NPR News: 05-16-2025 7AM EDT

Summary

NPR News Now – May 16, 2025, 7 AM EDT

Hosted by Korva Coleman

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1. President Trump Concludes Diplomatic Mideast Visit Amid Ongoing Gaza Conflict

[00:00] Korva Coleman opens the episode by reporting that President Trump is completing his Mideast trip after a week of engaging with Gulf Arab leaders. The primary achievements highlighted include securing multi-billion-dollar defense and technology deals. However, the backdrop of his visit is the intensified conflict in Gaza.

[00:16] Ayyab Batrawi provides deeper insights, noting that Trump's visit commenced shortly after Hamas released the last American Israeli hostage. Hamas's release was contingent upon the U.S. advocating for a permanent ceasefire and facilitating aid into Gaza. During his tenure in the region, Trump reiterated his controversial stance on the Palestinians in Gaza, suggesting that they should be permanently relocated and proposing the creation of a "freedom zone" managed by the U.S. He also addressed the humanitarian crisis, stating, “we've got to get [the people] taken care of” ([00:16]). These remarks come as Israel continues its aggressive campaign, having struck over 100 Hamas sites recently, resulting in significant civilian casualties.

[00:58] The narrative shifts to the economic dimension of Trump's visit. Doug Silliman, former Ambassador and head of the Arab Gulf States Institute, praises Trump's efforts to modernize U.S.-Gulf relations. Silliman remarks, “he's really trying to shift the focus of American traditional dealings with the Gulf from the Carter Doctrine of 45 years ago... to new longer-term and deeper economic partnerships” ([01:09]). He views Trump's success as aligning with the Gulf states' aspirations for a more robust relationship with the United States.

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2. Homeland Security Seeks Pentagon's Assistance for Migrant Removal

[01:32] Transitioning to domestic issues, Korva Coleman reports on Homeland Security's request for the Pentagon to deploy approximately 20,000 National Guard members to aid in removing undocumented migrants from the U.S. This initiative, initially covered by the New York Times, is currently under legal review by military lawyers. State governors would be approached to volunteer their Guard forces, though the timeline for this deployment remains unspecified.

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3. Communication Blackout at Denver International Airport Raises Safety Concerns

[01:32] Addressing aviation safety, Korva Coleman highlights a recent incident where air traffic controllers at Denver International Airport experienced a communications blackout lasting over a minute. Jacqueline Diaz elaborates, explaining that multiple radio transmitter failures disrupted communication between pilots and air traffic control for about two minutes at the Denver Air Route Traffic Control Center in Longmont, Colorado ([02:15]). While local reports exaggerated the outage to six minutes, FAA official Frank McIntosh assured that aircraft maintained safe distances during the disruption. This incident follows similar outages at Newark Liberty International Airport, raising concerns about the stability of aviation communication systems.

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4. Diplomatic Efforts Continue to Resolve Russia-Ukraine Conflict Without Putin's Direct Involvement

[02:55] In international diplomacy, Korva Coleman reports ongoing talks in Istanbul, Turkey, involving Ukrainian, Russian, and Turkish representatives aimed at ending Russia's war in Ukraine. Notably, Russian President Vladimir Putin is conspicuously absent, delegating a low-level team instead. President Trump opines that meaningful progress in resolving the conflict is unlikely without a direct meeting with Putin, though he refrains from mentioning Ukraine explicitly.

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5. UnitedHealth Group Faces Stock Plunge Amid Investigation Rumors

[02:55] Shifting to the corporate sector, Maria Aspen discusses the plummeting shares of UnitedHealth Group, which saw an 11% drop following the company's dismissal of federal investigation reports. UnitedHealth recently replaced its CEO and suspended financial guidance for the year, actions that have fueled investor anxiety. Aspen notes, “UnitedHealth Group is one of the largest and most powerful companies in the world... But it's having a terrible year” ([03:36]). Speculation of a Department of Justice investigation into its Medicare business has further eroded investor confidence, resulting in a more than 50% decline in shares over the past month and significantly reducing its market capitalization.

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6. Record Levels of Sargassum Seaweed Threaten Florida Tourism

[04:23] Concluding the episode, Korva Coleman alerts listeners about the record influx of sargassum seaweed along Florida's beaches. Researchers attribute this surge to unprecedented levels in the Atlantic Ocean, leading to extensive beach coverage that may deter tourists. The smelly seaweed poses both environmental and economic challenges for the region, potentially impacting the local tourism industry.

