new tariff threatens between $7 billion and $11 billion of Brazilian exports to the U.S., according to estimates from Brazil's government and National Confederation of Industry, respectively. That amounts to roughly 18 percent to 26 percent of Brazil's exports to the U.S. To soften the domestic effect of the tariffs, the U.S. exempted several key imports, ⁠including beef, coffee, aircraft and plane parts.

Trump Approves Nuclear Agreement That May Allow Saudi Arabia to Enrich Uranium, 2 AP Sources Say

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 08:26:09 PDT

President Trump has approved an agreement with Saudi Arabia that could potentially provide the kingdom with uranium enrichment capability for its civilian nuclear program, according to two people familiar with the matter. The people, who were not authorized to comment publicly about the yet to be formally announced decision, said the agreement is expected to be announced publicly as early as Wednesday. The deal is expected to last 30 years and is also expected to involve U.S. firms in developing the program. The deal could allow for the building of a uranium enrichment facility in Saudi Arabia following a joint U.S.-Saudi study. But the deal, which is expected to be submitted to Congress for review, could face headwinds among lawmakers who fear that helping the Saudis fulfill their long-standing desire to enrich their own uranium would open new rounds of nuclear proliferation and competition.

Sen. Patty Murray on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's Senate Testimony

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 08:20:40 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington about the administration's Iran war objectives following the testimony of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Former U.S. Ambassador Talks About Houthi Threat to Red Sea Shipping

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 08:19:04 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks to former U.S. ambassador Daniel Shapiro, who held a senior role at the Pentagon when Houthis attacked Red Sea shipping in 2023 and 2024.

CDC Director Nominee Erica Schwartz Says She Hopes to Shift the Agency's Tone

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 08:16:54 PDT

Public health officials acknowledge they need to shed paternalistic messaging if they want to reach more people. The nominee to run the CDC says she will strike a new tone.

Epstein Survivor Criticizes Blanche, Calls Meeting 'A Performative Move'

Wed, 22 Jul 2026 08:11:56 PDT

The Senate is weighing President Trump's nomination of Todd Blanche to lead the Department of Justice as questions continue over the administration's handling of investigations into Jeffrey Epstein. It comes days after Blanche met privately with several survivors of Epstein's abuse. Justice correspondent Ali Rogin spoke with Liz Stein, one of the survivors who met with Blanche.

Trump Raises Tensions With Canada by Announcing New 50 Pct. Tariffs

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 16:04:10 PDT

The Trump administration is imposing a new round of tariffs on Canada, accusing the country of unfairly discriminating against American autos, dairy products and alcohol. The 50 percent tariffs would cover some $20 billion worth of Canadian imports, on goods ranging from cement to hockey sticks. Geoff Bennett discussed more with Natasha Sarin of the Yale Budget Lab.

Hegseth Says Iran War Has Cost $37.5B So Far and Pentagon Needs $67B to Restock Arms

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 16:03:08 PDT

President Trump's top military advisors were on Capitol Hill to make the case for the war in Iran and additional money to fund the Pentagon. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine argued for an additional $67 billion, what Hegseth called an urgent and necessary injection of funds. Nick Schifrin reports.

Appeals Court Upholds White House Adviser Peter Navarro's Contempt of Congress Convictions

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 14:48:10 PDT

A federal appeals court on Tuesday upheld White House adviser Peter Navarro's convictions for defying a subpoena for records from the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by a mob of President Trump's supporters. Navarro couldn't prove Trump had shielded him from the subpoena's requirements by invoking executive privilege, according to the unanimous ruling by a three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. "In short, Dr. Navarro has acknowledged that even if executive privilege had been invoked, that would not have excused his categorical failure to comply with the Select Committee's subpoena," D.C. Circuit Judge Patricia Millett wrote.

U.S. Civil Rights Agency Moves to End Demographic Data Collection After 60 Years

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 14:45:26 PDT

How many women hold executive-level positions at top U.S. companies? What is the racial and ethnic breakdown of those roles? What is the gender and racial breakdown of the lowest-paid roles at those companies? The Trump administration is making it harder for the public to know, moving to toss aside a 60-year-old requirement for tens of thousands of private sector employers to submit workforce demographic reports each year to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the agency responsible for enforcing anti-discrimination laws in the workplace and which receives more than 88,000 worker complaints each year. The EEOC's Republican majority voted 2-1 Tuesday to rescind the data collection requirement, submitting the proposal to a 30-day public commentary period before final approval. Former Democratic EEOC commissioners and civil rights organizations have denounced the proposal, saying it will deprive the agency of a critical tool for uncovering discrimination patterns and tracking how women and racial minorities have fared since the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which created the EEOC and prohibited employment discrimination based on race, color, sex, national origin and religion.

Senior Living Facility in Distress as Immigrant Caregivers Are Forced Out

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:26:51 PDT

The Trump administration's immigration crackdown is colliding with a demographic reality. Americans are aging rapidly and living longer, creating soaring demand for elder care when the industry is already buckling under the weight of chronic labor shortages. Almost 70 million people in the United States are 65 or older and government projections estimate that 70 percent of older adults will need care at some point in their lives. Millions of immigrants, eligible to work in the United States, fill positions across the elder care industry such as nurses, dietitians, fitness instructors and maintenance technicians. And countless undocumented immigrants care for seniors in their homes, part of a vast informal economy. Immigration enforcement is choking both labor pools.

1,700 H.I.V. Treatment Sites Closed After Trump Aid Cuts, a Study Finds

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:23:59 PDT

The Trump administration's cuts to the largest global H.I.V. program last year resulted in sharp drops in both prevention efforts and treatment, according to the first large survey of organizations that had received the funds. The findings show a grimmer picture of the impact of the cuts than the State Department's data, released in April, which seemed to suggest the program had helped to treat about as many people last year as it had in 2024. To comply with the administration's policies, the new survey, conducted by the H.I.V. charity amfAR, found three-quarters of the organizations stopped providing services to those at highest risk from H.I.V. -- sex workers, men who have sex with men, transgender people and people who inject drugs. The results are scheduled to be presented next week at a large international AIDS conference in Rio de Janeiro. A second study, conducted by a multinational group of scientists, which will also be presented at the conference, found the cuts had disproportionately affected children with H.I.V. The program, called the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief or PEPFAR, supported treatment for about 77,000 fewer children in 2025 than it had the previous year, a 14 percent decline, the study found.

U.S. Immigration Agents Arrested a Record Number of People in June, Data Shows

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:16:52 PDT

A Guardian analysis of the latest data published by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement found that federal immigration agents arrested 43,138 people in June -- the highest number since Donald Trump took office in January last year and promised a campaign of mass immigrant deportations. The number of people in detention has also ticked up by 5,450 since early April, when ICE last provided a count of its detained population. There were a total of 65,765 people in ICE detention as of 11 July -- slightly below a record 70,770 people who were in detention in January. As has been the case since last summer, the number of people in ICE detention without any criminal history remains higher than the number who have pending charges or convictions. In total, the Trump administration has deported more than 590,600 since January 2025, the latest figures show.

Former Secretary of the Air Force on the Vulnerabilities U.S. Troops Face in Iran War

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:12:13 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin talks with Frank Kendall, former U.S. Secretary of the Air Force, about the Houthi blockade in the Red Sea and Pentagon transparency around U.S. military injuries.

Sen. Chris Murphy on the Iran War and Pete Hegseth's Upcoming Senate Testimony

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:10:27 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., about the escalating war in the Middle East and the testimony of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in front of a Senate panel on Tuesday.

Trump Cuts to Advisory Groups Leaves Hospitals Without Key Expertise on Disease

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:09:31 PDT

Under the Trump administration, dozens of advisory committees have been ended or frozen, including one on controlling infection in healthcare settings.

Federal Judge Halts Paramount-Warner Bros. Merger for Now

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 08:08:09 PDT

A judge has ordered Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery to pause their merger for at least two weeks. NPR's Michel Martin speaks with CNN media analyst Brian Stelter about why the plan was halted.

Deadly Shootings by ICE Officers Renew Scrutiny of Recruitment and Training

Mon, 20 Jul 2026 16:25:41 PDT

Two deadly shootings involving ICE officers reignited protests and renewed questions about tactics, training and recruitment at the agency. None of the agents involved were wearing body cameras and neither of the victims was the intended target of the operation. Amna Nawaz discussed more with John Sandweg, who served as acting director of ICE under President Obama.

Trump Imposes 50 Pct. Tariffs on Canadian Goods, Citing Disputes Over Autos, Alcohol and Cheese

Mon, 20 Jul 2026 16:19:05 PDT

President Trump on Monday imposed 50 percent tariffs on most Canadian goods, declaring that Canada has unfairly discriminated against American autos, alcohol and dairy products. The move could unleash a new wave of economic chaos, with risks of higher inflation and further fraying of relations between two nations that had been closely woven together before Trump's return to the White House. The White House said in a fact sheet that the tariffs would go into effect in 30 days, meaning there is time for negotiations as Trump has not always followed through on his announced tax hikes on imports.

Pentagon Withheld Dozens of U.S. Military Injuries in Iran War

Mon, 20 Jul 2026 07:29:17 PDT

In the week leading up to the Iranian attack on Friday that killed two U.S. soldiers and left one service member missing in Jordan, Iran carried out three other strikes against U.S. forces in the country. Those attacks injured dozens of U.S. service members and damaged several helicopters, according to several U.S. officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss operational matters. But the Pentagon did not disclose the earlier strikes, nor the casualties and damage they inflicted. Central Command is not required to release information about injured service members, especially when they quickly return to duty, a U.S. military official said. Moreover, another U.S. military official added, why would the Pentagon divulge information that could help Iran. Central Command has also stopped announcing how many sites in Iran it hits each day for the same reason, U.S. officials say.

Houthis Impose Saudi Naval Blockade, Opening New Front in U.S.-Iran War

Mon, 20 Jul 2026 07:21:06 PDT

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis said on Monday they were imposing a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia, a move that opens a new front against the United States in its war on Iran and widens the threat to global energy supplies and trade beyond the Gulf. Iran had been pressing the Houthis to close the Bab el-Mandeb gateway to the Red Sea if the U.S. continued to attack Iranian power infrastructure. The full closure of the strait would cut global oil supply by 7 percent as it would leave most Saudi oil exports unable to leave the region. The disruption would add to the massive cut to global oil flows from the war in the Gulf, which has already reduced shipments by 10 percent of global supply.

How the Trump Administration's New Rules Could Affect International Students

Mon, 20 Jul 2026 07:18:00 PDT

The Trump administration is placing new restrictions on international student visas. Here's how they could impact the fall semester.

Former National Security Adviser on the Escalating Strikes Between the U.S. And Iran

Mon, 20 Jul 2026 07:16:15 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks to former President Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan about escalating attacks between the U.S. and Iran and the deaths of U.S. service members.

