NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-01-2025 9PM EDT

Episode Date: October 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 Rylan Barton. The government shutdown standoff continues with the White House threatening to permanently fire thousands of workers, NPR's Mara Liason reports. The president has said that a lot of good can come from shutdowns. He says he may use, use this shutdown, which he blames on Democrats, as an excuse to take, quote, irreversible actions, such as cutting programs Democrats like and trimming the budget to a level he couldn't do any other way. In past shutdowns, government workers have been furloughed, but then return to work after the government

reopens. This time, the White House is talking about permanent layoffs. Press Secretary Caroline Levitt says no final decision about permanent layoffs has been made, but that, quote, we have to put a plan in place. Our Eliasson, NPR News, the White House. The government shutdown is already having an impact on the real estate industry, especially in Florida, in states where many lenders require homeowners to have flood insurance. NPR's Greg Allen reports the National Flood Insurance Program has stopped issuing new policies. More than 4.5 million homes in the U.S. are covered under the Federal Flood Insurance Program

with the largest number of them in Florida, Louisiana, and Texas. The program's authorization elapsed with the government's shutdown, which means no new or revised policies can be issued. Tim Wisehire, the president of the Florida Association of Realtors, says it's already holding up sales. People that are right now, maybe we're planning to close on their property tomorrow or next week, they will be delayed, and there's a risk that they're delayed. And in truth, it can have a ripple effect across the country. In the spring of 2010, when Congress allowed the program's authorization to lapse, the National Association of Realtors says it affected some 1,400 home sales every day. Greg Allen, NPR News, Miami. The Trump

Trump administration says it's halting billions of dollars in federal funding for transit projects in New York City over the state's diversity, equity, and inclusion policies, which it calls unconstitutional from member station WNYC, Stephen Nesson reports. New York State requires a percentage of the work on large projects go to minority and women-owned businesses. It's a practice used in states across the country that the Trump administration has assailed. Posting on X, Office of Management and Budget Director, Russell Vote, says, the administration is halting. $18 billion in funding that was earmarked for New York's 2nd Avenue subway extension into East Harlem, and the Hudson River train tunnels being built as part of the Gateway Program. Both of those projects were awarded funds under the Biden administration and work is underway. The announcement comes the same day the federal government shut down after New York's Democratic leaders,

Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries, refused to pass a new funding agreement. For NPR News, I'm Stephen Nesson in New York. In the Philippines, rescuers are using backhose and dogs to look for survivors and collapsed buildings after a magnitude 6.9 earthquake killed at least 72 people. The death toll is expected to rise. From Washington, you're listening to NPR News. The U.S. has agreed to allow South Koreans on short-term visas to help build industrial sites in America. That's according to Seoul's foreign ministry. The announcement comes after more than 300 South Koreans, were detained in a raid at a battery factory being built in Georgia. Penn America has a new list of the most frequently banned books in American schools. As NPR's Anastasia Zulchis reports, the dystopian novel A Clockwork Orange, tops the list. The Free Expression Advocates Group warns in a new report that book banning across the country has risen exponentially in the last two academic years.

In 2024-25, Penn America counted 6,870 bans. Florida, Texas, and Tennessee have the highest rates of book bans. Pan America says that although many bans take place at the local and state levels, the federal government has been using executive orders from President Trump, especially related to diversity, equity, and discussions of race and gender to remove books from schools on military bases. The Education Department has called complaints about book bans a hoax, saying the books aren't being banned, just removed.

Anesthesia Zilkus, NPR News, New York. Scientists have uncovered new types of organic molecules and icy geysers spouting from Saturn's moon Enceladus, bolstering the likelihood that the ocean world may harbor conditions suitable for life. Their findings are based on observations made by NASA's Cassini spacecraft during a 2008 flyby of the moon. Enceladus is one of 274 moons orbiting Saturn. From Washington, this is NPR News. This message comes from Snap Judgment. Their new series, A Tiny Plot, follows a group of homeless people in Oakland as they fight to create their own encampment, run by their own rules.

It's a bold experiment in freedom and community. Listen to Snap Judgment wherever you get your podcasts.