NPR News Now - NPR News: 09-23-2025 8AM EDT

Episode Date: September 23, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Corvick Coleman. The UN General Assembly will open its annual meeting next hour. The UN Secretary General Antonio Gutierish is the first speaker. Later this morning, President Trump will address the gathering of world leaders and diplomats. Separately, the U.S. Secret Service says it has discovered a significant horde of equipment in the New York region, capable of both crippling phone systems and carrying out phone attacks. The Secret Service says this could be used to interrupt emergency. response communication and other communication links. The cash of equipment included 100,000

SIM cards. The Trump administration is blaming the common drug acetaminopin for increased cases of autism. Medical groups say there's no clear evidence showing a causal link. And P.R. Znell Greenfield Boyce reports the National Institutes of Health just awarded more than $50 million in research grants to explore the roots of autism. NIH Director J. Badacharya said the 13 new grants will help scientists consider the effect of environmental and medical factors, everything from nutrition to pollutants. For too long, it's been taboo to ask some questions for fear that scientific work might reveal a politically incorrect answer. He said past NIH research on autism has not given families the answers they want it. The NIH did, however, fund one very large study looking at acetaminopin use in pregnancy.

and the risk of autism. It analyzed data from more than 2 million children in Sweden and found no connection. Nell Greenfield-Boice, NPR News. The top Democratic leaders in Congress say that President Trump has agreed to meet with them at the White House this week. It's about a federal spending plan. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries have been demanding the meeting with Trump. If Congress doesn't pass a spending plan soon, The federal government will shut down next week. In Florida, closing arguments are set for today in the trial of Brian Ruth. He is charged with trying to assassinate Donald Trump last year during the presidential campaign.

NPR's Greg Allen reports that Ruth, who is representing himself in court, has pleaded not guilty. Ruth was arrested after a secret service agent as he spotted him holding a rifle near where Trump was golfing at its West Palm Beach Club in September. Ruth presented three witnesses Monday to defend himself. against charges that if convicted could carry a life sentence. Two were friends who testified to what he claimed is his peacefulness, gentleness, and nonviolence. The third, a former Marine sniper serving as an expert witness, did little to help Ruth's defense. He said the spot prosecutors called a sniper's hide just outside the golf club's fence, offered what he called a clear shot at the sixth hole where Trump was soon to arrive. Greg Allen, NPR News, Fort

Pierce, Florida. And you're listening to NPR News from Washington. Washington. The White House has strongly denied an MSNBC report that Border Tsar, Tom Homan, was recorded a year ago accepting a bag with $50,000 in cash. The report said this was part of an undercover FBI operation later shut down by Trump administration officials. NPR has not confirmed this reporting. White House spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt dismissed the report. Mr. Homan never took the $50,000 that you're referring to, so you should get your fact straight number one. Number two, this was another example of the weaponization of the Biden Department of Justice against one of President Trump's strongest and most vocal supporters in the

midst of a presidential campaign. MSNBC reports Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee say they plan to look into the matter. More packaged shrimp sold in grocery stores across the country are being recalled because of potential radioactive contamination. NPR's Giles Snyder has more. This new recall follows a safety alert issue by the Food and Drug Administration last month, and as part of an ongoing investigation of potential contamination of cooked and frozen shrimp imported from an Indonesian company. The FDA says the risk appears to be small. No illnesses have been reported, but the FDA says consumers should not eat the shrimp and either dispose of or return the product for a refund. The recall by Seattle-based Aquastar Corporation involves nearly 150

57,000 additional pounds of shrimp because of possible contamination by a radioactive isotope. Trial Snyder, NPR News. And you're listening to NPR News from Washington.