Majority of U.S. Voters Link Extreme Weather to Climate Crisis, Study Finds

Sun, 19 Jul 2026 08:17:15 PDT

Amid a summer of dangerous heat, drought and floods, a majority of Americans are connecting increasingly severe weather to the climate crisis, new polling shows, despite efforts by Donald Trump to dismiss global heating as a "con job" and a "hoax." About 61 percent of likely American voters believe extreme weather events have become more frequent over the past five years, the survey from the progressive polling firm Data for Progress, shared exclusively with the Guardian, found. That includes 72 percent of Democrats, 63 percent of Independents and nearly half -- 46 percent -- of all Republicans.

Trump Claims Voting by Noncitizens Is Rampant in America. The Numbers Tell Another Story.

Sun, 19 Jul 2026 08:13:21 PDT

According to President Trump, America is a hotbed of voting fraud -- and foreigners are major culprits. He has offered little evidence for his allegations of widespread fraud, however, including his claim in a primetime speech on Thursday that 278,000 noncitizens are registered to vote. Now, a new Reuters analysis of federal court data undercuts Trump's assertion that a conspiracy of noncitizen voting is afoot in America. Case records show that federal prosecutors have charged just 129 people under a federal "voting by aliens" statute created by Congress in 1996, Reuters found. Many appear to stem from voter confusion, miscommunication with election officials or administrative errors.

Trump Said the Election System Is Broken. What Do Swing Voters Make of the Claim?

Sun, 19 Jul 2026 08:08:37 PDT

What did some swing state voters think of President Trump's primetime speech on elections?

They Were Charged With Assaulting ICE Agents. The Cases Are Crumbling.

Sun, 19 Jul 2026 08:05:30 PDT

In its nationwide immigration crackdown, the Trump administration has charged hundreds of people with assaulting or impeding federal agents. President Trump has branded them "insurrectionists," "animals" and "thugs," part of a broader effort by his administration to cast protesters and immigrants as violent criminals. But a close examination of those cases reveals that in its rush to meet White House demands for deportations, federal law enforcement has engaged in extensive misconduct -- ranging from attacking protesters to destroying evidence and misrepresenting facts in court. The New York Times found that the Trump administration has filed assault charges against more than 550 people who were caught in its immigration dragnet -- far more than previously known. Of the more than 400 cases resolved so far, nearly half have unraveled: Juries acquitted defendants, judges threw out charges or prosecutors withdrew them.

U.S. Data Center Protests Go National as Backlash Grows

Sat, 18 Jul 2026 08:47:10 PDT

Opponents of the rapid buildout of data centers plan to hold protests on Saturday in at least 125 locations across the United States, the first coordinated national effort to channel anger at ‌the AI infrastructure expansion that has ramped up over the past year and roiled local politics. The protests are coordinated by a grassroots group called HumansFirst, co-founded by a former leader of the modern-day Tea Party who has compared growing opposition to data centers to the right-wing populist movement that emerged in 2009 to protest what it saw as excessive taxation and government overreach.

Federal Judge Bars Trump Administration From Using Obscure Clause to Make Huge Funding Cuts

Sat, 18 Jul 2026 08:44:31 PDT

U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston on Friday ruled the Trump administration can't use an obscure clause relating to agency priorities to make billions of dollars in funding cuts to everything from crime prevention to food security to scientific research. "Defendants' interpretation of the Termination Clause is not clearly supported by the text of the provision, runs counter to the regulatory scheme, receives no support in the rulemaking history and would violate the Spending Clause's requirement that conditions be imposed unambiguously," Talwani, who was nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama, wrote.

Week in Politics: Trump's Speech; Midterm Elections; Todd Blanche and Jay Clayton

Sat, 18 Jul 2026 08:25:19 PDT

Three months from the November midterms, President Trump is drawing attention to issues that are not top priorities for voters.

Battleground State Election Officials Respond to Trump's Efforts to Reshape Voting Process

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 17:11:36 PDT

To discuss how state election administrators are responding to President Trump's speech, Liz Landers spoke with two election officials in key battleground states: Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes and Gabe Sterling of the Georgia Secretary of State's office.

Former Intelligence Official Weighs Trump's Election Security Allegations

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 17:04:00 PDT

President Trump is again trying to sow doubt in the election process in the United States. For perspective, Geoff Bennett spoke with Sue Gordon. She spent 30 years in the intelligence community, serving as principal deputy director of national intelligence during President Trump's first term, the highest-ranking career intelligence official in the country at the time.

Paying for Early Access to Trump's Truth Social Could Raise Big Money -- and Major Ethical Issues

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 17:00:04 PDT

Donald Trump's struggling media company plans to sell Wall Street traders the chance to see posts from "highest-ranking" accounts -- including possibly his own -- milliseconds before others. That could mean big money for them and Trump. Truth Social's public parent, Trump Media & Technology, did not respond to emailed questions, including whether Trump's posts will be excluded from the offering, but the planned service is attracting plenty of attention -- and not just from traders. "It's odious, selling access to highest bidders on Wall Street," said Dylan Hedler-Gaudette, an expert on federal ethic rules at watchdog Project on Government Oversight. "Everything he says has market implications." No other social media platform has such access to the president and presumably banks and traders will have to pay up for it. "It's yet more brazen corruption," said Kathleen Clark of Washington University School of Law and an expert in government ethics rules. "Trump can line his pockets by selling access."

Trump Administration Drastically Limits Length of Foreign Journalist Visas

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:43:01 PDT

The Trump administration has said it will drastically shorten visas for foreign journalists in the U.S. to 240 days, down from five years and cut those for Chinese journalists to only 90 days. The rule announced by the Department of Homeland Security will do away with the "duration of status" system, which allows foreign journalists to stay and work in the United States as long as they meet eligibility requirements. In addition to journalists, the new visas rules will also affect foreign students and exchange visitors that the government said had also been allowed to "remain in the United States indefinitely without routine government oversight."

Trump Threatens to Revoke Licenses of U.S. Networks for Not Carrying Primetime Speech

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:41:19 PDT

Two of the three major U.S. television networks and CNN did not broadcast a prime-time address on Thursday by President Trump on their primary platforms, drawing a rebuke from a president who has placed unprecedented pressure on American media. During his speech, Trump said that networks that did not air his speech were engaged in a "plot" and should have their licenses revoked. "In a rare move, NBC and ABC fake news ‌have both said they would not cover this speech," he said, adding, "Fraud like this should mean a revocation of their licenses." Networks have broad First Amendment rights to decide what they choose to broadcast, experts say.

ICE Officer in Maine Shooting Has History of Violent Behavior, Family and Records Say

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:37:18 PDT

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who shot a Colombian man in Maine this week is an Army veteran who has struggled with serious mental health issues since early childhood and never should have been given a badge and gun to patrol American streets, several of his close relatives told The Associated Press. David Brouillette has a history of terrifying and violent behavior, according to those relatives. They accuse him of attacking women in his life over the years and one shared a voicemail with the AP from last winter in which he told her that he thought someone should slit her throat. Brouillette's troubling past further challenges how thoroughly the Department of Homeland Security has vetted recruits as it went on a hiring spree to help carry out President Trump's immigration crackdown.

Rep. Jim Himes Reacts to Trump's Speech on Election Security

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:35:27 PDT

NPR's A Martinez discusses President Trump's speech on election security with Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes, the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee.

Election Law Expert Discusses Trump's Claims on Election Integrity

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:32:43 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel talks to David Becker, an election law expert and executive director of The Center for Election Innovation & Research, about the president's speech on election integrity issues.

Trump Revisits Debunked Theories About the 2020 Election in Primetime Speech

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:31:19 PDT

Experts say President Trump's Thursday night speech -- and the tranche of newly unclassified documents that came with it -- provided no new evidence of fraud.

Trump Makes Unverified Claims of 'Sinister Election Meddling' in Primetime Address

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 21:31:07 PDT

Donald Trump accused China of interfering with the 2020 election in a primetime televised address that laid bare his continuing obsession with his defeat to Joe Biden, but which opponents warned was a smokescreen for him to meddle in the forthcoming congressional midterms. In a 25-minute speech on Thursday that had been hyped by Trump himself, the U.S. president cast extraordinary doubts on the integrity of the U.S. electoral process, saying it was "catastrophically" short of standards of fairness and trust, while vulnerable to trespassing by foreign powers. Democrats warned that Trump was trying to sow confusion, spread misinformation and lay the groundwork to challenge the results of the midterm elections, which polls suggest could deliver significant losses for the president's party. "Tonight, Americans heard the president once again repeat claims about our elections that have been investigated for years and repeatedly rejected by the Intelligence Community, the FBI, DHS, DOJ, bipartisan state election officials, audits, recounts and the courts," Mark Warner, a Democratic senator from Virginia, said. "The facts have not changed."

Trump Setting Stage to Declare Emergency Around Midterms, Former White House Attorney Says

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 16:33:22 PDT

For perspective on what President Trump is trying to achieve with Thursday night's speech, the limits of his authority and the potential consequences for future elections, Geoff Bennett spoke with Ty Cobb. He was a White House attorney in the first Trump administration, managing the response to special counsel Robert Mueller's probe into alleged Russian election interference.

ABC, NBC Will Not Air Trump's Election Security Speech on Broadcast Networks

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 16:29:08 PDT

Two of the three major U.S. television networks have decided not to broadcast a planned prime-time address on Thursday by President Trump on their primary platforms, risking the ire of an administration that has placed unprecedented pressure on American media. The speech is expected to focus on election security, four ‌months before the critical midterm elections. Late Thursday afternoon, a spokesperson for ABC News said the network will run Trump's speech on its ABC News Live streaming platform and ABC News Radio -- not its broadcast channel. NBC News plans to carry the president's remarks on its free streaming service, NBC News NOW, but will not air the speech on its main broadcast channel, according to a person familiar with the matter. The ABC and NBC streaming channels generally draw a fraction of the viewers that their traditional broadcast signals reach.

Trump Wants a Permanent Fence Around the D.C. Park Known for White House Protests

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 16:25:01 PDT

The Trump administration wants to permanently fence off a park near the White House that has long served as a gathering place for protesters. Some worry it will soon become even harder to make their voices heard. Lafayette Park is a seven-acre plot filled with green lawns, shaded walkways and five historic statues, the most prominent of which shows President Andrew Jackson on a rearing horse. The park is directly north of the White House -- the closest a pedestrian can get to the landmark -- making it a popular spot for tourists to take photos and protesters to rally. The National Park Service said in January that much of Lafayette Park would be blocked through May for landscaping and other repairs ahead of the nation's 250th birthday celebrations. But as of mid-July, as workers mowed the lawns, fences continued to keep pedestrians off them.

Officials Probe Whether White House Teleprompter Operator Profited Off Trump's Words

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 16:23:12 PDT

Federal regulators are in settlement talks with President Trump's longtime teleprompter operator, who is alleged to have made nearly $100,000 on the prediction market site Kalshi, according to two people with knowledge of the probe who were not authorized to speak publicly. He is suspected of profiting off of his access to the president's prepared remarks on a type of betting on Kalshi known as "mention markets," where people wager on words and expressions the president will or will not say during public events. Gabriel Perez, who has worked for the president since 2016, is now negotiating with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission over his alleged lucrative betting activity on the "mention markets."

