NPR News: 03-16-2026 1PM EDT
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh.
What are the implications of the Iran war on global oil prices?
President Trump's calling on countries to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, where the Iran war's blockade on oil shipments is resulting in soaring gas prices in the U.S.
We strongly encourage other nations whose economies depend on the Strait far more than ours. You know, we get less than 1 percent of our oil from the Strait. And some countries get much more. Japan gets 95 percent. China gets 90 percent. Many of the Europeans get quite a bit. South Korea gets 35 percent. So we want them to come and help us with the straight.
President Trump's convening the Kennedy Center's Board of Trustees this afternoon. According to reports, this meeting involves a vote on plans to close the performing arts center for two years of renovations. Over the weekend, a federal judge ruled that Democratic Congresswoman Joyce Beatty of Ohio had to be given access to details of today's meeting and allowed to participate and register her opposition. President Trump will sign an executive order this afternoon launching a whole-of-government approach to tackling fraud. The president announced the effort in his State of the Union address last month. NPR's Deepa Shivaram reports.
Trump tasked Vice President J.D. Vance with overseeing the task force that will look into fraud on the federal and state level. In an interview with Fox News, White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt specifically mentioned tackling fraud in states like New York and California, both led by Democrats. We're going to turn every page to find and identify this fraud, to prosecute the individuals who are engaged in it. This will be, again, a whole-of-government effort. Vance has also been tasked with looking into fraud in Minnesota, another Democrat-led state. Last month, the administration suspended Medicaid payments to the state until they came up with a plan to tamp down on fraud. Deepa Shivaram, NPR News, the White House.
An Afghan man who served alongside U.S. forces has died in ICE custody. NPR's Quill Lawrence reports he was in the U.S. legally with a pending asylum claim.
Mohammad Nazir Pakhtiwal served alongside American special forces in Afghanistan, according to documents seen by NPR. He helped U.S. troops for over a decade. In 2021, Pakhtiwal fled Afghanistan with his family because the Taliban were threatening to kill Afghans who had collaborated with the U.S., Since then, Paktiwal had been living in Texas with his wife and six children. A family statement says last Friday he was taking his kids to school when federal agents in unmarked cars surrounded Paktiwal and drove him away. He complained of breathing problems and was given medical attention, according to a statement from ICE, but the next morning he was pronounced dead in a Dallas hospital. ICE says the cause of death is under investigation.
Quill Lawrence, NPR News.
At last check on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up more than 400 points. This is NPR News. President Trump announced today that his White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles, has been diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer. On Truth Social, Trump says while undergoing treatment, Wiles will continue to work, quote, virtually full-time at the White House. Wiles managed Trump's 2024 presidential comeback and is widely viewed as one of the president's most important political advisors. As the war with Iran goes on, prediction market bets on battle moves are also heating up. This is raising questions about insider trading in Washington. At least one senator is sounding the alarm saying Congress cannot police itself.
And PR's Luke Garrett reports.
Financial disclosure rules are clear. Lawmakers and staff must report stock bond and cryptocurrency earnings. But there are no specific rules for event contracts on prediction markets, says Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley, a Democrat. Nobody has said to me we're making these bets, but I'm confident that they are. Billions are wagered each week on prediction markets like Polymarket, where bets range from sports, elections to war.
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