NPR News: 07-21-2026 6PM EDT
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton.
Why is the Pentagon asking Congress for a $67 billion supplemental now?
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says troop training would have to be cut back if the Pentagon doesn't get the $67 billion in supplemental funds it's requesting from Congress. He also raised concerns about troop pay and weapons that defend against enemy drones and missiles.
Without these funds, we face critical shortfalls that threaten our ability to also simply pay our service members, rapidly replenish equipment and munitions, and sustain vital operations without disruption.
What risks to troop pay, training and air defenses did Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warn about?
Republicans are trying to pass the budget package before lawmakers take a month-long break to campaign for the midterm elections. Later this week, the Senate will consider another war powers resolution limiting President Trump's ability to unilaterally wage war. Most Americans disapprove of how Trump is handling the conflict as gas prices spike again. President Trump says he plans to help Lebanon. The U.S. has been trying to get Israeli forces to leave areas where they've been fighting Iranian-backed Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, as NPR's Michelle Kellerman reports.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun says his goal is to end the state of hostility between Israel and Lebanon and that he's been looking forward to this White House visit.
Meeting such a great president like yourself. That's a very nice thing. See, he knows how to get to me.
Israel occupies large parts of southern Lebanon where it's fighting Iranian-backed Hezbollah. Under a U.S.-mediated pilot program, the Israelis have begun to hand off some small areas to the Lebanese armed forces. Aoun calls his country's military the backbone of stability and is asking for more U.S. support. President Trump didn't offer specifics but says he will help a lot. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, the State Department.
A software error in New Jersey led to more than 6,000 non-citizens being registered to vote. As NPR's Miles Parks reports, the state says the issue has been resolved, but such errors have been shown to fuel conspiracy theories.
The software error meant that thousands of people who answered no to the question, are you a U.S. citizen at a DMV, were still registered to vote anyway. New Jersey's governor, Mikey Sherrill, called the problem serious, but she also said fewer than 400 of the mistaken registrants actually voted, and the erroneous registrations have now been removed as well. These sorts of bureaucratic errors aren't unheard of. Oregon dealt with a similar issue in 2024. But non-citizens have never been shown to register on purpose in anything but very small numbers. Still, experts expect these sorts of errors to be spotlighted by those looking to cast doubt on the entire election system this fall. Miles Parks, NPR News, Washington.
The Trump administration is seeking to toss aside a 60-year-old requirement for tens of thousands of private sector employers to submit workforce demographic reports to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The EEOC's Republican majority rescinded the data collection requirement today. It's now subject to a 30-day public comment period. This is NPR News. The director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History is pushing back against a White House report labeling the institution's leadership as radical activists. Anthea M. Hartig told a House Oversight Subcommittee today the report does not fairly represent the museum's work. The report was released on July 4th and criticized the museum as not telling history in an inspiring and unifying way.
A new NASA telescope set to launch next month might give us insights into black holes. Scott Malcioni from member station WYPR explains what scientists will look for with the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.
The hardest part about observing black holes is that they're black and hard to see, even on a high resolution telescope. The best way to look for them is to look at the stars they're shredding apart with their massive gravitational pulls. NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will launch on August 30th, partly to detect black holes that existed up to 11 billion years ago.
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Chapters
4 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–0:04
2
Why is the Pentagon asking Congress for a $67 billion supplemental now?
0:04–0:32
3
What risks to troop pay, training and air defenses did Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warn about?
0:32–4:51
4
How is the U.S. engaging with Lebanon and what did Lebanese President Aoun request?
4:51–5:04