NPR News: 07-25-2025 9AM EDT
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Why did President Trump criticize the Federal Reserve’s interest‑rate policy during his visit?
Live from NPR News in Washington, on Korova Kuhlman, President Trump visited the headquarters of the U.S. Federal Reserve yesterday and met Fed Chair Jerome Powell. Trump has complained the Fed is too slow to lower interest rates. Yesterday, he grumbled about the final cost of building renovations at the Fed. Trump handed Powell a document. Powell read it and said the extra costs Trump cited there were a very important thing to do. were for a building that had been finished five years ago. And Pierre's Tamar Keith says Trump and his aides are still reviewing it.
The project is very much over budget by hundreds of millions of dollars, in part due to steel tariffs, COVID, inflation, and the challenges of retrofitting historic buildings with modern standards. But Trump didn't seem particularly satisfied, and neither were top aides who came with him on the tour, including budget director Russell Vot, who made it clear that this is not going away.
What does the new executive order on homelessness propose for street encampments and treatment?
And Pierre's Tamar Keith reporting. President Trump is scheduled to leave this morning for Scotland. He is set to visit his golf courses there and meet British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The president has signed an executive order to overhaul how the US manages homelessness. As MPR's Jennifer Ludden reports, the aim is to make it easier to move people from street encampments into treatment.
The order says endemic vagrancy has made cities unsafe, and getting people into long term care for addiction or mental illness will restore public order. It calls on the attorney general to make it easier to commit people against their will by challenging past legal precedents. Critics say that would violate civil rights. Trump's action also calls for shifting federal funding toward treatment programs instead of housing, but some experts say forcing treatment does not work and that losing badly needed housing will only make it harder for communities to reduce homelessness. Jennifer Lutton, NPR News, Washington.
How did the Ninth Circuit rule on California’s ammunition‑background‑check law and why?
The ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals has struck down a California law. That had required buyers of ammunition to pass a background check. From member station KQED, Samantha Lim reports gun control advocates are calling the decision a threat to gun safety.
The court declared the law unconstitutional and a violation of the Second Amendment since it restricts access to operable arms. A district court judge previously issued an injunction against the law, but the decision was stayed after the state appealed. Christian Heine with the nonprofit Brady United Against Gun Violence says the law functions the same as required background checks for firearm buyers. When you look at the fact that guns are the leading killer of children and young people in this country, uh we have got to do everything we possibly can in the name of public safety. A spokesperson for the California Department of Justice says the state is looking into its legal options. For NPR News, I'm Samantha Lim in San Francisco.
You're listening to NPR News from Washington.
What are the implications of the State Department’s dismissal of South China Sea experts?
The State Department has fired its top experts on the South China Sea and it has shuttered the office that focuses on security in the region. The sweeping reorganization comes as some members of the Trump administration and others across the political aisle agree China remains a top national security concern, and Pierre's Kat Lonsdorf has more.
The Office of Multilateral Affairs coordinated across several countries to respond diplomatically to China's aggression in the South China Sea, a busy shipping passage for global trade and also a potential flashpoint for conflict. All the civil service officers on that team who had years of experience were fired. In a statement to NPR, the State Department said that mission-critical functions from any office eliminated will be integrated elsewhere. But it's unclear who will perform some of those functions, with the top experts now gone. Critics worry these cuts could give China the upper hand in an increasingly tense situation. Kat Lansdorf, MPR News, Washington.
Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan says judges should not be intimidated and that threats against them should stop.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
Why did President Trump criticize the Federal Reserve’s interest‑rate policy during his visit?
0:00–0:53
2
What does the new executive order on homelessness propose for street encampments and treatment?
0:53–1:53
3
How did the Ninth Circuit rule on California’s ammunition‑background‑check law and why?
1:53–3:00
4
What are the implications of the State Department’s dismissal of South China Sea experts?
3:00–4:06
5
Why is the Supreme Court emphasizing transparency on emergency‑docket decisions?
4:06–4:39