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NPR News Now

NPR News: 04-21-2026 8PM EDT

22 Apr 2026

Transcription

Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.

Chapter 1: What recent developments occurred in U.S.-Iran relations?

0.807 - 24.604 Janine Herbst

Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janine Herbst. Iran says President Trump's decision to extend a ceasefire with Tehran indefinitely at Pakistan's request means nothing. On X, Mahdi Mohammadi, an advisor to the Speaker of the Parliament, says, quote, the losing side can't dictate terms. And President Trump says the U.S. blockade in the strait continues.

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24.584 - 32.656 Janine Herbst

President Trump's pick to head the Federal Reserve, Kevin Warsh, was on Capitol Hill before a Senate banking committee today. And Pierre Scott Horsley has more.

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33.237 - 46.235 Unknown

The Republicans on the banking committee were mostly supportive of this nomination, with the exception of Tom Tillis. The North Carolina senator is really the only thing standing in the way of Warsh being confirmed. And Tillis' objection has nothing to do with Warsh himself.

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46.676 - 53.646 Unknown

It's all about the Justice Department launching a criminal investigation of cost overruns on the Fed's headquarters renovation.

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53.778 - 63.614 Brittany Luce

If we put everybody in prison in federal government that had had a budget go over, we'd have to reserve an area roughly the size of Texas for a penal colony.

64.055 - 74.031 Unknown

Tillis thinks the investigation is just another way for the administration to put pressure on the Fed to cut interest rates, and he has vowed to hold up Warsh's confirmation until that probe is put to bed.

74.365 - 87.742 Janine Herbst

And Pierce Scott Horsley reporting. President Trump says the AI company Anthropic is, quote, shaping up, signaling a possible reversal in the administration's battle with the company over the military's use of AI. And Pierce John Ruich has more.

88.043 - 105.086 Unknown

In an interview with CNBC, Trump says it's possible there will be a deal that allows Anthropic's AI models to be used by the Pentagon. This comes in the wake of a high-profile spat between the AI company and the administration. Anthropic does not want Claude to be used in autonomous weapons or for mass surveillance of Americans.

105.387 - 121.311 Unknown

The Pentagon says it's not up to companies to decide how the military uses their products. It blacklisted Anthropic as a supply chain risk, and Trump ordered federal agencies to stop using its technology. A judge in California blocked the ban, saying the government was apparently trying to punish the company.

Chapter 2: What challenges does Kevin Warsh face in his Federal Reserve nomination?

130.383 - 137.13 Janine Herbst

The Trump administration says it's reviewing possible relief options for Spirit Airlines. And here's Joel Rose reports.

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137.55 - 155.908 Joel Rose

The Department of Transportation says it is taking a look at Spirit Airlines at the request of President Trump. In an interview with CNBC, Trump said, quote, Spirit's in trouble, unquote, and that maybe the federal government should help while also calling for another buyer to step in. Spirit filed for bankruptcy protection in August for the second time in less than a year.

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156.226 - 174.318 Joel Rose

Now, soaring fuel costs tied to the Iran war are adding even more uncertainty about the carrier's ability to keep operating. Spirit is not the only airline that's struggling with high fuel costs. A trade association for low-cost carriers sent a letter to Congress last week asking for temporary tax relief. Joel Rose, NPR News, Washington.

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176.221 - 188.258 Janine Herbst

U.S. futures contracts are trading higher at this hour. You're listening to NPR News. Congresswoman Sheila Cherfulis McCormick, a Democrat from Florida, resigned her seat today, effective immediately.

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188.318 - 209.318 Janine Herbst

This just before a hearing was set to start on whether she should be expelled for 25 violations of House rules and ethics standards, including breaking campaign finance laws and facing federal charges of stealing $5 million in federal COVID relief funds and using some of that on her 2021 campaign. She calls the committee's process a witch hunt.

210.344 - 224.488 Janine Herbst

Scientists using instruments on NASA's Curiosity rover report they found organic molecules never before seen on Mars. As Joe Pelko reports, the discovery could help determine whether Mars could once have harbored life.

224.671 - 243.743 Joe Palka

Today, Mars is a dry, inhospitable place not likely to harbor living organisms. But 3 billion years ago, researchers say the planet was wetter and warmer, a place some kind of microbial life could have existed. They hope to find evidence for that hypothesis in rocks on Mars that have been on the planet since those warmer, wetter days.

243.723 - 266.845 Joe Palka

The new results, published in the journal Nature Communications, come from a rock sample the rover collected in 2020. The sample was analyzed using the rover's onboard chem lab. It then took scientists on Earth years to analyze and understand the analysis. The Curiosity rover landed on Mars in 2013 with the goal of making just this kind of finding. For NPR News, I'm Joe Palka.

267.702 - 278.64 Janine Herbst

U.S. futures contracts are trading higher at this hour. Dow futures are up 199 points. Nasdaq futures are ahead by 138 points. I'm Janine Herbst, NPR News in Washington.

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