NPR News Now - NPR News: 08-02-2025 1PM EDT

Episode Date: August 2, 2025

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This summer on Planet Money Summer School, we're learning about political economy. We're getting into the nitty-gritty of what government does with things like trade, taxes, immigration, and healthcare. So politics and economics, which are taught separately, they shouldn't be separated at all. I think you have to understand one to really appreciate the other. So what is the right amount of government in our lives? Tune into Planet Money Summer School from NPR, wherever you get your podcasts. Live from Rahm Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Noor Rahm. President Trump's move to fire the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics is raising

concerns about political interference with how the government produces statistics to monitor the U.S. economy. NPR's Hansi Luang reports. Hansi Luang President Trump ordered to cut short Erika McIntarfer's term as commissioner of labor statistics hours after her statistical agency released numbers showing a slowdown in the job market. Many economists have feared uncertainty over Trump's push for more import taxes through

his tariff policy would drive this shift. In a statement, Friends of BLS, an advocacy group for the bureau chaired by two former commissioners, including one Trump nominated during his first term, says Trump's baseless claim of Macintyre for deliberately reporting false numbers, quote, undermines the credibility of federal economic statistics that are a cornerstone of intelligent economic decision making by businesses, families and policymakers, unquote. The group is calling for Congress to investigate what led to Macintyre first firing. Hansi Luang in Pure News, Washington.

Consumers are trying to figure out what the tariffs announced this week by President Trump will mean for their household budget. He announced new tariffs of varying sizes on most U.S. trading partners. Trump is imposing a 50 percent tariff on products of Brazil, which produces 30 percent of the coffee consumed in the U.S. Frida Garza is a writer for Grists, an independent media organization that covers climate change. She says to expect the cost of a cup of coffee to go up.

The 50% tariffs that Trump has imposed on Brazil, you know, there were a lot of exceptions made, but coffee is not one of them. And the U.S. imports 30% of its coffee from Brazil. So companies will either have to source from new countries with lower tariffs or eat the cost of these tariffs and likely pass it on to the consumer. She says the coffee producers in Brazil,

many of them small farms, will probably have to find other markets to sell to. A bill that would dramatically redraw Texas's congressional maps has advanced in the GOP-led Texas House of Representatives. Houston Public Media's Andrew Schneider reports. The map legislation passed a redistricting committee on a party line vote that followed a day of testimony in which those opposing the measure outnumbered supporters 100 to 1, a point Democratic State Representative John Rosenthal made. I think even conservative, true, conscientious conservative Texans know this is a racist

attack on black and brown communities, and I won't stand for it. We will continue to fight this with everything we have. The last time Texas Democrats broke quorum was four years ago to block the passage of election legislation during a special session. Governor Greg Abbott responded by calling another special session and the quorum break ultimately collapsed. For NPR News, I'm Andrew Schneider in Houston. This is NPR News in Washington. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff is in Tel Aviv where he met today with families of some of the remaining hostages in Gaza.

Negotiations to bring home some of them stalled last month. Yesterday, Witkoff visited a food distribution site in Gaza, along with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, escorted by Israeli forces. This summer, many people are turning to neck fans, hoping to cool down. As NPR's Bill Chappell reports, the gadgets can help you feel better, up to a point. On a hot day at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., Jeffrey Pagalong says to beat the heat, he'll put up with a little noise. Yeah, you can hear the fan, but it's fine. The noise is much better than the heat, he'll put up with a little noise. Yeah, you can hear the fan, but it's fine.

The noise is much better than the heat, you know? Pagalong and his son are visiting from Boston. They're both wearing neck fans. But do they work? Chris Tyler studies environmental physiology at the University of Roehampton in London. He says the fans can make you feel better, but he adds. This is not a treatment.

It's a bit like playing sport with a pain killing injection. The issue is still there. It's just that you can't detect it for a little bit. You shouldn't overdo it in extreme heat, he says, even if a neck fan is making you more comfortable. Bill Chapel, NPR News. In baseball, the Atlanta Braves play the

Cincinnati Reds tonight in Tennessee. They'll play ball at the Bristol Motor Speedway, usually a NASCAR venue. This is part of Commissioner Bob Robb Manfred's efforts to bring baseball to places tonight in Tennessee. They'll play ball at the Bristol Motor Speedway, usually a NASCAR venue. This is part of Commissioner Bob Rahm Manfred's efforts to bring baseball to places where it isn't played live every day. Officials say more than 85,000 tickets have been sold. Besides the game, there's live music and Navy jet flyover and the appearance by the Budweiser Clydesdale horses. I'm Nora Rahm, NPR News.

There's a lot of news happening. You want to understand it better, but let's be honest, Budweiser Clydesdale horses. I'm Nora Rahm, NPR News.