NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-12-2025 9PM EDT

Episode Date: May 13, 2025

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Am I a propagandist? A truth teller? An influencer? There's probably no more contested profession in the world today than mine, journalism. I'm Brian Reed, and on my show, Question Everything, we dive headfirst into the conflicts we're all facing over truth and who gets to tell it. Listen now to Question Everything, part of the NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear. 59 Africoners landed at Dulles International Airport today. They are the first group of white South Africans to be granted refugee status in the U.S. NPR's Amanda Bastille has more. Children held American flags and stuffed animals.

They gathered in one blocked off corner of the airport hangar decorated with red, white and blue balloons. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau greeted them. Makes me so happy to see you with our flag. The administration says these families, who are descendants of Dutch settlers, face the threat of violence because of their race. They granted the families an expedited process to seek refuge. The broader refugee program effectively remains paused, but the administration says more Africaners are set to arrive in the coming months. Ximena Bustillo and PR News, Washington.

House Republicans are wrangling over the nuts and bolts of how President Donald Trump's so-called big beautiful bill might work. The measure contains Trump's tax cuts, which include boosting deductions, but how to pay for it is the multi-trillion dollar question. Current funding proposal includes reductions to Medicaid, green energy and other programs, but NPR's Deidre Walsh says there is disagreement. Not all Republicans think that they should be doing these major changes to Medicaid. One of them, Missouri Republican Senator Josh Hawley, wrote an editorial in the New York Times today criticizing some in his party who he says want to slash health care for the working poor. He called that move, quote, both morally wrong and politically

suicidal. House Speaker Mike Johnson has said he hopes to get the House to vote on a final bill before the Memorial Day recess. President Trump has named his former personal defense attorney to be the new acting Librarian of Congress. Ampere's Nettie Ulubi reports Todd Blanche will replace Carla Hayden who the president fired last week. Piers Netta-Ulubi, P.D. Todd Blanche has no experience working in libraries or archives.

Now he will be in charge of the largest one in the world. Blanche will be coming over from the Justice Department, where the president had appointed him as deputy attorney general. Blanche led the defense in a trial Trump lost when he was found guilty last year of lying about paying hush money to an adult film star. The announcement was confirmed by a Library of Congress employee who wished to remain anonymous to avoid retribution. The permanent post of Librarian of Congress must be confirmed by the Senate.

Nato Ulibi, NPR News. A judge is refusing to block the IRS from sharing tax data to identify and deport people in the U.S. illegally. The decision is a win for the Trump administration, which has said it wants to share the tax data with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. The judge denied a preliminary injunction today in a lawsuit filed by nonprofit groups. They'd argued immigrants who pay U.S. taxes are entitled to the same privacy as U.S. citizens and those in the country legally.

Former IRS Commissioner Melanie Krauss resigned over allowing ICE to submit names of people in the country legally to the tax agency for cross-referencing. Stocks rallied sharply on Wall Street today. The Dow was up more than 1,100 points. You're listening to NPR. California Governor Gavin Newsom is urging cities and counties to clear homeless encampments. Josemay Demazo of Member Station KALW reports unveiled a new blueprint for the local governments to enforce their own bans on public camping.

The announcement comes a year after the U.S. Supreme Court made it easier for officials to ban homeless people from camping outside. Newsom also announced the release of more than $3 billion in voter-approved funds to expand housing and treatment options. He spoke at a press conference in Sacramento. This is a framework and the application of how to do it in a way that we think is responsible with all the supports that have come through these unprecedented investments. Y.D. The blueprint bars encampments from being in one place for more than three days or blocking

sidewalks. Local officials would need to provide notice and shelter resources before clearing an encampment. For NPR News, I'm Yosemite Elmaso in San Francisco. O.J. George has become the second state to work towards providing protections for the makers of a popular weed killer. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp signing a measure that says pesticide makers can't be sued for failing to warn customers of dangers if they use labels approved by federal regulators. Agri-Giant Bear, which bought Roundup maker Monsanto, has been hit with 181,000

claims alleging the weed killer's main ingredient causes non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Charges disputed by Bayer, the EPA also said the active ingredient, glyphosate, is not likely to be carcinogenic to humans if used as directed. I'm Jack Spear, NPR News in Washington. This message comes from WISE, the app for doing things and other currencies. News in Washington.