NPR News: 08-07-2026 8AM EDT
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Why is Senator Lisa Murkowski opposing Todd Blanche’s attorney‑general nomination?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski says she'll oppose Todd Blanche's nomination for attorney general, further narrowing his path to confirmation. Murkowski says she remains concerned the Trump administration could move ahead with a proposed fund to compensate January sixth rioters despite Blanche's pledge to shelve it. With Senator Susan Collins also opposed and Mitch McConnell absent from Senate sessions, Blanch can afford to lose only two Republican votes if all Democrats vote against his nomination. Senator Bill Cassidy has not said how he will vote.
the defense agreement today, that's according to a statement published by the Turkish President's Office. NPR's Hadil Al Shalchi reports from Istanbul.
Turkish President Rajab Taib Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Pakistan's Prime Minister Shahabaz Sharif are in the Saudi city of Mecca to sign a trilateral defense agreement according to the Turkish presidency and the Pakistani Foreign Ministry. Details of the agreement were not immediately released, but the Pakistani Foreign Ministry said that it was intended to quote strengthen collective deterrence against any act of aggression.
What are the key points of the new trilateral defense agreement signed in Mecca?
This deal comes as tensions in the Middle East rise with fears of a widening war between the United States and Iran. The agreement would combine the strengths of Saudi Arabia as an oil rich country, Pakistan, a nuclear power, and Turkey, which has NATO's second largest military and a growing defense industry.
Хаділ Алшалчі НПРНЮз істанбул сенатор Марша Блакбрн газ вон до републикін примери і Тенесі з райфер говенер. Blackburn beat fellow Washington Republican US Representative John Rose for the nomination. Mariana Bacquayao from Member Station WPLN reports.
If elected, Blackburn would continue a streak of firsts, going from Tennessee's first female U.S. Senator to its first female governor. She was an early frontrunner in the race, leading in the polls even before she announced her candidacy. Her campaign got some flack in the last stretch of the race as she refused to debate her GOP opponents and kept to regimented town halls.
Who is the historic Tennessee candidate poised to become the state’s first female governor?
She now faces Memphis Democrat Jerry Green in the general election. Where she's poised to succeed in a state that hasn't elected a Democrat to a statewide office since 2006. At 74 years old, she would also make history as the state's oldest governor. For NPR News, I'm Mariana Backayao in Nashville.
The Labor Department is scheduled to release its jobs report for July this morning. Economists expect hiring to have picked up modestly after employers added just 57,000 jobs in June. The unemployment rate is expected to remain at 4.2 percent. This is NPR News. The Prime Minister of Thailand is pledging stricter gun laws after police say a student opened fire at a high school near Bangkok, killing at least five people. He's also accused of killing his two grandparents before the school attack.
What does the latest Labor Department jobs report reveal about the U.S. hiring outlook?
Michael Sullivan reports.
The incident occurred at the Tipsarine Not Taburi school not far from Bangkok. Police say the suspected shooter was a student at the school, who allegedly opened fire with a handgun. Before barricading himself on the third floor where police say he eventually turned the gun on himself. One eighteen year old student told the Reuters news agency he initially thought there were firecrackers going off. I didn't think it was a gun at first, he said. There were many shots, then it went quiet, then it started again. The wounded were taken to nearby hospitals. For NPR News, I'm Michael Sullivan in Chiang Rai.
Authorities in Puerto Rico are beginning water rationing today as a severe drought deepens across the island.
How is Thailand responding to the recent school shooting and proposed gun‑law changes?
More than one hundred eighty thousand customer accounts will lose water for forty-eight hours at a time on a rotating schedule. Officials say the outages could expand to seventy two hours and the rationing is expected to continue at least through the end of the month.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
Why is Senator Lisa Murkowski opposing Todd Blanche’s attorney‑general nomination?
0:00–1:24
2
What are the key points of the new trilateral defense agreement signed in Mecca?
1:24–2:21
3
Who is the historic Tennessee candidate poised to become the state’s first female governor?
2:21–3:16
4
What does the latest Labor Department jobs report reveal about the U.S. hiring outlook?
3:16–4:03
5
How is Thailand responding to the recent school shooting and proposed gun‑law changes?
4:03–5:03