NPR News Now - NPR News: 06-16-2025 2PM EDT

Episode Date: June 16, 2025

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Hey, everybody. It's Ian from How to Do Everything. On our show, we attempt to answer your how-to questions. We don't know how to do anything. So we call experts. Last season, both Tom Hanks and Martha Stewart stopped by to help. Our next season is launching in just a few months. So get us your questions now by emailing howto at npr.org or calling 1-800-424-2935. Lyle from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. The FBI has announced six federal charges on top of the state charges a Minnesota man already faces for the violent attacks on Democratic state lawmakers over the weekend that left two people dead. Vance Belter is due to appear in court later this hour.

Authorities say Belter was posing as a police officer when he entered the home of State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. They were each shot several times but survived. That attack prompted police to check the nearby home of State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, where officers encountered the suspect after he allegedly killed the couple. Democratic U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar described Hortman's impact as the state house's top Democrat.

Our state mourns this incredible woman. She was such a strong speaker. Even some of the Republican legislators have called her one of the most consequential speakers in Minnesota history. Governor Tim Walz described the attack as a politically motivated assassination, but investigators have not officially disclosed a motive, including whether ideology was a driving factor. President Trump's saying that Iran wants to have talks on de-escalating tensions with Israel. Trump made the comments at a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney this morning

at the G7 summit in Canada. Here's NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben. Danielle Pletka When a reporter asked Trump what he had heard from Iranians about deescalating the conflict, Trump said that Iran would, quote, like to talk. They have to make a deal. And it's painful for both parties, but I'd say Iran is not winning this war. The Trump administration began talks with Iran about curbing its nuclear program two months ago. Trump was also asked about the circumstances in which the US would

get involved militarily. He declined to comment. Separately, Trump also said he's optimistic about reaching a trade deal with Canada. Trump has imposed tariffs on all his fellow G7 countries. He has one-on-one meetings planned with an array of world leaders this week. Danielle Kurtz-ib in NPR News, Calgary. Economists are projecting higher prices and slower economic growth this year as a result of the tariffs. NPR's Scott Horsley reports on a new survey from the National Association for Business Economics. Inflation reports released last week showed little fallout from the president's trade war but private forecasters don't expect that to last.

More than 90% of the business forecasters don't expect that to last. More than 90 percent of the business economists surveyed say they expect tariffs to result in higher inflation this year. On average, they expect prices to climb about 3.4 percent. Annual inflation last month was a relatively tame 2.4 percent. Forecasters are also projecting slower GDP growth and slightly higher unemployment. On average, they think the economy will grow about 1.3 percent this year, down from 1.9 percent they were projecting before the president ordered worldwide tariffs in early April.

Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington. The Dow is up 335 points at last check. This is NPR News. A new report concludes that a dangerous new nuclear arms race is emerging at a time when arms control regimes are severely weakened. That's the latest annual assessment of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, or SIPRI. It says nearly all of the nine nuclear-armed states such as the United States, Russia, and China are upgrading and expanding their weapons. The other nuclear-armed countries are North Korea, Israel, India, Pakistan, the UK, and France.

Nearly half of all people in the United States have some connection to the Catholic Church, according to a new report from Pew Research. But as NPR's Jason DeRose explains, that does not always mean aligning with church teachings. Jason DeRose 20% of US adults said they're Catholic when asked about their current religion. An additional 9% said they were culturally Catholic. Another 9% said they were former Catholics. And yet another 9% said they were culturally Catholic, another 9% said they were former Catholics, and yet another 9% said they had some other connection, such as a Catholic parent or spouse. When it comes to what's essential to their faith, the report found that 7 in 10 said

a personal relationship with Jesus, half responded devotion to Mary, and just under half said helping the poor or receiving the Eucharist. Less than a third of Catholics said opposing abortion, caring for immigrants, or belonging to a parish was essential. Jason DeRose, NPR News. The Nasdaq is up one and a half percent. The S&P 500 has risen nearly one percent. The Dow is up more than three quarters of a percent.

It's NPR News.