NPR News Now - NPR News: 08-24-2025 4PM EDT

Episode Date: August 24, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Noor Rahm. Two weeks after President Trump launched a federal takeover of Washington, D.C., he's looking to deploy the military in Chicago next, according to reporting by the Washington Post, which cites unidentified officials. NPR's Amy Held reports. Governor J.B. Pritzker says Trump is, quote, attempting to manufacture a crisis, and Illinois didn't ask for federal help. Trump declared a crime emergency in D.C. before. for stepping in. Friday, he indicated that's just the start. Chicago's a mess. You have an incompetent mayor, grossly incompetent, and we'll straighten that one out probably next. Mayor Brandon Johnson spoke Saturday in Chicago.

What's being painted by the federal government is false. Like in D.C., violent crime is down in Chicago. Same in New York City, where Trump says a federal crackdown will likely follow. All cities led by black Democrats. Trump has a lot more power over D.C., but presidents can federalize. state guards elsewhere in an emergency, like Trump did in L.A. in June. Amy Held and PR News. Multiple wildfires are burning in California. The Pickett Fire in Napa Valley has burned more than 6,800 acres since it began Thursday. It's now about 11% contained. Cal Fire spokesman Jason Clay says that's going in the right direction. We are making progress. The containment number, although it's coming up slow, it's showing signs of our improvement. Firefighters say that

The Gifford Fire in San Luis Obisbo in Santa Barbara is 95% contained. It began August 1st and has scorched more than 131,000 acres. Today is Independence Day in Ukraine, marking 34 years since the Ukrainian Parliament voted to reject being part of the Soviet Union. NPR's Polina Levineva reports this coincides with three and a half years since Russia's full-scale invasion. Ukraine's President Volodymer Zelensky congratulated Ukrainians on Independence Day from Maidan, the main square of the Ukrainian capital. In his video address, Zelensky said that Ukraine is fighting for a just peace and the right to determine its own future. Today, both the U.S. and Europe agree Ukraine hasn't yet fully won, but it will certainly not lose, he says.

Ukraine has secured its independence. It was 1991 when it declared independence from Soviet rule. Now, 34 years later, and days after President Trump declared a diplomatic breakthrough in his bid to get a peace deal done, ceasefire negotiations between Ukraine and Russia appear to have stalled. Polina Litvinov, NPR News. Israel continues its offensive in Gaza. Warplanes and tanks struck areas around Gaza City, which it says is one of the last major strongholds of Hamas. dozens of Palestinians were killed. This is NPR.

South Korean President E.J. Miong is heading to Washington for a summit tomorrow with President Trump. The two men are expected to work out the details of a trade agreement reached last month. In exchange for lower U.S. tariffs, South Korea has promised to invest $350 billion in the U.S. A new study in the journal Science Advances finds pollution from the production, and use of oil and gas in the U.S. has extensive health consequences. NPR's Alejandro Burundra reports. Fossil fuel production causes pollution in all stages of the process. One, drilling and extraction released noxious gases and sometimes carcinogens.

Two, storing gas and oil and transporting it moves pollution around. Three, refining it causes more dangerous pollution. And four, using it produces fine particles, nitrogen dioxide, and many other chemicals. Those pollutants are linked to a wide range of poor health outcomes, from asthma to cancer to to preterm birth and even to premature death. The new study adds up the health burden from all four stages. It finds some 90,000 early deaths a year can be linked to oil and gas pollution, and they're concentrated in communities of color.

Texas and California feel the most health impacts. Alejandro Burundah and PR News. Thousands of people are in the Withwinian Capital this weekend for the Corgi Race Vilnius. 120 teams from across Europe compete in group and solo racing for best costume and the mightiest voice. It culminates today with the World Corgi Meetup. Dogs in Lithuanian will be connected live with corgis in the U.S., Poland, and Ireland. This is NPR.