NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-07-2025 7PM EDT

Episode Date: October 7, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Rylan Barton. President Trump says he's going to follow the law when it comes to furloughed federal workers getting back pay when the government shutdown ends. But as NPR's Deepa Chivaram reports, the administration argues that doesn't necessarily mean all workers will be paid. A law from 2019 signed by President Trump in his first term stipulates that all federal workers whose paychecks are paused during a government shutdown will receive the pay they've missed. But this time around when Trump was asked whether furloughed workers should be paid. But it really depends on who you're talking about. But for the most part, we're going to take care of our people. There are some people that really don't deserve to be taken care of,

and we'll take care of them in a different way. Trump's comments come on the heels of a draft memo from the White House that suggests that any back pay would require congressional action. Deepa Chivaram, NPR News, the White House. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries says President Trump has no legal authority to refuse back pay for furloughed federal workers and said Democrats would fight to make sure payments are made. Every single furloughed federal employee is entitled to back pay.

Period. Full stop. The law is clear. And we will make sure that that law is followed. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson says he wants federal workers to receive back pay, but also says payments could be withheld if the White House wants to do so. The Democratic governors of California and Illinois, are threatening to leave the Bipartisan National Governors Association.

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker and California Governor Gavin Newsom are criticizing the group for being silent on President Trump's deployment of National Guard troops across state lines. The group advocates for issues that governors are supposed to find common ground on. About 47 million Americans are food insecure, and as federal food funding cuts roll out, more and more people are turning to food pantries for help. But Elaine Appleton Grant reports, funding isn't there, only challenge their labor force is fragile. At neighbor's cupboard, a food pantry in rural Winterport, Maine, Phyllis Allen has watched USDA food supplies declining just as demand is

increasing. Alan's 78 years old. She's been helping to run the pantry for 17 years. I'm not the oldest. Who's the oldest? One is 88. The other one I think is 89. The volunteers who keep America's food insecure families fed are aging out. Anti-hunger, Advocates are expecting unprecedented demand this winter as cuts to snap take effect. But the labor force might not be up to the task. Volunteerism has been declining for the last 20 years. Younger volunteers strapped for time are hard to find. For NPR News, I'm Elaine Appleton Grant in Belfast, Maine.

Wall Street's record-breaking rally ran out of steam today. The S&P 500 dipped four-tenths of a percent from its latest all-time high, breaking a seven-day winning streak. This is NPR News. Kentucky's Attorney General is suing the popular online gaming platform Roblox, saying it's become a, quote, playground for predators. Republican Attorney General Russell Coleman's lawsuit is the latest action alleging the site isn't doing enough to protect children. Coleman says the company needs to improve age verification, content filters, and parental notifications. Paleontologists say they've unearthed the oldest and most complete skeleton of a little-known group of dinosaurs. Ari Daniel reports. The researchers in southern Mongolia spotted something in the rock face

that looked like a perfectly polished jewel. It was a skull belonging to a new species of the oldest known Pachycephalosaur, a dinosaur with a domed head made of solid bone. This specimen was at least two years old when it died, revealing young animals already had fully developed domes. Whether they were battling it out for territory or mates is something we're not. entirely sure of, but whatever they were doing with those domes, they started practicing at a very young age. North Carolina State University paleontologist Lindsay Zano says the discovery fills a crucial gap in the evolution of these dynos. For NPR news, I'm Marie Daniel. Norway's Crown Prince visited Minnesota today as part of a tour marking the 200th anniversary of organized immigration from

his homeland to the United States. The Upper Midwest has some of the largest concentrations of Scandinavian Americans, and Minnesota has well over 800,000 residents who claim Norwegian ancestry. That's more than any other state. Nearly five million North Americans have Norwegian roots. This is NPR News from Washington.