NPR News Now - NPR News: 03-12-2026 12PM EDT

Episode Date: March 12, 2026

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Live from NPR news, I'm Lakshmi Singh. Iran's new supreme leader, Mustafa Khomey, is making his first public statement since his father, Ayatoll al-Hamini, was killed on the first day of the U.S. Israel War against Iran. The younger Khomeini vows to avenge, quote, martyrs to continue attacks on U.S. bases in the region, and to keep its blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global route for oil shipments. NPR's Greg Mirey says Iranian state media ran Homini's statement. We didn't see the new leader, Mostobahmane, and we didn't hear his voice. This statement was read on Iranian state media in his name. So one of the key questions is what condition is he in? He was believed to be injured in the Israeli airstrike on day one of the war that killed the former supreme leader, his father, as well as his mother, his wife, and his son.

NPR's Greg Myrie reporting. Oil prices spiked overnight as gas prices in the U.S. become a political headache for President Trump. And PR's Tamara Keith reports it's an economic indicator people track closely. Trump campaigned on bringing down gas prices, but since launching the war with Iran, they are way up. Jared Bernstein was on President Biden's Council of Economic Advisors. I mean, this is a price you see twice a block when you're driving down the street. And every time you fill up your tank, you recognize how much more it costs. If this conflict drags on, the cost of fuel could drive up other prices too, says Stephen Moore, a conservative economist.

Part of the problem for President Trump is that we already had people complaining about prices. Affordability was shaping up to be a top issue in this year's midterms even before the gas price spike. Tamara Keith, NPR News. An internal government watchdog and members of Congress are separately investigating new allegations, Department of Government Efficiency Staffers potentially misuse sensitive social security data. Here's NPR Stephen Fowler. In a letter obtained by NPR, the Social Security Administration's Inspector General told members of Congress last week it received an anonymous complaint about, quote, potential misuse of SSA data. This week, Congressional Democrats investigating Doge's access to social security data also said they received new whistleblower information.

That information, which was reported by the Washington Post, and has not been independently reviewed by NPR, alleges a former Doge staffer retained copies of two Social Security databases and wanted to use them in a private sector job. The Social Security Administration disputes the claims. Stephen Fowler, NPR News. U.S. stocks are trading lower this hour. The Dow Jones Industrial average down 526 points or more than 1% at 46,890. From Washington, this is NPR NEAPR. News. Veteran Congressman Jim Clyburn, one of the top-ranking Democrats in the U.S. House, is seeking an 18th term. He ended speculation today in announcing plans to run for re-election in South Carolina 6th District.

He is an influential figure in politics. Clyburn is credited with helping Joe Biden's presidential campaign with a 2020 endorsement. The lawmaker turns 86-year-old this summer. He is one of the oldest members in Congress, surpassed by 88-year-old Republican Representative Hal Rogers of Kentucky and 92-year-old Republican Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa. A strong El Nino weather pattern could be on the way this summer. NPR's Rebecca Hersher reports that would drive up global temperatures in the second half of this year. El Nino happens when the water in the eastern Pacific is warmer than usual. It causes global average temperatures to rise slightly.

When you combine that with the much larger warming effects of humans burning fossil fuels, you often get record-breaking heat. A long, strong El Niño in 2023 and 2024 led both of those years to shatter global temperature records. Now, federal forecasters say it's likely El Niño will return between June and August. That would also affect regional weather patterns in the U.S. The South generally sees more rain and lower temperatures in years when El Nino is active, and El Nino also makes it more difficult for hurricanes to form in the Atlantic. Rebecca Hersher, NPR News. Major market indices are down roughly 1% this hour with the Dow down 500 points. It's NPR News.