NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-22-2025 7PM EDT

Episode Date: October 22, 2025

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When someone you love is diagnosed with cancer or another serious illness, all you want to do is help. But where do you start? On the Life Kit podcast, we have tips for you. Your agenda should be, I'm going to be with you and be totally present to whatever comes up. Listen in the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts for different ways to offer support. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Rylan Barton. President Trump has expanded his interpretation of presidential powers during the government's shutdown. down. In just the last week, he paid some federal workers without congressional approval, and he

ramped up military strikes on what he calls drugboats. As NPR's Claudia Grisales explains, it's all raising questions, even among some Republicans. With co-equal branches of government, we should see Congress weigh in on these decisions, such as when to use military force or at least oversight. Lawmakers should have full control over how the government spends money, is outlined in the Constitution. Instead, we're seeing Trump unilaterally lead strikes on the these alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and issue paychecks to some federal workers when a shutdown means no payments should go out. I talked to Professor Stephen Bladdick of Georgetown University about how he would characterize this moment for Congress.

I think we've seen a radical collapse of congressional power. And we're also seeing Democrats speak out. They've been raising concerns about these moves on a daily basis. NPR's Claudia Grisales reporting, Israel and Hamas are exchanging the remains of dead bodies. The two sides are doing so as part of President Trump's ceasefire plan for Gaza. NPR's Anas Baba reports from Gaza, where 54 of the bodies handed over by Israel were buried today without identification or closure for families. Unlike the remains of Israeli hostages identified using DNA and medical records, the Palestinian corpses arrived with no names and no identifying data. Gaza's whole system, including lapse, has been decimated by war.

The Sunir al-Borch, head of Gaza's hospital, says many bodies showed signs of being crushed by tanks, skulls shattered, chests flattened. Israeli authorities have not responded to requests for comment. Now families are being shown graphic images of the bodies, hoping to recognize a missing loved one. They have just five days. After that, the remains are buried with no names, only serial numbers, like the 54 laid to rest in Gaza on Wednesday. Anas Baba and Pia News, Gaza. The Boring Company, owned by billionaire Elon Musk, has begun work on an underground tunnel in Nashville. Mariana Bakayahu of member station WPLN reports the work is moving forward without approval from local officials.

The Boring Company doesn't need local approval. The tunnel project traces a careful arc of state roads, meaning it doesn't need any sign-off from Democratic leaders in Nashville. Musk's company has worked almost exclusively with Tennessee Republicans to lease state land at no cost. State records show there were no environmental reviews done before the project was initiated, and geologists warned that Nashville's particular type of limestone means there's an increased potential for sinkholes to occur during tunnel work. For NPR News, I'm Mariana Baca Yao in Nashville. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. Roughly 33,000 metric tons of electronic trash from the U.S. are being shipped overseas each

month. It's creating what environmental group Basil Action Network calls a hidden tsunami of e-waste. Much of it goes to Southeast Asian countries where the waste is dismantled in unsafe scrapyards, where workers are exposed to toxic chemicals. The Trump administration wants the European Union to reconsider its climate regulations for natural gas imports. NPR's Jeff Brady reports EU countries are importing more gas from the U.S. to replace supplies that came from Russia before it invaded Ukraine. The European Union regulations. passed last year, require countries shipping gas to EU countries have a plan for eliminating climate pollution by 2050. That complies with Paris Climate Agreement, which the Trump

administration rejects and plans to exit. Energy Secretary Chris Wright co-authored a letter with Qatar's energy minister. Both countries are big gas exporters. They warned that if the EU doesn't abandon or revise the regulations, countries risk losing access to gas. This is part of the Trump administration's efforts to roll back former President Biden's climate initiatives and boost the fossil fuels that are heating the planet. Jeff Brady, NPR News. Spanish police have arrested seven people suspected of stealing more than 1,100 chairs from outdoor seating areas.

The group targeted 18 restaurants and bars around Madrid and over two months. They allegedly resold the chairs in Spain, Morocco, and Romania. Police estimate the stolen property is worth around $69,000. I'm Rylan Barton. This is NPR News from Washington. 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.