NPR News Now - NPR News: 06-16-2025 10PM EDT

Episode Date: June 17, 2025

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The House of Representatives has approved a White House request to claw back two years of previously approved funding for public media. The rescissions package now moves on to the Senate. This move poses a serious threat to local stations and public media as we know it. Please take a stand for public media today at GoACPR.org. Thank you. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear. President Trump is leaving the annual G7 meeting early. The White House made the announcement today

after a packed day where Trump was the center of attention at the annual Summit of Advanced Economies. More from NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben. White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt posted on social media that Trump would leave the summit early after having dinner with other leaders Monday evening. She said the reason was the conflict in the Middle East. Speaking to the press on Monday, Trump said that Iran has indicated that it wants to de-escalate

its conflict with Israel. The president also posted on social media on Monday, however, that, quote, everyone should evacuate Tehran. Trump leaves the G7 after a day where he met with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and signed a trade deal with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Trump had been scheduled to meet at the G7 with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Mexican President Claudia Schoenbaum. Danielle Kertzleben, NPR News, Calgary. Danielle Kertzleben The Minnesota man accused of killing a state lawmaker and her husband and wounding another

state lawmaker and his wife while posing as a police officer is in custody facing state and federal charges. It appears the suspect, 57-year-old Vance Belter, went to two other lawmakers' homes, but they were either not home or left after police or he left after police arrived. I want to wit us with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office. Vance Bolter inflicted unimaginable harm to our community Saturday morning and he did it while impersonating the very people who are trusted to protect and serve. These violent acts strike at the heart of our democracy and the safety of those who serve the public with dedication and courage. Belter faces four state charges, including second-degree and attempted second-degree murder.

He'll face six federal charges, including two counts of murder with a firearm. Belter surrendered to police as they closed in on him Sunday. A federal district court and judge in Boston has ruled that the National Institutes of Health acted illegally in terminating 800 research grants. Member station JBH? Craig Lamault reports the terminated grants focused on topics related to diversity, transgender issues and other areas of research disfavored by the Trump administration. The federal judge ruled the NIH's terminations of those grants were arbitrary and capricious,

and he ordered the agency to start paying for that research again. Attorney Rachel Miripel, the ACLU, represented plaintiffs in the case. The judge looked at the agency's explanation for why it would not fund these categories of research and said that they were wholly without reason and without reasoning. The judge went on to say the government's actions in the case amounted to racial discrimination and discrimination against the LGBTQ population, saying he's never seen anything like this in his 40 years on the bench. And he invited the plaintiff's attorneys to offer evidence of harm to those populations

so he could weigh in on that. For NPR News, I'm Craig Lemault in Boston. Stocks gain ground on Wall Street today. The Dow is up 317 points. The NASDAQ grows 294 points. This is NPR. Attorneys general from all 50 states, This is NPR. Attorneys general from all 50 states along with Washington DC and four US territories

say they have agreed to a $7.4 billion settlement with Purdue Pharma. The deal with the bankrupt drug maker intended to resolve thousands of lawsuits over the company's pain medicine Oxycontin that's been at the center of a nationwide opioid crisis. The bulk of the money for the settlement will come from the company's owners, the Sackler family. Payouts would begin after the company receives credit or support for its Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The Sacklers would also cede control of Purdue Pharma. It's now week six of the Sean Diddy Combs sex trafficking trial and a juror has been

dismissed for lack of candor. He'll be replaced by an alternate for the rest of the trial. NPR's Isabella Gomez-Armianto reports. Prosecutors raised concerns that the man known as Juror Number Six gave inconsistent answers about where he lives and with whom. During jury selection, he said he lived in New York City. Later, he made conflicting comments about having moved to New Jersey. Combs defense attorneys argued this was a minor inconsistency.

They asked for the man, one of the few black members of the jury, to be able to stay. Judge Arun Subramanian said he was worried the man either struggled to follow the court's instructions, or was intentionally hiding the truth in order to remain on the jury. The judge ultimately ruled in the prosecution's favor and dismissed juror number six. The trial is expected to last a few more weeks. Isabella Gomez-Termiento, NPR News. Despite continued tensions between Israel and Iran, including strikes by each country against the other, oil prices fell today down to $71.77 a barrel in New York.

I'm Jack Spear, NPR News. This message comes from NYU Langone. The NYU Langone Health App gives you access to your electronic health record. Keep track of your visits, lab results, and images all in one place. Better health starts with a better health system.