NPR News: 09-15-2026 7PM EDT
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Why did FBI Director Kash Patel clash with Democrats over firing agents?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton. FBI Director Kash Patel clashed with Democrats today over his firing of agents who participated in investigations of President Trump. During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Patel also suggested that he was open to sending agents to polling places after he'd previously said he would not. New Jersey Democratic Senator Cory Booker called him an incompetent lackey.
He's like an 18-year-old kid who wants to join a fraternity that he could never be a member of, doing keg stands and chugging with friends. He's an embarrassment to the agency and wouldn't qualify even to be an FBI agent, sir.
President Trump has tried to assert more control over the midterm elections. Earlier this week, the Supreme Court ruled against Trump's order seeking to restrict mail-in voting. The Kennedy Center board has voted to shut down the performing arts venue for renovations.
What legal ruling stopped the Kennedy Center from renaming its grounds after Trump?
This follows a federal court decision to once again block the board from putting President Trump's name back on the complex. NPR's Anastasia Tsilkas has more.
In his decision, Judge Christopher Cooper ruled the board may not put Trump's name back on the building or rename the grounds as the President Donald J. Trump Plaza as its members had wanted. Cooper wrote, quote, simply put, defendants cannot install memorials for President Trump or anyone or anything else at the Kennedy Center without Congress's blessing. The board resolution bucks a federal court order and a statute Congress enacted. The board has now responded by voting to shut down the center, citing what it describes as structural hazards and a dire financial outlook. Anastasia Tsoukas, NPR News.
The State Department says it is reprogramming $52 million in foreign military funding to focus more on the Western Hemisphere and less on Eastern Europe and the Middle East. NPR's Michelle Kellman reports it comes just after Secretary of State Marco Rubio's visit to South America.
How is the State Department shifting military aid to focus on the Western Hemisphere?
The Foreign Military Financing Program provides grants and loans to countries to buy U.S. military equipment and training. The State Department says for the last decade, 80 percent of that went to the Middle East. But now the department has told Congress that it is redirecting $52 million meant for Slovakia, North Macedonia, Tunisia and Iraq, and moving that to Panama, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia. Secretary Rubio visited those last three countries just last week, promising to help them fight what he calls narco-terrorism. He also wants to ensure that they rely on U.S. defense capabilities and not give a foothold to China or other U.S. adversaries. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, the State Department.
Why is Pennsylvania experiencing a deadly measles outbreak and who is affected?
Pennsylvania officials are reporting a fourth measles-associated death. An 18-year-old died from a severe neurological complication of the virus. None of the four who have died were vaccinated. The U.S. is experiencing its worst measles year since 1991, with seven deaths in two years. Pennsylvania's outbreak includes nearly 700 illnesses across 38 counties. This is NPR. A Paris court has awarded Kim Kardashian one euro in compensation for an armed robbery she experienced in 2016.
What compensation did Kim Kardashian receive for her 2016 Paris robbery?
It was a token amount she had requested. The court found eight people guilty last year for their roles in the robbery, which Kardashian describes as the most terrifying experience of her life. The court also awarded a former hotel receptionist more than 100,000 euros for trauma suffered during the heist. Antarctic krill, the shrimp-like crustaceans underpinning the food web of the Southern Ocean, have been found in a surprising habitat. NPR's Ari Daniel reports.
Antarctic krill tend to be located in the upper ocean and occasionally deeper, but researchers spotted them off the Antarctic Peninsula at a hydrothermal vent for the first time, basically a hot spring some 3,600 feet underwater. Kim Bernard is a biological oceanographer at Oregon State University.
It's like underwater ballet. It just looks like they're pirouetting.
What surprising habitat was discovered for Antarctic krill near a hydrothermal vent?
The four individuals she sampled were reproductive females.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
Why did FBI Director Kash Patel clash with Democrats over firing agents?
0:00–0:51
2
What legal ruling stopped the Kennedy Center from renaming its grounds after Trump?
0:51–1:52
3
How is the State Department shifting military aid to focus on the Western Hemisphere?
1:52–2:35
4
Why is Pennsylvania experiencing a deadly measles outbreak and who is affected?
2:35–3:08
5
What compensation did Kim Kardashian receive for her 2016 Paris robbery?
3:08–3:57
6
What surprising habitat was discovered for Antarctic krill near a hydrothermal vent?
3:57–4:39