Bike Lanes and Speed Cameras Disappear From the DOT's List of Proven Safety Measures

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 16:21:45 PDT

The Department of Transportation is doubling down on its campaign against "DEI bike lanes," as Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy called them in a social media post earlier this month. The Federal Highway Administration has quietly stripped bike lanes, speed cameras and several other best practices from a list of "Proven Safety Countermeasures," as they're known, that have been shown to reduce crashes and save lives. "We should be making decisions about safety based on evidence," Stephanie Pollack, the former acting administrator of the FHWA under President Joe Biden, told NPR. "It's hard for me to understand how you could say you're putting safety first and then make arbitrary decisions about what does and doesn't improve safety."

Trump's Board of Peace Drops Full Gaza Recovery Plan in Favour of Tiny Pilot Scheme

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 08:24:22 PDT

The Gaza recovery plan being pursued by Donald Trump's Board of Peace has shrunk dramatically from an ambitious blueprint for the reconstruction of the whole territory to a small pilot project in the south of the strip. Even the envisaged pilot scheme -- involving a temporary camp for a tiny fraction of Gaza's two million displaced people, with a Palestinian administration, police and a small international security force -- is not expected to take shape before the end of the year. Substantial progress is not expected before Israel holds elections on 27 October, which could bring down Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right coalition government.

The Use of Force Has Become a 'Default Tool' for ICE Officers, a New Report Finds

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 08:19:37 PDT

In the aftermath of two killings by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in just over a week, a new report from the American Civil Liberties Union documents widespread use of force by the federal agency. The report, released Thursday, looks at more than 1,200 immigration enforcement operations involving ICE officers or law enforcement working with ICE across eight states, beginning when President Trump took office in January 2025 until the end of last year. Forceful and even violent, immigration encounters are not rare. In fact, nearly a third of the incidents included in the research involved the use of force or the threat of force.

Sen. Cory Booker on Why He Believes Todd Blanche Shouldn't Be Confirmed as AG

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 08:18:38 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel asks Democratic Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey why he says Todd Blanche should not be confirmed as attorney general.

Oil Companies Are Making Billions. In the U.S., Calls to Tax Their Windfall Are Growing

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 08:17:59 PDT

The world's top 100 oil and gas firms made $30 million every hour in excess profits during the early days of the U.S-Israeli war with Iran. That's according to an analysis by the environmental nonprofit Global Witness and the Guardian. Global Witness found that the top six European oil companies have made at least $22 billion dollars in the first quarter of 2026. That's 43 percent higher than their profits in the first quarter of 2025, the nonprofit tells NPR. Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island proposed a windfall oil profit tax earlier this year. " We're actually somewhat generous about letting [the oil companies] keep half of the excess profits," Whitehouse says, "but we want at least half of it to go back."

Subpoenas Over New York Times Report on Air Force One Raise Press Freedom Concerns

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 08:16:05 PDT

Several New York Times reporters were subpoenaed to appear before a federal grand jury after the paper published stories raising security concerns about the new Air Force One. White House correspondent Liz Landers discusses questions the case is raising about freedom of the press with Will Creeley.

Trump's Intelligence Nominee Refuses to Say Who Won 2020 Election

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 16:13:35 PDT

Jay Clayton appeared before the Senate Intelligence Committee for his confirmation hearing to become director of national intelligence. The job is largely focused on foreign threats and national security, but much of the hearing focused instead on the recent past. Nick Schifrin reports and discusses the hearing with Fred Fleitz, who had a 25 year career in the intelligence community.

Senators Question Blanche on Trump Loyalty, Jan. 6 Cases and Epstein Files

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 16:12:45 PDT

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee for testimony on his nomination to serve permanently in the role. Blanche faced questions about his record as President Trump's personal lawyer, the fate of a proposed settlement fund for people who claim they were targeted by the DOJ and his handling of the Epstein files. Justice correspondent Ali Rogan reports.

Hegseth Announces New Policy to Test Troops for Low Testosterone

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 16:09:20 PDT

https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-pentagon-testosterone-testing-troops-47333bbf3af9e4cac432722332ff1383

Human Rights Watch Report Details Abuse at Immigration Detention Center

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 16:06:16 PDT

People held in the immigration detention camp at the Fort Bliss military base in Texas have experienced beatings and life-threatening medical neglect, according to a report by Human Rights Watch.

Democrats' Witness Opposing Blanche's Confirmation Is More Than an Epstein Survivor

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 16:05:42 PDT

As acting Attorney General Todd Blanche faces lawmakers this week, survivors of Epstein's abuse are among those pushing to stop his confirmation and Dani Bensky is scheduled to be a witness for the Democrats. "There's no real escaping, you know?" Bensky says. She says Epstein's abuse led to a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Social Security Is Trying to Stabilize a Year After DOGE Cuts

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 16:03:01 PDT

It has been more than a year since Elon Musk's cost-cutting squad focused on the Social Security Administration and its vast amounts of data, spread falsehoods about widespread fraud and tried to use the agency to enforce the Trump administration's immigration agenda. But one change from the Department of Government Efficiency era left a more lasting mark: the loss of roughly 14 percent of Social Security's work force, which oversees the retirement, survivor and disability benefits paid to 75 million people each month. Today, the agency is in transition. Its commissioner, Frank Bisignano, who took the helm after the DOGE-led reductions, is pursuing major changes to the way the agency interacts with Americans and processes their claims. But the hole left by the departure of about 7,800 staff members continues to test those who remain, current and former employees said.

White House Overturns DHS Halt to ICE Traffic Stops Despite Killings of Two Men

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 09:03:50 PDT

The White House overturned a one-day old homeland security department memo that said they would be halting traffic stops in the wake of recent stops that left two men killed in the space of a week on Wednesday morning, hours after Donald Trump insisted ICE keep making them. Federal officers across the U.S. had been told to temporarily stop pulling drivers over on Tuesday. That directive came after ICE agents fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston on 7 July and Joan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine on Monday. Both men were unarmed, neither was the intended target of the operation that killed him and in both cases the agents involved wore no body camera to record what happened. The president's Wednesday declaration made no mention of either killing when he countermanded the order.

Republican Presses Blanche on Trump-IRS Settlement at Senate Hearing

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 09:01:22 PDT

President Trump's attorney general nominee, Todd Blanche, faced tense bipartisan questioning at a U.S. Senate panel on Wednesday about the rollout of the Epstein files and a settlement that gave the president sweeping tax immunity. Blanche, the president's former personal lawyer, was pressed by Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas about the Justice Department's decision to settle ‌Trump's lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service by creating a since-abandoned $1.8 billion fund to compensate Trump allies for alleged prior government mistreatment along with an associated order shielding Trump and his family businesses from facing tax audits over prior conduct. Cornyn is undecided on supporting Blanche. Blanche acknowledged that the fund, which drew fierce bipartisan criticism, has not been formally rescinded, but said Trump's lawyers would have to go to court to enforce the settlement, something Blanche said they had no plans to do. He defended the tax portion of the deal as standard practice in IRS settlements, though tax experts have described the immunity for Trump as highly unusual.

Trump's National Guard Deployment in D.C. Has Been Extended Until 2029

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 08:57:00 PDT

The National Guard will remain deployed in Washington, D.C., through Inauguration Day 2029 as part of President Trump's anti-crime mission in the city, unless the president deems otherwise, the Pentagon confirmed to NPR. The current cost of the deployment is more than $3 million per day, according to an estimate by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. "An emergency is a sudden, unforeseen and temporary state of affairs. Announcing that an emergency will last for another 2 1/2 years means it's not an emergency," says Elizabeth Goitein, senior director of Liberty and National Security at the Brennan Center for Justice. She worries that, at best, Trump is seeking to normalize the use of the military as a domestic police force and at worst, he's envisioning a role for the military during the transition of power to a new president.

Sen. Adam Schiff on the Confirmation Hearing for AG Nominee Todd Blanche

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 08:51:52 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel asks Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff what he plans to ask Attorney General nominee Todd Blanche at his confirmation hearing.

Supreme Court Justices Barrett and Kagan Discuss Security Funding on Capitol Hill

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 16:05:43 PDT

Justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett met with lawmakers on Tuesday for a regular budget hearing.

Senate Democrats Block $1 Trillion Defense Bill in Protest Over Iran War

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 14:45:17 PDT

Senate Democrats blocked a $1 trillion annual defense bill Tuesday, refusing to advance the bipartisan package that would substantially increase Pentagon spending, including a pay raise for the troops, in protest of President Trump's war against Iran. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer announced his opposition and other key Democrats said they could not support the annual bill, known as the National Defense Authorization Act, as the war drags into a fifth month with no clear endgame in sight. The tally was 50-46, failing largely along party lines to reach the threshold needed. "The NDAA cannot become a permission slip for that recklessness that we see occurring in Iran," Schumer, of New York, said ahead of voting. "Donald Trump does not get to drag the American people deeper into a war he cannot explain and does not know how to end -- and then demand that Congress look the other way."

Environmental Groups Sue Government to Stop a Big Change to the Endangered Species Act

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 14:42:20 PDT

For more than 50 years, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service defined harm to refer to anything that injures or kills a protected organism, including "significant habitat modification or degradation" that might impact a species' ability to feed, reproduce or seek shelter. But now, the federal government has officially rescinded that definition -- a move that is already being challenged in court. Shortly after the new rule was published in the federal register Tuesday, the law firm Earthjustice, alongside more than half a dozen other environmental groups, filed a lawsuit in federal district court in Seattle against the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and NOAA Fisheries (also known as the National Marine Fisheries Service). Kristen Boyles, an attorney with the group, told NPR that they're contesting the change on various levels. "The agencies haven't explained themselves adequately," she says. "Making this kind of dramatic change doesn't make any legal sense because it goes against the fundamental purpose and spirit of the statute itself. All of those things make it an unreasoned and unreasonable decision."

Oil Rises Above $85 a Barrel as Gulf Clash Escalates

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 08:19:17 PDT

Oil prices continued to climb on Tuesday, hitting their highest levels in a month, as an escalating pattern of strikes and counter strikes between the United States and Iran rattled markets. Brent crude, the international benchmark, breached $85 per barrel for the first time in a month. Analysts at the Eurasia Group said that the latest burst of fighting this week was likely to cause ship traffic in the Strait of Hormuz to fall to 5 to 15 percent of what it was before the war began. As a result, they expected oil to trade at a price of up to $95 a barrel because of the disruptions.

Trump Dramatically Cuts Size of Two National Monuments Held Sacred by Tribes

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 08:15:22 PDT

Donald Trump has approved a sharp reduction in the size of two national monuments in Utah held sacred by many Native Americans, in the latest move to open U.S. public land to corporate developers and the oil and gas industry. The two monuments, Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante, will see a reduction of "close to a million and a half acres each," Trump said during an executive order signing event on Monday, undoing protections established by former presidents. The Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments in southern Utah have ancient cliff dwellings, petroglyphs and scenic canyons, as well as coal and uranium deposits that state officials want made available for development.

