NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-20-2024 7AM EST

Episode Date: December 20, 2024

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Live from NPR News in Washington, on Korova-Coleman, the House of Representatives has rejected a new last-minute spending plan to avert a federal government shutdown. Dozens of Republicans join nearly all the Democrats in voting against it. NPR's Asma Khalid reports the White House blasted the new spending plan as a, quote, giveaway for billionaires. The White House says President Biden supported an earlier version of the plan, a bipartisan deal to keep the government open. That deal was upended on Wednesday by President-elect Donald Trump and his close adviser Elon Musk,
Starting point is 00:00:34 who also happens to be the wealthiest person in the world. In a statement, White House Press Secretary Corrine Jean-Pierre said Republicans are doing the bidding of their billionaire benefactors at the expense of hardworking Americans and breaking their word to support a bipartisan agreement that would lower prescription drug costs and make it harder to offshore jobs to China. If Congress cannot reach a deal, the government will begin shutdown operations at midnight Friday. Asma Khalid, NPR News. The Teamsters Union has called strikes at seven Amazon facilities across the country.
Starting point is 00:01:08 The union wants the online retailer to come to the bargaining table to hammer out labor contracts. Some of the people who are striking work for Amazon, but others work for third-party companies. NPR's Andrea Hsu reports the company rejects the union's position. Amazon has called this a PR play on the part of the Teamsters. The company has disputed that the Teamsters even represents these thousands of workers. And part of the issue is those third-party drivers. Amazon says they're not company employees, but this has been a subject of litigation. The teamsters and federal labor
Starting point is 00:01:46 officials have argued that even though these drivers are not direct employees of Amazon, they only work for Amazon. Amazon controls their wages and their working conditions. NPR's Andrea Hsu reporting. Amazon says it doesn't expect delivery delays. Amazon is among NPR's financial supporters. A U.S. diplomatic delegation is in Damascus to hold talks with Syria's new interim government. It's the first official delegation of its kind since the U.S. closed its embassy in 2012. NPR's Hadil Al-Shelchi has more from Damascus. The U.S. State Department said that the diplomatic delegation traveling to Damascus will push what it called transition principles with Syria's interim leaders on how to build an
Starting point is 00:02:28 inclusive government. The militia which led opposition forces to topple the Assad regime is Heyat Tahrir al-Sham or HTS. It is designated a terrorist organization by the US. HTS is desperate to shed the title which severely restricts the amount of aid Syria would receive, money that it needs to rebuild the country. The delegation will also be looking for new information on the whereabouts of missing American journalist Austin Tice. Hadeel Alshalchi, NPR News, Damascus.
Starting point is 00:02:56 You're listening to NPR News from Washington. The White House says President Biden is moving to forgive more student loan debt. It's worth well over $4 billion. About 55,000 borrowers are eligible who are enrolled in an existing program called Public Service Loan Forgiveness. This is intended to support teachers, nurses, law enforcement officials, and more. It is supposed to erase loans after 10 years of work in government or nonprofit jobs. The Food and Drug Administration has new rules to determine which foods can be labeled as
Starting point is 00:03:30 healthy. NPR's Allison Aubrey reports the changes come at a time when diet-related diseases are a leading cause of disability and death in the U.S. If a food manufacturer wants to add a healthy claim on their label, the product must not contain too much saturated fat, added sugars or sodium. In addition, the product must contain certain amounts of at least one of the food groups included in the dietary guidelines. This includes beans, lean meats, fish, fruits and vegetables.
Starting point is 00:03:57 The FDA's Claudine Kavanagh says the new definition may help foster a healthy food supply. The healthy claim can be a real quick signal to help empower consumers. The FDA says diet-related conditions such as diabetes, obesity and heart disease contribute to America's status of having the lowest life expectancy among large, high-income countries. Allison Albrey, NPR News. Parts of Minnesota got very heavy snow yesterday. The Twin Cities, Minneapolis and St. Paul both declared snow emergencies. Some public schools were closed. More than half a foot of snow fell across parts of Minnesota.
Starting point is 00:04:35 I'm Korva Coleman, NPR News from Washington.

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