NPR News Now - NPR News: 06-04-2025 1PM EDT

Episode Date: June 4, 2025

NPR News: 06-04-2025 1PM EDTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. President Trump says he just wrapped up a lengthy call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. In a post on social media, Trump says they discussed a Ukrainian attack on Russia's docked airplanes and various other assaults that have been taking place by both sides. Trump says while the discussion was good, it, quote, wasn't a conversation that will lead to immediate peace. An independent government agency says a massive tax cut and spending package passed by the House will add trillions of dollars

to the national deficit. NPR's Claudia Grisales reports Republicans say the plan will result in savings instead. The Congressional Budget Office says Republican spending bill will add another $2.4 trillion to federal deficits. The agency said the biggest driver of that potential new debt is the extension of a tax cut program in the House passed bill now before the Senate. This is as CBO estimates nearly 11 million Americans would lose health insurance as a result of dramatic cuts

to Medicaid to pay for the legislation. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has come under fire from President Trump and Republicans who claim, without any evidence, the agency is working against them. Claudia Gonzalez, NPR News. The U.S. private group distributing food in Gaza is suspending operations. NPR's Carrie Kahn reports the decision comes after three deadly shootings near the group's

distribution sites this week. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, or GHF, says it has paused food distribution for one day as it works to quote update organization and efficiency. On Tuesday Israel's military says it fired warning shots at quote suspects deviating from designated routes to the food distribution but did not fire into crowds. Eyewitnesses and health officials in Gaza say dozens were killed by Israeli gunfire. GHF just appointed evangelical leader Johnny Moore to its leadership. Moore has defended GHF's Gaza work, posting on social media that reports of deadly shootings were

quote a lie. Kari Kahn, NPR News, Tel Aviv. More people in the U.S. are dealing with air quality issues. NPR's Kristen Wright reports smoke from wildfires burning in Canada is spreading into multiple states. Environmental officials in Iowa put out a statewide air quality alert warning that bands of thick smoke from Canada are hanging over the state and elevating levels of unhealthy air. There are also air concerns in the south, not from the Canadian wildfires, but rather the Sahara Desert. Winds are carrying a huge cloud of dust from Africa, across the Atlantic, and into the Gulf Coast and southeast.

Kristin Wright, NPR News. On Wall Street, the Dow was up 54 points. This is NPR News. Closing arguments are continuing in the sex crimes retrial of former movie producer Harvey Weinstein prosecutors in New York City are expected to wrap up today Weinstein is being retried after his earlier conviction was overturned on procedural grounds for the second year in a row fewer students are dropping out of college. NPR's Sequoia Carrillo reports that's according to new data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. More than 43 million Americans have completed some college without ever earning a degree. While the number is still high, the trend may be turning around.

Nearly all higher education institutions saw fewer stopouts between January 2022 and July 2023, compared with the same period a year earlier. Adults are also returning to the classroom. During the 23-24 school year, 42 states and the District of Columbia saw an increase in re-enrollment for students. Doug Shapiro, the executive director of the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, said over one million adults returned to campuses last year,

the most they've ever recorded. Sequoia Carrillo, NPR News. Skies across the US are lighting up with something rare this week, the Northern Lights. Scientists say auroras may be visible from more than a dozen states, including Michigan, Wisconsin, New York, Montana, and much of Idaho. On Wall Street, the Dow up 46 points, the S&P up 11.

I'm Windsor Johnston, NPR News in Washington.