Up First from NPR - Biden Cancer Diagnosis, Escalation In Gaza, Kentucky Storm Recovery

Episode Date: May 19, 2025

The diagnosis of prostate cancer for the former president comes just days ahead of the release of a book detailing questions about his mental fitness as president. Israel's military says troops are now operating in multiple points throughout Gaza strip, in an operation dubbed Gideon's Chariots. More than two dozen people are dead in Kentucky, Missouri and Virginia after tornadoes and storms over the weekend. Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.Today's episode of Up First was edited by Kevin Drew, Carrie Kahn, Anna Yukhananov, Ally Schweitzer, and Alice Woelfle. It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Arthur Laurent and our technical director is Zac Coleman.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

President Biden once championed an effort to cut cancer deaths in half. Now his office says he received his own cancer diagnosis. The news comes amid a widespread discussion of his fitness during this year's in office. I'm Steve Inskeep with Laila Fadl and this is Up First from NPR News. Israel has expanded its ground offensive in Gaza in an operation called Gideon's Chariots forcing Palestinians to flee again. Why now amid ceasefire talks? And recovery is underway after storms killed more than two dozen people in three states

over the weekend. Kentucky's governor says there's been an outpouring of help. And to each of those individuals looking at what used to be their home, that are wondering where they start, there's going to be a home, that are wondering where they start. There's gonna be a bunch of people that show up and say, start with me. Stay with us, we'll give you the news you need to start your day.

I'm Tanya Mosley, co-host of Fresh Air. At a time of sound bites and short attention spans, our show is all about the deep dive. We do long form interviews with people behind the best in film, books, TV, music, and journalism. Here our guests open up about their process and their lives in ways you've never heard before. Listen to the Fresh Air podcast from NPR and WHYY. We've all been there, running around the city, looking for a bathroom, but unable to find

one. Hello. Do you have a restroom we could use? A very simple free market solution is that we could just pay to use a bathroom, but we can't. On the Planet Money podcast, the story of how we once had thousands of pay toilets and why they got banned from Planet Money on NPR, wherever you get your podcasts. Great conversation makes for a great party. But how do you ask the questions that really make the room come alive?

Well, here at LifeKit, we've got you. What is a path you almost took but didn't? On our latest episode, how to ask the magical questions that'll make your party sparkle. Listen to the Life Kit podcast from NPR. Former President Biden has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and it has spread to his bones. The news from his office comes as new attention is focused on Biden's decline while in office. We're joined now by NPR senior White House correspondent, Tamara Keith, to discuss. Good morning, Tam. Good morning.

So, Tam, what do you know about the diagnosis? According to a statement from Biden's personal office, the cancer was detected after he experienced increasing urinary symptoms, and it has metastasized to his bones and is a more aggressive form of prostate cancer. The statement says, it appears to be hormone sensitive, which means there are options for effective management. And the former president and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in elderly men and Biden is 82 years old. He was the oldest president in US history and there has been this intense focus on his health for years now but especially after the disastrous debate performance

less than a year ago that performance that ultimately led to him dropping out of the race for president. And I want to talk more about that but before we get to that I mean reactions have been pouring in to this diagnosis or the news of this diagnosis. Any of them stand out to you? You know, President Trump, who spends a lot of time trashing Biden, was quite gracious writing on social media that he and the First Lady were saddened to hear about his diagnosis and wish Biden a fast and successful recovery. Former Vice President Kamala Harris posted, quote, I know he will face this challenge with the same strength, resilience and optimism that have

always defined his life and leadership. Now Tam, you talked about his decline while in office and the focus of that. And this is all happening in a week where there was already going to be a focus on the former president because of the release of a book about his health while in office, right? Yeah, the book is called Original Sin, written by CNN's Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson from Axios. And it alleges that Biden experienced both a physical and cognitive decline while in office, and that those closest to him covered it up. In an interview with NPR Scott Detro that will air on All Things Considered later today, Tapper said everyone loses their train of thought or forgets a name from time to time, but this was different.

