NPR News: 07-08-2026 9PM EDT
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton.
What breaking political scandal leads the bulletin about Maine Senate candidate Graham Plattner?
Democrat Graham Plattner is suspending his campaign for Senate in Maine after a former girlfriend accused him of rape. Maine's Democratic Party says it will hold a convention to select a new nominee. As NPR's Barbara Sprunt reports, Plattner denies the allegation.
Within hours of a report from Plattner's former girlfriend alleging rape, the Maine Democratic Party and top congressional Democrats called on Plattner to withdraw from the race. The progressive campaign had long been marked by scandal, from a tattoo of a Nazi emblem to reports of him exchanging sexually explicit messages with multiple women near the beginning of his marriage. After the latest allegation, the campaign arm for Senate Democrats vowed to not invest in the race if Plattner remained on the ballot. The party will now begin a process to select a new nominee. And the clock is ticking. They have until July 27th. Barbara Sprint and Pure News, Washington.
The U.S. military says it's carrying out another round of strikes on Iran after Iran attacked ships in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week. and retaliated for U.S. strikes last night. Earlier today, President Trump said Iranian attacks signaled the end of the ceasefire, as NPR's Franco Ordonez explains.
Trump not only warned that the U.S. would likely hit Iran again, but he also threatened to bring back a naval blockade. I mean, he is clearly frustrated after last night's series of strikes, and he really went off on Iranian leaders, calling them cuckoo and a bunch of liars.
How did party leaders and the campaign react to the accusation and Plattner's withdrawal?
I don't want to deal with them anymore. They're scum. You know what scum is? They're scum. They're sick people. They're led by sick people. And they're vicious, violent people.
Now, the big question is whether calling off the ceasefire is actually a change in policy or simply a negotiating tactic. But Trump did say during the press conference that this would not lead to full-scale fighting again and that anything that happened would be over quickly.
NPR's Franco Ordonez reporting. Health workers responding to an outbreak of Ebola in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo say they have not been paid by the government. SNPR's Dury Buskaran reports they're protesting delayed wages, unfair treatment and a lack of protective gear.
The Bundabugio strain of Ebola has sickened more than 1,700 people in this outbreak and killed almost 600. Frontline health workers in Ituri province told the Associated Press they have not been paid their wages and bonuses from Congo's government since the outbreak was declared on May 15th. They said they're on strike to protest their working conditions. Local media reported that several health care workers protested on Monday, burning tires outside a hospital in Bunia, capital of the hardest-hit province in this outbreak. The strike comes as enrollment for clinical trials have begun in Congo for two treatments that may help treat the Bundabugio strain. Dari Buscaran, NPR News, Washington.
This is NPR News from Washington. Former Wisconsin Judge Hannah Dugan has been spared from prison for ushering a Mexican defendant out of her courtroom to evade ICE agents. A federal judge fined her $5,000 and cited her otherwise law-abiding life in issuing the sentence. Dugan resigned her Milwaukee County Circuit judgeship after the obstruction conviction amid threats of impeachment from Republican legislators yesterday. She faced up to five years in prison, but the judge said what she did was a momentary deviation from a life of public service. In Ecuador, a humanoid robot took part in a mission to climb the country's tallest peak. Catherine Osborne reports it was a step toward robot-conducted research in harsh mountain conditions.
The robot named Pemba Jose operated at an altitude of around 20,000 feet atop Chimborazo, Ecuador's tallest mountain. It walked and used sensors to collect data on the terrain. Researchers are testing the use of robots to monitor mountain glaciers, deforestation, and wildlife. This robot was not sophisticated enough to make the climb on its own.
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