NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-03-2025 1PM EST

Episode Date: November 3, 2025

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Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. The Trump administration says it will restart federal food assistance with money from the Agriculture Department's contingency fund, but recipients will only get half of what they normally receive under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP. The administration announced its decision after two federal judges ruled the government acted unlawfully in freezing payments for the country's biggest and anti-hunger program. As NPR's Windsor Johnson reports, millions of people stand to be affected. The threat of missing SNAP benefits is sending a wave of anxiety through low-income families, many of whom already live on the edge. Mental health experts say the stress isn't just about food, it's about fear. Martha Wadsworth is a professor of psychology at Penn State University. She says the shutdown is re-traumatizing for people who've already endured poverty, displacement, and

instability. Increases stress, and we know stress has effects on the brain. And for kiddos who are hungry, who have food insecurity, it affects their sleep. It's hard to sleep when you're hungry. If benefits lapse, experts say it won't just be hunger, it will be a mental health crisis. Windsor Johnston NPR News, Washington. The government shutdown is the second longest in U.S. history. It entered its second month on Saturday. President Trump says he no longer plans to attend oral arguments in a tariffs case before the U.S. Supreme Court this Wednesday. At issue is whether he overstepped his authority when he imposed reciprocal tariffs on nearly every country in April. Trump says he thinks it's one of the most important decisions in the nation's history. Because without tariffs,

without our being able to use tariffs freely openly and in every way, we are really would suffered tremendously from a national security standpoint. Trump, speaking to reporters last evening as he was on a flight back to Washington, D.C., from Florida. The U.S. will not be conducting an underground test of a nuclear weapon anytime soon. That's according to the Secretary of Energy. NPR's Jeff Brumfield reports. His remarks came just days after President Trump mused about a return to nuclear testing. Speaking Sunday on Fox News, Energy Secretary Chris Wright, said that the U.S.

would test components of nuclear weapons, but it would. wouldn't set off a nuke. These are not nuclear explosions. These are what we call non-critical explosions. So you're testing all the other parts of a nuclear weapon. For decades, the U.S. has done such testing. Wright said upcoming tests would be part of a broader effort to modernize the nuclear arsenal, which is decades old.

The comments came just days after President Trump said he was ready to return to nuclear testing in response to actions by other nuclear powers. Jeff Brumfield, NPR News. The Dow is down nearly 200 points. It's NPR news. New York City's mayoral candidates are making their final pitches to voters on the eve of the election. 34-year-old Democratic Socialists are on Mamdani's been campaigning on making the city more affordable to live. Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is trying to make a comeback as an independent after resigning from office four years ago amid sexual harassment allegations.

And Republican Curtis Slewa, who founded the Crime Prevention Group, Guardian Angels, has been canvassing the streets, arguing he is the only law and order candidate worth supporting. During the COVID-19 pandemic, K-12 students started missing a lot more school. But recently, attendance rates in some states have been steadily improving. NPR's Kaden Mills reports on new research that might explain more. California, Maryland, and Connecticut are among the states highlighted. in a new report on chronic absenteeism. That's when K-12 students missed 10% or more of the school year. The report by the nonprofit Ed Trust credits those states for trying to address the root causes

of chronic absenteeism, including by investing in services like mental health supports and at-home visits. Carl Fulton III with Ed Trust authored the report. We need to prioritize investments and policies that focus on engaging students and families and making sure that they get the support that they need to show up daily. Felton says that's the proven way to get student attendance rates back up. Kaden Mills, NPR News. The Dow is down 189 points.

The NASDAQ has picked up 173. The SMPs gained 21. It's NPR News.