NPR News Now - NPR News: 09-06-2025 7AM EDT

Episode Date: September 6, 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 Giles Snyder. The South Korean government is expressing what it calls concern and regret over this week's huge immigration rate at a Hyundai plant in Georgia. Officials say 475 people were detained most of them, South Korean nationals. The rate at the plant, putting some top Georgia Republicans in an awkward spot, as Sam Greenglass Member Station WABE reports. Republican Governor Brian Kemp has pledged to make Georgia the electric mobility capital of the world, helping woo manufacturers of EVs and batteries with generous state incentives. The Hyundai plant is the largest economic development project in state history, with the South Korean company investing billions.

A spokesperson for the governor said the Georgia Department of Public Safety provided support to ICE, and, quote, all companies operating within the state must follow the laws of Georgia and our nation. The chair of the Democratic Party of Georgia called the arrest of some 475 people, quote, political grandstanding at the cost of Georgia. families, businesses, and livelihoods. For NPR news, I'm Sam Greenglass in Atlanta. Chicago is keeping watch for a potential surge by federal immigration agents this weekend and for National Guard troops to possibly be deployed. Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has said that additional immigration enforcement could start as soon as this weekend. President

Trump has repeatedly singled out Chicago after following his federal takeover of policing in Washington, D.C. Following the surge in D.C., grand juries in the nation's capital have been refusing to indict defendants at an unusually high pace, as NPR's Kerry Johnson reports. Over the past month, grand juries in D.C. have refused to issue indictments at least seven times. That almost never happens because prosecutors exercise unusual control over the proceedings. Kevin Flynn worked in the U.S. Attorney's Office for 35 years. He says leaders in the D.C. office now are not using their discretion. Cases that should never be brought because they're de minimis, irrelevant, inconsequential,

are being brought. The grand jury's refusal to indict on serious felony charges means sometimes defendants are charged with lesser misdemeanor crimes. U.S. Attorney Janine Piro says the system's broken on many levels, and some grand jurors have become politicized and are refusing to follow the law. Carrie Johnson, NPR News, Washington. Changes in federal vaccine guidance have some Democratic governors moving to issue their own recommendations informing alliances independent of the federal government. it's Governor Morahili. States have had to step forward basically into the breach and fill the void left by a gutted CDC and the dismantling of public health infrastructure at the federal

government level. And, you know, that's what's happening. Democratic governors in Washington, Oregon and California, banded together to establish vaccine recommendations. Colorado and Pennsylvania moved this week to make sure COVID-19 vaccines are available. This is NPR News. Defense Secretary Pete Hagseth is cheering President Trump's move to change the name of the Defense Department to the Department of War. This name change is not just about renaming. It's about restoring. Words matter. It's restoring, as you've guided us to, Mr. President, restoring the warrior ethos, restoring victory and clarity as an end state. The Pentagon was called the War Department until 1949 when it was changed to the Department of Defense following World War II. Historians say it was an effort to show the United States was focused on preventing conflict. By law, the president cannot officially change the name without congressional action.

Critics say the cost of the change could run into the tens of millions of dollars. The Trump administration says it will drop a Biden-era rule intended to compensate air traffic. travelers when flight disruptions are caused by the airlines. Imperial Rose reports on the move. The proposal from the Department of Transportation under then-President Biden would have required airlines to pay between $200 and $775, along with free meals, lodging, and re-bookings. It would have applied when domestic flights are disrupted by circumstances under the airline's control,

including mechanical problems and system outages. The airline industry sharply criticized the proposal, arguing it would drive up operating costs. An industry trade group welcomed the Trump administration's move to drop it. Similar protections for airline passengers have long been in place in Europe and elsewhere. Joel Rose, NPR News, Washington. And I'm Jail Snyder. This is NPR News from Washington.

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