Residents of Lewiston, Maine spent two days sheltering in place as authorities searched for the man suspected of fatally shooting 18 people and wounding 13 others. Law enforcement has a playbook for capturing fugitives. But Maine's rural setting, the nearby international border with Canada and the suspect's military training all complicate the search. NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with Kenneth Gray, who was a special agent with the FBI for 24 years, about what a search like this entails. Note: This e...
Oct 27, 2023•7 min
In Gaza doctors are operating without anesthesia. Fuel is running out. Food is running out. And trucks full of it can't get through — including those from the UN World Food Programme or WFP. NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Cindy McCain, the WFP's Executive Director, about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza which she calls "a complete catastrophe." Email us at [email protected] Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Oct 26, 2023•10 min
After three weeks of congressional paralysis, House Republicans have elected a new Speaker of the House: Mike Johnson of Louisiana. There's a pretty good chance you've never heard of him. He's kept a low profile since he was first elected in 2016. Here's what you should know: He's a conservative lawyer who opposes abortion and same sex marriage — and played a major role in attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. Johnson is one of Trump's biggest supporters in Congress. Now he's Hous...
Oct 26, 2023•8 min
During the brutal Hamas-led attack on Israel earlier this month, more than 1,400 Israelis were killed and more than 200 Israeli and foreign hostages were kidnapped. So far, Hamas has released just four hostages. The families of the remaining hostages fear that time may be running out to save their loved ones. Israeli airstrikes continue and a ground invasion into Gaza seems imminent. Experts say that would put the hostages in danger. NPR's Michele Kelemen speaks to host Juana Summers about the d...
Oct 24, 2023•11 min
The violence between Israel and Gaza is entering its third week. As the number of dead and wounded continues to rise, survivors of the October 7th attack by Hamas are still reeling from shock. And thousands of friends and family are left mourning loved ones and wondering how they'll pick up the pieces of their lives. The Natal helpline has existed for 25 years to help people experiencing PTSD from war. But for the last two weeks they have been in "emergency mode" and calls are surging. NPR's Ari...
Oct 23, 2023•11 min
Hockey season is underway and NPR followed one hopeful rookie dreaming of taking the ice for the Washington Capitals. NPR's Scott Detrow spends time at hockey training camp with goalie Mitchell Gibson. A note for our listeners. We want to hear from you about what you like and how we could improve. Please visit npr.org/fallsurvey to complete a short, anonymous survey. Email us at [email protected] . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Oct 22, 2023•13 min
Ever since Kevin McCarthy was ousted as Speaker of the House by only eight members of Congress, things have been pretty messy in the chamber. Ohio Republican Jim Jordan tried and failed to rally support for his nomination. After losing three ballots on the House floor and a secret Republican-only vote, he's out. Not having a speaker has essentially shut down the business of governing, and House Republicans have no consensus on a candidate. Host Scott Detrow speaks with NPR's Congressional Corres...
Oct 20, 2023•8 min
During his visit to Tel Aviv this week, President Biden reiterated a desire for peace between Israelis and Palestinians through the implementation of a two-state solution. For years, the idea of establishing a state for the Palestinian people and a state for the Israeli people has been a strategy that presidents - on both sides of the political aisle - have evoked as a framework for peace in the Middle East. With the unprecedented violence playing out between Israel and Hamas for many political ...
Oct 19, 2023•11 min
More than 60 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli-occupied West Bank in the days after Hamas' attack on southern Israel. Some of those deaths appear to be reprisal killings. NPR's Leila Fadel visited the village of Qusra in the West Bank where some of these killings have taken place. Email us at [email protected] . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Oct 18, 2023•14 min
At a military base south of Tel Aviv, Israeli soldiers and medical examiners are working around the clock to identify remains of hundreds of people killed in the Hamas attacks earlier this month. NPR's Ari Shapiro visited the base and spoke with those conducting the work about the challenges of identifying so many bodies. Email us at [email protected] Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Oct 17, 2023•12 min
Israel's military has ordered all residents of Gaza City and northern Gaza to evacuate to the southern end of the territory ahead of an expected ground invasion. Tens of thousands of Palestinians are struggling to evacuate - as closed borders hamper those efforts. Others refuse to leave the areas Israeli military forces say they will target. For Jordanian Palestinians who have family in the Gaza Strip their loved ones are just 90 miles away. But that distance can feel painfully close AND impossi...
