NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-19-2025 7PM EST

Episode Date: December 20, 2025

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This message comes from Subaru, celebrating the Subaru Share the Love event now through January 2nd. By year's end, Subaru and its retailers will have donated more than $350 million to charity. Subaru, more than a car company. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton. Police say the gunman behind Saturday's deadly campus shooting at Brown University also murdered an MIT professor two days later. The shooter was a 48-year-old former graduate student at Brown. Ocean State Media's David Wright says police were able to identify the suspect after a witness came forward. He described having seen a middle-aged man in a mask loitering in the bathroom of Barrison Holly.

That's the Brown Engineering Building. This was hours before the shooting took place in that same building. And something didn't sit right with him. And the man ran off. And John followed him. He told police that it was like cat and mouse. as he stalked him through the streets near the engineering building. At one point, the suspect approached a gray Nissan,

and a car of the same make and model had also been spotted in Brookline, Mass, where that MIT professor was murdered Tuesday. David Wright with Ocean State Media reporting. The Department of Defense is spending $2.6 billion meant for housing assistance on a bonus to troops. Steve Walsh of member station WHRO in Norfolk has the story. The White House is calling it the Warrior Dividend. 1.28 million active duty troops and 174,000 members of the reserves are in the process of receiving a one-time payment of $1,776.

President Trump says that the money is in honor of the country's 250th anniversary next year. The funds are actually from $2.9 billion set aside by Congress to supplement the money given troops to pay their rent or mortgage. According to a Defense Department official who was not authorized to speak publicly, the Defense Department says the $1,776 will arrive over the next few days. For NPR News, I'm Steve Walsh. President Trump is signed into law a measure that would provide benefits to families of firefighters killed by certain cancers. The Mountain West News Bureau's Murphy Woodhouse has the details.

The honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act was introduced by Democratic Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar, but received substantial bipartisan support. Now signed, it will provide federal line of duty death and disability benefits as well as education support to families of firefighters permanently disabled or killed by a long list of cancers. The one-time death or disability payment is roughly $460,000. It's a significant benefit, but I always caution it's the benefit no firefighter really wants. Edward Kelly heads the International Association of Firefighters Union, which strongly backed the legislation. In 2023, a World Health Organization body classified the exposures faced in the profession as carcinogenic.

For NPR news, I'm Murphy Woodhouse. State lawmakers across the U.S. are debating whether to adopt new federal tax breaks for tips and overtime. The Trump administration is urging states to do so. States embracing all of President Trump's tax cuts could offer significant savings to taxpayers, but they may also face financial strain. It's NPR. Erica Kirk, the CEO of Turning Point USA and widow of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, is endorsing J.D. Vance for president in 2008. Vance hasn't announced a run, but he leads

early surveys of potential Republican contenders. Charlie Kirk and Vance were close friends. Donuts have been part of holiday celebrations across various traditions for centuries. NPR's Chloe Veltman reports donut makers are seizing the opportunity to serve more customers from boutique purveyors of fried dough to major global chains. The San Francisco Bay Area-based Johnny Donuts sometimes sells out of its Christmassy offerings by lunchtime, including the bourbon, cream-filled and peppermint candy-topped varieties. Johnny's founder Craig Blum says jelly-filled Hanukkah donuts or Sufganiot

are his biggest holiday seller. It's unbelievable how many jelly donuts we sell during the holidays. Food historian Michael Crondle has written a book about donuts. He says other traditions have also. long-celebrated holidays with fried dough, though not always at this time of year. In the Muslim world, they were served particularly for Eid at the end of Ramadan. Crandall says the holidays provide a great excuse for the doughnut world to get creative with unusual flavors and designs. Chloe Valtman, NPR News.

The Kansas City Chiefs are close to moving from Arrowhead Stadium in Missouri to a new stadium in Kansas. The team has played in the stadium for over 50 years. Kansas is considering funding up to 70% of the project. Missouri risks losing another team after the NFL's Rams moved from St. Louis to Los Angeles. I'm Rylan Barton. You're listening to 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. Join millions of customers and visit Wise.com. T's and Cs apply.