NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-24-2024 12AM EST

Episode Date: December 24, 2024

NPR News: 12-24-2024 12AM ESTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Announcer Support for this podcast and the following message come from Autograph Collection Hotels, with over 300 independent hotels around the world, each exactly like nothing else. Autograph Collection is part of the Marriott Bonvoy portfolio of hotel brands. Find the unforgettable at autographcollection.com. Shea Stevens Live from MPR News in Washington, I'm Shea Stevens. U.S. forces have launched a precision airstrike in the eastern Syrian province of Deir ez-Dur, killing two ISIS operatives and wounding a third.

U.S. Central Command says the attack occurred in an area that was formerly controlled by the Syrian regime and Russians. The airstrike is part of the CENTCOM's ongoing commitment by the U.S. and its partners in the region to disrupt and degrade terrorist activities. Three years after imposing a moratorium on federal executions, President Biden has commuted the death sentences of 37 federal inmates to life without parole.

As NPR's Deepa Sivaram reports, the move cannot be reversed and comes amid ongoing debate over criminal justice reform. It is something that Americans are pretty divided on, which is different than, you know, say a couple decades ago in the 1990s, about 80 percent of Americans supported capital punishment. Today, it's just about 53 percent.

And that really even declines further into a different divide when you look at opinions based on age. Younger Americans feel a lot more negatively about capital punishment compared to older Americans. So there are a lot of mixed opinions on this issue. Three federal inmates convicted of terrorism or hate crimes still face execution. A 150-foot portion of the Santa Cruz Wharf collapsed early Monday afternoon as heavy rains pounded California's coastline.

From member station KQED, Sydney Johnson has details from the Bay Area. Three people fell into the water when the wharf broke off around 1245 p.m. Two of them had to be rescued, according to the Santa Cruz Fire Department. The portion of the wharf that broke off was undergoing repairs from previous storm damage. The people who fell in included a Parks and Rec project manager and two contractors The portion of the wharf that broke off was undergoing repairs from previous storm damage. The people who fell in included a Parks and Rec project manager and two contractors working on the wharf recovery project, according to authorities. A restroom and construction equipment also toppled into the water during the collapse.

Here's Santa Cruz Mayor Fred Keeley at a press conference this afternoon warning residents to stay out of the water. I'm very concerned that we will lose additional portions of our municipal wharf. The wharf is currently closed until further notice. For NPR News, I'm Sydney Johnson in San Francisco. Nordstrom has announced a deal to return to private ownership. Details from NPR's Elina Seljuk. Nordstrom is over a century old.

It's a more upscale department store and it's been feeling lots of pressure from discount chains But also from brands selling directly to shoppers CEO Eric Nordstrom president Pete Nordstrom and the rest of the Nordstrom family have been trying to take the company private for years Public stock markets tend to demand constant growth which has been a struggle for most department stores Now the board of directors has finally approved a deal the family already owns about a third of the stock and will become the majority shareholder. Together with Mexico's Liverpool, the Nordstroms will buy all the shares for about four billion dollars. Plus they'll assume more than two billion dollars in company debt. This is NPR News. The container store is

seeking Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, citing a decline in sales and more than $243 million in debt. The move comes less than one week after Big Lots and Party City announced plans to close their stores. The container store says its bankruptcy filing will not affect customers. The chain has 102 locations across the United States and also sells items through its website. The Attorney General of Texas, Ken Paxton, has sued the NCAA for allowing transgender athletes to compete in women's sports. Details from Texas Public Radio's Marianne Navarro.

In the lawsuit, Paxton alleges the NCAA has engaged in misleading practices and falsely market sporting events that include transgender athletes as women's competition. Paxson says this violates the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. He requests the court prohibit the NCAA from allowing transgender athletes from competing in women's games in Texas or involving any Texas teams or to bar the agency from marketing these events as women's sports. I'm Marianna Barro in San Antonio. these events as women's sports. I'm Marianne Navarro in San Antonio. Matt Gaetz spent tens of thousands of dollars on drugs and sex while serving in Congress.

That's according to a report by the House Ethics Committee. The report finds that the Florida Republican had sex with a minor and accepted bribes linked to a 2018 trip to the Bahamas. Gaetz resigned from the House last month after being nominated to become the next U.S. Attorney General. He withdrew himself from consideration amid growing concerns and fallout over the scandal. Gates says he used to be a party guy but denies any wrongdoing. This is NPR News.