NPR News: 12-13-2025 2PM EST
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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. An Islamic State militant has shot and killed two American soldiers and one U.S. civilian in central Syria. NPR's Greg Myrie reports this marks a rare attack on the U.S. forces that still remain in that country.
The Pentagon said a lone gunman with the Islamic State, or ISIS, carried out the shooting ambush near the ancient desert city of Palmyra. The gunman killed the two soldiers, as well as a U.S. civilian interpreter, and also wounded three U.S. troops. The Americans were on a joint mission with Syrian forces and the Syrians killed the ISIS gunmen, the Pentagon said. U.S. forces were sent to Syria a decade ago to combat ISIS. The Americans defeated the group, but remnants still carry out periodic attacks. U.S. forces have remained in Syria to guard against a resurgence of ISIS. Greg Myhre, NPR News, Washington.
The Senate rejected two competing health care bills this week, a move that could push health care premiums higher for more than 20 million Americans early next year. NPR's Don Gagne reports the stalemate adds to a growing list of challenges for President Trump, who's facing pushback from his own party.
The Affordable Care Act has always been a place where Democrats and Republicans butt heads. But this current fight over whether to extend existing subsidies gets to the core of these differences. So Republicans would rather have health savings accounts or give money directly to individuals to use on the health care of their choice. And we're just at an impasse.
That's NPR's Don Gagne reporting. Democrats proposed extending Enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies for three more years. Republicans pushed a plan that would have allowed that funding to expire while expanding health savings accounts and reshaping the insurance marketplaces. Wall Street this week was dominated by the Federal Reserve and worries about the tech bubble. NPR's Maria Aspin reports stocks were down on Friday.
The Federal Reserve cut interest rates again, as widely expected, and said it's entering wait-and-see mode about the economy. Investors responded by sending the Dow and the S&P 500 to record highs on Thursday. It was a good week for non-tech stocks like UnitedHealth Group and Johnson & Johnson. But the big tech companies that have been dominating the markets sparked more fears about an AI bubble. Shares in chipmaker Broadcom plunged. Acid shares in Oracle, Larry Ellison's cloud computing company. Ellison's family is also trying to buy Warner Brothers Discovery. He ended the week billions of dollars poorer on paper, though he's still one of the wealthiest people in the world. Maria Aspen, NPR News, New York.
You're listening to NPR News from Washington. Another surge of bitter cold is spreading across much of the country this weekend. Forecasters say Arctic air will push into large parts of the central and eastern U.S. Some areas could see their coldest temperatures of the season so far. Hollywood icon Dick Van Dyke's birthday is today. He's turning 100 years old. Van Dyke starred in everything from Mary Poppins to Diagnosis Murder. And as he celebrates the start of his second century, NPR's Bob Mondello reflects on his beginnings.
On Broadway, 65 years ago, he was doing his best to prompt a smile. He took a week off from Bye Bye Birdie to audition for a TV sitcom Carl Reiner was cooking up. And once that was established, Disney tapped him to play a chimney sweep opposite Julie Andrews. Van Dyke would star in dozens of other projects, from Bedknobs and Broomsticks to a guest appearance on Days of Our Lives a couple of years ago at 97.
But as he told NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me... All of us involved say the Dick Van Dyke show was the best five years of our lives. We were like otters at play.
Dick Van Dyke still playing at the age of 100.
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