NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-17-2025 8AM EST

Episode Date: November 17, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Corva Coleman. President Trump has reversed course. He's telling Republican lawmakers to vote to demand the release of Justice Department files on late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Trump and his GOPie allies have resisted this for months, but a bipartisan group of House lawmakers has already collected enough support to force a vote on the release of the files. Any Farmer is a psychologist who testified about her abuse by Epstein and his partner, Gieland Maxwell. She is cautious about Trump's reversal. I think there's a healthy amount of skepticism amongst those of us who have been involved in this fight for a long time. You know, there have been so many efforts to, I'd say, politicize this and obfuscate the truth that I, you know, I hope that that is the case and that everyone's on the same page, that this would be the best thing for the American people. But, you know, I think that remains to be seen. She spoke to NPR's morning edition. President Trump is angry at Republican lawmakers in Indiana who have declined to move forward on redistricting.

Indiana Senate Republicans say they do not have enough votes. From member station WFIU, George Hale, has more. The Indiana General Assembly's 2026 legislative session opens this week, and one item not on the agenda is mid-cycle redistricting. Republican leaders called a special redistricting session last month, but announced Friday that they don't have the necessary support. Trump responded, writing on truth social, the president blamed, quote, weak Republicans for the country's problems and singled out two Indiana lawmakers as rhinos or Republicans in name

only. Hours later, State Senator Greg Goode said he'd been targeted in a swatting attack. Good didn't directly address Trump's criticism, but posted his statement about the incident on social media with the caption, Civility Please. For NPR News, I'm George Hale in Bloomington, Indiana. Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, are vowing to oppose any attempt to establish a Palestinian state. This comes ahead of a UN Security Council vote on a resolution for Gaza today. NPR's Kat Lonsdorff has more from Tel Aviv. Speaking at a government meeting, Netanyahu reiterated his stance against Palestinian independence. Our opposition to a Palestinian state on any territory has not changed whatsoever.

said. The UN Security Council is set to vote on a U.S. drafted resolution for an international stabilization force in Gaza as part of President Trump's 20-point peace plan that went into effect last month. Part of that resolution includes language that leaves the door open for Palestinian statehood, something insisted on by many of the countries expected to contribute troops to the stabilization force. Netanyahu and many Israeli leaders have long opposed statehood, saying it would be a reward for Hamas. Kat Lansdorf, NPR News, Tel Aviv. You're listening. to NPR. President Trump says the president of Venezuela has sent signals that he wants to talk to the

U.S. This comes as the U.S. has moved an aircraft carrier strike group into the Caribbean Sea, and it comes as the Pentagon says it has destroyed another boat in the eastern Pacific, claiming that it was involved in drug trafficking. A former pilot for Alaska Airlines will be sentenced today in federal court in Portland. Joseph Emerson pleaded guilty to nearly shutting down a passenger jets engines over Oregon two years ago. He says he was under the influence of hallucinogenic mushrooms. The plane landed safely. Emerson's lawyer says he wanted to take responsibility for his actions and has asked for probation. Prosecutors are asking for a year in prison. New research shows that as children get older, their brains become more attuned to the sounds of speech. NPR's John

Hamilton reports from the Society for Neuroscience meeting in San Diego. Researchers studied the brains of 51 children and young adults as they watched a movie clip that contained both music and dialogue. Liberty Hamilton of the University of California, Berkeley, says the brain response changed with age. As individuals get older, the brain is showing this emerging preference for speech over music. In young children, music and speech caused about the same level of response in the brain. But by adolescence, speech was getting much more attention. Hamilton says the research could explain why children with conditions, including ADHD, have more difficulty focusing on speech in a noisy environment.

John Hamilton, NPR News. And I'm Corva Coleman, NPR News in Washington.