NPR News: 07-20-2026 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. The White House says the newest plane to serve as Air Force One will soon go out of service for upgrades. NPR's Joel Rose reports aviation experts question whether one month is enough time for significant changes.
The White House says the newest Air Force One will be out of service for about a month in the fall, while it receives, quote, upgrades and enhancements.
What does the White House say about taking the new Air Force One out of service for upgrades?
The Boeing luxury jet was donated by Qatar last year. It was retrofitted so quickly that some aerospace experts say it is not as secure as other Air Force One jets. Richard Aboulafia with Aerodynamic Advisory says one month isn't enough time to change that.
The idea that anything meaningful could be accomplished in this limited amount of time is somewhat ridiculous. I mean, this is a multi-year process.
Aboulafia and others say they were surprised to see the president fly in this plane to a meeting in Turkey earlier this month. Joel Rose, NPR News, Washington.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio says Cuba is the leading sponsor of what he calls radical leftism in the U.S. And he's naming organizations that he says have been working with Cuban intelligence. NPR's Michelle Kellerman reports.
Just days after Secretary Rubio hosted a conference on what he describes as a resurgence of left-wing political violence, he's issuing a 70-page report detailing what he sees as Cuba's history of an ideological battle against the United States starting in the 1960s. He says Cuba's, quote, Marxist project not only survived the collapse of the Soviet Union but thrived.
Why do aviation experts say one month may be insufficient to secure the donated Boeing Air Force One?
And he calls Havana the ideological capital of the modern radical left. Rubio's parents were born in Cuba but fled to the U.S. before the revolution. Rubio began his political career in Florida and was known for his tough stand. against Cuba's communist government. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, the State Department.
A new immigration rule may make it harder for international students to remain in the U.S. to finish their studies. Historically, they could remain as long as they were making progress, but now they'll have up to four years to finish or apply for a formal extension, as NPR's Alyssa Nadwerny reports.
The Department of Homeland Security says the change will strengthen national security through regular vetting and cut down on what it calls, quote, forever students. Universities worry this could impact programs like PhDs, which often take far longer than four years. There's also new restrictions on switching programs and changing majors. One of the selling points in the U.S. system is education. You come to college to explore, to find yourself. You can double major, you can switch majors. That's what makes it so attractive and unique. Critics of the new policy say this is an example of how the goals of immigration are butting up against the goals of American higher ed. Alyssa Nadworny, NPR News.
A tropical depression in the Gulf of Mexico has strengthened into Tropical Storm Bertha. It could threaten several states later this week. This is NPR News. Congo's health ministry says at least 930 people have died in the country's Ebola outbreak. More than 2,300 cases have been confirmed. The outbreak was declared in eastern Congo on May 15th. It's the fastest growing Ebola outbreak on record. There's no approved vaccine or treatment for this strain of the virus. A prominent Russian opposition figure says he'll drop out of electoral politics indefinitely amid state pressure. He had been a rare public voice in Russia against the war in Ukraine, as NPR's Charles Maines reports.
Boris Nadezhdin had hoped to run for a spot in Russia's parliament this September. His campaign centered on his opposition to the war in Ukraine. Yet Nadezhdin says he'll stop fighting his exclusion from politics rather than risk jail time for him or his supporters. The decision follows recent weeks that saw the state label him a foreign agent and convict him of spreading extremist content on social media. While the latter only involved a small court fine, both technically disqualify him from public office.
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Chapters
4 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–0:24
2
What does the White House say about taking the new Air Force One out of service for upgrades?
0:24–1:32
3
Why do aviation experts say one month may be insufficient to secure the donated Boeing Air Force One?
1:32–4:26
4
What claims does Secretary Marco Rubio make about Cuba's influence and which organizations does he name?
4:26–5:04