We're talking about to the point of you are not able to have a conversation. You are not able to come up with data, information, knowledge, names that you should have at the ready. Including not recognizing George Clooney at a fundraiser. Biden on The View said the authors are wrong and there is nothing to sustain their claims. Now, the claims in this book, are there broader implications here about Biden's fitness while in office?

This is likely to be an extended and uncomfortable news cycle for Democrats who are trying to move on and restore trust with voters. Voters who made it clear they thought Biden was too old to run for reelection well before the Democratic establishment acknowledged it. But the midterm elections are more than 18 months away. The economy and President Trump's leadership are almost certainly going to be bigger issues than Joe Biden, who is already in the rearview mirror. And in a week where Republicans are trying to advance Trump's one big, beautiful bill, which includes both tax cuts and spending cuts, Democratic politicians would much rather

be talking about what's in that bill than rehashing the political tragedy of Joe Biden. And PR's Tamara Keith, thank you for joining us, Tam. You're welcome. Israel has launched a new ground offensive in Gaza. And Palestinians are fleeing bombardment. They report more than 100 people were killed on Sunday, including women and children. The intensified war comes at the same time that Israel and Hamas are holding new ceasefire negotiations and Israel says it will let some food and medicine back into Gaza after a blockade

of almost three months. NPR's Daniel Estrin is covering the story and he joins us now. Good morning, Daniel. Good morning, Leila. So a lot of big developments this weekend. And so let's just break them down one at a time. And let's start with the ground offensive. What do we know there?

Israel had been threatening to expand the war if a deal with Hamas was not reached by the time President Trump left the region late last week. And now that officially has begun. The operation is called Gideon's Chariots. It began Sunday. Just in the last few days, more than 100 people have been killed on average every day, according to Gaza health officials. NPR's Anas Baba is in Gaza City. He's been watching Palestinians flee this heavy bombardment from northern Gaza. They're flung by donkey cart and by foot. The people here, they look desperate, pale.

Some of them, they cannot even walk. You can see the children in front of me at the meantime. They are carrying pots and empty cans and roaming the streets. Anas spoke with one man who was fleeing, Wael Al-Kilani. An Atman described intense bombing and shelling. He said he was fleeing planes who were striking artillery fire tanks, Israeli military dropping flyers ordering evacuations from the area. The Israeli military spokesman says that unlike earlier in the war where troops were going

in and out of areas in Gaza, he says that any territory captured by Israel this time is going to remain under its control. Israel is threatening to gradually expand this new offensive until they reach a deal with Hamas to release hostages. So as you describe this intensifying of attacks, there's also news of ceasefire negotiations that began this weekend. Is there any hope these will be successful? There are positive signs I'm seeing, but it is still too soon to tell. I spoke to a person

briefed on the negotiations who did not have authorization to speak publicly, but offered some details on condition of anonymity and said that the talks between Hamas and Israel are advancing. They are discussing the details of what would possibly be a two-month ceasefire and around 10 Israeli hostages freed. They're discussing what kind of Palestinian prisoners would be released in exchange and negotiating international guarantees that Hamas is demanding. They want to see that this temporary ceasefire would include talks about a permanent end of the war. And the US says that it's actively engaged in these talks. And let's get to that blockade now. About nearly three months, Israel's now saying it's

decided to allow food and supplies back into Gaza. Is this a full lifting of that blockade? Well there had been a total ban on food and all supplies into Gaza for nearly three months to pressure Hamas to release hostages. Now Israeli officials say they are going to allow in a basic quantity of food to prevent starvation. Experts have been warning of looming famine. And Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been facing right-wing criticism in Israel about renewing this food. And he said, look, we would not be able to continue to have international support for

our offensive in Gaza if there is mass starvation. said, we're going to take control of Gaza. We need to do it in a way that they won't stop us. We're in PR's Daniel Estrin. Thank you, Daniel. You're welcome. More than two dozen are dead across Kentucky, Missouri, and Virginia after a storm sent tornadoes through these states over the weekend. The storm leaves behind a few questions, including these.

