NPR News Now - NPR News: 08-20-2025 11PM EDT

Episode Date: August 21, 2025

NPR News: 08-20-2025 11PM EDTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Stars, they're just like us. John Legend goes to CBS. Well, that's because he has his own skincare line. It was so exciting to actually go into one of those stores. We had the in-caps. Were you like, I don't want this locked up? John Legend is one of many stars riding the celebrity branding wave. He tells us about it on The Indicator from Planet Money.

Listen in the NPR app or wherever you got your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dan Roman. In Washington, D.C., a civilian is injured after one of the National Guard's armored vehicles was involved in a crash this morning. As NPR's Luke Garrett reports, Republican-led states continue to send National Guard troops to the nation's capital by the order of President Trump. A video circulating on social media shows a mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicle or MRAP involved in a crash in the district's Capitol Hill neighborhood. An official with the D.C. Joint Task Force confirms to NPR that the vehicle was part of a five-car. D.C. National Guard convoy. The city's fire department says one person was trapped in their vehicle after the crash and then taken to the hospital with minor injuries. Over the last two weeks,

hundreds of National Guard troops have descended into the nation's capital. President Trump ordered the deployment as part of his effort to make D.C. safer and more beautiful. D.C.'s violent crime rate has been dropping in the last two years, though it remains higher than some other large cities in the U.S. Luke Garrett, NPR News, Washington. Israeli troops have come under fire in a rare attack by more than a dozen. and militants in southern Gaza. Military officials say it may have been an attempt to abduct an Israeli soldier. NPR's Daniel Estrin has more from Tel Aviv.

Israel's military says more than 15 militants emerged from tunnel shafts near an Israeli outpost in southern Han Yunus. Israel says Gaza militants opened fire, launched anti-tank missile fire, and infiltrated the military post, severely wounding at least one soldier. The military says it killed most of the Gaza militants. Hamas says, its fighters, including a suicide bomber, killed Israeli soldiers. Israel has not commented on those claims. A suicide bombing would be a very rare Hamas tactic in the war. The military says it's

carrying out strikes on the edge of Gaza City and calling up more soldiers for a plan takeover of the city. As Israel weighs whether to accept a ceasefire proposal, Hamas has endorsed. Daniel Estrin NPR News, Tel Aviv. Hurricane Aaron is churning up high winds that closed beaches from the Carolinas to New York City. The outer bands of the big storm have reached North Carolina's outer banks. The state's governor, Josh Stein, says his state is still waiting on $100 million in money from FEMA from last year's Hurricane Helene, which did an estimated $60 billion in damage. The scale of these storms are massive, $60 billion in Western North Carolina from Hurricane Aline.

Those kind of resources don't exist in Western North Carolina to respond. Heck, our state two-year budget is $66 billion. So essentially we'd have to forego the entire two-year budget just to get Western North Carolina back to where it was before. The latest report from the National Hurricane Center says Erin is now paxing maximum sustained winds of 110 miles per hour. It is 215 miles southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, and moving northerly. You're listening to NPR News.

President Trump says, He says he intends to expand the administration's review of the Smithsonian Institution to museums around the country. As NPR's Anastasia T.C. Okas reports the museum leaders across the country say they're concerned. President Trump called museums, quote, the last remaining segment of woke. And the White House says he intends to, quote, start with the Smithsonian and then go from there. The U.S. has some 22,000 museums, including art museums, local historic houses, and botanical gardens. Many address topics like history, identity, and the environment, subjects that have become politically polarizing.

Patty Gerstenblith is a professor at DePaul University in Chicago and a specialist in museum law. Museums have a First Amendment right of expression. Artistic expression is protected by the First Amendment as another form of speech. But that doesn't necessarily mean that the federal government has to pay for that speech. Anastasait Silkas and Pierre News, New York. The Texas House of Representatives has approved a new congressional voting districts that would likely give Republicans an advantage in five districts in next year's midterm elections. The measure will now be sent to the state Senate for approval and eventually Governor Greg Abbott for his signature.

However, Democrats in California, including Governor Gavin Newsom, are pushing a similar plan in Sacramento that could net the Democrats five seats in the congressional rates in that state to counter the GOP effort in Texas. Texas Democrats are vowing they will file lawsuits against the redistricting plan. From Washington, you're listening to NPR News. This message comes from WISE, the app for using money around the globe. When you manage your money with WISE, you'll always get the mid-market exchange rate with no hidden fees. Join millions of customers and visit WISE.com. T's and Cs apply.