NPR News Now - NPR News: 08-26-2025 1PM EDT

Episode Date: August 26, 2025

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Here at Life Kit, we encourage you throughout life's big moments. But what about support for those smaller problems? Sometimes you just need a tiny pep talk. Like, for when your clothes don't fit. Or? For when you want to order delivery, but should cook. That's this week from NPR's Life Kit. Listen in the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.

Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. A federal judge has thrown out President Trump's lawsuit against Maryland's 15 federal judges over in order to block the immediate deportation of migrants who are challenging their removals. The judges rooted their position in constitutional tradition. An U.S. District Judge Thomas Cullen concurred in deciding to toss Trump's suit. Cullen was a Trump nominee in 2020. The debate over due process for migrants, whatever their status intensified earlier this year when Kilmar or Brego Garcia, was wrongfully deported from Maryland to his home country of El Salvador. Now charged with human smuggling of Brego Garcia is facing the threat of being deported to Uganda.

The governor of Illinois, J.B. Pritzker, is warning President Trump against sending National Guard troops to his state. He and others say it's not needed and would be illegal. During a meeting with his cabinet a short time ago, President Trump pushed back. So the line is that I'm a dictator, but I stop crying. So a lot of people say, you know, if that's the case, I'd rather have a dictator. But I'm not a dictator. I just know how to stop crime. And you would think that Illinois would have such a problem with crime, such a bad governor. He should be calling me and he should be saying, could you send over the troops, please? It's out of control. At President Trump's orders, hundreds of National Guard members from multiple states are deployed on the streets of Washington, D.C. He says it is to fight a surge in crime. But like other major cities,

D.C. says the statistics show overall violent crime in its city has actually fallen significantly. The Department of Transportation is threatening to withhold millions of dollars in federal funding from three Western states. NPR's Joel Rose reports a Trump administration accuses those states of failing to enforce English language requirements for truckers. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy says California, Washington, and New Mexico could lose tens of millions of dollars in federal funding unless they, adopt and enforce English language proficiency requirements for commercial drivers. DOT accuses those states of failing to disqualify drivers if they can't demonstrate English proficiency. The move comes after a deadly crash in Florida earlier this month, involving a driver who made an illegal U-turn on a highway. Federal officials say the driver who was born in India was in the U.S. illegally, though California officials say he had a work permit.

Duffy says California, Washington, and New Mexico have 30 days to comply. Joel Rose, NPR News, Washington. The president says he's firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, a Trump appointee has accused her of engaging in mortgage fraud. It is unclear if the president has the authority to fire Cook, she maintains he does not and she has vowed to fight her dismissal. The Dow is down slightly, three points. The S&Ps gained six points, and the NASDAQ is up slightly. This is NPR News. The United Kingdom is among a growing number of countries to condemn the Israeli strikes on Gaza's main hospital yesterday in which at least 22 people, including medics and journalists, were killed. NPR's Lauren Freire has more from London.

U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammie says he's horrified by Israel's attack on Nasser Hospital. He says civilians, health care workers, and journalists must be protected. And he called for an immediate ceasefire. Meanwhile, the U.K. government is evacuating critically. injured children from Gaza in the coming weeks, and has also approved entry for about 40 students in Gaza to come to British universities this fall on scholarship. Other countries, including Italy, Ireland and France have done the same, though France recently suspended its program after a Gazan student was accused of posting something anti-Semitic online.

Lauren Freyer and PR News London. Exercising with weighted vest is a growing trend on social media paid promoters promising certain health benefits it. So far, science doesn't seem to back up. Here's NPR's Katie Riddle. There aren't very many studies looking at the impact of exercising while wearing weighted vests. Those that do exist show some benefits, but it's hard to know if it's the exercise or the vests making the difference. Lauren Kalenso-Simple studies exercise science at McMaster University in Canada. She says weighted vests have been overhyped on social media. We're not going to see some of these benefits that are promised, like the bone density

muscle growth and fat loss. For people wanting to get stronger, she says targeted resistance training with weights is far more effective. Katie Riddle, NPR News. It's NPR. On the next through line from NPR. She becomes, for lack of a better word,

Tupperware Queen. It just never seemed to occur to her that her growth in any endeavor could be stunted because she happened to be a woman. The Tupperware tycoon, Brownie Wise. Listen to ThruLine in the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.