NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-28-2025 10PM EST

Episode Date: December 29, 2025

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Support for NPR and the following message come from the estate of Joan B. Kroc, whose bequest serves as an enduring investment in the future of public radio and seeks to help NPR produce programming that meets the highest standards of public service in journalism and cultural expression. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janine Hurst. President Trump and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy wrapped up a meeting they had at Trump's Mara Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida. today. Both leaders say they made progress as they discussed a peace proposal for the Russia's war in Ukraine. And peers Daniel Kerslaven reports. Zelensky and Trump said they agreed on several issues, but acknowledged that they're still discussing sticking points, like withdrawing troops from the Donbos region in eastern Ukraine, and also the fate of a Russian-occupied nuclear plant in southeastern Ukraine. When asked about how long it might take to come to a full agreement, Trump was non-committal. So if it went really well, you know, maybe a few weeks, and

And if it went poorly longer and if went really poorly, it's not going to happen. That would be a shame. Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin before the meeting and told reporters he would also talk to him after the meeting. Danielle Kurtzleben and PR News. The legal advocacy firm Democracy Forward is asking a federal whistleblower agency to investigate violations of the Hatch Act by the Trump administration. MPIRS Andrew Hsu has more.

The law is meant to ensure federal workers can do their job. jobs free from partisan political influence or coercion. Democracy Forward alleges the Trump administration violated the law in multiple ways during the government shutdown. They point to messaging on government websites and out-of-office email replies blaming Democrats for the shutdown, sometimes referring to them as the radical left. But it's unclear where the complaint will go. Earlier this year, President Trump fired the special counsel, who leads the agency that enforces the Hatch Act, and replaced him with one of his cabinet members. And in a press release, the Office of Special Counsel said 2025 has been one of the most productive and impactful years in its history.

Andrea Shue and PR News. A bomb cyclone over the Midwest and Great Lakes is fueling a mix of severe weather, including a winter storm during the busy holiday travel season. Imperial Kristen Wright reports this type of system builds fast and it usually means big amounts of snow and ice. The bomb cyclone is bringing a lot of snow to Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Places like Marquette in the Upper Peninsula could get a foot or more and blizzard white-out conditions. National Weather Service lead forecaster Bob Oravec says the bomb cyclone is impacting cities and towns in the Great Lakes with snow and more snow. At this time of year, the lakes are also not frozen yet. So you can actually have stronger lake effect snows.

And the lakes don't always freeze. Freezing rain is icing up roads in northern New England and New York State and down to New York City in surrounding areas, still digging out from a weekend snowstorm. And there's Arctic air. In North Platte, Nebraska and Fargo, North Dakota, wind chills are plunging way below zero. Kristen Wright, NPR News. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. On one of the busiest travel weeks of the year, people who use wheelchairs tell NPR, They expect to find repeated problems when they check into hotels. NPR's Joseph Shapiro has more.

It's been 35 years since the Americans with Disabilities Act became law and required hotels to be made accessible for people with disabilities. But 200 wheelchair users responding to an NPR survey say they run into repeated problems. Most common is that they reserve an accessible room, either online or with a phone call, When they show up, the room isn't available. Or they get the room that's called accessible, but it isn't. Maybe the shower is too small or the bed is too tall. These should be easy things to fix, but the problems continue.

An official for the hotel industry told NPR, it values disabled travelers and that hotels want to get things right. Joseph Shapiro, NPR News. At the weekend box office, Disney's Avatar, Fire, and Ash, took the top spot with an estimated $64 million in ticket sales. The James Cameron's sequel has made $542 million globally against a $400 million production budget. In second place, Disney's 3D animated Zootopia with $20 million. In third place, A24's Marty Supreme, the 1950s table tennis drama, a $17 million dollars, Rather, it stars Timothy Shalameh. I'm Janine Hirst, and you're listening to NPR News from Washington.

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