NPR News: 06-02-2026 5PM EDT
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton. During a congressional hearing this afternoon, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanch said the Trump administration is scrapping plans for a nearly $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund.
The reasons for the fund is something that President Trump talked about for a long time, which is the fact that there were a lot of people in this country who had their government weaponized against them. The reasons for the fund, I think, were...
What recent changes did the Trump administration announce regarding the anti-weaponization fund?
remain as important as they were before, but we are not moving forward with the fund.
The fund would have compensated President Trump's allies, who believe they've been unjustly investigated and prosecuted. Democrats and many Republican senators had pushed the administration to impose limits or scrap the idea altogether. Secretary of State Marco Rubio faced tough questions about Ebola, Iran and other subjects on Capitol Hill today. NPR's Michelle Kellerman reports Rubio says Iran won't get relief from sanctions just for reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
Secretary Rubio says before the U.S. lifts its blockade of Iranian ports, the Iranians need to stop firing on commercial vessels and let traffic resume. Democratic Senator Christopher Murphy pressed him on that, pointing out that the Strait was open before the U.S. and Israel launched the war against Iran. The question is, how are we going to get it reopened? Are you going to drive a bargain that is so tough and so hard that the Strait remains closed? So how are we going to get it open? The first thing, that is a predicate to anything else happening. The straits have to be reopened. And Rubio says U.S. sanctions won't be eased until Iran gets to the next step, negotiating over its nuclear program. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, the State Department.
President Trump is tapping federal housing finance director Bill Pulte to be the new intelligence director after the departure of Tulsi Gabbard. Trump says Polte will also remain director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Democrats and several Republicans say Polte seems unqualified and lacks national security experience. Voters in six states are going to the polls today for election primaries. They include California. where more than 60 candidates are seeking to replace outgoing Governor Gavin Newsom in the November election. NPR's Sage Miller has more.
California voters will select which two candidates for governor will move on to the general election in a nonpartisan primary. But it's also the first time in decades that Democratic voters haven't had a clear frontrunner. As part of the nationwide redistricting fight sparked by President Trump's push for more GOP seats, California is slated to pick up five new Democratic seats. Iowa Republican voters will pick their nominee for governor, but Democrats are hopeful they can flip the office come November. Iowa Democrats will also pick the U.S. Senate candidate who they believe has a shot at winning the competitive seat. Sage Miller, NPR News.
The mayoral primary in Los Angeles is also today. Primaries are also being held in Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, and South Dakota. This is NPR News. Israel's weapons exports reached a record high of over $19 billion last year, a 30% increase from 2024, according to Israel's defense ministry. More than half of the sales were mega deals of over $100 million or more. Sales more than doubled in the last five years, despite criticism of Israel's conflicts in Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran. New research from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York suggests working remotely may have driven up unemployment rates among younger college graduates. NPR's Andrea Hsu reports.
The study began with a deep dive into one Fortune 500 tech company. Researchers found when the company went to remote work after the pandemic, they switched away from hiring young people.
What are Secretary Rubio's views on Iran and sanctions?
University of Virginia economist Emma Harrington is one of the study's authors. So they used to hire a bunch of new grads for their software engineering jobs. then they shifted really towards hiring much older people.
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