NPR News Now - NPR News: 08-21-2025 5AM EDT

Episode Date: August 21, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dave Mattingly. Hurricane Aaron continues to cause life-threatening surf and rip currents along the east coast of the U.S. Forecasters say Aaron is about 200 miles off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, moving to the north northeast, away from land. As Bruce Convizer reports, beachgoers are being advised to stay out of the Atlantic as far north as New England. More than a dozen beaches along New Jersey's 140-mile coastline will be closed today as Hurricane Aaron churns northward through the Atlantic Ocean. New York City beaches will also be closed. Wind-wipped waves create ideal conditions for deadly riptides. Rip tides are dangerous because it's very difficult for anyone caught in the current to get back to shore. Tropical storm force winds are expected

to batter area coastlines with tidal surges up to 10 feet. Coastal flooding and beach erosion seems likely. When the beaches will reopen is unclear, the worst-case scenario would have them closed through the weekend. For NPR News, I'm Bruce Convisor in Greenbrook, New Jersey. At the moment, Aaron remains a Category 2 hurricane with top sustained winds of 105 miles per hour. President Trump is applauding Republicans in the Texas State House for approving a new congressional map. The vote was 88 to 52 over the objections of Democratic lawmakers. The changes now head to the state Senate, which will take up the redrawn map later today. In a post on truth social, the president called the redistricting vote a big win. Gene Wu was chair of the Democratic caucus in the state

House. This is not over. We will continue fighting. Trump had urged Republicans in Texas to redraw the congressional map in an effort to help the GOP potentially flip up to five seats in next year's congressional midterm elections. Democrats in the state house originally left Texas, and to try to block a vote on the changes but return to Austin on Monday. The National Guard says the driver of a car was injured yesterday in Washington, D.C., when a military all-terrain armored vehicle collided with that car. Hundreds of Guard members are in the nation's capital as part of the president's effort to lower crime in the city, as NPR's Luke Garrett reports. A video circulating on social media shows a mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicle or MRAP involved in a crash in the district's capital

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.

This is NPR News from Washington. Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook says she's not stepping down amid pressure on social media from the president for her to do so. The head of the agency that regulates mortgage giants, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Bill Pulte, has accused Cook of committing mortgage fraud. Pulte says Cook claimed two primary residences in 2021 to secure more favorable,

mortgage terms. He wants the Justice Department to investigate. The White House is launching an official account on TikTok. As NPR's Bobby Allen reports, the move comes ahead of a new deadline for the video app to divest from its Chinese ownership. The White House joining TikTok marks the culmination of President Trump's complete reversal on the hit video service. He tried to ban the app in his first term, but then gave it credit with helping to drive young voters to the polls this past November. A law banning TikTok in the U.S. unless it breaks off from Beijing-based bite dance took effect earlier this year. Since then, the Trump administration has not enforced the law and instead has pushed off a sell-by-deadline three times. The next deadline is September 17th. Trump officials

say a deal with U.S. investors to take over a majority stake in the company will emerge by then, but if not, Trump could extend the deadline again. Bobby Allen and PR News. Scientists say it now appears less likely that Alaska's Mount Spur will experience an eruption. The Alaska Volcano Observatory reports the alert level for the volcano near Anchorage has been lowered. Scientists say Mount Spur is now quiet after months of activity that raise the possibility of an eruption. Wall Street futures are lower this morning. I'm Dave Mattingly in Washington.