NPR News Now - NPR News: 09-04-2025 5AM EDT

Episode Date: September 4, 2025

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Hey, it's Rachel Martin. I'm the host of Wildcard from NPR. For a lot of my years as a radio host, silence sort of made me nervous. That pause before an answer, because you don't know what's going on on the other side of the mic. But these days, I love it. Hmm. Ah. Gosh. Give me a minute. Yeah, yeah. Think. Listen to the Wild Card podcast only from NPR.

Live from NPR News in Washington. I'm Dave Mattingley. The Trump administration is asking the U.S. Supreme Court for an expedited ruling on President Trump's sweeping tariffs and whether the president has the right to impose them under federal law. The administration is asking the High Court to reverse a ruling from a federal appeals court that determined the tariffs were illegal but left them in place until mid-October. Tariffs are the centerpiece of the president's trade policies. The Solicitor General is asking the Supreme Court to hear arguments in early November. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the Trump administration will continue to use military strikes to go after boats carrying illegal drugs to the U.S., as it did Tuesday, when a small vessel was destroyed off the coast of Venezuela. NPR's Michelle Kellerman says Rubio issued the warning during a trip to Mexico City.

Secretary Rubio says the military strike was meant to send a signal to those the U.S. considers narco-terrorists. Gone are the days that they might lose some of their cargo in an issue. interdiction, the president might decide to just blow them up as he did on Tuesday. We're not going to sit back anymore and watch these people sail up and down the Caribbean like a cruise ship. It's not going to happen. It's not going to happen anymore. He was speaking alongside his Mexican counterpart after signing an agreement to boost security cooperation to combat the drug trade and illegal migration. Mexican foreign minister Juan Ramon de la Fuente stressed that this cooperation is based on mutual respect for sovereignty

and territorial integrity. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, Mexico City. The White House says President Trump plans to speak with Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, today about the ongoing war with Russia. It's unclear when Trump will next speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin, though Trump said yesterday it would be within the next few days. Maryland's governor and the mayor of Baltimore say, like Chicago, they oppose the idea of President Trump deploying National Guard troops

to the city to combat crime. Scott Massione, with member station WIPR, says some residents of Baltimore took to the streets yesterday to voice their objections. Your national guard, not welcome here. Baltimore residents pulled together

an overnight protest after President Trump once again threatened to send the National Guard into the city, claiming it would lower crime. Karen McDonald was one of the protesters in the crowd. We all see the stats and the news about how crime has been decreasing over the past 30. years here in Baltimore. I think there are real strategies that are working. I don't think the National

Guard is going to solve anything that the city isn't already solving for itself. Trump's comments come as the city records historic decreases in violent crimes, including homicides. Last month, the city saw seven homicides, the lowest for that month in half a century. For NPR News, I'm Scott Masseoni in Baltimore. This is NPR News from Washington. Survivors of Maine's deadliest mass shooting and family members of those wounded and killed are suing the federal government. They argue the attack nearly two years ago was preventable and accused the U.S. Army of negligence. Patty White with Maine Public Radio reports. In October of 2023, Army reservist Robert Card walked into two separate businesses in Lewiston,

a bowling alley and then a bar, and used an assault rifle to kill, 18 people and injure 13 others. Attorney Travis Brennan, who represents the plaintiffs, says the U.S. Army knew months beforehand that Card had become delusional, had a hit list, and had threatened to commit a mass shooting. Despite every possible warning sign raised by Card's behavior, the Army failed at every turn to act. An internal investigation by the Army found that unit leaders took action to address

cards deteriorating mental health, but also acknowledged a series of failures. For NPR News, I'm Patty White in Lewiston, Maine. The last surviving child of author and Nobel laureate Ernest Hemingway has died. Patrick Hemingway was 97 years old. His grandson says he died at his home in Bozeman, Montana. There was no winning ticket for last night's Powerball lottery jackpot. The prize is now up to at least $1.7 billion for Saturday Night's drawing. It's the third largest jackpot in U.S. lottery history. The last time all six powerball numbers were matched was May 31st.

I'm Dave Mattingly, NPR News, in Washington. Jaws has been called The Perfect Movie, the first blockbuster, the film that changed why we go to the movies, but what does it still have to say 50 years later? We're bringing fresh eyes to the film, Lifeless Eyes, black eyes, like a doll's eyes, on Pop Culture Happy Hour. Listen on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcast. Podcasts.