NPR News Now - NPR News: 06-16-2025 7PM EDT

Episode Date: June 16, 2025

NPR News: 06-16-2025 7PM EDTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear. Israel and Iran are ordering evacuation in parts of both Tel Aviv and Tehran as fighting intensifies. NPR's Jackie Northam explains the two sides sent out warnings as they continue to target key installations and communities. A television news presenter was on air describing the sound of nearby Israeli bombing when a massive blast hit Iran's state-run television, darkening the set and scattering debris. Much of the building was in flames. Israel had earlier ordered people living in that

area of Tehran to evacuate, warning it would attack a nearby military infrastructure. Israel hit other strategic targets, including an Iranian military headquarters. Meanwhile, Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps ordered people to evacuate from Benai Brak, a largely ultra-orthodox area of Tel Aviv, and Iranian ballistic missiles rained down on several Israeli cities. Jackie Northam, NPR News. President Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer say they've signed a trade deal.

The U.S. will determine an annual quota of British steel and aluminum products that can enter the U.S. at a most favored nation rate, lower than the current tariffs of 25 percent on imported steel and aluminum. Meanwhile, on the Iran-Israel conflict, Trump said he is coping in constant touch with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and said he thinks Iran will agree to a deal on its nuclear program. The Department of Government efficiency effort is entering a new phase after shedding its high profile and controversial leader Elon Musk, it's embedding more permanently in government. More from NPR's Stephen Fowler.

Since January, Doge staffers have been detailed across the federal government, leading efforts to fire workers, cancel contracts, and obtain access to sensitive data. Now, many of them have been converted to permanent jobs within the government, and agencies are embracing Doge's mission. That includes more than three dozen Doge-affiliated people at the General Services Administration, and many more who have senior roles at places like the IRS, Interior Department, and Social Security Administration. Stephen Fowler, NPR News.

Democrats lost ground with Americans under 30 in the presidential election, especially young men. Now as NPR's Elena Moore reports, their efforts to reach the demographic. Many young men say they're dealing with economic anxiety and declining mental health. And they say government officials don't care. That's according to a report from the Speaking with American Men project, a new effort aimed at helping Democrats connect with young men. Pollster John De La Volpe led 30 focus groups with young men for this project.

This is a generation of young men. They're not lost at the Democratic Party. And if we care about our democracy, everyone needs to feel that their voice can be heard. Emerging leaders in the party like Maryland Governor Wes Moore and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg have also made this group a bigger priority. Alana Moore, NPR News. The Dow was up 317 points.

This is NPR. The latest White House budget includes hundreds of millions of dollars in cuts to programs to help combat pollution in the Chesapeake Bay. As NPR's Scott Newman reports, if the bills pass, the cuts would come at a time. The nation's largest estuary is finally showing signs of turnaround. In its latest annual report card on the health of the Chesapeake Bay, the University of Maryland's Center for Environmental Science gave it a C. That's down from last year's C-plus, but still better than the string of D's that were the norm for years. Kristen Riley is director of the Choose Clean Water Coalition. We are making progress

and we are doing really great things, but we still do have many challenges ahead of us. Riley says that if vital programs for the Bay are cut, that progress could be undone. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation says the estuary is worth well over $100 billion a year in economic benefits to the six states and its watershed. Scott Newman, NPR News, Washington. Tourists and others standing in front of the Louvre in Paris had an unpleasant surprise today. Thousands of visitors were stuck waiting in line, in some cases for hours when the museum failed to open on time. Staff apparently walked off the job according to a union representative. Staff at the world's most visited museum are protesting working conditions there.

Staff at the Louvre are unhappy with the conditions despite a decade-long effort to fix problems, including water leaks, dangerous temperature swings, and more foot traffic than the museum is designed to handle. Despite continued tensions between Israel and Iran, including strikes by each country against the other, oil prices came down a bit. Oil fell 1.7 percent today to settle at $71.77 a barrel in New York. I'm Jack Spear, NPR News in Washington.