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This episode of NPR News Now provided concise yet comprehensive coverage of significant global and domestic events, offering listeners a thorough understanding of the current news landscape.

Transcript

[Korva Coleman]

Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Korva Coleman. President Trump is completing his Mideast trip today. He spent the past week meeting with Gulf Arab leaders and striking multi billion dollar defense and tech deals. But NPR's Ayyab Batrawi reports Trump leaves the region with the war in Gaza still flaring.

[Ayyab Batrawi]

Trump's Mideast visit began just after Hamas released the last living American Israeli hostage held in Gaza. Hamas says it did so on the understanding the US Would call for a permanent ceasefire and push for aid to enter Gaza instead. While in the region, Trump appeared to dou down on his idea that Palestinians in Gaza should be permanently relocated outside the territory, saying the US should get involved there and make it a freedom zone. He then said his administration's looking at people starving in Gaza under Israel's total blockade, saying we've got to get that taken care of without elaborating. His comments come as Israel says it struck more than 100 Hamas sites in recent days and attacks that have killed hundreds, including entire families. Aya Baltrawi, NPR News, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

[Korva Coleman]

Some see President Trump's Mideast trip as an economic success. Former Ambassador Doug Silliman is the head of the Arab Gulf States Institute, a Washington based nonprofit think tank.

[Doug Silliman]

I think he's really trying to shift the focus of American traditional dealings with the Gulf from the Carter Doctrine of 45 years ago, which was essentially oil for security, to new longer term and deeper economic partnerships. And I think he has had a pretty good success on this one because the Gulf states also want to have this kind of relationship with the United States.

[Korva Coleman]

He spoke to NPR's Morning Edition. The Department of Homeland Security is asking the Pentagon to provide some 20,000 National Guard members to help in removing migrants who are illegally in the U.S. this story was first reported by the New York Times. NPR has learned that military lawyers are reviewing this request. State governors would be asked for volunteers among their Guard forces. It's not clear when this might happen. Air traffic controllers at another airport have experienced a communications blackout for well over a minute, this time in Colorado. NPR's Jacqueline Diaz reports. This comes on the heels of several outages at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey.

[Jacqueline Diaz]

Multiple radio transmitter failures left pilots flying at the Denver International Airport on Monday unable to communicate with air traffic controllers. The outage lasted for about two minutes, hitting the Denver Air Route Traffic Control center in Longmont, Colorado. That's According to Frank McIntosh, an official with the Federal Aviation Administration who shared the details and testimony before a House committee hearing this week. Local reports in Denver claimed the outage lasted for six minutes. McIntosh said those reports were over exaggerated planes were able to remain at safe distances in the sky during the outage. Jacqueline Diaz, NPR News.

[Korva Coleman]

You're listening to NPR News from Washington. Talks are underway in Istanbul, Turkey, among Ukrainian, Russian and Turkish representatives. They're discussing ways to end Russia's war in Ukraine. But Russian President Vladimir Putin did not go, sending a low level delegation. Instead, President Trump says he thinks there won't be significant progress in ending the war unless he meets Putin himself. Trump did not mention Ukraine. Shares in UnitedHealth Group tumbled nearly 11% yesterday. That was after the healthcare and insurance conglomerate dismissed reports of a federal government investigation. NPR's Maria Aspen reports.

[Maria Aspen]

UnitedHealth Group is one of the largest and most powerful companies in the world. It controls how tens of millions of Americans access and pay for health care. But it's having a terrible year, which kept getting worse this week. On Tuesday, UnitedHealth abruptly replaced its CEO and suspended its financial guidance for this year. Now it's facing reports of a potentially criminal investigation by the Department of Justice into its Medicare business. The company says it has not been notified by the DOJ of such an investigation and that it stands by the integrity of its business. But investors are spooked. Shares in UnitedHealth have fallen more than 50% in the past month, shaving hundreds of billions of dollars off its market cap. Maria Aspen, NPR News, New York.

[Korva Coleman]

People going to the beach in Florida this will need to watch out for record levels of smelly seaweed. It's called sargassum. Researchers say there's been a record amount of it in the Atlantic Ocean. It's piling up on beaches and could drive away tourists. This is NPR.