NPR News Now - NPR News: 09-17-2025 4AM EDT

Episode Date: September 17, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shay Stevens. 22-year-old Tyler Robinson has been formally charged with murder and other counts in connection with the assassination of Charlie Kirk. As NPR's Odette Yousef reports, the motive for the slang remains unclear. The really new information came from text messages that Robinson allegedly exchanged with his roommate. Authorities say this individual was a male transitioning to. to female and that they had also been Robinson's romantic partner. Authorities also say this person has been fully cooperating with the investigation. But Gray shared information about a note that Robinson allegedly left behind for this roommate

saying, quote, I have the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I'm going to take it. And when his roommate asked after the killing, why Robinson had done it, Robinson texted, quote, I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can't be negotiated out. NPR's Odette Youssef reporting. In Minnesota, a Democrat has been elected to the seat, held by a former State House Speaker who was assassinated in June. The tales from Minnesota Public Radio's Claymasters. Democrat XP Lee defeated Republican Ruth Bittner in the Minneapolis suburb of Brooklyn Park. The outcome puts the Minnesota House in a tie with 67 Republicans and 67 Democrats. Lee fills the seat of former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman, who along with her husband, Mark, were gunned down in their home by a man posing as a police officer in the middle of the night.

The suspect charged in the killings is also accused of shooting State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, the same night. They survived. Democratic Governor Tim Walz is planning for a legislative special session to address gun violence following the Hortman murders and the mass shooting at a Minneapolis Catholic Church last month. For NPR News, I'm Clay Masters in St. Paul. President Trump is suing the New York Times for $15 billion, alleging the paper and its reporters have sullied his reputation. As NPR's David Fulkenflick reports, the suit is part of Trump's larger onslaught against the news media. Trump's legal team's filings say the Times and its reporters defamed him by publishing the claims of his former White House chief of staff that he

fit the definition of a fascist. By crediting producer Mark Burnett rather than Trump himself for the success of The Apprentice TV show, which Trump hosted, and by reporting that much of his business success was based on fraud. Some of the material was expanded into a book published by Penguin Random House called Lucky Loser. Trump has sued the book publisher, too. In separate statements, the New York Times Company and Penguin called the suit meritless and promised to stand by the reporting. Trump's lawyer secured matching $16 million settlements from the parent companies of ABC and CBS after suing those networks. David Fulkenflick and PR News. President Trump is in the United Kingdom today. It is his second state visit there. You're listening to NPR.

Electric vehicle maker Rivian has broken ground on a new plant in Georgia. It is the second in the U.S. From member station, W.A.B.E. Raul Bali reports it is also the latest plant to go to the U.S. south. With a 2,000-acre site behind him, Rivian CEO R.J. Scorange talked about building the plant that is projected to begin producing its new SUVs in 2028. Georgia's was something for us that was a very clear decision once we had looked at a number of different options and a number of different sites, just given how business-friendly the state is. Rivian does have challenges, including the future of a $6.6 billion federal loan granted in the final days of the Biden administration. Georgia is also home to Hyundai's meta plant for electric vehicles, but it has faced issues after an immigration rate earlier this month. For NPR News, I'm Raul Bally in Social Circle, Georgia.

Jerry Greenfeld says he's quit his post as brand ambassador of Ben and Jerry's, the ice cream company, that he co-founded with business partner Ben Cohen. Greenfield says he left because current owner Unilever is silencing the brand's social mission. He says a new division of Unilever called the Magnum Ice Cream Company will be spun off in November and include Ben and Jerry's. According to a spokesperson for Magnum, the company disagrees with Greenfield's point of view, Unilever, acquired Ben and Jerry's nearly 25 years ago. U.S. futures are virtually unchanged in after-hours trading on Wall Street as investors await word on fed interest rates. This is NPR News.