NPR News Now - NPR News: 08-12-2025 10AM EDT

Episode Date: August 12, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Kristen Wright. Stocks opened higher this morning as a new report showed inflation remained elevated last month. NPR Scott Horsley reports the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped, about 210 points in early trading. Consumer prices in July were up 2.7% from a year ago, roughly in line with what forecasters had expected. Falling gasoline prices helped to keep the overall cost of living from rising more. So-called core inflation, which strips out volatile energy and food prices, rose to 3.1%. The effects of President Trump's worldwide tariffs are visible in the rising price of imported goods, such as furniture and toys, additional tariffs ordered this month, could push prices

higher still. Nevertheless, investors are betting the Federal Reserve will see an opening to cut interest rates by a quarter percentage point when policymakers meet next month. Scott Horsley, MPR News, Washington. President Trump says his move to seize control of Washington, D.C.'s police force should be seen as a warning by other cities. Trump is deploying hundreds of National Guard troops in the nation's capital, as NPR's Brian Mann reports. During a press conference from the White House, Trump pointed to cities led by Democrats, including Chicago, Detroit, and New York City, and said he hoped the federal crackdown on crime underway and Washington would spur them to action. Other cities are hopefully watching this. They're all watching, just like everyone's

watching here. They're all watching, and maybe they'll self-clean up. In fact, crime in Washington, D.C. has been going down, according to local and federal statistics. Many cities around the U.S. have seen violence and property crimes drop sharply in recent years. Brian Mann and PR News, Washington. As Trump announced the deploying of the National Guard in D.C. yesterday, a separate trial started in California over the administration's use of the Guard in Los Angeles earlier this year. California is seeking to end the troop activation. The trial is due to last until tomorrow with a decision expected from the judge.

President Trump says he wants to see what Russian President Vladimir Putin has in mind as far as ending its war with Ukraine. The two leaders are meeting for a summit in Alaska on Friday. Today, European Union leaders are warning that the path to peace can't be decided without Ukraine. Officials are investigating what triggered a deadly explosion at a U.S. steel plant near Pittsburgh. Two people died in yesterday morning's blast and at least 10 others were hurt. Claritin Coke Works converts coal to Coke a key component in the steelmaking process. The Clean Air Council is concerned about air quality since the explosion. Tom Pike is with the group.

The concern is for folks who have asthma or some kind of pre-existing condition and also for children. So children's lungs are smaller than an adult's lungs. It doesn't take as much particulate matter or pollution to cause problems. The Allegheny County Health Department lifted its stay indoors advisory for people living near the plant. This is NPR News in Washington. Health officials in Wyoming are tracking down visitors from 38 states and seven countries after hundreds of people were potentially exposed to rabies at a hotel in Grand Teton National Park. Jenna McMurtry reports.

At least 200 people who stayed at Jackson Lake Lodge may have been exposed to rabies from a suspected bat colony at the hotel. The hotel has closed eight rooms after eight reported run-ins with bats since. June. If left untreated, rabies is almost always fatal. State health officer Alexia Harris What we're really concerned about certainly people who have had actual physical contact with bats because the way that rabies is spread is through the bat's saliva. The hotel is scheduled to host the Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium next week. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is expected to speak. For NPR News, I'm Jenna McMurtry and Jackson, Wyoming. Authorities in Greece say they found nearly 600 pounds of cocaine in a shipment of bananas from Ecuador after a tip.

Police opened the container that was already loaded from a ship onto a truck, and the packets came tumbling out, and this is not the first such case. Summer's dazzling Perseid's meteor shower peaks tonight into tomorrow morning. It may not be as visible as in recent years, though, because the moon will be really bright, and that makes it harder to see the bright fireballs and long streaks of light and color that follow the meteors. The perciades are best viewed in the Northern Hemisphere during pre-dawn hours. Viewing does last until August 23rd, so there's more time. I'm Kristen Wright, and this is NPR News from Washington. Support for