NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-16-2025 9AM EDT

Episode Date: October 16, 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 Corva Coleman. The president of Venezuela is urging Americans to reduce.

object any aggression against his country. And Pierce Ada Peralta reports, President Trump says he has authorized CIA operations within Venezuela. Speaking to reporters, President Trump said the U.S. controls the sea, and they are now looking to strike land. The U.S. has deployed a destroyer and a cruiser, as well as some 10,000 U.S. troops to the Caribbean, saying they want to stop drugs from flowing north. In a speech in Caracas, Venezuela and President Nicolas Maduro said the U.S. was vilifying Venezuela in an attempt to topple his government. Say no to war in the Caribbean and in South America. Say yes to peace, Maduro said. Adaprata, in Pierre News, Mexico City.

Israeli-U.S. officials are pressuring Hamas to keep the terms of the Gaza ceasefire plan. And Pierre's Michelle Kellerman reports Hamas has handed over 10 bodies to Israel. The International Committee of the Red Cross has the grim task of taking bodies held by Hamas and returning them to Israel. The Israeli military says one that was handed over earlier this week was not an Israeli hostage. President Trump describes it as a gruesome process. There are areas where they're digging and they're finding a lot of bodies, then they have to separate the bodies.

You wouldn't believe this. The U.S. Central Command is urging Hamas to disarm quickly and stop shooting at innocent Palestinian civilians in Gaza. President Trump has said he wasn't bothered that Hamas has killed some of whom he calls gang members. Michelle Kellerman and PR News, the State Department. The federal government shutdown is more than two weeks old. The Senate holds another vote today on a spending measure that could end it, but the bill is expected to fail. President Trump's budget director, Russell Vote, says more than 10,000 federal workers could be laid off during the shutdown. But a federal judge in California has temporarily blocked more layoff.

As the shutdown wears on, food banks and other groups that serve military families are seeing a surge of new clients. From member station WHRO in Norfolk, Virginia, Steve Walsh has more. Armed Services YMCA operates 22 food banks near military installations. They have seen a 30% jump in demand in the last couple of weeks. Pantries have had to close early for the day because they have run out of food, says Doreen Okam, with the group. I mean, that's the reality of the fact is there are more people than there is food today. Groups that provide emergency loans to troops have also seen a surge. Even though troops did not miss a paycheck, anxiety over the possibility is forcing cutbacks.

Dawn Cutler with the Navy Marine Corps Relief Society points out that many military spouses have also been furloughed, cutting household income. For NPR news, I'm Steve Walsh. This is NPR. The U.S. Supreme Court appears poised to undercut a provision of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The case from Louisiana involves using race to redraw congressional districts. Justice Brett Kavana, who previously supported the provision, suggested that race-based remedies for voting should have a time limit. Election law experts suggest if the Supreme Court overturns the Voting Rights Act provision, Democrats could lose many seats in Congress. Americans are paying a lot more these days for everything, including health care.

Most working adults get their health insurance through their employers, and prices for those plans are surging. But as NPR's Maria Aspen reports, some lucky workers don't pay anything up front. Last year, the average employer paid more than $19,000 in premiums per worker for a family health insurance plan. That's according to the health policy nonprofit KFF. Employers don't have a lot of control over these costs, but they do control how much of them they pass on to workers, and some aren't passing any on. That can cost employers a lot of money, but companies that do this, like Boston Consulting Group, say it's worth the investment. Alicia Pittman is BCG's chief people officer. Healthy employees make for a productive workforce and also a place where our teams want to come to work every day.

And what's good for employees is ultimately also good for. for their employer. Maria Aspen, NPR News, New York. On Wall Street, in pre-market trading, Dow futures are up by more than 100 points. Nasdaq futures are up by more than 170. It's NPR.