'Misuse' of Crowd Control Weapons on ICE Protesters Led to Blindings and Traumatic Brain Injuries, Report Finds

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 08:10:39 PDT

It's been a brutal tactic deployed by local and federal law enforcement officials time and again over the past year: using teargas, rubber bullets and pepper spray to control protests outside ICE detention centers or during enforcement operations. Now, a new report lays bare the scale of the use of these crowd control weapons during anti-immigration demonstrations across the U.S., including hundreds of incidents that resulted in lasting and traumatic injuries. The report and an interactive map was created by Physicians for Human Rights and the Human Rights Center at the University of California, Berkeley and released this week. Doctors and human rights experts with PHR and HRC documented 412 verified incidents of the "misuse" of these crowd control weapons, also known as "less-lethal weapons," from June 2025 through May.

Inside RFK Jr.'S Push to Dismantle Decades of U.S. Vaccine Policy

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 08:08:33 PDT

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has brought a series of once-unthinkable public-health proposals to the highest levels of the Trump administration since becoming health secretary early last year, according to Reuters interviews with 16 current and former officials with direct knowledge of the discussions. The officials, from the U.S. health department and White House, shared details of internal discussions on condition of anonymity. Their first-hand accounts of Kennedy's previously unreported efforts reveal a tenacious activist who has pushed through some of the biggest changes to U.S. vaccine policy in decades -- and who sought to go much further than previously known to dismantle the status quo. "He's an anti-vaccine activist. That's who he is. That's who he's been for 20 years. To expect that as secretary of Health and Human Services he'd be anything other than that is wishful thinking," said Dr. Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and a long-time immunization adviser to the CDC.

California Attorney General Talks About Lawsuit to Stop Paramount-Warner Bros Merger

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 08:05:58 PDT

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with California Attorney General Rob Bonta about the lawsuit filed to stop the merger of Paramount and Warner Brothers.

Man Killed in ICE Shooting Was Not Subject of Arrest Warrant, Maine Sen. King Says

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 08:02:51 PDT

Federal and state law enforcement officials are investigating the fatal shooting of a 26-year-old Colombian man by federal law enforcement in Biddeford, Maine, Monday morning.

Judge Says Trump IRS Lawsuit Was Filed to 'Manipulate the Judicial Process'

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 08:02:08 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Georgetown law professor and former federal prosecutor Paul Butler about Monday's ruling in the IRS settlement case involving President Trump.

Subpoenas Issued to NY Times Reporters Seen as 'Unprecedented' Threat to Press Freedom

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 07:58:32 PDT

Reaction in the media world has been swift and severe to the issue of subpoenas to five New York Times journalists who reported on security questions involving the new Qatari-gifted Air Force One -- a legal maneuver seen as a troubling escalation of the Trump administration's campaign to control and intimidate independent media outlets. "The subpoenas are an extraordinary escalation in President Trump's efforts to threaten and intimidate independent news organizations and have a chilling effect on the work of journalists across the country," said Jodie Ginsberg, CEO of the Committee to Protect Journalists. Media advocates and analysts expressed dismay at the tactic, even after months in which news organizations drawing President Trump's ire have been attacked both in courtrooms and in the court of public opinion; media access to corridors of power has been blocked; and a Washington journalist's home has been searched by federal agents. "They have used the levers of power to intimidate and demonize professional journalists who report stories that are unfavorable to the administration's desired narrative," said Frank Sesno, a former CNN White House bureau chief who is now a media and public affairs professor at George Washington University.

Minnesota Prosecutors Obtain Long Withheld Evidence in Investigation Into Protest Shooting Deaths

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 14:31:45 PDT

The Trump administration has turned over evidence long sought by Minnesota investigators in their ongoing probe into the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti during pitched protests against an immigration enforcement crackdown earlier this year, state prosecutors announced Monday. Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said the evidence turned over by federal investigators included previously withheld hard drives containing statements, police body camera video and other materials in the Minnesota killings. They also turned over Good's badly damaged SUV, she said. "The wonderful thing now is we have all the evidence," Moriarty said. "Any time the government is responsible in whatever way of taking the life of a community member we need to have a full and thorough investigation."

Judge Says Trump IRS Lawsuit Was Filed for 'Improper Purpose,' Refers Lawyer for Possible Discipline

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 14:23:44 PDT

President Trump's lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over his leaked tax returns was filed for an "improper purpose," a judge said Monday in a scathing decision that referred one of his lawyers for potential disciplinary action and characterized the $10 billion complaint as an exercise in self-dealing. U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams accused Trump and his lawyers of having manipulated the court system when he sued a federal agency under his control, bypassing a requirement that parties in a lawsuit must have adverse interests and laying the groundwork for a settlement that granted him immunity from tax audits and created a fund to compensate allies of the president who say they were unjustly persecuted. The judge stopped short of explicitly voiding the deal shielding Trump from tax scrutiny but said the government cannot claim that the agreement was the result of a legitimate legal process. "Whether Executive Branch actors can privately agree to give themselves and their former clients blanket immunities and billions of dollars in tax monies for legally undefined grievances was never an issue advanced to this Court," said Williams, an appointee of President Barack Obama. "The question is whether the Parties could do so by claiming to be adverse and engaging the legitimacy of a court proceeding. The answer is a resounding 'no.'"

Person Killed in Shooting Involving ICE Agents in Maine, Reports Say

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 08:18:39 PDT

A person was ⁠killed on Monday in a shooting involving U.S. immigration agents in Maine, media outlets reported citing a prominent state lawmaker, days ⁠after a man ⁠was killed by an immigration agent during a traffic stop in Texas. Media reports of the shooting ⁠in Biddeford, Maine, cited a post by the Maine state house's speaker, Ryan Fecteau, on a personal Facebook ⁠page. "This morning a shooting occurred in Biddeford," Fecteau reportedly wrote. Referring to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, his post continued: "A person was killed. ICE was involved. State ‌Police and the ‌Department of Public Safety are now on scene to gather ‌details and would expect the FBI to investigate as well."

Graham Death, McConnell Absence Hang Over U.S. Senate as Congress Returns

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 08:16:25 PDT

The sudden death of Senator Lindsey Graham and ongoing absence of Senator Mitch McConnell will weigh on Congress as it returns from its July 4 holiday break on Monday to grapple with key defense and ‌national security legislation during a compressed four-week summer work period. With McConnell out indefinitely and Graham's seat temporarily empty, the Republican caucus is down two members, effectively leaving it with a minimal 51-seat majority that could create hurdles for Senate Majority Leader John Thune as he seeks to pass major defense policy legislation and a new Russia sanctions bill, revive a lapsed foreign surveillance program and confirm Trump nominees, including Todd Blanche as U.S. attorney general.

Former Member of Federal Election Assistance Commission Speaks Out After Dismissal

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 08:11:23 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Benjamin Hovland, one of three members of the Election Assistance Commission fired last week by President Trump.

Trump Justifies Money Made as President With Inaccurate Claims

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 08:03:20 PDT

The $2.2 billion windfall President Trump reaped since his second term has raised questions over potential conflicts of interest and whether he has profited from public office, but Trump has dismissed any notion of impropriety. Some of Trump's most lucrative ventures seemed to intersect directly with his administration's policies like cryptocurrency and dealings with foreign governments. But, Trump has argued, his personal financial gains reflected a stock market benefiting everyone; his investments and business dealings were in a blind trust, not unlike other presidents; and unlike his predecessors, he donated his presidential salary. Except none of those assertions are true.

How Longtime GOP Senator Lindsey Graham Went From Critic to Ally of President Trump

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 07:59:51 PDT

Longtime Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham has died at the age of 71. The foreign policy hawk and former critic-turned-ally of President Trump was running for re-election in South Carolina.

Retired Judges Go on Road Trip to Create Awareness About the Politicization of Courts

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 07:58:29 PDT

A group of state and federal judges are touring three states, going to courthouses and diners to talk to Americans about the rule of law.

'Super' El Niño Could Cause Global Food Price Shock Lasting Into 2028, Analysts Say

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 07:54:29 PDT

Economists are warning that a "super" El Niño weather cycle this year could cause a severe shock to global food prices lasting into 2028. As the Iran war pushes up world food prices to the highest level in three years, economists said supply chains faced "two shocks at once" stoked by extreme weather linked to global heating. Scientists have said the 2026-27 El Niño -- which forms when changes in wind patterns allow warmer water to spread across the central and eastern equatorial Pacific -- has a historically unprecedented chance of developing into a "very strong" event fuelling heatwaves, flooding and stormier weather.

Iran Expands Attacks on Gulf States After U.S. Strikes, Says Strait of Hormuz Closed

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 07:51:45 PDT

U.S. and Iranian forces have exchanged heavy missile and drone assaults, with Tehran targeting U.S. facilities in states across the Gulf on Sunday and saying it had again closed the vital Strait of Hormuz. The strikes were the latest in a ‌cycle of attacks and counter-attacks as Iran seeks to assert control over shipping through the strait. However, the barrage marked an escalation in pace and range. The strikes extended to Qatar, a mediator in ceasefire talks that had not come under attack since April, while the United Arab Emirates, which had not been targeted since early May, said its air defenses had engaged missiles and drones from Iran. The renewed violence casts further doubt on the future of an interim U.S.-Iranian agreement signed last month that aimed to reopen the strait and end the war after a further 60 days of negotiations.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Close Trump Ally and Foreign Policy Hawk, Dies After a Brief Illness

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 07:49:42 PDT

Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of President Trump's closest allies in Congress who traveled the globe to advocate for a more aggressive U.S. foreign policy, has died after a "brief and sudden illness," his office said. He was 71. The statement posted on social media early Sunday said his family "appreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult period." It did not provide any additional details about the circumstances surrounding the Saturday night death of the South Carolina Republican, a former Air Force lawyer who served in Congress for three decades. As chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Graham had a central role during Trump's second term as Republicans pushed major legislation on party-line votes while holding a narrow 53-47 majority in the chamber. Under South Carolina law, Republican Gov. Henry McMaster will appoint a temporary replacement for Graham, who was seeking a fifth term in November.

DHS Was Granted $20-MB for Body Cameras. ICE Agents in Fatal Houston Shooting Had None

Sat, 11 Jul 2026 16:31:27 PDT

In the days after two American citizens were shot and killed in Minneapolis earlier this year, former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the department would "rapidly acquire and deploy" body cameras to its officers around the country. Nearly half a year later, after another shooting death under disputed circumstances blamed on the department, the promise still hasn't been fully met -- prompting outrage from critics who say the cameras are a chance at accountability for officers enforcing President Trump's immigration crackdown. The Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers involved in the Houston shooting death of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican man who lived in the U.S. for more than 35 years, were not wearing body cameras, Homeland Security has said.

New York Times Reporters Are Subpoenaed After Air Force One Reporting, Newspaper Says

Sat, 11 Jul 2026 07:42:53 PDT

The Trump administration has subpoenaed several New York Times journalists after their report on security concerns involving the new Air Force One, according to the paper. The subpoenas issued Friday seek to force the reporters to testify before a federal grand jury in Manhattan on Wednesday, the paper said, adding that federal agents delivered some subpoenas to the reporters at their homes. "The appearance of federal law enforcement agents on the doorstep of news reporters should shock the conscience of any American who believes in the Constitution and the press freedom it protects," David McCraw, a lawyer for the Times, said in a statement

In Private Call, Education Dept. Tried, but Failed, to Reassure Disability Advocates

Sat, 11 Jul 2026 07:39:04 PDT

In a call with disability rights advocates Thursday, officials from the U.S. Department of Education tried to ease concerns about plans to move the agency's special education offices to the Department of Health and Human Services. The effort seemed to fail. "Today's briefing left more questions than answers for parents and educators," says Chad Rummel, who leads the Council for Exceptional Children and was one of many disability advocates who attended the call. "Today we heard that there is no clear and transparent plan around the move to HHS."

