NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-25-2025 12AM EDT

Episode Date: October 25, 2025

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Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Wilman. President Trump is on his way to Malaysia. It's his first stop, a nearly week-long trip to the Indo-Pacific. He'll meet with heads of state in Kuala Lumpur as well as Japan and Korea. But the main focus is Trump's expected meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. NPR's Deepa Shivrim reports. Tensions have recently escalated between the U.S. and China on trade. It comes after Beijing further limited exports on rare earth minerals and metals, which are critical for the U.S. responded that he could further raise tariffs on Chinese goods by November 1st. It's the latest in months of back and forth on trade that have left the global economy on edge. Still, Trump said this week he expects to make a, quote, fantastic trade deal with Xi. The president will also attend the ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur, visit Tokyo, and attend the APEC summit in Guangzhou, Korea. Deepa Shiverum and PR News traveling with the president. The east wing of the White House is now gone, it's part of President Trump's remaking of what's often called the People's House

says he builds a massive ballroom on the White House grounds. Hempairs Tamara Keith says the construction is part of Trump's off-stated effort to remake the White House and the presidency in his image. Trump often talks about this as the golden age of America. Golden because he is back in office. He has an opulent ballroom at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and has long complained that the White House doesn't have a world-class ballroom. He says the ballroom he is building will be one of the most beautiful ballrooms anywhere in the world.

He sees this as a necessary element of displaying American greatness to the rest of the world. That's NPR's Tamara Keith with our report. President Trump's favorability among Hispanic adults has dropped since the beginning of the year. According to a new poll, 25% of Hispanic adults have a somewhat or very favorable view of Trump that's down from 44% in January. The AP Nork poll could be a problem for Republicans looking to strengthen support with the demographic in future elections. A federal appeals court decision allowing President Trump to send National Guard troops into Portland is now on pause. From Oregon Public Broadcasting, Dirk Vanderhart reports. On Monday, a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled President Trump could deploy National Guard troops to the city.

But on Friday, the Ninth Circuit froze that order until at least next next. Tuesday. The court said it needs more time to decide whether a larger group of judges should take up the case. The continuing legal battle over the president's authority to send in the guard began in late September. That's when Trump ordered 200 Oregon National Guard troops into Portland after months of protests outside a U.S. immigration and customs enforcement facility. To date, no National Guard troops have been deployed in the city. For NPR News, I'm Dirk Vanderhart in Portland. And you're listening to NPR News. The Justice Department now says it intends to deport Kilmar-Abrego-Garcia to the African nation of Liberia.

As NPR's Martin Kosti reports, Abrago-Garcia was illegally deported to his native El Salvador earlier this year, despite an immigration court's finding that he was in danger there. After Abrago-Garcia was returned to the U.S., the government charged him with human smuggling while also seeking to deport him to a third country. Now, in a filing, it says it wants to send him to Liberia, which it touts as a, quote, thriving democracy, where English is spoken and the capital is named after a U.S. President. The government says it has, quote, diplomatic assurances regarding the treatment of third country individuals, but doesn't provide specifics. Abringo Garcia's attorney, Simon Sandoval-Motionberg, says in a statement, quote, unless Liberia guarantees it will not re-deport Mr. Abrago Garcia to El Salvador, then sending him to Liberia, is no less unlawful than sending him directly to El Salvador a second time.

Martin Costi and PR News. Interpol announced Friday that a two-month operation in Latin America has uncovered more than 400 cases of environmental crime there. The investigations have led to 225 arrests for environmental crimes, as well as hundreds of new investigations into illegal logging, gold mining, and wildlife trafficking. The International Law Agency also said it has exposed. transnational roots run by organized crime that reached as far as Europe and Asia. All the stock indices closed up on Wall Street today.

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