Oct 16, 2023•12 min
It's been more than a week of war in Israel and Gaza, following Hamas attacks in southern Israel that left more than 1,300 Israelis dead. In response, Israeli air strikes in Gaza have killed more than 2,500 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials. The intense violence — and the prospect of more to come — is having a deep emotional impact on people who care about both Israelis and Palestinians. NPR's Scott Detrow speaks with Aziza Hasan, executive director of NewGround: A Muslim Jewish P...
Oct 15, 2023•10 min
How do you evacuate more than a million people across a cramped, urban bombed out territory and get them to safety — in just one day? In the lead up to a likely ground war invasion, Israel on Friday gave residents of Gaza an ultimatum: move to the southern end of the territory, or face the full force of the Israeli military as it plans to go after Hamas militants on the ground. Israel's government is intent on stamping out the Hamas militants who planned and carried out last week's attack that k...
Oct 13, 2023•16 min
Following the surprise attack launched by Hamas militants, hundreds of thousands of Israeli forces are gathering along the border of Gaza. All signs suggest an Israeli ground invasion of the Palestinian territory is imminent. The last time this happened was in 2014. NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with reporter Gregg Carlstrom, who covered that conflict, to hear what we might expect if Israel invades Gaza again in the coming days. Email us at [email protected] Learn more about sponsor message ...
Oct 12, 2023•10 min
Amazon is by far the U.S.'s largest online marketplace. But sellers say they're being squeezed out by higher fees and cheaper merchandise sold direct from Amazon itself. Email us at [email protected] Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Oct 11, 2023•12 min
Conflicts have broken out between Israel and Gaza several times over the years. But this past weekend saw Hamas launch a surprise attack unlike any other before. Hamas killed over a thousand people, took others hostage, and even assumed control of several Israeli communities. Israel's military was caught completely unaware. Now the Israeli military has laid siege to Gaza. Retaliatory Israeli air strikes have killed at least 800 Palestinians and displaced around 200 thousand people. They've cut o...
Oct 10, 2023•12 min
One of the main challenges to countering homelessness is to figure out who's most at-risk of losing their homes and getting them the resources they need. Now, in a first-of-its-kind experiment, Los Angeles is using artificial intelligence to help make those predictions and keep people in their homes. NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports on the program and meets people who are benefitting from this new use of AI technology. Email us at [email protected] . Learn more about sponsor message choices: pod...
Oct 09, 2023•10 min
The death toll rose in both Israel and Gaza as the Israeli military and Hamas militants battled for a second day on Sunday. The surprise multi-pronged attacks by Hamas against Israel have killed at least 700 people, according to Israeli media reports. Israel's response has included air strikes gainst targets in Gaza. At least 400 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian officials. Thousands are injured in both Gaza and Israel. Host Scott Detrow speaks with NPR correspondent Aya ...
Oct 08, 2023•12 min
Who doesn't love a lush, perfectly manicured grass lawn? It turns out, a lot of people are actively trying to get rid of their lawns, ripping out grass in favor of native plants, vegetables, and flowers to attract pollinators. As the realities of climate change become starker, more and more people are looking for ways to create environmentally friendly spaces. NPR's Scott Detrow talks with research ecologist Susannah Lerman with the United States Forest Service about the impact of grass lawns on...
Oct 06, 2023•15 min
In the 1980s the U.S. Army launched a recruiting drive around the slogan, "Be all you can be." They've relaunched the slogan now as the push is on to make up for a drop off in recruitment. The Army is having a hard time convincing potential recruits that the military is the best place to reach their full potential. Last year, the Army was 15,000 soldiers short of its recruiting goal. Army surveys have found that many potential recruits don't want to join because they fear getting wounded or kill...
