NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-18-2025 12PM EST

Episode Date: November 18, 2025

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Hey, it's Ray from Car Talk. Are you tired of all the depth and thoughtful care that goes into NPR shows? Want some good old-fashioned goofing around and stumbling to figure out what's going on? Well, I've been taking occasional car questions again. You can hear them by signing up for NPR Plus, along with lots of other bonus content. Just go to plus.npr.org. Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. President Trump is extending a ceremonial welcome to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at a level of a state visit.

The last time MBS visited was in 2018, months before Saudi agents killed Washington Post columnist and critic Jamal Khashoggi. And U.S. intelligence later determined that Prince Muhammad had likely ordered the hit. Prince Muhammad has long denied involvement and for a time was considered an outcast by many world leaders. but he has since become a powerful influence. President Trump underscored that in his visit to Saudi Arabia in May. And today, both men are said to announce a series of packs ranging from critical minerals to defense. NPR's Aibatrawi reports on what Prince Mohammed is hoping to get from this visit. The biggest deal that's being eyed right now by Prince Mohammed bin Senman isn't actually more billions in weapons sales.

He has enough of those. What he wants is a U.S. guarantee against a range of threats in the region. and that means a coveted U.S. defense pact similar to the one Trump signed with Qatar recently after it was attacked by both Iran and Israel over the summer. And this is not a defense treaty, so it doesn't need Congress to approve it and it is less binding. But it does offer Saudi Arabia guarantees that the U.S. would use military measures if necessary to respond if it's attacked. NPR's Aibatrawi reporting. On Capitol Hill, the House is expected to vote this afternoon to compel the Justice Department to release all of its files on the late-sex offender. Jeffrey Epstein. Here's NPR's Barbara Sprint. Over the weekend, President Trump encouraged House Republicans to support a measure that would release all unclassified files related to Jeffrey Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. That's a major reversal for the president who's been encouraging Republicans to drop the matter. The administration has already released thousands of files to the House Oversight Committee, but there remain even more that haven't been made public. Should the House pass the measure, it's

fate is still not clear in the Senate. If it passes both chambers, the president says he'll sign it. Barbara Sprint and Peer News, the Capitol. The mayor of Raleigh, North Carolina, says immigration officials are now launching operations in her city. WUNC's Bradley George reports. Raleigh Mayor Janet Cowell says she doesn't know how long the operation will last. She says crime is down in North Carolina's capital city and a federal presence is not needed. In a statement, Cowell asks Raleigh Raleigh Rale. residents to, quote, remember our values and maintain peace and respect through any upcoming

challenges. Border Patrol and ICE agents began a sweep through Charlotte over the weekend. The Department of Homeland Security has said it's focusing on North Carolina because of what it calls sanctuary policies that it says limit cooperation between local authorities and immigration agents. Bradley George reporting, this is NPR News. new research finds drinking arsenic contaminated water can significantly raise the risk of death from some chronic diseases but as NPR's Jonathan Lambert reports reducing exposure can cut that risk in half even after years of drinking contaminated water across Bangladesh and many other countries parts of the soil can have very high levels of naturally occurring arsenic The element can leach into drinking water, which can cause all sorts of health problems, including cancer and heart disease.

And because it has no taste, people can drink it for years without knowing. Since 2000, researchers have been studying the health of over 10,000 people exposed in Bangladesh. They've also tried to limit the amount of arsenic people ingest by labeling contaminated wells and drilling safer ones. New research in the journal JAMA suggests such interventions can pay off. People whose exposure went from high to low levels had similar disease risk as those who never drank contaminated water. Jonathan Lambert, NPR News. Amazon Zoox's robo taxis will start giving free rides and parts of San Francisco as it attempts to compete with Waymo's progress in the arena of self-driving taxi service or ride-hailing service. The Amazon Zoox service is expected to be restricted to a handful of major neighborhoods.

It'll also be limited to people who put their names on a waiting list for those robo-taxies. About three months ago, the Amazon-owned company launched its first ride hailing service in Las Vegas. The Dow is down 476 points or more than 1 percent. It's NPR News. Listen to this podcast sponsor-free on Amazon Music with a prime membership or any podcast app by subscribing to NPR NewsNow Plus at plus. npr.org. That's plus.npr.org.