Trump Fires Election Commission Members in Latest Attempt to Control Voting Process

Sat, 11 Jul 2026 07:36:32 PDT

With planning for the midterm elections well underway, President Trump has ousted the remaining members of a bipartisan federal agency that helps state and local officials run smooth elections and certify voting equipment. White House correspondent Liz Landers explains what happened at the Election Assistance Commission and the impact it could have in November.

Trump, Ending Decades of Protection, Opens Wild Habitats to Drilling and Mining

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 16:06:49 PDT

The Trump administration on Friday moved to open the habitats of imperiled animals to farming, drilling, mining, real estate development and other activities in what environmentalists characterized as the most severe erosion of protections for wildlife in half a century. It did so by recasting a single word, "harm." For more than 50 years, the federal government has used a broader definition of harm to animals under the Endangered Species Act, a bedrock environmental law. It included any significant "modification or degradation" of habitat that kills or injures animals by impairing their ability to eat, shelter or breed. The Supreme Court upheld this interpretation in 1995, ruling against property owners who argued that harm should only mean directly killing or injuring an endangered animal. But on Friday, the Interior Department and the Commerce Department announced a final rule that rescinded this longstanding interpretation. Under the rule, destroying an endangered species' nest or habitat would no longer be considered illegal.

Trump Accused of Trying to 'Rig' Elections After Firing Federal Commissioners

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 16:01:19 PDT

Donald Trump has been accused of trying to "rig" the upcoming U.S. midterm elections after he fired the last three members of an independent federal commission. Trump's extraordinary move to paralyze the U.S. Election Assistance Commission wipes out the only federal agency devoted solely to election administration months before the U.S. midterm elections. Critics, including senior Democrats, vowed to fight back against the Trump administration's efforts to increase the federal government's involvement in elections. Trump continues to push the Save America Act, a rightwing makeover of elections that would impose new restrictions on voting. Derrick Johnson, president of the NAACP civil rights organization, said: "Donald Trump knows that in November voters will reject everything he stands for. The economy is devastating, he's starting endless wars resulting in Americans dying and his paramilitary ICE police force is terrorizing our communities. Trump is terrified of the sacred power we all hold as voters and that's why he wants to rig this election. Mr President, your plan will fail miserably. If you think the American people will allow fascism, you are gravely mistaken. The NAACP will do everything in our power to send people to the polls and make their voices heard." Chuck Schumer, the Democratic U.S. Senate minority leader, said, "Firing every remaining member of the bipartisan Election Assistance Commission months before the midterms is a brazen attempt to seize control of our elections before a single vote is cast. He is gutting the independent agency that certifies voting systems and helps election officials run secure elections. Senate Democrats will fight this power grab at every turn. The American people -- not Donald Trump -- will decide the 2026 election."

Trump Administration Fires Members of Independent Election Group

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 09:36:53 PDT

The Trump administration has forced out the three remaining members of an independent, bipartisan commission that supports states in administering their elections, the White House confirmed on Thursday. The move comes as President Trump seeks to cast doubt on the outcome of the upcoming midterms and impose control over how ballots are counted. Trump terminated, effective immediately, Thomas Hicks and Benjamin Hovland, two members selected by congressional Democrats to serve on the Election Assistance Commission and accepted the resignation of a Republican member, Christy McCormick. The board has no other remaining members, as its fourth commissioner resigned this spring. Trump has been laying the groundwork for months to claim that Republicans would face a tough midterm election, not because of the broadly unpopular war in Iran and plummeting approval ratings on the economy, but because the country's election system is fraudulent.

A Federal Panel Advances Trump's Proposed Arch, Despite Unanswered Questions

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 09:15:20 PDT

The National Capital Planning Commission greenlit preliminary site and building plans after hours of public pushback. It wants more details before what could be its final review in September.

TPS Work Permit Loss Could Deepen Healthcare Staffing Shortages

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 09:14:25 PDT

TPS holders make up 15 percent of noncitizen healthcare workers. Losing their work authorization could deepen staffing shortages across the U.S. healthcare sector, including hospitals, nursing homes, hospices and home care.

How White Nationalist Group Patriot Front Funds Its Rallies

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 09:12:36 PDT

NPR's domestic extremism correspondent, Odette Yousef, reports on how the white nationalist group Patriot Front pays for their rallies. "We know from their record that this is a violent hate group," she reports.

Many U.S. Jewish Adults Have Experienced Assault or Harassment Over the Past Year, AP-NORC Poll Finds

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 08:39:40 PDT

Many Jewish adults feel unsafe in the United States, a new AP-NORC poll finds, with a majority saying they feel less safe than they did before Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel. The survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research points to how Jewish adults' attitudes toward their own personal safety have changed over a relatively short period as more Americans became critical of the United States' close alliance with Israel. The war in Gaza sparked U.S. protests over Israel's military actions against the Palestinians in Gaza and coincided with an increase in violent attacks against U.S. Jewish communities. The findings highlight the vulnerability that many Jewish adults in the U.S. feel as bipartisan support for Israel erodes and significant divides emerge within the Jewish community about what constitutes antisemitism -- particularly when it comes to protesting Israel.

Mexico to Request Criminal Charges Over Deaths Following Fatal Shooting of Houston Man by ICE Agents

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 08:37:25 PDT

Mexico will request criminal charges over 17 Mexicans who died in ICE custody or during immigration enforcement operations by the Trump administration, officials said Thursday. Mexican Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco's announcement Thursday morning further escalated tensions with the United States, as Mexico's government has sharply criticized the treatment of its citizens under U.S. President Trump's push to increase deportations. The request, which carries no legal weight, will be submitted to state prosecutors' offices and the U.S. Department of Justice, asking them to consider criminal charges against those responsible for the deaths. It will be accompanied by civil lawsuits against the companies that operate the detention centers in an effort to put an end to human rights violations in those facilities, Velasco said.

Security Precaution Led Trump to Use Old Air Force One in Leaving Turkey

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 08:35:46 PDT

President Trump flew out of Turkey on Wednesday night on the old Air Force One instead of his new Qatari-donated Boeing 747-8 as a security precaution related to the resumption of hostilities with Iran, according to people briefed on the plans, who said the change came at the urging of the Secret Service. The swap deepens questions about whether the new plane, which the president had pressed to be ready as soon as possible, was retrofitted with sufficient security measures over the last year. Lawmakers and some officials have raised concerns about whether the expedited timeline allowed for the addition of an advanced missile defense system and other modifications used to protect the president. People briefed on the new plane's capabilities, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive security issues, said the new plane does not have all the features of the older plane. The switch in the president's aircraft when he departed Turkey was a precautionary measure made at the advice of the Secret Service and not because of a specific threat, they said.

Trump Cut to Food Security Survey Could Make Measuring U.S. Hunger Harder

Thu, 09 Jul 2026 07:47:58 PDT

President Trump's cancellation last year of a government food security survey could make it difficult to assess whether his cuts to the food stamp program lead to a rise in U.S. hunger, especially among children. Trump's tax and spending law signed last July shifted significant Supplemental Nutrition Assistance ‌Program spending to states and expanded work requirements, among other changes. Since then, 4.7 million people -- about 11 percent of participants -- have lost SNAP benefits or food stamps, with that figure expected to rise as states continue implementing the changes. Trump, a Republican, last September canceled the U.S. Department of Agriculture's survey, which for 30 years served as a measure of a household's access to enough food for a healthy lifestyle

Department of Justice Charges Three Major Egg Suppliers With Price Fixing

Thu, 09 Jul 2026 07:45:40 PDT

Consumers were alarmed by high egg prices last year. The DOJ's case against three major egg producers confirms that a price fixing scheme may have been to blame.

Ambassador Dennis Ross on the State of the Ceasefire Between the U.S. And Iran

Thu, 09 Jul 2026 07:44:14 PDT

At what point might the U.S. and Mideast allies attacked by Iran determine it's time to restart the war? NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Ambassador Dennis Ross, a former special envoy for the Mideast.

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen Talks About Trump at NATO and the Renewed Strikes Against Iran

Thu, 09 Jul 2026 07:43:27 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen about President Trump at the NATO summit and more strikes in the war with Iran.

Oil and Gasoline Prices Begin to Climb After Trump Says Ceasefire With Iran Is Over

Thu, 09 Jul 2026 07:42:48 PDT

Oil and gasoline prices are climbing again after President Trump declared an end to the ceasefire with Iran. That could put more upward pressure on inflation.

Kentucky Governor Demands Health Update on Mitch McConnell

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 17:14:56 PDT

Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky sent a letter to Senator Mitch McConnell on Wednesday demanding that he update his constituents on his health as rumors swirl about the Republican senator's condition after his hospitalization last month. McConnell, 84, has been in the hospital since June 14, when medics were called to his Washington address to respond to a report of an unconscious individual. A worker later informed his supervisor over emergency radio that CPR was "in progress." McConnell's staff members have not disclosed what prompted his hospitalization or what treatment he is receiving.

Judge Orders E. Jean Carroll Be Paid $5.8-MB in Trump Sex Abuse and Defamation Case; Trump Appeals

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 17:10:08 PDT

The writer E. Jean Carroll can collect $5.8 million held in escrow since a jury found that President Trump sexually abused and defamed her, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. Trump's lawyers immediately asked a court to block the payment while they appeal.

Judges Deny Request to Return Trump's Name to Kennedy Center Pending an Appeal

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 17:04:29 PDT

A three-judge panel on Wednesday denied a request from the Kennedy Center's board to restore President Trump's name to the institution while the board appeals an earlier ruling that dubbed the name change illegal and had it rescinded. The panel of judges wrote Wednesday that the board of trustee's request "failed to show how they will be irreparably injured" if Trump's name remains off the building through the appeal process. The board had argued that the removal "threatens to impede" fundraising efforts, but the judges found that claim came without the support of "specific facts or evidence." U.S. Rep. Joyce Beatty, a Democrat from Ohio who filed the lawsuit, said, "His name no longer desecrates this sacred memorial, which belongs to the American people. Now it is time for the Trump administration to accept this, comply with the law and take the tarps down."

A $5,000 Fine for Former Milwaukee Judge Convicted of Obstructing an Immigration Arrest

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 17:01:24 PDT

Former Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan appeared in federal court for sentencing. She was convicted of obstructing ICE agents as they tried to arrest an undocumented immigrant.

Tensions With Iran Add Fresh Uncertainty to an Already Shaky Global Economy

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 16:58:47 PDT

Crude oil prices jumped and stock prices fell after President Trump declared an end to the fragile ceasefire in the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. military attacked dozens of targets along the Iranian coastline overnight, in retaliation for what appeared to be Iranian attacks on vessels trying to transit the strait. The hostile action threatens to prolong volatility in global markets just weeks after investors had reacted with relief after Trump and Iran had agreed on a ceasefire.