Oct 05, 2023•11 min
It took just eight Republicans, voting with Democrats, to oust Kevin McCarthy from the House speakership. His removal may have been unprecedented, but for several years now the Republican caucus in the House of Representatives has been marked by chaos and unruliness. The job to lead them seems increasingly impossible. NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Rep. Matt Rosendale, of Montana, who was one of the eight Republicans to vote for McCarthy's removal. Co-host Juana Summers speaks with NPR Congressio...
Oct 05, 2023•11 min
The Supreme Court heard a case Tuesday that threatened the existence of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. NPR's Nina Totenberg reports on the legal arguments in a case brought by payday lenders against the watchdog agency. And NPR's Scott Horsley walks through the track record of the CFPB since its founding in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Email us at [email protected] . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Oct 03, 2023•13 min
Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had a tenure marked by a relentless series of challenges. He served through the U.S. withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and rising tensions with China. He also served under an American president with little regard for the norms that have historically separated politics from the U.S. military: Donald Trump. In an interview shortly before his retirement last weekend, NPR's Mary Louise Kelly asked Mill...
Oct 02, 2023•10 min
Not too long ago, crypto was being trumpeted as the next big thing. Celebrities were getting in on it, including Kim Kardashian, Matt Damon and Tom Brady. Now the former face of crypto, Sam Bankman-Fried, who ran the FTX exchange, is going on trial. He's accused of orchestrating one of the largest frauds in history. As his case gets underway it's as if the whole crypto industry is on trial. NPR's David Gura speaks with Bloomberg reporter Zeke Faux who wrote the book "Number Go Up: Inside Crypto'...
Oct 01, 2023•14 min
When the video game Mortal Kombat released in 1992, it took arcades — and later the American home — by storm. Thirty years on, the franchise is still going strong. NPR's Scott Detrow faces off against co-host Juana Summers in the latest version of the game, Mortal Kombat 1, and speaks with co-creator Ed Boon. Email us at [email protected] . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Sep 29, 2023•14 min
The federal government will shut down on October 1st if Congress doesn't pass funding legislation for the next fiscal year before then. That looks increasingly likely as House Republicans continue to hold out for deep spending cuts before agreeing to any deal to keep the government running. A shutdown could potentially affect millions of Americans, among them some of the country's most vulnerable people. Host Ari Shapiro speaks with a trio of NPR correspondents about the potential impact of a go...
Sep 28, 2023•10 min
The U.S. government and 17 states sued Amazon on Tuesday in a landmark case that could take down the tech giant. The Federal Trade Commission and a bipartisan group of state attorneys general say that Amazon is a monopolist that chokes competitors and raises costs for both sellers and shoppers. Lina Khan, the head of the Federal Trade Commission, has spent years arguing that a few big companies have too much control over corporate America. The new lawsuit against Amazon is the biggest test of th...
Sep 27, 2023•10 min
President Biden made history on Tuesday when he joined members of the United Auto Workers union on a picket line outside Detroit as they strike for better pay and benefits from the Big Three automakers. Biden is walking a political tightrope. He wants a better contract for workers–and to win union members' votes in battleground states. He also wants to support carmakers as they transition to a future of electric vehicles. NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Micheline Maynard, the author of The E...
Sep 26, 2023•14 min
146 days. That's how long it took for the WGA to reach a tentative agreement with major Hollywood studios. WGA leadership is scheduled to vote Tuesday on accepting the new three-year deal. They'll pass it on to the guild's entire membership for ratification. It will take longer for the WGA membership to learn the details and vote. While this is happening, actors are still on the picket line. SAG-AFTRA hasn't reached an agreement yet. Until then, writers say they will stand in solidarity with act...
Sep 25, 2023•9 min
As president Joe Biden's campaign for a second term gets underway, a slew of recent polls show that voters have concerns about his age. At the end of a second term, he would be 86 years old. The Republican frontrunner, former president Donald Trump, is just a few years younger. We wanted to check in with some voters who have first-hand experience with aging: seniors. So we headed to Pittsburgh and the surrounding suburbs, a pivotal region in a pivotal state in the 2024 race, and spoke with older...
Sep 24, 2023•12 min
