NPR News Now - NPR News: 08-12-2025 7AM EDT

Episode Date: August 12, 2025

NPR News: 08-12-2025 7AM EDTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

As AI permeates every aspect of our lives, who are the people behind this huge inflection point? What keeps them up at night? I fear that what it means to be human may suddenly not be our own. We've got a special series from NPR's TED Radio Hour. It's called The Prophets of Technology. What they got right, wrong, and where these pioneers think we're headed next. Listen to the TED Radio Hour, wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Kristen Wright.

European leaders are warning that President Trump's summit later this week with Russian President Vladimir Putin will not result in a pathway toward peace without involving Ukraine. NPR's Rob Schmidt's reports. German Chancellor Friedrich Mitz told public broadcaster ARD that Putin only acts when he's under pressure, but that military pressure is not enough. He said sanctions against Russia would have a bigger impact. In a video addressed to Ukrainians last night, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Putin only wants to present his meeting with Trump in Alaska as a personal victory in that he has no intention to cease military

operations in Ukraine. On the contrary, he said, Putin says Zelensky is redeploying Russian troops to prepare new offensive in the war. European leaders plan to hold a virtual summit with Trump tomorrow to discuss the pathway to peace in Ukraine. Rob Schwitz and Pierre News, Berlin. There are many questions about how federal control over Washington, D.C.'s police department will operate. President Trump declared a crime emergency and is deploying the National Guard. MPR's Tom Bowman spoke to an official who said they're still working out details. 800, D.C. Guard troops, and there will be 100 to 200 soldiers supporting law enforcement at any given time. Their duties will include administrative tasks, logistics, you know, transportation supplies, and finally,

quote, physical presence. So what does that mean in practice? We don't know yet. D.C.'s Home Rule Act allows for federal police control. over the district for up to 30 days. As Trump announced the deployment of the National Guard in D.C., a separate trial started in California over the administration's use of the National 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 is nominating a conservative economist to lead one of the federal government's top statistical agencies. NPR's Scott Horsley says it comes less than two weeks after Trump fired the previous agency head.

He did so hours after the Labor Department reported a weaker-than-expected employment numbers for the month of July. E.J. Anthony is an economist with the Right-Leaning Heritage Foundation. He previously worked for the Conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation. If confirmed by the Senate, Antony would oversee the agency that produces some of the most closely watched government data, including the monthly jobs report and the Consumer Price Index, which tracks in inflation. Trump fired the previous commissioner Erica McIntarfer earlier this month. After a much weaker than expected jobs report, the president insisted the numbers had been doctored to make him look bad, a claim that was widely dismissed by independent observers. The job is usually held by

apolitical technocrats. The choice of a partisan economist for the post is likely to raise more questions about the reliability of government economic data. Scott Horsley, MPR News, Washington. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. The U.S. and China will continue negotiating tariff rates for another 90 days. President Trump signed an executive order extending China's deadline yesterday. Meanwhile, in Brazil, the finance minister says the U.S. canceled scheduled trade talks between the two countries and isn't saying why or rescheduling. As NPR's Kerry Kahn reports, Brazil has been slapped with one of the highest tariffs by President Trump, 50%. Brazilian officials have complained about not being able to properly negotiate with the U.S.

Finance Minister Fernando Adage says a virtual meeting he had scheduled with the U.S. Treasury Secretary for Wednesday was canceled. The Treasury Department declined to comment. Hadaji told Global News TV that so-called pseudo-Brazilians are in Washington pushing for tough sanctions. Hadaji is referring to former President Jayir Bolsonaro-San Eduardo, a Brazilian congressman who has allies in the Trump administration. He's lobbied four sanctions and retaliation for the treatment of his father facing coup charges. President Trump has cited Bolsonaro's trial as reason for the 50% tariff. Kerry Kahn, NPR News, Rio de Janeiro. Ford is rolling out a new line of electric vehicles. The first, a more affordable electric mid-sized pickup truck at a price tag of around $30,000.

CEO, Jim Farley, calls the new pickup a Model T moment for the company. The Detroit automaker says the goal is to produce less expensive EVs and beat out the competition. Earlier this month, Ford delayed plans for a next generation of electric full-sized trucks and vans to shift to focus on this new mid-sized model. I'm Kristen Wright, and this is NPR News.