ICE Raided Their City, Taking Parents, Spouses and Friends. That's Not Where It Ends

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 16:57:51 PDT

Last summer, Angelenos began to vanish. Armed, masked immigration agents plucked people off street corners and out of their workplaces, in parking lots and department stores. Partners and primary breadwinners, grandparents and children, carwasheros and coffee shop regulars were arrested, detained and deported -- disappearing from their neighborhoods. Families are still living under the shadows of those raids, sorting through the emotional and administrative aftermath. They are filing paperwork to bring deported relatives back to the U.S., suppressing flashbacks to the chaos they witnessed last year, figuring out school pickups with one parent missing, rebuilding daily routines without a loved one.

Trump Invokes Communism 81 Times in Two Weeks as Aides Test Midterms Message

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 08:11:32 PDT

President Trump has sharply escalated his warnings about the dangers of communism in the past two weeks, a Reuters analysis found, as his political team tests whether the message resonates beyond his core supporters ahead of November's midterm elections. Trump's use of the term accelerated after June 23, when a string of left-wing Democratic candidates won primary contests in New York, the analysis of his public ‌comments and social media posts found. Since then, Trump has invoked communism 81 times, calling some of the victorious candidates "hardcore, godless communists." Preliminary findings from his team's focus groups suggest the message strongly energizes Trump's base and could boost turnout among infrequent Republican voters, according to two people familiar with the matter. But it appears less effective with independents -- often decisive in closely fought contests -- and younger voters who did not live through the Cold War.

Obamacare Premiums Surged This Year. A New Analysis Shows It's Likely to Happen Again in 2027

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 08:10:12 PDT

Many Americans straining to pay for Affordable Care Act health insurance are unlikely to get relief next year, according to a new analysis that shows insurers in the marketplace are proposing a second straight year of double-digit premium hikes. Across the 77 insurers in the ACA program that have submitted rate filings that are publicly available, the median proposed premium increase for 2027 is 14 percent, according to Wednesday's analysis from the healthcare research nonprofit KFF. The insurers cited mounting healthcare costs, federal regulatory changes and the recent expiration of pandemic-era enhanced subsidies as the biggest factors driving premiums higher. The rise in premiums adds to what already was a significant jump in 2026, when the median rate increase was 20 percent, according to KFF. While many Americans in Obamacare still qualify for subsidies that protect them from paying the full premiums, middle-class enrollees making 400 percent of the poverty level or more will face an especially stark increase in costs.

Trump Warns Iran That U.S. Is Preparing for More Strikes After Saying Ceasefire Is Over

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 08:04:16 PDT

President Trump warned Iran on Wednesday that the U.S. was preparing for another night of strikes, just hours after he said the ceasefire was over following Iranian attacks on American military sites in the Persian Gulf. Trump renewed his past threats to strike Iran's civilian infrastructure, including electric plants and desalinization plants and to seize Kharg Island, which includes most of the Islamic Republic's oil facilities. "We hit them very hard last night," Trump said when asked about a possible return to hostilities. "We'll probably hit them hard again tonight." Trump made the remarks in Ankara, Turkey, on the sidelines of a NATO summit. He said the strikes are continued retaliation for Iranian attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz. "They are behaving very badly," he said of Iran, accusing the country of launching drones and a missile at ships. After three tankers were hit Tuesday, the U.S. launched strikes on Iran and Iranian forces retaliated by attacking American military sites in the Gulf.

New Student Loan Rules Could Limit Funding for Some Graduate Programs

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:11:03 PDT

More changes are underway for federal student loans with major implications for current and future graduate students. It comes after a federal judge temporarily blocked some new loan limits from the Department of Education, including limits affecting some professional degrees. William Brangham discussed the changes with Danielle Douglas-Gabriel of The Washington Post.

At NATO Summit, Trump Pressures Allies on Loyalty, Defense Spending and Greenland

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:10:03 PDT

New U.S. strikes on Iran come against the backdrop of the NATO summit in Turkey, where leaders are hoping to strengthen Europe's ability to defend itself. President Trump brought his long-standing criticisms of European countries, once again expressing frustration over their defense spending and refusal to support the U. S. and Israeli war in Iran. Nick Schifrin reports from Ankara.

Judge Quashes Justice Dept. Subpoena in 2020 Election Inquiry

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:08:59 PDT

A federal judge in Atlanta on Tuesday cast serious doubts on the Justice Department's efforts to reinvestigate President Trump's false claims that he was cheated out of victory in the 2020 election, saying that the five-year statute of limitations for any possible crimes arising from the race had "long expired." The finding by the judge, William M. Ray II, came in a sternly worded order that quashed a grand jury subpoena that prosecutors had issued in April. The subpoena sought what the judge described as a "staggering" amount of personal information about thousands of election workers in Fulton County, Ga., who took part in the administration of the count -- and recount -- of the vote in 2020. In his ruling, Judge Ray, who was appointed by Trump, also found that the subpoena for the workers' information was "an arbitrary fishing expedition" by the department and amounted to an "unreasonable" use of the invasive powers afforded to grand juries.

Administration Demands States Change Voting Rules or Lose Antiterrorism Funds

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:07:20 PDT

The Trump administration is requiring states to change the way they conduct elections or risk losing tens of millions of federal terrorism-prevention funds, in its latest move that would make voting harder and undermine trust in results that don't go President Trump's way. The effort would force states to transition to paper ballots, verify citizenship of voters and make other changes to election procedures, according to Federal Emergency Management Agency documents. FEMA, part of the Homeland Security Department, has told states that it would withhold 20 percent of some terrorism-preparedness grants unless they provide "proof of compliance" with the election security measures, the documents show. The grants, which total $1 billion each year, help pay for physical barriers and other security measures as well as planning and drill exercises and cybersecurity protections. Courts have already blocked similar efforts by the administration to require changes to voting, saying the Constitution grants power over elections to states and not the executive branch.

Southern Poverty Law Centers Pleads Not Guilty in Federal Fraud Case

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:05:13 PDT

The Southern Poverty Law Center, best known for monitoring hate groups, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to federal charges that it defrauded donors by not disclosing that some of the money would be used to pay informants in extremist organizations. Attorney Abbe Lowell entered the not guilty plea on behalf of the organization to a superseding indictment that adds details about the charges first announced in April. The brief Tuesday arraignment was conducted remotely. The case is scheduled to go to trial in October.

U.S. Launches New Strikes Against Iran After Three Ships Were Hit in Strait of Hormuz

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:03:21 PDT

The U.S. military launched new strikes against Iran early Wednesday, hours after three merchant ships were struck in the Strait of Hormuz, in the latest exchange of fire to threaten the interim deal to end the fighting between the two countries. The strikes were expected to hit a variety of military sites and port facilities, U.S. officials said. The renewed attacks were sure to add to the difficulty of the negotiations aimed at fully reopening the strait, rolling back Tehran's disputed nuclear program and reaching a permanent end to the war launched Feb. 28.

Job Cuts at Federal Soil Conservation Agency Has Farmers Worried

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:02:05 PDT

Farmers are fighting cuts to a federal agency that's been helping them improve their soil since the 1930s.

U.S. Trade Deficit Widens in May on Record Goods Imports

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 16:01:24 PDT

The United States trade deficit in goods and services widened to $77.6 billion in May as America imported more goods than it sold abroad. Imports rose, climbing 3.3 percent from the previous month, to hit $395.3 billion, as the United States imported more foreign pharmaceuticals, cellphones, cars and equipment to fill out new data centers. U.S. exports of goods and services fell 3.2 percent in the month, to $317.7 billion, according to data the Commerce Department released on Tuesday. That included exports of gold, natural gas, computers and pharmaceuticals, which all fell from the previous month. The drop in goods exports was offset somewhat by an increase in service exports, including more revenue earned from foreigners traveling to the United States. The Trump administration has sought to reduce the trade deficit with a vast swath of tariffs on foreign goods. Those levies have caused imports, exports and the trade deficit to fluctuate wildly since President Trump came into office.

Half of Americans Struggle to Afford Groceries and Gas, Exclusive Poll Finds

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 08:24:46 PDT

Ninety-five percent of Americans believe the U.S. is suffering an affordability crisis, as many report trouble with the rising cost of groceries and gas, according to an exclusive new poll conducted for the Guardian. The survey, conducted by Harris Poll, paints a bleak picture of how people feel about the U.S. economy amid the war in Iran and ahead of the key midterm elections this fall. Despite stable employment and record-high stock markets, more Americans believe the overall economy is getting worse (57 percent) than in February (46 percent), when the poll was last conducted and before the war in the Middle East sent gas prices soaring. Fewer people today also believe the economy is getting better (16 percent, compared with 28 percent in February) and more say their financial security has gotten worse. The affordability struggle crosses party lines: about half of all Democrats, Republicans and independents say they are having trouble affording everyday necessities like gas and groceries. Two-thirds of Americans -- including 49 percent of Republicans -- said they have little faith that the federal government will improve the cost-of-living crisis they face.

What to Know About NATO's Summit in Turkey as America Steps Back From Its Defense of Europe

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 08:19:26 PDT

U.S. President Trump and his NATO counterparts are gathering in Turkey on Tuesday for a two-day summit that comes at a turning point in the organization's history as the United States steps back from its traditional security role in Europe. Ahead of the meeting in Ankara, Trump has insisted on "loyalty" after some NATO countries balked at allowing U.S. forces to use their bases for attacks on Iran. He listed big European members Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain for criticism. A NATO summit is a highly symbolic moment when the 32 member countries of the world's biggest military alliance underline their unshakeable commitment to one another's security. This year, though, the trans-Atlantic bond has rarely seemed more fragile.

Trump Administration Cancels Grants Aimed at Reducing Teen Pregnancies

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 08:18:16 PDT

The Trump administration has canceled all but a handful of grants meant to teach teenagers and caregivers about reducing teen pregnancies, arguing they are "normalizing sexual activity for minors."

Trump Administration Takes Major Steps to Roll Back Gun Regulations

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 08:16:36 PDT

During his race for the White House, President Trump pledged to expand Second Amendment rights nationwide. Now his administration is taking major steps to roll back gun restrictions put into place for public safety. Justice correspondent Ali Rogin discussed the administration's efforts with Chip Brownlee, a staff writer at The Trace, covering federal gun policy.

Who Could Benefit the Most From Trump's Investment Accounts for Children

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 16:36:57 PDT

Trump Accounts are officially open. They're the first federal tax-advantaged investment accounts for kids. Some 87 companies, foundations, individuals and states have announced contributions to the accounts. The question is, can they deliver the benefits that are being promoted? Economics correspondent Paul Solman explains.

Obamacare Rolls Shrank Dramatically in Many States Over the Past Year, New Federal Data Shows

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 16:32:28 PDT

States across the country saw steep drops in the number of people covered by the Affordable Care Act over the past year, with Ohio and Oklahoma each losing nearly one-third of enrollees, according to new federal data that provides the first complete 50-state breakdown of sharp enrollment declines following the January expiration of enhanced subsidies. The data, posted in late June by the Trump administration and first reported on by The Associated Press, reveals how changes in each state's insured population led to around 2.6 million fewer Americans having Obamacare plans in February compared with the same time last year.

