NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-28-2025 12AM EDT

Episode Date: May 28, 2025

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On NPR's ThruLine, witnesses were ending up dead. How the hunt for gangster Al Capone launched the IRS to power. Find NPR's ThruLine wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shea Stevens. A U.S.-backed private foundation has begun distributing aid to civilians in Gaza. As NPR's Michelle Kellerman reports, the UN is describing harrowing scenes at food distribution sites. Video showing desperate Palestinians scrambling to get food at new distribution sites are

hard to watch, says UN spokesman Stefan de Chirique. For us humanitarian aid needs to be distributed in a way that is safe under principles of independence impartiality in the way we've always done it. The way this new group is trying to deliver aid does not meet those standards, he says, and that's why the UN is not taking part. U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce says Hamas tried to stop the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation from delivering aid, but she says the food is starting to flow for the first time in months. Israel had been blocking all aid. Michelle Kelliman, NPR News, the State Department.

The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to allow it to quickly deport migrants to countries not their own. The administration wants the justices to overturn lower court order, blocking deportations without sufficient notice or giving deportees the chance to argue their cases in court. Consumer confidence appears to be on the rise after the Trump administration suspended some of its most punishing tariffs. N and PR Scott Horsley has details. A new survey from the nonprofit conference board shows a 14% jump in the group's confidence index. Survey respondents are feeling better about

both the current economic situation and prospects for the future. About half the survey responses came in after the US.S. and China agreed to a temporary truce in their trade war. That also gave a boost to the stock market, which contributed to the stronger confidence numbers. People are still jittery that the president's tariffs will lead to higher prices, although some spoke favorably about cheaper gasoline. Survey respondents are also nervous about the job market, despite the low unemployment rate. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington. Aaron Ross Powell, NPR News, Washington. Abortion providers in Missouri say a recent state Supreme Court ruling amounts to a new

ban on the procedure. St. Louis Public Radio's Rachel Lippman explains. Rachel Lippman, NPR News, Washington. Missouri voters in November narrowly enshrined the right to abortion in the state's constitution. A judge then struck down the restrictions still on the books, allowing the procedure to resume ahead of a trial next year. State Attorney General Andrew Bailey argued the judge had thrown out important safety regulations. The high court agreed the judge had not used the proper legal standard in issuing her injunctions.

The ruling effectively reinstates, for now, a near total ban on abortion. Bailey called the decision a win for common sense. Officials with Planned Parenthood called it devastating. The judge could reissue the injunctions using different legal reasoning. For NPR News, I'm Rachel Lipman in St. Louis. You're listening to NPR. In a letter to government agencies, the General Services Administration is calling for a review of federal contracts with Harvard and suggests that they find an alternative vendor. GSA is also giving the agencies until June 6th to send a list of the contracts that have

already been canceled. The move comes as Harvard sues the Trump administration for freezing federal funding to the school. A high-ranking former employee took the witness stand at the federal racketeering trial of Shawn Combs Tuesday. Capricorn Clark testified she was repeatedly threatened and alleged that the defendant once kidnapped her at gunpoint. NPR's Anastasia Sioukos was in the courtroom Tuesday, and a warning here that this report mentions physical violence. RISA GOLUBOFF Capricorn Clark, a former marketing executive,

testified that Combs kidnapped her as part of a chaotic incident in which Combs attempted to confront rapper Scott Mascotti, also known as Kid Cudi. Combs had learned that Cudi and his on-and-off girlfriend, the singer Cassie Ventura, were dating, and that Clark knew about the relationship but did not tell him. Clark also testified that Combs and his associates had repeatedly threatened to kill her. Clark quit repeatedly during the 14 years she worked for him, but said she was unable to secure another job in the music industry. Anastasia Tsoukis, NPR News, New York. U.S. futures are flat in after hours trading on Wall Street.

Following Tuesday's gains, the Dow added 740 points. The Nasdaq rose 461, and Asia Pacific market shares are mixed. This is NPR News. This message comes from WISE, the app for doing things and other currencies. With WISE, you can send, spend, or receive money across borders, all at a fair exchange rate.

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