NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-13-2025 6AM EDT

Episode Date: May 13, 2025

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Does the idea of listening to political news freak you out? Well, don't sweat it. The NPR Politics Podcast makes politics a breeze. Every episode will break down the day's headlines into totally normal language and make sure that you walk away understanding what the day's news might mean for you. Take a deep breath and give politics another chance with the NPR Politics Podcast, available wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, on Kourva Coleman, President Trump has arrived in Saudi Arabia. He was greeted on the tarmac by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman with the fanfare that included a 21 gun salute.

Saudi Arabia is the start of a four day trip for Trump. He'll also visit Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. House Republicans are hoping to finish crafting their massive spending bill this week. The remaining three committees are set to mark up and advance their portions of the bill. But NPR's Elena Moore reports some internal divisions remain at play. The House Energy and Commerce Committee, the Ways and Means Committee, and the Committee on Agriculture will each meet.

GOP leaders must find a way to meet demands for deep spending cuts while also working to appease members who want to protect costly programs and tax incentives. One example is over salt, state and local property taxes. Members in competitive New York, New Jersey, and California districts say their support for the bill is tied to a higher cap for salt deductions. It's crucial for GOP leaders to get these folks on board. Republicans hold a slim majority in the House, and they'll need nearly full party approval to get the bill passed.

Alaina Moore, NPR News. A federal judge has refused to block the Internal Revenue Service from sharing immigrants' tax data with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. NPR's Jasmine Garge reports ICE could use the data from the IRS to find and deport people who are illegally in the U.S. There are restrictions on what kind of information ICE can request from the IRS but U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich, a Trump appointee, has denied a preliminary injunction. The decision comes weeks after IRS Commissioner Melanie Krause resigned over a deal to allow

ICE to use IRS tax records to identify immigrants without legal status in the U.S. ICE has said working with the IRS is strictly for major criminal cases. Various non-profit groups argued that immigrants who pay taxes are entitled to the same privacy as U.S. citizens, regardless of their legal status. They argued that to do otherwise threatens the privacy of all Americans. Jasmine Garst, NPR News, New York. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy says federal officials will meet representatives from major airlines tomorrow in Washington.

They're going to discuss air traffic control problems in the Northeast. Many of these stem from flights originating or leaving Newark International Airport. Duffy says the officials will talk about reducing the number of flights at the New Jersey Airport. The goal is to have a manageable number of flights land at Newark. Families shouldn't have to wait four or five hours for a flight that never takes off. The Federal Aviation Administration has launched an emergency task force to review air traffic control safety at Newark airport. You're listening to NPR. French film star Gérard Depardieu has been

convicted of sexual assault in a French courtroom. He had been accused of repeatedly groping two women on a film set in 2021. The French court imposed an 18-month suspended prison sentence. Depardieu says he will appeal. In the US, lawyers for Kern and former foster children in Texas are appealing their lawsuit to the U.S. Supreme Court. They want to overturn an appeals court decision that yanked a lower court judge off the case. Texas Public Radio's Paul Flav reports they're also seeking to have the lower court judge's contempt order against the state of Texas reinstated. The plaintiff's team says the conservative Fifth Circuit Appeals Court misapplied key

legal standards when an order Judge Janice Jack removed from the case she has overseen for 13 years. The court said Jack showed signs of bias against the state of Texas in her statements, manner, and rulings. Jack levied $100,000 a day contempt fines against the head of Texas' Health and Human Services Commission over failures for investigating facilities that house people with intellectual disabilities. The state said the process was flawed and got the contempt order nullified. Attorneys fighting the state want the Supreme Court to determine whether Jack and the contempt

fine should be reinstated. I'm Paul Flav in San Antonio. The Food and Drug Administration says 10 people have been hospitalized by the bacterial infection Listeria. This has been traced to prepared foods made by Fresh and Ready Foods. The company makes sandwiches and snack items. These were sold in Arizona, California, Nevada, and Washington state at the end of last month. They have all been recalled.

I'm Korva Coleman, NPR News. The scary new movie Sinners from the director of Black Panther finds Michael B. Jordan playing twin brothers. It's got vampires, it's got great music, and it's a fun one to see with a big crowd. This is the most excited I've been about a movie in a very long time. We'll tell you why you should see Sinners on the biggest

screen you can. Listen to the Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast from NPR.