NPR News Now - NPR News: 09-01-2025 10PM EDT

Episode Date: September 2, 2025

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Support for NPR comes from NPR member stations and Eric and Wendy Schmidt through the Schmidt Family Foundation, working toward a healthy, resilient, secure world for all. On the web at theshmit.org. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Amy Held. Labor Day protests denouncing President Trump and supporting workers' rights brought out demonstrators across the U.S. Their goal to remind Americans of the power of the working class. NPR's Vanessa Romo reports it comes as new data show Trump's immigration policies are shrinking the nation's workforce. Immigrants make up nearly 20% of the nation's workforce. But after more than 50 years of rapid growth, that population is now in decline, and that's affecting the labor force. A 2025 Pew Research Center analysis of preliminary Census Bureau data showed more than 1.2 million immigrants left the U.S. labor force

between January and the end of July. That includes people who are here legally, as well as undocumented immigrants. Data for Mexico's central bank also shows remittances sent from the U.S. to Mexico are down by nearly 5 percent over July of last year. Vanessa Romo, NPR News. Lawmakers are back on Capitol Hill this week after an August recess that was marked by voter frustration. NPR's Claudia Grisales reports many constituents voiced concerns over the economy and other

hot-button issues at town hall meetings. Lawmakers faced blowback from constituents to address rising prices fueled in part by President Trump's tariffs and concerns that changes at the Federal Reserve could put further strain on the economy. Many also pushed back on Trump's signature bill passed this summer, concerned about cuts to Medicaid, and other government spending. However, the hardest job on tap for lawmakers may be averting a government shutdown tied to a September 30th deadline. Claudia Rizales, NPR News. More than 250 news outlets from around the world have signed onto an appeal, calling for the protection of Palestinian journalists in Gaza and for foreign press to be let in.

Israel's foreign ministry said the appeal shows the media's, quote, bias against Israel. NPR's Ayabitrawi reports the appeal says, 220 journalists have been killed by the Israeli army in Gaza in under two years of war. Many of the media outlets signed on are blacking out their front pages, or like NPR, are taking part by reporting on the appeal and the risks Palestinian journalists face in Gaza. A similar petition signed in June by the editors and chiefs of major news organizations noted that Israel's ban on independent access to Gaza is without precedent in modern warfare. Moreover, the Committee to Protect Journalists says August was the deadliest month ever recorded for journalists globally.

That's due to what Palestinians say is 15 journalists killed in Gaza in August alone. Last week, Israeli attacks killed five journalists at a hospital, including photographers for Reuters and the AP. Two more journalists were killed since then in other attacks. Aya Batrawi, NPR News, Dubai. This is NPR News. TSA is forecasting the busiest Labor Day weekend. record for U.S. airports with more than 17 million travelers. That would cap an already record-setting summer. At the same time, this summer's decline in foreign visitors to the U.S. is expected to go on.

The National Travel and Tourism Office says more than 3 million fewer international arrivals are expected in the first seven months of the year. The U.S. Postal Service is proposing to change its standards to clarify the meaning of a postmark date. As NPR's Hansi-Lowong reports, the change may come as a surprise to people who mail payments or who vote by mail. The date that's stamped on envelopes is sometimes used to determine whether a bill is paid on time or a mail and ballot gets counted. In a federal register notice, the U.S. Postal Service, which is a financial support of NPR, says it's proposing to change its domestic mail manual to say that postmark date, quote, does not inherently or necessarily align with the date a piece of mail was first accepted by a letter carrier or dropped off at a post office or collection box. USPS says it hasn't changed how it applies postmarks, which usually happens when its machines process first class mail.

What has changed is that because of a controversial reorganization plan, more parts of the country may not get their first class mail processed until the day after they're collected. To make sure a letter or package gets a postmark on the same day you mail it, USPS recommends asking for one at a post office. Onzi Luong and PR News. At the annual arts and music festival Burning Man, police say they're investigating the death of a man as a homicide. He was found this weekend in what police say. appears to be an isolated incident. Burning Man, which brings in tens of thousands of visitors to Nevada's Black Rock Desert, ends today. This is 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.