Under Trump, Spouses of U.S. Citizens Face Policy Changes in the Immigration System

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 16:30:37 PDT

The Trump administration's sweeping effort to slow down the rate of legal migration has affected a group traditionally immune from such efforts: spouses of U.S. citizens. The administration has implemented a slew of policy changes since President Trump returned to the White House last year, ranging from pausing immigrant visas for people from 75 countries to imposing greater scrutiny of applicants at green-card interviews and widening the scope of who is a target for deportation. The changes have hit all immigrants hard, including those who sought to enter and stay in the country through marriage. Some non-U.S.-citizen spouses have been separated from their American loved ones and are afraid to engage with the U.S. immigration system, according to lawyers and NPR interviews with affected families.

Ships Are Moving in and Out of the Persian Gulf, Easing Oil Prices

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 08:31:43 PDT

Shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz continued to recover over the weekend, although passages through the maritime choke point remained significantly lower than before the war in Iran. More vessels began plying the waterway after the United States and Iran agreed last month on a temporary cease-fire and began talks for a more lasting end to the conflict, which has throttled energy exports. In recent days, more ships were entering the Persian Gulf than exiting it, a shift from recent weeks, when traffic was dominated by ships leaving the gulf, according to Kpler, a maritime data company. The recovery in the Persian Gulf, whose producers predominantly use the strait to serve global markets, has helped ease oil prices. The OPEC Plus oil cartel added to the downward pressure on prices when it announced on Sunday that it planned to pump more crude.

Trump Denied Latest Bid to Delay $5.8m Judgment Payment to E Jean Carroll

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 08:25:24 PDT

Donald Trump's latest attempt to delay payment of a $5.8m judgment for defaming a magazine columnist whom a jury determined he sexually abused has been emphatically rejected by a federal court judge. In a single-sentence 4 July order, U.S. district Judge Lewis Kaplan denied the president's request for more time to pay the civil judgment owed to E Jean Carroll, who was awarded the damages after a New York jury concluded that Trump sexually abused her in 1996 -- then defamed her after she publicly described the attack in 2019. Trump's move came days after the U.S. supreme court, without explanation or reasoning, turned down his demand to review the jury's 2023 verdict.

Watchdog Warns of Risks to Patients as Private Equity's Stake in U.S. Healthcare Grows

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 08:22:50 PDT

A watchdog group is calling for greater government oversight of joint ventures between private equity firms and non-profit healthcare providers, arguing that the arrangements could present "risks" to "patients, payers and employees." In a new report, Private Equity Stakeholder Project, a vocal critic of the industry, detailed more than 500 joint ventures between private equity and non-profit healthcare providers -- ranging from rural hospitals to major religiously affiliated health systems to hospice care providers. The group argued those risks could include extraction of profit and a decline in quality of care. "This is the challenge with private equity -- it's private, so they don't have to report what they own," said Jim Baker, founder and executive director of PESP. "We think this just scratches the surface." The report, "Private equity's joint venture takeover of nonprofit healthcare," details the legal mechanisms that allow such partnerships and four case studies that the group argues represent how private equity investments can change non-profit healthcare.

Trump Intervention Causes World Cup Storm as FIFA Clears U.S. Striker Balogun to Face Belgium

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 08:20:30 PDT

The United States' World Cup campaign took an extraordinary turn on Sunday when FIFA suspended striker Folarin Balogun's red-card ban, clearing him to ‌play after President Trump personally urged FIFA President Gianni Infantino to review the case. The unprecedented move also thrust FIFA's disciplinary process into the global spotlight and prompted an angry response from Belgium, who play the U.S. on Monday for a place in the quarter-finals. It also ensured that one of the tournament's biggest talking points will centre not on tactics or team selection, but on the relationship between football's governing body and political power.

Philip Glass' New Symphony Premieres at Tanglewood After Kennedy Center Cancellation

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 08:14:12 PDT

Once upon a time, it seemed like a natural fit for composer Philip Glass to have his latest symphony premiered at the Kennedy Center, during the country's 250th anniversary year. The work honors Abraham Lincoln; Glass is a revered American composer who was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2015. But things didn't go quite that way. Instead, the piece had its world debut Sunday with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In his program note to this symphony, Glass wrote: "Lincoln's legacy of holding the country together in a period during which it was ripping itself apart -- seemed an appropriate subject to consider on this, our country's 250th birthday."

How Do You Celebrate America's 250-Year Experiment? However You Want.

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 08:12:17 PDT

A quarter of a millennium into its experiment in self-governance, the United States finds itself living out twin realities. The nation's capital, mired in septic politics, has struggled to pull off a big Fourth of July party. There is algae in the Reflecting Pool, acrimony in the air and a sense, in some quarters, that America is in deep peril if it cannot persuade the '80s poodle-rocker Bret Michaels to sing for its official 250th birthday celebration. Michaels and other performers bowed out for fear that President Trump had made the affair overly partisan. But beyond Washington, thousands of Fourth of July celebrations will run today on an old, familiar muscle memory, unblemished by scandal, factionalism or questions about the attendance of boldface names.

Nearly a Million Investors Lost a Total of $3.8 Billion on Trump Crypto Coin

Sat, 04 Jul 2026 08:27:26 PDT

Nearly 1 million people who bought President Trump's memecoin have lost money through the end of June, according to a report by the cryptocurrency analytics firm Nansen. Their losses total $3.81 billion. The analytics firm's assessment was calculated this week after Trump signed an annual financial disclosure showing that he walked away with a $636 million payout on the same crypto bet, part of a haul of at least $2.2 billion from all of his business ventures in 2025. The odds were always in his favor. Trump profited whether the price of his memecoin went up or down. He collected returns whenever anyone traded the tokens, as he repeatedly pushed his followers to do, using his Truth Social account to promote the coin.

Trump Launches America's 250th Birthday Celebrations With Partisan Attack

Sat, 04 Jul 2026 08:19:33 PDT

Donald Trump has kicked off America's 250th birthday weekend with an extraordinary partisan attack on the "communist menace" in America, framing its supporters as "the enemy of July 4 1776." The U.S. president spoke for half an hour on Friday night at Mount Rushmore in South Dakota, the latest stop on his tour celebrating the milestone anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence from Britain.

Heat Wave Disrupts Fourth of July Events Across U.S., Strains Power Grids

Sat, 04 Jul 2026 08:17:25 PDT

A dangerous heat wave upended Fourth of July celebrations across swaths of the central and eastern U.S. on Friday, forcing officials in the nation's capital and elsewhere to cancel ‌or postpone dozens of parades, concerts and fireworks displays. Among the events disrupted by the sweltering heat was the Great American State Fair on the National Mall in Washington, a centerpiece of President Trump's efforts to mark the nation's 250th birthday. Late on Friday organizers of the National Park Service's Independence Day Parade in Washington announced they had canceled the annual event due to safety concerns. The parade had been scheduled to start at 10:30 ET (1430 GMT) on Saturday, with the Weather Service projecting ⁠heat index values to reach as high as 115 degrees Fahrenheit. Record-breaking temperatures spread to the eastern U.S. from the Midwest earlier this week due to the emergence of a high-pressure system known as a "heat dome," which traps a mass of hot air over a region and can cause humidity to spike.

Medicaid Funding Restored for Planned Parenthood Healthcare Services

Sat, 04 Jul 2026 08:12:24 PDT

Republicans stripped Planned Parenthood and several other healthcare providers of Medicaid funding for one year, but now clinics can resume billing Medicaid for non-abortion services.

Week in Politics: U.S. Turns 250 Under Record Heat; Worries Over the Future

Sat, 04 Jul 2026 08:10:06 PDT

Today's Independence Day celebrations may be tamped down by severe heat and, according to a NPR/PBS News/Marist poll, worry about the future.

U.S. Oil Companies See Big Profit Jump, Gird for Clash Over Pump Prices With Trump

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 08:08:11 PDT

U.S. oil companies are set to report their strongest quarterly profits in years, courting a possible clash with President Trump, who has been pressing his longtime ally Big Oil to bring down gasoline prices before midterm elections in November. After months of Americans complaining about pain at the pump, Exxon Mobil (XOM.N), opens new tab and Chevron (CVX.N), opens new tab are expected ‌to report second-quarter earnings in the coming weeks that are more than triple first-quarter levels. Oil prices spiked after the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran began in late February and global fuel supplies tightened. Oil companies' profits are forecast to rise to their highest levels since 2022.

A Look at America's Founding From the Room Where Independence Was Declared

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 08:06:05 PDT

In July 1776, the Second Continental Congress officially voted to sever political ties with Great Britain and declare independence. In this week celebrating 250 years since the founding of the nation and just ahead of Independence Day, Judy Woodruff brings us a conversation from a site synonymous with the Founding Fathers. It's part of her series, Crossroads: America at 250.

Haberman and Swan on 'Regime Change,' Their Book on Trump's Unconstrained 2nd Term

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 16:19:48 PDT

A new book by veteran reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan is offering one of the most revealing looks to date inside the second Trump White House. It's called "Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump." Amna Nawaz spoke with Haberman and Swan about why those close to the president were willing to speak and what those sources wanted readers to understand.

How Legal Battles Across the Country Could Complicate the Midterms

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 16:19:04 PDT

As President Trump attempts to wield greater power over election administration ahead of the midterms, dozens of legal battles are currently underway across the country. Their outcomes could shape how elections are run this fall. Liz Landers discussed more with Ben Ginsberg. He has spent decades working as a Republican election lawyer, including on the landmark 2000 Bush vs. Gore dispute.

Insight: Trump Jr.'S 'Amazon of Guns' Could Make Millions Under New Proposed Firearm Rule

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 16:15:49 PDT

Donald Trump Jr. helped take an online retailer known as the "Amazon of guns" public last year. Now, GrabAGun, where the U.S. president's son is a shareholder and board member, could reap a windfall from a proposed rule change at Trump's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives that would make it easier to ship guns directly to people's homes. If finalized, the rule would be among the most consequential changes to the U.S. gun policy in two decades, potentially driving huge growth in online gun sales, ‌according to ten industry officials, store owners and gun-control advocates interviewed by Reuters. The proposal would allow licensed dealers to ship firearms directly to in-state residents who undergo an online identity verification and background check, along with a seven-day waiting period after notifying local law enforcement. Currently, online buyers must pick up firearms at physical stores and undergo in-person background checks unless they have a permit. Some gun shop owners, industry officials and gun control advocates argue the direct shipping of firearms poses significant public safety and security risks and threatens the viability of small brick-and-mortar gun shops. The change could benefit Trump Jr., whose more than 300,000 shares, opens new tab in GrabAGun are worth more than $700,000 -- down from more than $5 million last year.

