NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-25-2025 8AM EDT

Episode Date: May 25, 2025

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Politics is a lot these days. I'm Sarah McCammon, a co-host of the NPR Politics Podcast, and I'll be the first to tell you what happens in Washington definitely demands some decoding. That's why our show makes politics as easy as possible to wrap your head around. Join us as we make politics make sense on the NPR Politics Podcast, available wherever you get your podcasts. Live from MPR News in Washington, I'm Giles Snyder. Events in Minneapolis are underway today to mark five years since a police killing of George Floyd. Matt Sepick, a Minnesota public radio has more. A religious service, gospel concert and candlelight visual round out

a weekend of public gatherings to honor Floyd and the racial justice movement that his murder ignited. The 46-year-old black man died after a white policeman kneeled on his neck and back for more than nine minutes. Former officer Derek Chauvin is serving concurrent state and federal prison sentences of around 20 years. The events honoring Floyd are being held at what is now called George Floyd Square, the intersection in Minneapolis where he was killed. Republican lawmakers in Texas on the verge of passing a law requiring the display of

the Ten Commandments in all public school classrooms. But Houston Public Media's Andrew Schneider reports a measure is expected to be challenged in court. The bill would require Texas public school classrooms to display the King James Bible version of the Ten Commandments. During debate over the measure, Democratic Representative John Bryant argued the bill discriminates against the nearly one-third of Texans who are neither Christian nor Jewish. It's not fair and it's not American.

And this bill is not fair and it's not American and it's not Christian and it's not Jewish. The bill is scheduled for a final vote Sunday. It's expected to pass and be signed by Governor Greg Abbott. A similar law passed by Louisiana last year is on hold pending a review by the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. For NPR News, I'm Andrew Schneider in Houston. In a two-day forum, Senate Democrats questioned former officials from several health agencies about potential human impacts of Trump administration job cuts.

NPR's Vitu Chatterjee reports that mental health was a focus for several lawmakers. Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin asked about the recent cuts and proposed changes to the substance abuse in mental health administration or SAMHSA. How will the firings of SAMHSA staff and the proposal to shift SAMHSA into a new agency that we know very little about harm the progress that we've been seeing in reducing overdose deaths? The former chief of staff of SAMHSA, Trina Dutta,

said it would push states to find other sources of funds for mental health and substance use care and could further reduce access to care. Ritu Chatterjee, NPR News. A federal judge last week barred government agencies from mass layoffs pending the outcome of a lawsuit brought by unions, non-profits and municipalities who say President Trump needs permission from Congress. The White House has appealed that ruling on Friday. Russia and Ukraine completed the final phase of a three-day prisoner swap today, hours after a second consecutive night of a Russian missile and drone attack.

A total of 1,000 prisoners from each side have been exchanged since Friday, along with 120 civilians each. This is NPR. Voters in Venezuela are going to the polls today. They're choosing a new Congress and other elected officials. Amid opposition calls for them to skip the election, opposition leader Maria Carina Machado argues that voting today

would legitimize Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Today's election follows Friday's arrest of a close ally of Machado for allegedly leading a terrorist plot. The Interior Minister says dozens of others have been detained. State media in North Korea say authorities have detained three shipyard officials over last week's botched launch of a Navy destroyer. Satellite imagery shows the ship lying on its side with parts of it submerged. Leader Kim Jong-un has said the failed launch was caused by criminal negligence. The largest art museum in the country now owns an enviable collection of guitars. MPR's Neda Ulibi reports that

a philanthropist has donated hundreds of historically significant instruments to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Neda Ulibi The guitars reflect nearly a century of American music history. More than 500 now belong to the Met, ranging from a Gibson played by Mississippi John Hurt, to a guitar owned by Roy Rogers, to the Les Paul Keith Richards used during the Rolling Stones' 1964 appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. For all its many cultural riches, the Met has not been known for 20th century instruments. That changed after a 2019 exhibition co-curated with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. That convinced billionaire Dirk Ziff, whose father started a magazine Empire,

to donate much of his massive guitar collection. Neda Ulibi, NPR News. This is NPR News. A lot has changed in higher education since President Trump took office. Everything that's been going on has kind of changed my life plans. Students have come to me and just, they feel really scared. On the Sunday Story, how members of the Class of 2025 are feeling about the state of higher ed and their own futures. Listen now to the Sunday Story on the Up First podcast from NPR.