NPR News: 05-30-2026 6AM EDT
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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. The Trump administration says progress is being made toward a potential nuclear agreement with Iran. While negotiators appear to be narrowing differences, officials on both sides say several key issues need to be resolved before any deal can be finalized. Former Attorney General Pam Bondi defended her handling of files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in a closed-door congressional hearing on Friday. NPR's Ava Berger reports.
What progress is being made towards a nuclear agreement with Iran?
In a prepared opening statement, Bondi told the House Oversight Committee that she stands behind her work as attorney general and the department's record under her leadership. She admitted there was redaction errors in the Epstein file release, but she also noted that the Epstein document review was overseen by her deputy, Todd Blanche. Outside the day's proceedings, a group of Epstein survivors demanded answers. One of them was Danny Bensky.
When do we get investigations? And who the hell are we protecting?
Bensky met Epstein when she was a young ballerina. She alleges he sexually abused her. There are six more interviews scheduled for the committee, including Bill Gates. Ava Berger, NPR News, the Capitol.
Blue Origin is warning residents in Florida not to touch any debris following the explosion of one of its rockets during an engine test this week. The company says the debris from the rocket could be hazardous. Former NASA astronaut Susan Kilrain says the explosion happened during what should have been a routine ground test.
This was just a routine hot fire test of the first stage. And the first stage uses a methane fuel and also liquid oxygen. So it's not the normal liquid hydrogen that we hear about most of the time.
What did Pam Bondi say about her handling of the Epstein files?
But it is an engine or engines that are used or fuel that's used in other rockets as well.
Despite the setback, the new Glenn rocket remains a key part of NASA's plans to return astronauts to the moon. The rate of U.S. flow foreclosures rose to its highest level in six years in March. That's according to real estate data company Cotality. NPR's Stephen Basaha reports it's the first increase in the rate in over a year.
Out of all the active mortgages in the U.S., nearly half a percent of them are in foreclosure. Mortgage delinquencies were also up 3 percent in March from a year earlier.
It's a flashing warning sign that consumers are under stress.
Molly Basil is Quotaldi's principal economist. But while this is the first foreclosure increase in a while, it is still just a small increase.
We're not looking at any kind of foreclosure wave or foreclosure shock here like we did during the financial crisis.
Bezos says the increase was shallow but widespread. More than 75 percent of metros across the country saw an increase in their foreclosure rate. Stephen Basaja, NPR News.
This is NPR. Investigators continue searching for answers after a deadly chemical tank collapse at a paper mill in Longview, Washington. Officials say at least 11 workers are believed dead in what's become one of the state's deadliest industrial accidents in decades. In the aftermath of damaging storms, some cities are looking to update their electrical grids by moving them underground. Cynthia Abrams from member station WPLN reports Nashville is testing out this approach.
A January ice storm left hundreds of thousands of Nashville residents without power, some for more than a week. So the Nashville Electric Service is trying to bury power lines in some neighborhoods. But this is a contentious approach. Some experts, like utility contractor Wade Sexton, say it's really only effective if implemented system-wide, which can be expensive.
Do you invest double-digit billions of dollars to try to fix that, which would probably obviously have a significant impact on your rates?
Other places, like San Diego and some Florida cities, have been burying lines to help guard against power outages caused by wildfires and hurricanes. For NPR News, I'm Cynthia Abrams in Nashville.
AAA says the national average price of regular gas has dropped to $4.35 a gallon.
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