NPR News: 05-21-2026 10PM EDT
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What military actions is President Trump considering regarding Cuba?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton. President Trump is again threatening a U.S. military intervention in Cuba. He said past presidents have considered intervening in Cuba for decades, but that, quote, it looks like I'll be the one that does it, Yesterday, the Trump administration announced criminal charges against former Cuban President Raul Castro, and many believe Trump is following the same playbook as when he ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, as NPR's Ryan Lucas reports.
The Trump administration also has ramped up pressure on the island, squeezed it economically, and now we have the Castro indictment, which some people certainly see as a prelude to potential military action. Cuba's president, in fact, yesterday accused the U.S. of trying to create a pretext to attack the country. Now, potential U.S. military action could target just Castro or it could target Cuba more generally. But either way, experts say it's unclear that the Cuban government would respond the same way that Venezuela's did. NPR's Ryan Lucas reporting.
Federal law enforcement officials announced charges today against 15 people in Minnesota for allegedly stealing more than $90 million of federal funds. Minnesota Public Radio's Kyra Miles reports.
Charges included submitting bills for health care services never rendered and defrauding child care assistance programs and autism service centers. Federal officials say this is the largest autism fraud scheme ever charged by the Department of Justice. Colin McDonald, who leads the DOJ's National Fraud Enforcement Division, says this is the beginning of a renewed effort to eradicate fraud across the country.
Our cases today involve seven different state-managed Medicaid programs that have been systematically pilfered by fraudsters who treated Minnesota-run programs as their personal piggy bank.
The DOJ also announced a new expansion of the Healthcare Fraud Midwest Strike Force in Minnesota. They're hiring 15 more prosecutors. For NPR News, I'm Kyra Miles in St. Paul.
Government weather forecasters expect 8 to 14 named storms will form in the Atlantic this hurricane season. NPR's Rebecca Hershel reports that's a slightly smaller number than average.
The main reason for the relatively small number of storms is El Nino, the cyclic weather pattern that makes it harder for hurricanes to form in the Atlantic. But that doesn't mean people in hurricane-prone parts of the U.S. can rest easy, says Neil Jacobs, who leads the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Even though we're expecting a below-average season in the Atlantic, it's very important to understand that it only takes one. We have had Category 5s make landfall in the past during below-average seasons.
And he says it's not just people on the coast who are at risk. Hurricanes and tropical storms have caused deadly flooding thousands of miles inland. Rebecca Herscher, NPR News.
The Atlantic hurricane season is June 1st through November 30th. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. Some lucky New York City residents will get a chance to snag cheap seats this summer's high-priced World Cup. Mayor Zoran Mamdani announced that 1,000 tickets costing $50 will be made available to residents of the city. They'll be available for all games played at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, except for the final. Aid groups are ramping up their response to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but They face many challenges, from supply shortages to funding cuts. NPR's Fatma Tanis reports.
The virus is spreading in the northeast province of Ituri. It's a rural area with densely populated towns of over 4 million people. Many of them are displaced because of the ongoing conflict there. Attacks on clinics and health workers have left the overall infrastructure weak. Aid groups say it's a challenging environment to mount a response. Most areas don't have roads. There are also needs for medical supplies for testing and sanitizing and treating patients. But with borders shut and funding shortages, it's difficult to get large shipments in.
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