NPR News Now - NPR News: 08-25-2025 11PM EDT

Episode Date: August 26, 2025

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Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Wilman. Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker is expressing anger over a potential military deployment in Chicago. President Trump has hinted at taking such action. Alex Degman, a member station WBEZ, has our reports. Pritzker accused Trump of diminishing mental faculties as he stood alongside dozens of Illinois politicians, business, and religious leaders, railing against a plan they say is dangerous and unconstitutional. Trump hinted at a Chicago National Guard deployment, late last week, but seems to have taken a step back, saying Pritzker has not asked for help.

Pritzker says he's not going to. Instead, I say, Mr. President, do not come to Chicago. You are neither wanted here nor needed here. Trump could invoke the Insurrection Act that would give the military law enforcement authority, but Pritzker says there's no rebellion happening to justify that. For NPR news, I'm Alex Degman in Springfield, Illinois. Current and former employees of the Federal Emergency Management Agency say FEMA is not ready to respond to hurricanes and many other potential disasters. And as NPR's Rebecca Hersher reports, 181 people signed a letter to Congress that contained a warning.

The letter comes days before the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. In the wake of Katrina, Congress passed reforms to FEMA, including a requirement that the agency's director have emergency management experience. Now, a group of current and former FEMA employees says the Trump administration is undercutting the agency's readiness to respond to disasters. Among other concerns, they note that FEMA's current leader has no experience with disasters. In a statement, FEMA's acting press secretary Daniel Yargwes wrote that the administration is, quote, committed to ensuring FEMA delivers for the American people. Rebecca Hersher and PR News.

Two U.S. lawmakers visited Syria today and said they'll push ahead. head with legislation to lift sanctions on that country. And Paris, Michelle Kellerman, reports. Republican Congressman Joe Wilson of South Carolina says he was impressed by Syrian president, Ahmed al-Shara, a former jihadi fighter. He is a positive individual. He is dedicated to the people of Syria. He and Democratic Senator Gene Jeanne met with Syrians from various ethnic and religious

backgrounds to hear what kind of future they want. They want to see it unified, but they want to see that their rights are going to be protected. They want to feel safe and secure in the country. And they want the United States to lift the sanctions. She's sponsoring legislation in the Senate to do that while Wilson is doing the same in the House. Michelle Kellerman and PR News, the State Department. Health officials in Gaza say 20 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza today. Among the dead were five journalists. In a statement, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the airstrike a tragic mishap. You're listening to NPR News.

Ten structures, including at least four homes, have been destroyed by a wildfire that continues to burn across central Oregon at this hour. The flames are also threatening almost 4,000 other homes. Officials say the flat fire has burned across 34 square miles. It's now 15% contained. In California's Napa County, meanwhile, the picket fire is now 13% contained. An Air Force unit is lifting a nationwide pause on the use of the type of handgun that was involved in the shooting death of a Wyoming airman. As Wyoming Public Radio's Chris Clements reports, the move follows hundreds of lawsuits alleging the gun fired without a trigger pull and is wounded police and others across the country. Air Force Global Strike Command paused the use of the M18 pistol while it inspected them for flaws, stripping them from more than 33,000 personnel. That's after Airman Braden Levant died at F.E. Warren Air Force Base and Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Laura Lynn Scott, a spokesperson for Levant's unit, says they reviewed past M18 discharges by their airmen and found none were due to malfunctions, including the one in Levant's death, so they lifted the pause. If we had any concern about that not being the case, then we would not have resumed use with these. But she added, Levant's death is still under investigation. For NPR News, I'm Chris Clements. in Laramie. SpaceX has once again postponed the launch of its starship rocket. Its initial launch was scrubbed on Sunday after what officials said were ground problems. The latest attempt was halted because of cloudy weather today at the launch site in Texas.

SpaceX says it will try once again on Tuesday night. I'm Dale Wilman, 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 C's apply.