NPR News Now - NPR News: 08-28-2025 11AM EDT

Episode Date: August 28, 2025

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Sources and methods, the crown jewels of the intelligence community. Shorthand for, how do we know what's real? Who told us? If you have those answers, you're on the inside. And NPR wants to bring you there. From the Pentagon to the State Department to spy agencies, listen to understand what's really happening and what it means for you. Sources and Methods, the new national security podcast from NPR. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. Families across the nation are facing difficult conversations after yesterday's deadly shooting at a Catholic school in Minneapolis, the attack left students and parents shaken.

It's also renewing fears about school safety. Melissa Brimer is a clinical psychologist with the UCLA Duke National Center for Child Traumatic Stress. She spoke with NPR's Morning Edition about how caregivers can talk to children in the aftermath of school violence. Younger kids, bring it closer to home. They may wonder, could this happen at my school? And this is where we want to let them know that they're currently safe and help them to point out some of those safety measures that there are already in place at school. Wednesday's shooting at the Annunciation Catholic Church and school left two children dead, 17 others were injured. The suspect later died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Washington, D.C. says it's carrying out another count of its homeless population. NPR's Jennifer Lutton reports the aim is to find out where many of those displaced by a federal security surge have gone. Earlier this year, an estimated 800 people were living outside in D.C. The White House says federal agents have helped clear about 50 small homeless encampments.

Mayor Muriel Bowser says anecdotal reports suggest many of those displaced are scattered to other parts of the district. We want to know where they are so that we can connect them to services and get them to come inside. She says 81 more people have moved into city shelter beds, though it's not known from where. D.C.'s regular tally this year showed a drop in homelessness. The new count will include only those living outside. Bowser says her hope is to provide housing or shelter for everyone. Jennifer Levin and Pierre News, Washington. The California Supreme Court has rejected a Republican request.

to stop state officials from moving ahead with a special election ballot measure on redistricting. NPR's Hansi Lowong reports the legal fight stems from a push by President Trump to help Republicans keep control of Congress after next year's midterm elections. California Democratic officials are trying to offset a new congressional district map in Texas that could help Republicans win five more seats in the U.S. House representatives. So California is now planning to hold a special election in November to ask voters to allow the state to bypass its independent citizen redistricting commission and use a new lawmaker-drawn map that could give Democrats five more House seats.

Some California Republicans asked the state Supreme Court to remove that measure, arguing it violates the state's constitution. But the court has now denied that request. The Texas congressional map that President Trump requested now faces at least six lawsuits claiming it discriminates against black and Latino voters. Onzi-Lawang, NPR News. This is NPR News in Washington. Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook has filed a lawsuit against President Trump, who fired her this week on social media. Cook argues the move violates both her legal rights and the Federal Reserve Act.

The suit filed in Washington, D.C., also names the Federal Reserve Board and Chairman Jerome Powell as defendants. The EV Charging Company, ChargePoint, says it's launching a new line of ultra-fast vehicle chargers. NPR's Camilla Dominovsky reports faster charging has been a top priority for many would-be buyers of electric vehicles. Chargepoint says it can charge it up to 600 kilowatts for passenger vehicles. In the States, 350 kilowatts is considered hyper-fast. There are EVs sold in China that can charge at 600 kilowatts, but those cars aren't available in the U.S. At least not for now. ChargePoint says this new tech is all about the future of charging.

Chargepoint says the systems developed with the power management company Eaton can also deliver up to 3.75 megawatts for heavy-duty vehicles. Once again, overkill for today's vehicles, but they can also send power back to the power grid or a microgrid. Deliveries are slated to start next year. Camila Dominooski, NPR News. A faster fleet of Amtrak trains are running along the northeast corridor today. The rail company says the next-gen-gen-cellet trains can reach top speeds of up to 100,000. 60 miles per hour. That's 10 miles per hour faster than the current trains. I'm Windsor Johnston, and you're listening to NPR News from Washington. It's that time of gear again. Planet Money

Summer School is back. This semester with help from professors, policy experts, and yes, even a Nobel laureate, we're diving into how government and the economy mixed and asking the big questions like what role should government play in our economy? Does government intervention help? or hurt and how big should the government be? That's on Planet Money Summer School from NPR, wherever you get your podcasts.