NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-26-2025 4AM EDT

Episode Date: May 26, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dan Ronan. In what may be his strongest language to date about Russia's war against Ukraine, President Trump Sunday night harshly criticized Russia's President Vladimir Putin as Russia pounded Ukraine for a third night with drones and missiles. Writing on Truth Social, Trump said quote, I've always had a good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia but something has happened to him. He's gone absolutely crazy. Returning to Washington from New Jersey, the president spoke with reporters.

I'm not happy with what Putin's doing. He's killing a lot of people and I don't know what the hell happened to Putin. I've known him a long time, always gotten along with him, but he's sending rockets into cities and killing people and I don't like it at all. In recent days, the president has been increasingly voicing his frustration with Putin, and he has urged Russia and Ukraine to speed up the pace of peace negotiations. Sunday, Pope Leo declared himself a Roman in a ceremonial step to securing his role as the Bishop of Rome.

NPR's Claire Marie Schneider has more. Translated by the Vatican News Service, Pope Leo can be heard saying, Today I can say, in a special way, that I am a Roman, with and for you. The Bishop of Rome is one of many titles given to the Pope. What will his duties include? Not a whole lot. I don't think he will be particularly involved in the day-to-day governing or administrative responsibility. That's Margaret Susan Thompson, a professor of history at Syracuse University.

She says his declaration speaks more to his responsibility to the people of Rome. It's an important symbolic statement and pastoral statement if not governing statement. Thompson says day-to-day duties are usually delegated to an auxiliary or assistant bishop known as a vicar. Claire Marie Schneider, NPR News. The European Space Agency will transmit a classic piece of music into space this week. NPR's Rebecca Hurst who reports reports, the Blue Danube waltz is associated with space travel and pop culture.

Johann Strauss's waltz, titled by Space Agency plans to transmit a live performance of the piece into deep space, using a transmitter in Spain that usually works on missions to Mars and the Sun. The event commemorates the founding of the European Space Agency 50 years ago and the birth of the composer, Strauss, 200 years ago. Rebecca Herscher, NPR News. President Trump says he will delay a threatened 50% tariff against the European Union.

You're listening to NPR News. Four years ago, Congress passed what's called the Digital Equity Act. It was designed to close the digital divide guaranteeing access to the Internet and resources to large parts of rural America through grants to states and Native American tribes in underserved areas. Now President Trump is vowing to kill the federal grant program, calling it on social media racist and illegal. Whether he has the legal authority to end the program is unclear, calling it on social media racist and illegal.

Whether he has the legal authority to end the program is unclear, but now he says he intends to stop spending the money to fund the upgrades. After a fire, several crashes and cautions, the Indianapolis 500 has a new winner. Samantha Horton reports the winner made history as the first Spanish driver to win the big race. Out of the 33 car field, only 23 cars completed the 109th running of the Indy 500. When the checkered flag dropped, Alex Pillo won the day in the number 10 Chip Ganassi car. The 28-year-old Spanish driver has been successful in the series, but has never won the Indianapolis

Motor Speedway Oval Race. Pillo says he hopes his win will bring more Spanish fans into the sport. I don't know what it's going to be for Spain. Hopefully they are celebrating as much as I am here. It makes it extra special that I'm the first Spanish driver to win it. Track officials say the sold out race drew in about 350,000 fans to enjoy what is called the greatest spectacle in racing. For NPR, I'm Samantha Horton in Indianapolis. Reality TV star Phil Robertson of TV's Duck Dynasty has died at the age of 79.

He had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease from Washington. This is NPR News.