NPR News: 02-25-2026 5PM EST

How could your favorite NPR podcast get any better? Well, what if it had bonus features such as extended interviews and zero sponsor breaks? There is a remarkably easy way to turn that fantasy into reality. It's called NPR Plus. You get perks across more than 25 NPR podcasts while supporting the teams that make them. Make great podcasts even greater by visiting plus.npr.org. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton. President Trump says he wants to make health care into a Republican issue heading into the fall elections. But as NPR's Selena Simmons Duffin reports, his remarks during the State of the Union last night left out many health-related topics he's previously highlighted. In this year's speech, President Trump did not mention his health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., or the Make America Healthy Again effort. I think that it may signal a pivot away from the high-profile anti-vaccine activism of RFK. That's political scientist Jonathan Oberlander of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Their actions are not terribly popular with the American public about vaccination, and I think it a liability going into the 2026 midterms Other missing health topics Measles abortion Medicaid cuts rural health and scientific research In a statement the White House told NPR that health care affordability and Maha remain top priorities for the Trump administration. Selena Simmons-Duffin, NPR News, Washington. Iran is pushing back against President Trump's pressure tactics ahead of talks in Geneva over Tehran's nuclear program. Meanwhile, while Iranians are facing a surge in prices for food and daily essentials, and many families say they can't keep up. The U.S. has assembled its biggest deployment of aircraft and warships into the Middle East in decades, part of Trump's efforts to get a deal while Iran struggles at home with growing dissent following nationwide protests last month. The top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee wants answers from the Attorney General's office after an NPR investigation found some Epstein files are missing from a public database. The files relate to allegations of sexual abuse against President Trump. NPR's Stephen Fowler reports. After an NPR investigation revealed dozens of pages of interviews and notes weren't published in the Epstein files, House oversight Democrats said they would investigate. In a letter first shared with NPR, ranking member Robert Garcia is asking Attorney General Pam Bondi to explain what happened The missing documents relate to a woman who said she was sexually abused by both Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump when she was a minor in the early 1980s The Justice Department has said any files not made public are because they duplicates privileged or part of an active investigation So Garcia wants the AG to answer if there's an active investigation into Trump. Stephen Fowler, NPR News. NASA is moving its Artemis Moon rocket from the launch pad back to the hangar for more repairs. It's a slow four-mile trek expected to take all day at Florida's Kennedy Space Center. Managers ordered the rollback over the weekend after a problem developed with the rocket's helium pressurization system. The launch team had been targeting March for the Artemis II astronaut mission, humanity's first trip to the moon in decades. But now it's off until at least April. You're listening to NPR News. A federal judge has again ruled the Trump administration can't freely deport migrants to third countries where they have no ties. The judge says migrants have the right to be notified and given an opportunity to object before they're sent to a third country. The decision will be delayed for 15 days, allowing the government to appeal. The Supreme Court ruled in the administration's favor last year. A pair of celebrity bald eagles living in the mountains east of Los Angeles have welcomed a new egg into the world. It comes after a month of heartbreak for a live stream 700 subscribers From member station KVCR Madison Aument reports Thousands of fans were tuned in this week as Jackie the female eagle whistled and then laid an egg It was a welcome sight after a raven ate two eggs that Jackie laid a few weeks ago. Jenny Voysard works for Friends of Big Bear Valley, which runs the live stream. It was a lift I think all of us needed after the excitement of the eggs and then losing the eggs and then losing Sandy. Sandy Steers created the Eagle livestream a decade ago and was a staunch advocate for Eagles for many years prior. She passed away last week. Eagle eggs incubate for 40 days, meaning a chick could hatch in early April. For NPR News, I'm Madison Ament in San Bernardino. Bad Bunny has turned a jacket worn by soccer legend Pele at the 1966 World Cup into a pop culture hit after using it at concerts in Sao Paulo. He borrowed it from a collector's soccer shop. Pele's Instagram account said when someone like Bad Bunny honors the king on Brazilian soil, it means the crown is still shining. This is NPR News from Washington. Listen to this podcast sponsor free on Amazon Music with a Prime membership or any podcast app by subscribing to NPR News Now Plus at plus.npr.org. That's plus.npr.org.