NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-15-2024 2AM EST

Episode Date: November 15, 2024

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Shae Stevens. Support for this podcast and the following message come from Autograph Collection Hotels, with over 300 independent hotels around the world, each exactly like nothing else. Autograph Collection is part of the Marriott Bonvoy portfolio of hotel brands. Find the unforgettable at autographcollection.com. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shea Stevens. Some Republicans on Capitol Hill are grappling with the nomination of former Congressman Matt Gates to lead the Justice Department.

Gates was investigated by DOJ a few years ago as part of a probe into alleged sex trafficking and illicit drug use. As NPR's Deirdre Walsh reports, some critics are seeking a report on the House Ethics Committee's probe that ended when Gates resigned on Wednesday. DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE

WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR's DEIDRE WALSH, NPR review along with things like an FBI background check. These are things they do for most nominees, all nominees. NPR's Deidre Walsh. The Republican National Committee is asking Pennsylvania's Supreme Court to stop the counting of certain mail-in ballots from the general election. As NPR's Hansi LeWong reports, the request comes amid a statewide recount of Pennsylvania's U.S. Senate race. There's a long-running legal debate over whether to count Pennsylvania mail-in ballots

that arrive on time, but in envelopes without the current date handwritten by the voter. State law requires a date, but it's an open question whether rejecting ballots for not having one violates Pennsylvania's constitution. Officials in Bucks County, a Philadelphia suburb, decided to count some 400 of what are often called undated or misstated

ballots. The Republican National Committee sued and asked the state's Supreme Court to weigh in. Joining in the lawsuit is David McCormick, the Republican whom the Associated Press has declared the winner of Pennsylvania's U.S. Senate race. Two years ago, during a primary recount, McCormick took the opposite position in court, arguing that undated and misstated ballots should be counted. Hansi Luang, NPR News.

Infowars has been sold at a bankruptcy auction. The proceeds will help pay families who want two defamation lawsuits against former Infowars owner Alex Jones, who spread lies about the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. NPR's Tovia Smith reports that Infowars is now owned by The Onion, a left-leaning satirical news outlet. No joke, The Onion says no price would be too high for Infowars' audience of quote malleable minds and for the chance to quash what The Onion calls Infowars' brainwashing and promotion of delusional paranoia.

Jones spent his last hours on the show ranting against a sale he says was rigged and vowing not to go down without a fight. We're going out like Vikings in the Info War with swords in our hands. The Sandy Hook Connecticut families gave up some of their proceeds from the sale to help boost the onions bid. They said the onion has done a public service to hinder Jones's ability to do more harm. Tovia Smith, NPR News. President Biden has begun a six-day trip to Latin America.

Biden is scheduled to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Gathering in Peru and then travel to Brazil for the Group of 20 Summit. This is NPR. SAG-AFTRA is now representing a new group of workers in Hollywood called intimacy coordinators. Those workers unanimously voted to join the union this week, as NPR's Mendeleet Del Barco reports. Mendeleet Del Barco On film and TV sets, intimacy coordinators choreograph sex scenes. They coach nude performers. They monitor closed sets and advocate for

actors. Saag-Aftra is the union that represents actors, among others. It says for the past five years, the union has been working with intimacy coordinators to create professional standards and protocols. Now, those behind-the-scenes workers will be represented by the union, which includes 160,000 actors, dancers, stunt performers, and broadcast journalists, including NPRs. The head of the union says the intimacy coordinators will soon negotiate their first contract with the major studios for protections and fair pay. Mandelit Del Barco, NPR News. An Israeli airstrike has killed at least 12 Lebanese rescue workers inside a civil defense

center in the eastern city of Belbeck. The attack occurred hours after the Syrian state news agency reported at least 15 people were killed in two Israeli airstrikes on targets in western Damascus. The Associated Press reported that a missile damaged a five-story building near the Syrian capital. Another attack reportedly targeted an office of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group. In Paris, authorities were on high alert Thursday as pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered ahead of a soccer match between France and Israel.

More than 4,000 police officers were deployed in wake of an anti-Semitic attack last week in Amsterdam. This is NPR News.