NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-19-2025 12PM EST

Episode Date: November 19, 2025

NPR News: 11-19-2025 12PM ESTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janine Hurst. The Senate passed a bill forcing the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, sending the measure to President Trump's desk. Trump has said he'd sign it into law. NPR's Claudia Grisalys reports the plan drew near unanimous support in the Republican-led Congress. The Senate quickly approved the bill by voice vote after the plan drew near unanimous support in the House. of the year President Trump fought the release of the government records tied to the disgrace financier and convicted sex offender, but President Trump reversed his stance once the momentum shifted for passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act. The legislation directs the Justice Department to release the records within 30 days, allowing limited exceptions to withhold any information. The bill's authors Kentucky Republican Thomas Massey

and California Democrat Rocana warned the Trump Justice Department will face legal action if it does not fully comply. Claudio Rizalis, NPR News. Pope Leo is speaking out against the treatment of immigrants in the United States.

And peers Jason DeRose has more. Talking to reporters just outside Rome, Leo drew attention to a statement passed by U.S. bishops last week. The pontiff said violence against immigrants is troubling. We have to look for ways of treating people humanely, treating people with the dignity that they have. If people are in the United States illegally, there are ways to treat that.

There are courts. There's a system of justice. He pointed to immigrants in the U.S. who've lived what he called good lives in the country for decades. Leo said that while there are many problems in the U.S. immigration system, the protection of human dignity and national security are compatible. Jason DeRose, NPR News. Target issued a cautious forecast on holiday spending today. And Pierre Scott Horsley reports it's one of several clues investors are watching as they try to assess the strength of the U.S. economy. Discount retailer Target says customers are keeping a tight grip on their pocketbooks, with most of their spending devoted to food and other essentials.

Spending on discretionary items like home furnishings is down. Target reported a drop in same store sales for the most recent quarter and lowered its profit forecast. for the full year. A federal judge ruled Facebook's parent company does not have a monopoly in the social networking space. The decision means meta will not have to spin off its Instagram or WhatsApp features. And new figures from the Commerce Department show the nation's trade deficits shrank in August as higher tariffs took effect. That report, along with many others, was delayed by the government shutdown. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington. Wall Street's trading in mixed territory at this hour. The Dow is down 43 points. You're

listening to NPR News. New research suggests weight loss drugs, such as Wigovi and Zepbound, only work when they target a brain area that can cause nausea. And Pierce-John Hamilton reports from the Society for Neuroscience Meeting in California. About half the people who take these drugs feel queasy. That's because this class of drugs, called GLP1, affects an area of the brain stem known as the vomit center. So researchers did an experiment that kept the drug from reaching this brain area in mice. Warren Yakowicz of the University of Michigan says that kept the mice from feeling sick, but also meant they didn't lose weight.

And so it's very challenging, we think, right now, to be able to separate these side effects, like nausea, from GLP1's intended effects like weight loss. Even so, companies that sell GLP1 drugs are still trying to get rid of this side effect. It's a major reason many patients stop taking the medications. John Hamilton, NPR News. The federal judge in Texas is temporarily blocking a new state law that requires the Ten Commandments be displayed in public schools. Federal judges in separate cases block the law for 25 school districts in the states.

It comes in response to a lawsuit by families challenging the constitutionality of the law, claiming it violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. Similar laws in Arkansas and Louisiana have, have also been struck down by courts. Texas's Attorney General, Ken Paxton, has appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court. I'm Janine Herbst, and you're listening to NPR News from Washington.