NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-02-2025 2AM EDT

Episode Date: October 2, 2025

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In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life. Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors. On our new show, Sources and Methods. NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people helping you understand why distant events matter here at home. Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shay Stevens. Vice President J.D. Vance is blaming Democrats for the government shutdown,

saying they want to provide free health care to unauthorized immigrants. NPR's Mar-Liason has more. The two sides are still far apart as the shutdown heads closer to a second day. Democrats say they won't vote to reopen the government unless the administration agrees to extend Obamacare subsidies for low-income individuals. Vice President Vance blames the Democrats. If you look at the legislative text that they gave us, They tried to turn on two separate provisions that would give health care benefits to illegal aliens.

In fact, Obamacare subsidies or Medicaid or Medicare are only available for those who do have legal status in the U.S. The exception is emergency rooms, which treat everyone regardless of immigration status. Mara Liason, NPR News, the White House. The mayor of Memphis says National Guard troops are not yet in the city. President Trump's federal intervention there will include more than a dozen other federal. federal officers. NPR's Kat Lonsdorf has more. Speaking at a town hall, Mayor Paul Young told residents there's still a lot he doesn't know about the federal operation. He said a number of agencies, including the FBI,

DEA, ATF, and U.S. Marshals are operating in Memphis right now. The National Guard is not one of them yet. We know that at some point they will come. Memphis police chief, C.J. Davis said troops are expected in the next two weeks, adding that there are still a lot of unknowns about the deployment. Everybody wants to know how many National Guard are coming? We don't know. U.S. Attorney General Pambondi says 53 people were arrested in the first 48 hours of the operation, which is expected to have a slow rollout and lasts for weeks, maybe months. Kat Lonsdorf, NPR News, Memphis.

Meanwhile, Governor Tina Kotech says President Trump broke a promise to speak with her before sending National Guard troops to Portland, Oregon. On Tuesday, troops have also been deployed to Los Angeles. and Washington, D.C., so far this year, to fight crime and to enforce immigration laws. President Trump has signed an executive order vowing to defend the Gulf Nation of Qatar from attack. Cutter's foreign minister calls the pledge an important step in strengthening the defense partnership with the U.S. It follows an apology from Israel for last month's deadly airstrike on Qatar, targeting a group of Hamas leaders meeting there to discuss a Gaza peace peace.

plan. The U.S. military is drawing down its mission against ISIS in Iraq. Under an agreement signed last year, U.S. troop presence in Iraq will be reduced to around 20 percent. A security official says the withdrawal began in two areas weeks ago. The U.S. drawdown comes weeks after the Trump administration said it would reduce U.S. troop presence in Syria. You're listening to NPR. Heavy rains have caused flooding in southern Ukraine from Kyiv, and NPR's Hannah Palomarinko reports that the storms have killed at least nine people in Odessa. Local residents posted videos from the street of Odessa in southern Ukraine. Streams of water knock people of their feet.

Debris is carried away by the current cars and buses are underwater. Local authorities reported that on the 30th of September, Odessa received almost two months' worse of rainfall in seven hours. Marina Averina is the spokeswoman for the state emergency service of Ukraine in Odessa region. She spoke during a telethon about the consequences of the flood. One of the most terrible things, she says, is that among the victims is a whole family of five who were unable to escape their flooded apartment. Averena also says the water has now started to recede.

Hannah Palomarenko, NPR News, Kiev. Walmart says it plans to remove synthetic dyes and other food additives from its store brands sold in the U.S. A change expected by 2027 could affect 1,000 products including power drinks and salty snacks. The announcement comes months after the Food and Drug Administration announced plans to remove petroleum-based dyes from the nation's food supply. U.S. futures are flat in after-hours trading on Wall Street following Wednesday's gains. civic markets, shares are higher, up 1% in Hong Kong and Tokyo. This is NPR News. I'm Rachel Martin. If you're tired of small talk, check out the Wild Card podcast.

I invite your favorite celebrities to open up about the big topics we all think about but rarely talk about. Tune in this fall to hear Matthew McConaughey, Shonda Rhymes, and Padma Lakshmi. Talk about everything from grief and God to ambition and forgiveness. Watch or listen on the NPR app, YouTube, or wherever you. you get your podcasts.