NPR News: 07-14-2026 12AM EDT
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Live from NPR News, I'm Giles Snyder.
What did President Trump announce about a national address and why now?
President Trump says he will give a speech to the nation Thursday evening. NPR's Franco Ordonez reports the speech comes as the U.S. has relaunched heavy military strikes against Iran.
President Trump did not give any details on what the speech would be about, but that it would be given at 9 p.m. The announcement comes amid new escalation in the fight against Iran. In addition to launching a series of strikes, the president says the U.S. is reinstating its blockade on Iran, after leaders in Tehran announced that they would be closing the Strait of Hormuz.
How has the U.S. escalated military action and policy toward Iran?
Trump insists the critical waterway that's vital for global energy transportation remains open. He also announced that the U.S. plans to impose a 20 percent charge on all cargo shipped through the Strait. He says the U.S. should be reimbursed for the security costs for maintaining the waterway. Franco Ordonez, NPR News, the White House.
U.S. military says it has completed a third consecutive night of strikes on Iran. saying the attacks on military targets across the country lasted five hours. United Arab Emirates, meanwhile, says Iran has attacked two tankers and that one person is dead, eight others wounded. In Washington, Congress is back on Capitol Hill following the July 4th holiday break. The Senate will be getting back to work without South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, who died over the weekend at age 71. In Paris, Claudia Rosales.
It's going to make a difficult season for the Senate even harder. And that is because Graham had such an outsized influence, starting with the Budget Committee. For example, one goal we've heard from House Republicans, for example, is to put together a partisan spending plan. But without the chair of the Senate Budget Committee now, senators are going to have to scramble and decide how to recalibrate their budget.
Graham's temporary replacement is expected to be sworn in Tuesday afternoon. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster called on Graham's sister Darlene to fill out the rest of his term through January. The Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool is being drained again. NPR's Rachel Treisman reports the Trump administration is using the same companies that repaired it months ago.
The reflecting pool was already drained once this spring, when it was resurfaced a color that President Trump called American flag blue. But shortly after it was refilled in early June, algae blooms turned the water a murky green. Around the same time, pieces of that blue lining started to peel off, which the Trump administration blames on vandalism. It was waiting to repair the pool until after the 4th of July fireworks, but has not provided a timeline. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum told CNN last week it would use the same company as before because, quote, they did a fantastic job. Rachel Triesman, NPR News.
And you're listening to NPR News. A dozen states are suing to block Paramount's takeover of Warner Brothers Discovery. The 12-state coalition led by California's Attorney General filed a lawsuit Monday arguing the $81 billion deal would harm competition and lead to higher prices and fewer choices for consumers. Paramount says it will vigorously defend the merger. Lawmakers in Israel expected to pass multiple laws this week that civil rights advocates say are aimed at undermining the country's democracy and giving more power to the prime minister. NPR's Carrie Conn reports.
With just one week left, members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition are trying to pass a slew of new bills, among them some of the most controversial of the legislative session. They include one that would weaken the power of the country's top prosecutor, another to bar arresting ultra-Orthodox men who have refused military draft orders, and a third bill that would reduce the power of regulators over the media. Opponents of the current far-right government and civil rights advocates say the bills, which are likely to become law, would severely undermine Israel's democracy and weaken any checks on the prime minister's power.
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