NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-19-2024 12AM EST

Episode Date: November 19, 2024

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shae Stevens. President-elect Donald Trump is tapping another Fox News contributor for his cabinet. NPR's Joel Rose reports that he's chosen former Congressman Sean Duffy to head the Department of Transportation. Trump announced the pick in a post on Truth Social, praising Sean Duffy as a respected voice and communicator. Duffy represented a district in his native Wisconsin in the House of Representatives for eight years.

He's worked as a contributor at Fox News since 2020 and hosted the bottom line on the Fox Business Network since 2023. Duffy's roots in the television business run deep. He appeared on MTV's The Real World in 1997 before going on to serve as a district attorney in Northern Wisconsin and then in Congress where he sat on the House Financial Services Committee and chaired the subcommittee on

oversight and investigations. This is the second time in as many weeks that President-elect Trump has chosen a Fox host to serve in his cabinet. Joel Rose, NPR News, Washington. House Democrats will hold leadership elections on Tuesday. NPR's Giles Snyder reports that the process is not likely to generate very much drama. Despite the party's failure to regain control of the House, Democrats are expected to keep New York Congressman Hakeem Jeffries in his job as House Minority Leader.

He doesn't face any opposition, and neither do his top two deputies, House Minority Whip Catherine Clark of Massachusetts and California's Pete Aguilar, the House Democratic Caucus Chair. But while the faces at the top are not likely to change, House Democrats do have a choice to make in a few down ballot races. The contest getting the most attention is the race to be chair of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee. Texas Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett has mounted a last-minute challenge to current chair Debbie Dingell of Michigan. Troye Snyder, NPR News. For the first time this year, people can now use an at-home

test to determine if they have the flu or COVID-19. More from NPR's Rob Stein. The Food and Drug Administration has given the green light to nine tests that people could buy at a drug store without a prescription to test themselves at home to see if they have COVID or the flu. Most of the tests work just like the home COVID tests people learn to use during the pandemic. But instead of just showing whether someone has COVID, the new tests can differentiate between COVID and the flu. The tests can even tell which kind of flu people have. That should help people decide with their doctors what precautions they should take and how to get treated. The tests cost about $15 each. Rob Stein, NPR News.

The group of 20 leading economies has produced a joint declaration addressing the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, fighting hunger and a global wealth tax. Argentina did not endorse the document after its negotiators challenged some of the language in the draft. Russian President Putin did not attend the summit, which concludes on Tuesday in Rio de Janeiro. This is NPR. A Wyoming judge has struck down the state's abortion law. The statute would have banned all abortions, including those using medication to end a pregnancy. Teton County District Judge Melissa Owen says the ban illegally violates women's rights.

Boeing says it plans to lay off more than 2,000 workers as part of a plan to unload debt. More than 400 of those workers have already been notified. Boeing announced last month that it would cut 10 percent of its workforce, or about 17,000 employees. The aircraft maker is grappling with safety issues, the ramifications of an eight-week-long strike by machinists, and lawsuits stemming from two fatal crashes involving its 737 MAX jets. Asheville, North Carolina has clean tap water again.

The city went weeks without water after Hurricane Helene hit the region in late September. Blue Ridge Public Radio's Laura Hackett has the story. It's been over 50 days since Asheville residents have had clean drinking water. After Helene caused severe damage to its water system and completely muddied the reservoir, the city struggled to put the pieces

back together. They have used everything from chemicals to industrial curtains to clean up the water. And now finally, the wait is over. Dena Larson is one of the many Asheville residents who is rejoicing over the news that clean water has returned. There are definitely tears of happiness much sooner than anyone expected. Larson says she hopes that water will help Asheville enter its next chapter of recovery and lead to the city's economy bouncing back. For NPR News, I'm Laura Hackett in Asheville, North Carolina.