NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-24-2025 11PM EDT

Episode Date: October 25, 2025

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This week on Consider This, ICE detained him for three days, and he's a U.S. citizen. Didn't say what I was charged with. They never told me I was being arrested. I asked for a lawyer. They just completely ignore it. What Democratic lawmakers say they will do in response. Plus, fact-checking, the president's claims about left-wing violence, whether it's truly rising. This week on Consider This, listen on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Wilman. The Pentagon is building up its military. military presence in the Caribbean as it continues to attack alleged drug vessels. And Piers's Tom Bowman has more. The aircraft carrier USS General Ford has been ordered to join the dozens of ships in aircraft that have already been deployed to the Caribbean. The Ford had been taking

part in a port visit in Croatia. In Pentagon spokesman, Sean Parnell, said the Ford will, quote, bolster U.S. capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt elicit actors and activities. It compromises safety and prosperity of the United States. U.S. forces have already carried out 10 strikes on alleged drug vessels in the region, resulting in more than 40 dead. Democrats and some Republicans have questioned President Trump's authority to order extrajudicial killings. Tom Bowman, NPR News.

Six people in Pennsylvania are facing criminal charges for allegedly turning in fraudulent voter registration forms ahead of last year's presidential election. As NPR's Hansi Lo Wong report, election officials say their verification systems caught the illegitimate forms, and they were not approved. Pennsylvania's state attorney general's office says the six-paid street canvassers now facing charges were not trying to sway any election or voter rolls for a specific political party or candidate. Instead, state prosecutors say they were trying to keep their jobs by meeting a quota with voter registration forms containing fake information. I saw multiple counties in the swing state flagged potential problems with thousands of voter registration forms dropped off on or close to the state's sign-up deadline. that led to baseless claims by President Trump than the Republican presidential candidate

that officials in a Pennsylvania County had uncovered fraudulent votes. County election officials say return registration forms were not approved unless information could be verified as being linked with the real person. On Zila Wong, NPR News. The government shutdown continues to disrupt flights across the country this weekend. And NPR's Joel Rose reports that pressure is mounting on air traffic controllers who were still working without pay. Flights have been delayed at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston. The FAA says that's because of a staffing shortage at the facility that manages arriving and departing traffic. It's the latest disruption at facilities that were already critically short of air traffic controllers before the shutdown.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy says those disruptions could get worse when next Tuesday's payday arrives and controllers receive no money. Their paycheck is going to be a big fat zero. The FAA has been able to pay air traffic control trainees at its academy in Oklahoma City so far, but Duffy says that funding could run out in a matter of weeks. Joel Rose, NPR News, Washington. It was a strong day on Wall Street today. The Dow Jones Industrial average closed up 472 points, up at 1.1% to 47,207. The NASDAQ closed up 263 points, and the S&P 500 was up by 53 points. You're listening to NPR News.

A new study suggests many urinary tract infections come from an unexpected source. Meat contaminated with the E. coli bacteria. And Pierre's Maria Godoy has more on that story. It's estimated that up to 60% of women will develop a UTI over their lifetime. And in recent years, evidence has been growing that some of these infections come from meat in our food supply. In the new study, researchers found that nearly one in five UTIs in a group of patients in Southern California were linked two E. coli strains detected in meat samples sold in grocery stores in the same area during a four-year period. The study found that turkey and chicken were most likely to test positive for E. coli.

The researchers say that while UTIs have long been considered a personal hygiene problem, the new findings suggest they're also a food safety problem. The research appears in the journal M. Bio. Maria Godoy, NPR News. Forecasters say Tropical Store Melissa could soon. strengthened into a powerful hurricane. Melissa is currently near stationary in the Caribbean, but could pass by Jamaica after it grows stronger. Catastrophic flooding and landslides are also expected in southwest Haiti in the coming days. Whether officials say Melissa could drop as much as 35 inches of rain on some parts of the region. Thailand's queen mother, Syracit, has died. She was 93 years old.

She supervised royal projects to help the rural poor, protect the environment, and preserve the traditional craftmaking of Thailand. The Royal Household Bureau says that she died after suffering from a blood infection since October 17th. I'm Dale Wilman, NPR News. Hi, it's Terry Gross, host of fresh air. I interviewed filmmaker Guillermo del Toro about his lifelong obsession with Frankenstein and his new adaptation in which the creature is tormented by eternal life. I'm a huge fan of death. I'm a groupie for death. You can find my interview on the Fresh Air podcast.