NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-24-2025 11PM EDT

Episode Date: May 25, 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 Windsor Johnston. A massive spending package backed by President Trump is now heading to the Senate after it passed the House by a narrow margin this week.

NPR's Deidre Walsh reports the legislation is facing a number of hurdles in the upper chamber but sends a clear message about in the upper chamber, but sends a clear message about where the Republican Party is today. They're going to be changes. And it's possible at the end of the day, the sort of one thing that brings the Republican Party together, extending these tax cuts, could be sort of the one thing that ends up sort of being the easier thing to get done, along with money for the border. Medicaid cuts could be a problem for some Senate Republicans, and there are other conservatives in the Senate who just dismiss the House bill as really not serious on slashing spending.

That's NPR's Deidre Walsh reporting. The Trump administration has abruptly dismissed dozens of staffers on the National Security Council in another shakeup of the president's foreign policy team. As NPR's Greg Myrie reports, the move comes just three weeks after Marco Rubio took over as Trump's national security advisor. The staffers were told they were losing their positions at 4.30 on Friday afternoon and given a half hour to leave the White House. This is according to sources who spoke to NPR on condition of anonymity.

The National Security Council works closely with the president on foreign policy and usually has about 200 to 300 staffers depending on the administration. Trump named Marco Rubio as his national security advisor at the beginning of this month and in that role he oversees the NSC. The move is seen as an effort to streamline the foreign policy process, though the White House has not commented on the decision. Greg Myrie, NPR News, Washington. The community of Uvalde, Texas is marking the third anniversary of a mass school shooting

that left 19 students and two teachers dead. Sale Aranda from Texas Public Radio reports, two churches held vigils today for the families of the victims and survivors. On May 24, 2022, a gunman stormed Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, killing 19 students and two teachers. Law enforcement waited more than an hour to confront the gunman, a source of controversy in the community that has kept many wounds open for the last three years.

There's people every day missing, milestones, holidays, smiles, cries, snuggles. Sofia Zamaripa is one of the many residents who attend a vigil for the families of the victims and the survivors. I'm sorry that it never had to happen this way and that hate's always going to divide us, that our light has to continue to shine. Two former officers face child endangerment charges as victims' families continue to push for accountability. I'm Celia Aranda and Yuvaldi. This is NPR News.

President Trump delivered the commencement address for the U.S. Military Academy at West Point today. During his speech, the President congratulated the cadets, calling them winners and asserting that they were entering the Golden Age of America. It was his first military commencement speech of his second term. A record number of Americans are expected to hit the road this holiday weekend. NPR's Scott Horsley reports travelers will find some savings at the gas pump. AAA says average gasoline prices nationwide are down about 40 cents a

gallon from this time last year. Spokeswoman Aixa Diaz says that's welcome news for the nearly 40 million Americans who are planning holiday weekend road trips. Travel doesn't have to be expensive and I think a lot of people, especially for Memorial Day, they will pack up the car and just go somewhere for the weekend. If you have a beach within a couple hours from you, go to a lake, a mountain, and then come back. Airline travels also expected to be up this weekend compared to last year with Florida, Las Vegas, and Seattle among the most popular destinations. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington. Authorities in New

York City say one person is dead after a boat carrying raw sewage exploded on the Hudson River. The Department of Environmental Protection says the blast occurred when workers were performing maintenance aboard the city-owned vessel. The explosion is suspected to have been triggered by ignited methane gas. Two other workers were injured. The explosion took place near the North River wastewater treatment plant. I'm Windsor Johnston, NPR News in Washington. This message comes from WISE, the app for doing things and other currencies. With WISE, I'm Windsor Johnston, NPR News in Washington.