NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-02-2025 8PM EST

Episode Date: December 3, 2025

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This message comes from Bayer. Science is a rigorous process that requires questions, testing, transparency, and results that can be proven. This approach is integral to every breakthrough Bayer brings forward. Innovations that save lives and feed the world. Science Delivers.com Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Rylan Barton. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is defending the decision to strike an alleged drugboat in the Caribbean Sea for a second time, saying the fog of war influenced the call, and he did not see that there were survivors in the water.

Hegseth says he didn't make the call for the subsequent boat strikes pinning it on Admiral Frank Bradley. I watched that first strike lot. As you can imagine, at the Department of War, we got a lot of things to do. So I didn't stick around for the hour and two hours, whatever, where all the sensitive site exploitation digitally occurs. So I moved on to my next meeting. A couple of hours later, I learned that that commander had made the, which he had the complete, fleet authority to do. And by the way, Admiral Bradley made the correct decision to ultimately sink the boat and eliminate the threat. Lawmakers have opened investigations into precisely what Hegsseth ordered in his capacity as the Pentagon Chief. The Trump administration says the strikes are part of a counter-drug campaign that have left more than 80 dead in the

Caribbean and Eastern Pacific. President Trump says he'll be announcing his choice for a new Federal Reserve chair early next year. As NPR's Franco Ordonez reports, Trump says he's narrowed it down to one top candidate. President Trump told reporters at a cabinet meeting that his team is considered a number of candidates to replace the current Fed chair, Jerome Powell, who steps down next year. Trump said some of those were brought forward by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and others brought forward by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik. We probably look to 10 and we have it down to one. Trump says the pick won't be Bessent, though, but many market observers expect Trump to pick Kevin Hassett, the National Economic Council Director.

Trump has sought a more loyal chair after months of complaining about Powell. Hassett himself has played down suggestions that he's the leading candidate, but has said he'd be happy to serve. Franco, Ordonez, NPR News, the White House. The State Department is finalizing the layoffs that were announced earlier this year as part of Secretary of State Marco Rubio's reorganization. The American's Foreign Service Association is fighting the move, though, as NPRU. PR's Michelle Kellerman reports.

The American Foreign Service Association says it is appalled that the State Department decided to finalize the separation of foreign service members this Friday. It says the move, quote, flies in the face of the current funding law, which prohibits layoffs while the government is operating on a continuing resolution. The State Department argues that it has the right to do this because the reduction in force started well before the government shutdown. Officials cite legal opinions by the OMB's general. General Counsel. The union is pursuing legal action, saying the State Department has repeatedly

taken steps that have demoralized the workforce and calls this a new low. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, the State Department. The U.S. stock market held steadier today as bond yields and Bitcoin stabilized. This is NPR News from Washington. President Trump says National Guard troops will be deployed to New Orleans. During an immigration crackdown in the city, Louisiana Republican Governor Jeff Landry requested the deployment. Opponents argue that it is unwarranted, as cities like New Orleans have seen a steep drop in violent crime rates. Other Democratic-run cities with National Guard deployments include Chicago, Los Angeles, Memphis, and Portland, Oregon. A new study finds that a state rule in California protecting outdoor workers from heat has worked.

As NPR's Alejandra Burunda reports, that rule has likely prevented the heat deaths of dozens of workers in the state. each year. Only a handful of states in the country have any rules protecting workers from heat, but California has had one for outdoor workers since 2005. The state upped enforcement and closed loopholes for the rule in 2010 and 2015. And according to a new study in the journal health policy, it appears to be working. Lead author Adam Dean is at George Washington University. That means that California's heat standard likely prevents approximately 34 worker deaths per year compared to what we see in neighboring states without standards. Dean says that's important information for the federal occupational safety and health

administration to know. OSHA proposed a national heat rule in 2024 and is considering it now. Alejandro Burunda, NPR News. The Ada County Idaho Highway District has a new publicly named Snowplow, Taylor Drift. According to the Idaho statesman, it joins colleagues Control, Salt Delete, Snow Tato, the Big Laplowski, Scoop Dog, and Plowey McPowface. I'm Rylan Barton. This is NPR News from Washington. This message comes from Wise, the app for using money around the globe. When you manage your money with Wise, you'll always get the mid-market exchange rate with no hidden fees.

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