How will states manage the aftermath? And how much warning did people get after staff cuts at an office of the National Weather Service? Let's turn now to Justin Hicks, who's covering the story for Kentucky Public Radio. Justin, good morning. Hey, good morning, Leila. Can you give us a brief recap of what happened in Kentucky? Yeah.

So on Friday evening, just about all of Kentucky was bracing for this line of severe thunderstorms that were heading west to east, and we were all told to expect high winds, hail, maybe even tornadoes. Well, just about midnight, the National Weather Service now estimates there was a tornado with roughly 150 mile per hour winds that just tore through central Kentucky. Now, you're in London, Kentucky. What's the scene right now? How are people feeling?

Yeah. So while Main Street looks pretty normal, just about a five minute drive away, there's houses that are just turned over. That's where I found Matthew Belchercher and he was still in shock yesterday. After the tornado, he said he emerged to find that his house was mostly fine, but right across the street at this mobile home park, other homes had just disappeared into the wind. And yesterday some RVs were still wrapped around tree trunks. It was wild. We had a bunch of power lines. People were rushing to get out and we're driving through them. But we got very, very blessed considering that we are 15, 20 feet away from mass destruction.

And in Belcher says his neighborhood was told they may not have running water or power again for weeks. Because you could see all the light poles are just leaning or snapped in two. And meanwhile, everyone with damages have been scrambling to patch holes in their houses or get keepsakes removed Because the weather experts are telling us that another round of thunderstorms is coming tonight and Tuesday speaking of weather events There's been some reporting to about the local National Weather Service office having staffing cuts Thanks to these federal cost-saving measures What do we know about how that affected the office's ability to warn about the storm? measures. What do we know about how that affected the office's ability to warn about the storm?

So our Kentucky Public Radio team found that on quiet nights, the local office was closing from about 1 to 7 a.m. to conserve staff. But then on nights with bad weather, they are able to shift things around to make sure they are fully staffed. And so the office's lead meteorologist says they were fully staffed and they were prepared on Friday night. They said that they knew a tornado was possible and that the failure to notify people just isn't an option for them. Now you're in the midst of the destruction there in London and you've been talking to survivors and volunteers and looking at the wreckage. Were there any moments that stuck out to you? Yeah, so I spoke to this guy named Jake Cutchins.

He was there helping his girlfriend's family, the Carnes family, and they were all digging through what was left of the house after the tornado just blew the entire second story and the roof off. And so we sort of sat on the rubble of that second story with our feet dangling off the edge and we sort of watched this beautiful purple sunset over this totally decimated neighborhood. And sitting there, Cutchins just started un-reeling his thoughts. You know, the thing that they recovered the most

out of here was pictures. And somehow, every one of them stops and looks at a picture and smiles and laughs and they're telling stories. And it's, this is Appalachia's heart right here. And it's the coolest thing to just see it. So I think it's just little moments like that that really help put things in perspective

after such a big tragedy. Absolutely. That's Justin Hicks with Kentucky Public Radio. Justin, thank you for your reporting. Of course, thanks. And that's Up First for Monday, May 19th. I'm Leila Faldon. And I'm Steve Inskeep.

Thanks for waking up with NPR News. Your NPR News. Your NPR station is what makes Up First possible each morning. You support their work and when you do that you also support ours. Go to donate.npr.org slash up first. Today's episode of Up First was edited by Kevin Drew, Kary Kahn, Anna Yukhaninoff, Ali Schweitzer and Alice Wolbley. It was produced by Ziad Butch, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas.

We get engineering support from Arthur Lorenz and our technical director is Zach Coleman. Join us again tomorrow.