NPR News: 05-13-2025 3PM EDT

Summary

NPR News Now: May 13, 2025, 3PM EDT

Host: Lakshmi Singh
Release Date: May 13, 2025

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President Trump’s State Dinner and Saudi Arabia Relations

At [00:26], Lakshmi Singh reports that President Donald Trump served as the guest of honor at a state dinner in Dhiyari, Saudi Arabia. This event marked a day filled with significant announcements, including a $600 billion business deal with Saudi Arabia and plans to lift sanctions on Syria. Trump is scheduled to meet briefly with Syrian President Ahmad al Sharab in Riyadh tomorrow. During an investors conference in Riyadh, Trump received "resounding applause and visible approval" from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. At [00:37], Trump remarked:

"Oh, what I do for the crown prince."

NPR’s Aya Batrawi elaborates that Trump’s strong personal relationships with Gulf rulers are closely tied to his family’s business interests in the region. Just two weeks prior, Eric Trump, who manages the Trump Organization, was active in the Gulf launching projects such as the Trump Hotel Tower in Dubai and a golf course in Qatar. Additionally, investments from the Gulf are flowing into the Trump family's cryptocurrency ventures, and Qatar has offered Trump a new Boeing airplane to replace one of the aging Air Force One jets.

Ending Temporary Protected Status for Afghans in the U.S.

At [01:38], Quill Lawrence informs listeners that the Trump administration has formally ended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Afghans residing in the United States. This policy change may lead to the deportation of many Afghans who aided U.S. forces during the war.

At [02:02], Jack McCain, son of the late U.S. senator John McCain, voiced his opposition:

"Allies here in the United States who fought alongside people like me and who risk their lives and the lives of their families are at the very credible risk of deportation and in many, many cases, death as it ends protection for Afghans."

Human rights groups and veterans strongly oppose the administration’s decision, arguing that Afghanistan remains unsafe for those who have allied with the U.S., contradicting the White House’s assertion that the country is now safe.

U.S.-China Tariff Pause Offers Relief for Consumers

Lakshmi Singh introduces a report at [02:30] stating that the U.S. and China have agreed to a 90-day pause on tariffs, potentially providing temporary relief for American consumers. NPR’s Windsor Johnston reports that this move could stabilize prices for everyday goods such as electronics, clothing, and home appliances.

Mark Wu, an international trade expert at Harvard University, commented:

"The pause could lead to short term price stability." [02:39]

Rob Stein adds that:

"Some of the shortages that consumers were worrying about for the summer are likely to be staved off for some time as importers take advantage of the 90 days to restock inventories." [02:53]

However, he cautions:

"Don't expect dramatic savings overnight. Analysts say price shifts typically take time to reach consumers, and much depends on whether the pause becomes permanent or turns into a new round of trade uncertainty." [03:04]

Universal Flu Vaccine Project Faces Criticism

At [03:20], Lakshmi Singh relays concerns from vaccine experts regarding the Trump administration’s new $500 million initiative to develop a universal flu vaccine. Rob Stein reports that the Department of Health and Human Services aims to create a vaccine that doesn’t require annual updates through a project called "Generation Gold Standard."

Rob Stein explains:

"That's because the project is using an old technology that involves injecting people with whole viruses that have been inactivated to make them harmless but still capable of stimulating an immune response." [03:39]

Vaccine scientists argue that newer technologies are more promising and result in fewer side effects, making the administration’s approach seem outdated and less effective.

Portland Trailblazers NBA Franchise Up for Sale

At [04:20], Lakshmi Singh announces that the Portland Trailblazers NBA team is up for sale. The team disclosed on the social media platform X that the estate of the late Paul G. Allen has initiated the sales process, directing all proceeds to philanthropy as per Allen’s instructions. However, the sale still requires approval from the NBA Board of Governors.

Notably, Paul G. Allen, the billionaire co-founder of Microsoft, purchased the Trailblazers in 1988. He passed away in 2018 from complications related to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

U.S. Stock Market Update

Concluding the episode, Lakshmi Singh provides a brief overview of the current U.S. stock market performance:

• NASDAQ: Up 1.8%
• S&P 500: Up nearly 1%
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: Down roughly 0.5%

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Note: Advertisements, introductions, and non-content segments have been omitted to focus on the core news stories.

