NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-20-2025 7PM EDT

Episode Date: May 20, 2025

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When Malcolm Gladwell presented NPR's Throughline podcast with a Peabody Award, he praised it for its historical and moral clarity. On Throughline, we take you back in time to the origins of what's in the news, like presidential power, aging, and evangelicalism. Time travel with us every week on the Throughline podcast from NPR. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear. President Trump says the U.S. will soon begin construction on a new missile defense shield. As NPR's Jeff Bromfield explains, the schedule and cost projection are ambitious.

From the Oval Office, President Trump laid out his plans for a Golden Dome missile shield that would be capable of stopping an attack from anywhere. Once fully constructed, the Golden Dome will be capable of intercepting missiles even if they are launched from other sides of the world and even if they are launched from space. Trump says the shield can be built in just three years and will cost around $175 billion. Experts say that timeline is extremely ambitious and the price tag could end up being a lot higher. One recent estimate from the Congressional Budget Office

suggests even a basic defense could cost half a trillion dollars. Jeff Brumfield, NPR News. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was on Capitol Hill today where he defended the Trump administration's foreign policy, including the slashing of US foreign assistance, reductions in refugee admissions and other changes. Rubio and some Democratic lawmakers also sparred over administration policies in Ukraine and Russia as well as the Middle East and Latin America. Rubio claimed four months of foreign policy achievements for the administration, though some remain inconclusive, such as nuclear talks with Iran and efforts by Trump to bring Russia and Ukraine to the table

for peace talks. The IRS has churned through four acting commissioners over the past four months. NPR's Scott Horsley reports the Senate Finance Committee held a confirmation hearing today for a man who could get the permanent job. Former Missouri Congressman Billy Long is President Trump's pick to lead the IRS. It's a tumultuous time at the tax service. The agency's cut thousands of workers this spring, and more layoffs are expected now the tax filing season is behind us. Long faced questions about protecting the privacy of taxpayers' information and Trump's

threat to strip universities like Harvard of their tax-exempt status. The nominee is not an expert on the tax system. Before serving in Congress, Long worked as an auctioneer. I used to teach a class on UFOs, upbeat, friendly, and open. I speak to everybody. I'm a people person. Long was also quizzed about his work promoting tax credits that had been dogged by accusations of fraud. Scott Horsley, MPR News, Washington. Federal health officials say they no longer plan to routinely approve COVID-19 shots for healthy children and young adults. The Food and Drug Administration today saying companies that want to market the shot for those groups will have to conduct new large studies. It's

a major shift away from the agency's approach to updating vaccines to protect against the virus. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been scrutinizing the use of vaccines for a number of diseases. COVID shots will still be approved for seniors and young people with health risks. Stocks lost ground today on Wall Street. The Dow fell 114 points.

The NASDAQ was down 72 points. The S&P 500 dropped 23 points. This is NPR. The Trump administration has agreed to pay $5 million to the family of a woman who was shot by a police officer during the U.S. Capitol riot. The settlement is expected to resolve a $30 million federal wrongful death lawsuit filed by the estate of Ashley Babbitt last year. On January 6, 2021, Babbitt was shot as she climbed through a broken window of a barricaded door at the U.S. Capitol.

A new blood test for Alzheimer's is likely to change the way the disease is diagnosed and treated. MPR's John Hamilton has more. The test detects sticky amyloid plaques in the brain, a hallmark of Alzheimer's. Last week, it became the first test of its kind to receive clearance from the Food and Drug Administration. Dr. Howard Fillett, Chief Science officer of the Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation, says the move gives primary care doctors a better way to evaluate patients with memory

problems. I think the blood test is going to really revolutionize the way people with Alzheimer's are cared for and diagnosed. It's a really big breakthrough. Fillett says right now, primary care doctors correctly diagnose about 60 percent of patients with Alzheimer's. Adding the blood tests promises to boost that to more than 90 percent. John Hamilton, NPR News.

While many of the world's bees remain well busy, it is worth noting the insects are in trouble. Today has been set aside as a day to think about declining bee populations. On this eighth annual World Bee Day, experts say the insect's numbers continue to fall due to a combination of factors ranging from insecticides to parasites and disease, all lessening their numbers. Bees are hugely important to humans since a significant part of the human diet comes from plants that are pollinated by bees. I'm Jack Spear, NPR News in Washington.