NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-22-2025 2PM EDT

Episode Date: October 22, 2025

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Hi, it's Terry Gross, host of Fresh Air. Hey, take a break from the 24-hour news cycle with us and listen to long-form interviews with your favorite authors, actors, actors, filmmakers, comedians, and musicians, the people making the art that nourishes us and speaks to our times. So listen to the Fresh Air podcast from NPR and WHYY. Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. North Carolina is now the latest state where a GOP-led legislature has

heated President Trump's call and passed a new congressional map that secures additional GOP seats ahead of next year's midterm election. Christopher Cooper, a political science professor at Western Carolina University, says North Carolina says the changes are small but critical in its impact on the power of black voters. It takes the first congressional district, which is represented by African American Democrat named Don Davis, moves it from being the most competitive district in the state and arguably the most competitive district in the United States. States South, essentially shuffle some of those Democratic voters and African-American voters into the third congressional district, which is represented by a guy named Greg Murphy, who's a Republican. So it makes Greg Murphy's district a little bluer, but certainly no threat to Republican reelection there, turns the first district into one that is more friendly towards Republicans, and at the same time drops the black voting age percentage in NC1 Davis's

district from 40% to 32%? Professor Cooper on NPR is here and now. Day 22 of the government shut down and still no sign of an agreement to reopen agencies. More than 700,000 furloughed workers are missing paychecks. Jenny, Abamu of Member Station WAMU, reports from a food distribution line in Maryland. Lines of federal workers waiting for food boxes wrapped around the grocery store and ends the neighborhood. The county is home to more than six. 60,000 federal workers. Jay, a furloughed federal employee who only wanted to use his first name out of fear of losing his job, says he has a one and a five-year-old at home.

Kids, they eat a lot. And then you try to get them stuff that's healthy as well. It's a lot on the parents. This is the first in a series of food drives. It started with 300 boxes for 150 families, but ran out halfway through distribution. Organizers say they're doubling the number of boxes for the rest of the week. For NPR News, I'm Jenny Abamu and Hyattsville, Maryland. As President J.D. Vance is leading a U.S. delegation in Israel to make sure the Israel Hamas ceasefire. President Trump recently brokered stays on course. NPRS. Frank Ordonez reports on ethics questions surrounding one of the key negotiators of the truth, Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner. The president's son-in-law and former chief advisor has used relationships developed during the first administration to secure some fruitful business opportunities. Daniel Shapiro, who was the ambassador to Israel during the Obama administration, says it's fair to question whether those

like Kushner should be doing diplomacy with countries they're also doing business with. I don't think there's any question that Jared Kushner's involvement in that critical phase given the relationships he has and given the experience he's had working with these governments previously helped

produce a result fairly quickly that brought about the good outcome. Shapiro says there are few lines between politics and business in the region, and that helped Kushner broker an agreement. It's NPR. The U.S. has carried out another strike on an alleged drug vessel, a U.S. official not authorized to speak publicly, tells NPR.

This operation took place on the Pacific side of South America. The previous six strikes said the administration asserts were involved in drug trafficking took place in the Caribbean. Ahead of the United Nations climate meeting in Brazil next month, a new report shows countries are not meeting goals to reduce methane pollution. NPR's Jeff Brady reports countries pledged to cut methane emissions by, 30% by 2030. The European Union and the U.S. launched the global methane pledge at the UN Glasgow climate meeting four years ago. 159 countries and the EU have signed on to it. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas and the second biggest contributor to heating the climate after carbon dioxide.

Scientists say it's responsible for about a third of the planet's warming. The UN Environment Programme report finds there has been progress in tracking methane pollution, about a third of methane emissions from oil and gas companies is now measured. The report also finds companies and governments are responding more often to an alert and response program. Still, nearly 90% of those alerts go unanswered. Jeff Brady, NPR News. Russia's testing its nuclear capabilities through military maneuvers today. The Kremlin's been holding drills after Russian President Vladimir Putin's Budapest meeting with President Trump was put on hold. Ukrainian president, Vladimir Zelensky, He returned to the White House in recent days seeking additional weaponry, including long-range tomahawk missiles.

It's NPR. 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. Thank you.