NPR News Now - NPR News: 06-17-2025 12PM EDT

Episode Date: June 17, 2025

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You know those things you shout at the radio or maybe even at this very NPR podcast? On NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me, we actually say those things on the radio and on the podcast. We're rude across all media. We think the news can take it. Listen to NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. President Trump says he is seeking, quote, a real end to Iran's nuclear ambitions.

But NPR's Mara Leysen reports it's not yet clear how Trump plans to accomplish that. Israel wants U.S. military help to destroy Iran's underground nuclear facility, but Trump campaigned on keeping the U.S. out of foreign wars. On his way home from the G7 meeting in Canada, Trump told reporters he may send Vice President Vance and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to negotiate with Iran's foreign minister. Asked to explain his social media post calling on Tehran's citizens to evacuate, Trump said

quote, there's a lot of bad things happening there. Trump also said he didn't think Iran would strike U.S. assets in the region because of the risk of retaliation. I think they know not to touch our troops. Trump has repeatedly said his bottom line is that Iran must never get a nuclear weapon. Mara Liason, NPR News. The Department of Homeland Security's denying reports it has paused immigration raids at any work sites.

Spokesperson Trisha McLaughlin says the policy of arresting criminals and other people in the U.S. without legal status still stands. Last week, the New York Times reported immigration and customs enforcement advised its officers to largely pause raids and arrests of migrants employed by farms, hotels, and restaurants after a social media post in which President Trump appeared to soften his stance. A second patient has died after receiving a controversial gene therapy

for muscular dystrophy. NPR's Rob Stein reports a company that makes this treatment says it's examining what happened. So Reptatherapeutics of Cambridge, Massachusetts says the patient with Duchenne muscular dystrophy died from acute liver failure. The death marks the second patient who died from liver failure after receiving the gene therapy. In response, the company says it has temporarily stopped shipping the treatment for some patients

while officials assess the situation. The deaths have focused attention again on the decision by the Food and Drug Administration to quickly approve the treatment two years ago, despite some concerns about the first gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Rob Stein, NPR News. West Virginia Governor Patrick Morris,

he says on X that floods over the weekend in his state are now responsible for a seventh death. We have more from NPR's John Snyder. West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrissey calls the flooding mother nature at its worst. Heavy rain Sunday led to the partial collapse of an apartment building in Fairmont and damaged roads and bridges. No one was killed there but about an hour and a half away in the Wheeling area in the state's northern panhandle. Authorities have identified six victims. Crews are going door-to-door and searching cars caught up in

floodwaters. That's NPR's Giles Snyder reporting. This is NPR News. The Federal Reserve's embarking on another two-day meeting. Most data show the economy's still strong, inflation is still cooling, but analysts have also cautioned that the fallout from President Trump's tariffs policy has yet to be fully realized. Despite this, President Trump's been pressing Fed Chair Jerome Powell to lower interest rates. One of Major League Baseball's biggest stars and the only two-way player,

Shohei Otani, returned to the pitcher's mound last night. It's been nearly two years since he had elbow surgery. Steve Futterman reports it was Otani's first pitching outing for the Dodgers in signing his 10-year $700 million contract. -"Dodger Stadium was full of anticipation. Show him what's happening. The last time Ohtani pitched was in 2023. This was his first pitching appearance for the Dodgers.

Fans like Thomas Craig watched every pitch. It's exciting, it feels like history. This was always planned to be a brief appearance. Ohtani pitched just one inning. He showed some rustiness, allowing two hits and one run. Through an interpreter, Otani says he wants to see how his arm responds. I want to see first where my body feels and how it reacts. Since joining the Dodgers, Otani has only been able to hit as he recovered from his

injury. For NPR News, I'm Steve Futterman in Los Angeles. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 40 points, the S&P is off 13, and the Nasdaq has fallen 46 points. This is NPR News. The news can feel like a lot on any given day, but you can't just ignore it when big, even world-changing events are happening. That's where the Up First podcast comes in. Every morning and under 15 minutes, we take the news and pick three essential stories

so you can keep up without getting stressed out. Listen now to the Up First podcast from NPR.