NPR News Now - NPR News: 06-06-2025 4AM EDT

Episode Date: June 6, 2025

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This is Ira Glass with This American Life, each week on our show. We choose a theme, tell different stories on that theme. All right, I'm just going to stop right there. You're listening to an NPR podcast, chances are you know our show. So instead, I'm going to tell you, we've just been on a run of really good shows lately. Some big epic emotional stories, some weird funny stuff too. Download us, This American Life. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dan Ronan. President Trump is threatening to end government

contracts that Elon Musk has as their fractured alliance on Thursday escalated into a bitter dispute. The president and his one-time advisor, who is also the world's richest man, have been attacking each other publicly. NPR's Daniel Kertzbaum reports there are big risks for both men going forward. There have been business consequences. Shares of Tesla plummeted. Another point is that there are very tight margins to pass that big, beautiful bill on Capitol Hill. So if Musk has some pull with even a few Republicans, that could very much hurt that bill's chances of passing. But there's one more really important point here.

Amid all of this, Musk posted, quote, without me, Trump would have lost the election. Now that's a reminder. He's saying that he dumped more than a quarter of a billion dollars into the 2024 election. Tesla stock tanked on Thursday afternoon, falling by more than 14% at the close of the business on Wall Street. The sharp drop in the value started after a blistering exchange of words between the CEO of Tesla, Elon Musk, and the president,

as NPR's Kamila Domineski reports, the company's total value dropped by more than $100 billion in just four hours. Tesla stocks soared after the election, as investors hoped Musk's closeness with Trump would pay off for his companies. But shares fell as they began to worry instead that Musk's work at Doge was alienating customers and distracting him from being a CEO. Now the two men have very publicly fallen out. Trump said he was disappointed in Musk. Musk accused

Trump of ingratitude. Trump threatened to cancel government contracts with Musk's companies. And now Musk says the reason the file on convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein is being kept secret is because Trump's in that file. Tesla stocks saw one of its largest single-day drops in years. Camila Dominovski, NPR News. The Federal Aviation Administration says it will suspend passenger flights near Washington, D.C. during President Trump's Army anniversary parade next week. More on the story from NPR's Joel Rose. Ronald Reagan, Washington National Airport, says the FAA will likely suspend airline operations

to accommodate aircraft flyovers along the parade route and a fireworks display. The long-planned celebration to mark the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army is scheduled for the evening of June 14th, which is also President Trump's birthday. It's expected to last for three hours. The FAA says all arrivals and departures at Reagan Airport in Northern Virginia will be suspended during the quote, peak of the celebration.

The airport located just a few miles from the parade route on the National Mall, was the scene of a deadly midair collision between a military helicopter and a passenger jet in January. Joel Rose, NPR News, Washington. Thursday on Wall Street, U.S. stocks move lower. Traders are looking forward to Friday's jobs report. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. President Trump on Thursday held a conversation with China's leader Xi Jinping, where the two men discussed tariffs and the global supplies of rare earth minerals. Trump described the conversation as very positive, while China's foreign ministry says that Xi

asked Trump to remove the negative measures the U.S. has taken against China. Trade negotiations between Washington and Beijing stalled in early May. At the Supreme Court on Thursday, the justices vetoed a lawsuit brought by the Mexican government against gun manufacturers for allegedly adding and abetting in the illegal invasion of guns from the US into Mexico. NPR's Nina Totenberg reports. The Mexican government brought the suit, noting that 90 percent of the guns retrieved at crime scenes in Mexico came from the United States, and it sought billions of dollars in damages contending that gun traffickers purchased firearms in the U.S., often illegally and in bulk,

and delivered them to cartels in Mexico. But the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that under a law enacted by Congress in 2004, the gun manufacturers are shielded from liability unless they can show that the gun makers not only participate in the illegal gun sales, but also want them to happen. Nina Totenberg, NPR News, Washington. Triple A says as the summer driving season is now well underway, the price of a gallon of gasoline is falling, the national average for a gallon of regular unleaded dropped by 2 cents to $3.14 a gallon. This is pump prices are 36 cents less expensive than they were this time a year ago. From Washington, this is NPR, I'm Dan Ronan.

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