Transcript

[Pop Culture Host]

Know that fizzy feeling you get when you read something really good. Watch the movie everyone's been talking about or catch the show that the Internet can't get over. At the Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast, we chase that feeling four times a week. We'll serve you recommendations and commentary on the buzziest movies, tv, music and more, from lowbrow to highbrow to the stuff in between. Catch the Pop Culture Happy Hour Podcast from N.

[Lakshmi Singh]

LIVE from NPR News. I'm Lakshmi Singh. President Trump is the guest of honor at a state dinner in Diriya, Saudi Arabia, capping a day of major announcements such as a $600 billion business deal with his host and plans to lift sanctions on Syria. Tomorrow in Riyadh, Trump is expected to briefly meet with Syrian President Ahmad al Sharab, a former al Qaeda member who helped lead the revolt against Syria's Assad regime. Trump's announcement at an investors conference today in Riyadh drew resounding applause and visible approval from his host, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Trump remarked, quote, oh, what I do for the crown Prince, end quote. NPR's Aya Batrawi says President Trump has a personal relationship with Gulf rulers that he says helps him get deals done.

[Aya Batrawi]

For the US Those personal ties are linked to his family's business interests in the Gulf. You know, just less than two weeks ago, his son Eric Trump, who runs the family business, the Trump Organization, was in the region launching new projects. Trump Hotel tower in Dubai, a Trump golf course in Qatar. There's also money from the Gulf flowing into the Trump family's cryptocurrency venture. And Qatar has just offered Trump a new Boeing airplane to replace one of the aging Air Force One jets.

[Lakshmi Singh]

NPR ZIYA batrawi, the administration has formally ended temporary protective status for Afghans in the U.S. nPR's Quill Lawrence reports. Many Afghans who helped U.S. forces at war may be deported.

[Quill Lawrence]

The White House says their country is now safe and Afghans no longer need to stay in the US with temporary protective status. Human rights groups disagree and and so do many veterans of the Afghan war, like Jack McCain, son of the late U.S. senator.

[Jack McCain]

Allies here in the United States who fought alongside people like me and who risk their lives and the lives of their families are at the very credible risk of deportation and in many, many.

[Quill Lawrence]

Cases, death as it ends. Protection for Afghans. The Trump administration has flown dozens of white South Africans directly to the US as refugees, stating without evidence that they are facing a racial genocide in their home country. Quill Lawrence, NPR News.

[Lakshmi Singh]

The U.S. and China are hitting a 90 day pause on tariffs, and that could mean a temporary break for American consumers. Here's NPR's Windsor Johnston.

[Windsor Johnston]

It's a move that could ease pressure on prices for everyday goods like electronics, clothing and home appliances. Mark Wu is an international trade expert at Harvard University. He says the pause could lead to short term price stability.

[Rob Stein]

Some of the shortages that consumers were worrying about for the summer are likely to be staved off for some time as importers take advantage of the 90.

[Windsor Johnston]

Days to restock inventories but don't expect dramatic savings overnight. Analysts say price shifts typically take time to reach consumers, and much depends on whether the pause becomes permanent or turns into a new round of trade uncertainty.

[Lakshmi Singh]

That's Windsor Johnson reporting. It's NPR News. Vaccine experts are questioning a big new project that the Trump administration has launched to try to create what's known as a universal flu vaccine. More from NPR's Rob Stein.

[Rob Stein]

The Department of Health and Human services will spend $500 million to try to create a flu vaccine that doesn't have to be updated every year. That's long been an elusive goal for vaccine researchers, but many vaccine scientists puzzled by the new project, known as generation gold standard. That's because the project is using an old technology that involves injecting people with whole viruses that have been inactivated to make them harmless but still capable of stimulating an immune response. Vaccine experts say newer technologies are more promising and produce fewer side effects. Rob Stein, NPR News.

[Lakshmi Singh]

The Portland Trailblazers say their NBA franchise is up for for sale. The team discloses on the social media platform X that the estate of Paul G. Allen has begun the sales process and will direct all proceeds to philanthropy, as the late owner had instructed. However, the NBA Board of Governors still has to ratify a purchase agreement. Alan, the billionaire co founder of Microsoft, bought the trailblazers in 1988. Allen died in 2018 from complications of non Hodgkin's lymphoma. U.S. stocks are mixed this hour. The NASDAQ is up 1.8%. The S&P has risen nearly 1%. The Dow is down roughly half a percent. It's NPR.

[Rob Stein]

Listen to this podcast sponsor, free on Amazon Music with a Prime membership or any podcast app by subscribing to NPR News Now [e-mail] that's plus.NPR.org.