Former Olympian Indicted on Felony Charge Over Alleged Reflecting Pool Vandalism

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 16:13:08 PDT

A former Olympian was indicted Thursday on a felony charge in what President Trump has called vandalism of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, where a renovation project he launched has been riddled with problems. David Hearn, a former Olympic canoe racer, was indicted on a single count of property destruction in Washington, D.C., court. District of Columbia U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said Hearn ripped up recently installed sealant on the pool in "a deliberate act" that caused more than $1,000 in damage. She accused him of "forcefully and violently" pulling up the bottom liner "with both hands" and acting belligerently toward an employee who told him to stop. In a statement, Democracy Defenders Fund co-founder Norm Eisen and Mary Dohrmann, senior counsel at Washington Litigation Group, said that they represented Hearn and that the charges were "outrageous and should be alarming to every American." Eisen and Dohrmann construed the case as representative of "the misuse of government power against an ordinary citizen based on a concocted narrative."

Federal Civil Rights Data Holds Schools Accountable. Under Trump, It's 6 Months Late

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 16:07:20 PDT

For more than 50 years, the Education Department has revealed a host of realities about how students are being treated in every public school across America: which kids are being bullied, which ones are being harassed and which students can access the Internet, among other things. The agency's Civil Rights Data Collection is intended to do just that -- help keep schools accountable. The latest information, collected about the 2023-24 school year, was supposed to be published last December, according to the Education Department's own deadline. But it hasn't been. Key Changes Would Alter The Government's Massive Survey On Schools And Civil Rights Education Key Changes Would Alter The Government's Massive Survey On Schools And Civil Rights The agency hasn't responded to multiple requests from NPR asking what's behind the delay.

Immigrant Arrests Surge to 10,000 in 5 Days as ICE Clamps Down

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 09:07:59 PDT

Federal immigration officials have detained more than 10,000 people in the last five days, a major surge that has stemmed from a push within Immigration and Customs Enforcement to increase arrest rates. Agency leaders in recent days ordered top ICE officials to focus more of their officers' efforts on picking up immigrants they want to deport, according to documents obtained by The New York Times and interviews with federal officials. ICE officers have arrested people at check-ins with immigration authorities, during traffic stops and on the street. The push has apparently yielded results, with recent arrest numbers roughly doubling from the 1,000 picked up each day earlier this year. ICE officials were told that the White House wanted an increase in arrests, according to three officials with knowledge of the conversations. One of the officials said that it was unclear how long the pace could continue, but that ICE officials had been told that 2,000 arrests a day was the new standard for enforcement.

The Many Ways Trump Is Trying to Tip the Scales for the Midterms

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 09:02:06 PDT

President Trump is trying to use the levers of the federal government, along with personal influence over state and local lawmakers, to reshape the rules governing the 2026 midterms and future elections in extraordinary ways. Many of these efforts have been blocked by courts, stymied by the Constitution or stopped in Congress. But the relentless assault by the president on the electoral process -- both administratively and rhetorically -- is likely to sow doubt and lay groundwork for extensive challenges to election results. Agencies and officials across the federal government have, at the direction of Trump, undertaken dozens of actions grounded in novel strategies and aimed at insulating Republicans from potential losses in November. Those actions fall into six major categories (and some fall into more than one)....

'A Sanitized View of America': Inside Trump's Campaign to Erase U.S. History From National Parks

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 08:58:37 PDT

Often heralded as "America's best idea," national parks are the closest thing the country has to sacred lands. What many may not realize, however, is that U.S. history -- not just nature -- is at the heart of the visitor experience at most of the 433 parks, historic sites and monuments in the NPS system. But over the past year-and-a-half, this history has been under attack, as the Trump administration has raced to reconstruct a version of U.S. history they prefer -- one in which the genocide of Native Americans didn't happen, George Washington didn't own slaves and the glaciers aren't melting because of the ongoing climate crisis. The Guardian spent months reviewing thousands of images, files and documentation while talking to current and former NPS employees to understand how the Trump administration has attempted to rewrite hundreds of years of U.S. history.

Trump Hijacked U.S.'s 250 Anniversary to Serve 'Political Ideology and Pet Projects', Congressional Report Says

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 08:55:20 PDT

Donald Trump staged a hostile takeover of the U.S.'s 250th anniversary celebration to enrich political allies, harvest voter data and promote Christian nationalist ideology, according to a congressional investigation released on Thursday. The interim report, "From Vanity to Insanity: How the White House Cheated the American People Out of Their 250th Birthday," outlines a web of alleged corruption, wire fraud and pay-to-play schemes orchestrated through a shadow corporation embedded within the National Park Foundation. The document was produced by Democratic staff of the House of Representatives' natural resources committee's oversight and investigations subcommittee. It has not been officially adopted by the committee. "Under President Trump, this anniversary has been hijacked and perverted into a hotbed of corruption and self-enrichment," it states, contending that the machinery built for a national commemoration was converted "into an apparatus for raising and spending money in service of the President's ego, political ideology and pet projects."

Wall St Rises as Softer Jobs Data Calms Rate-Hike Fears

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 08:50:52 PDT

Wall Street's main indexes rose on Thursday as a softer-than-expected employment report for June tempered expectations of interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. The closely watched nonfarm payrolls ‌report showed the U.S. economy added 57,000 jobs last month, compared with economists' estimates for a rise of 110,000. The unemployment rate was 4.2 percent, in line with expectations of 4.3 percent. The report interrupted a run of strong job gains recently and could potentially make the Federal Reserve more reluctant to raise borrowing costs. Odds of at least one rate hike this year stood at 76 percent, according to data compiled by LSEG, compared with around 84 percent before the payrolls report.

Former White House Ethics Lawyer on Trump's $1B Crypto Earnings

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 08:45:14 PDT

NPR's A Martinez asks former White House ethics lawyer Richard Painter about President Trump's financial disclosure that showed he made over $1 billion from crypto businesses.

U.S. Job Market Slows in June

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 08:44:37 PDT

Employers added 57,000 jobs in June, the Labor Department said on Friday, as jobs growth slowed from the previous two months, while the unemployment rate ticked down to 4.2 percent.

Former USAID Head Says 'People Are Dying' a Year After Agency's Dismantling

Wed, 01 Jul 2026 16:16:07 PDT

Wednesday marks one year since the Trump administration dissolved the United States Agency for International Development as an independent agency. USAID was a central tool of American foreign policy, delivering humanitarian aid, fighting disease, responding to disasters and advancing U.S. interests. Geoff Bennett discussed more with Samantha Power, the last confirmed administrator of USAID.

Trump's $2B Income in 2025 Raises Fresh Questions About Profiting Off Presidency

Wed, 01 Jul 2026 16:15:01 PDT

President Trump's latest financial disclosure shows his various businesses generated more than $2 billion in income in 2025, his first year back in the White House. That is more than triple his reported income from the year before. The biggest gains came from the Trump family's cryptocurrency ventures..

U.S. Declines to Extend North American Trade Deal, Starting Clock to End It While Seeking Changes

Wed, 01 Jul 2026 16:09:58 PDT

The Trump administration on Wednesday declined to extend the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, starting a decade-long clock to wind down the trade deal as it seeks changes to try to reshore manufacturing jobs and reduce U.S. trade deficits ‌with its North American neighbors. The decision, announced after a six-year review of the North American free trade zone, keeps the agreement in place for another 10 years with annual reviews before it expires, unless the three countries agree to renew it with changes. The Trump administration on Wednesday declined to extend the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, starting a decade-long clock to wind down the trade deal as it seeks changes to try to reshore manufacturing jobs and reduce U.S. trade deficits ‌with its North American neighbors. The decision, announced after a six-year review of the North American free trade zone, keeps the agreement in place for another 10 years with annual reviews before it expires, unless the three countries agree to renew it with changes.

Trump's Actions Signal a Move Toward Institutionalizing People With Disabilities, Advocates Warn

Wed, 01 Jul 2026 16:08:10 PDT

Last month, the Department of Education announced it would shift oversight of special education to the Department of Health and Human Services, led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whose comments on the limits of disabilities such as autism have drawn sharp rebukes from advocates and lawmakers. Meanwhile, after a White House push to police homelessness, the Department of Justice released guidance that lowered the barrier to institutionalizing any person with a disability. Taken together, the actions signal a worrying return to a reality where people with disabilities are pushed to the margins of society, advocates said. "It's a direct, frontal assault on the rights of people with disabilities to live their lives the way that people who are nondisabled live their lives," said Selene Almazan, legal director for the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates. "I can't imagine that as a country, that would be something that we would agree we should go back to."

Democratic Governors Threaten to Pull Their National Guard Members From D.C.

Wed, 01 Jul 2026 16:05:53 PDT

Several Democratic governors sent National Guard members to D.C. ahead of America 250 celebrations. But residents have noticed them patrolling the city with Trump's anti-crime task force instead.

Save Student Loan Plan Ends, Leaving Millions of U.S. Borrowers 90 Days to Find a New One

Wed, 01 Jul 2026 08:11:02 PDT

More than 7 million Americans will be forced to change their student loan repayment plan beginning on Wednesday, as the Save plan officially ends. The termination of the Biden-era initiative, which was launched in 2023, coincides with a larger overhaul of the U.S. student loan repayment system. The seismic changes to the student debt landscape are the results of the Trump administration's One Big Beautiful Bill Act passed in 2025 and a March federal court ruling that the Save plan, an income-driven repayment program created with the goal of cutting undergraduate loans in half, was unconstitutional. Borrowers on the Save plan will now have 90 days to choose a different repayment plan.

Trump Secured Over $50 Million in Loan From Charles Schwab in 2025, Ethics Filing Shows

Wed, 01 Jul 2026 08:05:26 PDT

U.S. President Trump secured a more than $50 million loan last year from Charles Schwab Bank (SCHW.N), opens new tab, according to his annual disclosure for ‌2025 with the U.S. Office of Government Ethics. Trump holds a pledged-asset line, a type of credit line that lets borrowers use their investments collateral to borrow ⁠cash, with the lender, but it was not disclosed in his ethics filing for 2024. The credit line has an interest rate of 3.9 percent, according to his 2025 disclosure, which was released on Tuesday. The exact size of the loan or the purpose for which ‌it ⁠was used was not disclosed. The loan can be used for a wide range of financial needs such as home purchase and tax payments. ⁠There is no minimum draw requirement or maturity date for it, according to Schwab's Web site. The annual ⁠filing also disclosed more than $1.4 billion in income from his family's crypto ventures ⁠last year, underscoring how digital assets have transformed the president's fortunes.

What Are the Implications of the SCOTUS Decision on Political Party Spending?

Wed, 01 Jul 2026 07:59:36 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin talks with Trevor Potter, founder of Campaign Legal Center, about a Supreme Court decision allowing greater spending coordination between campaigns and party committees.

Chris Mosier Talks About Supreme Court's Decision on Transgender Athletes

Wed, 01 Jul 2026 07:57:47 PDT

NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with Chris Mosier, the first openly transgender man to represent the U.S. in international competition, about the Supreme Court's ruling on transgender athletes.

Political Commentator on the Recent SCOTUS Rulings and Their Effect on Trump's Agenda

Wed, 01 Jul 2026 07:56:19 PDT

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with Jonah Goldberg of The Dispatch about how this term's Supreme Court decisions are reflected in President Trump's approach to his signature issues and executive power.