NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-27-2025 4AM EDT

Episode Date: May 27, 2025

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This is Ira Glass, the host of This American Life. So much is changing so rapidly right now with President Trump in office. It feels good to pause for a moment sometimes and look around at what's what. To try and do that, we've been finding these incredible stories about right now that are funny and have feeling and you get to see people everywhere making sense of this new America that we find ourselves in. This American Life, wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News, I'm Giles Snyder. that we find ourselves in. This is American Life, wherever you get your podcasts.

Live from NPR News, I'm Giles Snyder. British police say a 53-year-old man is in custody, believed to be the driver of a minivan that plowed into a crowd of soccer fans celebrating Liverpool's Premier League Championship. Jenny Sims is the Assistant Chief Constable to Merseyside Police. We believe this to be an isolated incident and we are not currently looking for anyone else in relation to it.

The incident is not being treated as terrorism. Authorities say more than 45 people were injured, including at least four children. The incident happened as a parade was wrapping up. Police in Philadelphia are investigating a mass shooting in the city's Fairmount Park area. The shooting happened late Monday night and the city's police chief says two people were killed and nine others were injured, including three teenagers. No one is in custody and no weapons have been recovered. Officials in Louisiana are reporting progress and recapturing the inmates who escaped from a New

Orleans jail ten days ago. Louisiana state police say authorities have recaptured three more of the ten inmates who broke out. One was arrested by local police in Baton Rouge. Police caught up with the other two in Walker County, Texas. At least two who are still on the run. US officials say the potency of street fentanyl being sold in American communities has plummeted. The decline in purity may be contributing to the national drop in fatal drug overdoses, as NPR's Brian Mann reports. Fentanyl is the leading cause of street drug deaths in the US, but a report released by the US Drug Enforcement Administration shows the

purity of illegal fentanyl being sold by drug cartels has dropped sharply. According to the DEA, the change may be due to actions by the Chinese government, which has cracked down on companies that manufacture chemicals used to make fentanyl. The drop in fentanyl purity coincides with the national decline in US street drug overdoses, with roughly 30,000 fewer deaths reported in 2024. It's not all good news. Dealers are mixing other toxic chemicals into street drugs, including xylazine, a tranquilizer that causes severe skin wounds. Brian Mann, NPR News.

To Germany now, where the trial of four Russian nationals accused of raising money for the terrorist group Islamic State is underway in the city of Hamburg, here's in Pierce Rob Schmitz. The charges against the four Russian defendants include being members of a foreign criminal organization and supporting a foreign terrorist organization. The four are alleged to have used their social networks to raise nearly $200,000 for the Islamic State group. The case is one of several underway in Germany against those collecting donations

for Islamic State. German security officials say the threat posed by Islamist extremists in Germany is serious, even though a recent report showed the majority of politically motivated crimes in Germany are committed by right-wing extremists. Rob Schmitz, NPR News, Berlin. And you're listening to NPR News. Britain's King Charles is preparing to give what's known as the throne speech to Canadian lawmakers. Charles is to deliver the speech, opening the new parliament today, laying out new Prime

Minister Mark Carney's priorities. The King arrived in Ottawa on Monday at Carney's invitation. Carney says the King's visit underscores Canadian sovereignty in the face of President Trump's talk of Canada becoming the 51st state. Compared to older generations, Gen Z and younger millennial Americans are more likely to say that it is important to date or marry someone who shares their political views. That's according to the latest NPR-PBS News Marist poll. But as NPR's Elena Moore reports, some young couples embrace their political differences. Trevor Keller, a Democrat, voted for Kamala Harris last fall.

Rhiannon Costanzo, an independent, backed President Trump. These Pennsylvania college students are also in a long-term relationship. Even though 60% of 18-29 year olds say it's important for political views to align. Costanzo and Keller feel differently. I think if we added stigma around talking about politics, I feel like that would become honestly worse. I think it's nice to throw back and forth our ideas and about it. And I think we learn more about each other too. While slim majorities of both Democrats and Republicans say having a partner with the same politics is important, NPR's poll found for independents, six in 10 say that having

the same politics as your partner doesn't matter. Alaina Moore, NPR News. This is NPR News. World news is important, but it can feel far away, not on the State of the World podcast. With journalists around the world, you'll hear firsthand the effects of U.S. trade actions in Canada and China, and meet a Mexican street sweeper who became a pop star. We don't go around the world, we're already there. Listen to the