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Shea Stevens
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shea Stevens. The partial government shutdown will continue at least until Friday. Republicans are calling for passage of a temporary measure to continue current spending through November 21st. House Speaker Mike Johnson says they have.
Political Commentator
Nothing more to negotiate in a scenario like this. If the Congress's hands are tied by the minority party who will not do the right thing, then the power shifts to the executive. That's not Mike Johnson doing that. That's Chuck Schumer doing that.
Shea Stevens
Democrats are insisting on an extension of health care tax credits that expire at the end of the year. Republicans suggest that that would lead to taxpayer funded health care for undocumented immigrants. Roughly 16,000 employees from the National Park Service are now furloughed because of the partial shutdown. However, Colorado Public Radio's Molly Cr reports that parks remain open with minimal staffing.
Molly Cruz
Access to the more than 400 sites overseen by the National Park Service have widely varied across the country. The Park Service says national park roads, trails and lookouts will still be accessible, but many services, like visitor centers, will be closed. Elizabeth Kreibel had been camping at Great Sand Dunes national park in Colorado since Sunday.
Visitor at Great Sand Dunes
Luckily, we were able to visit the visitor center, but we're hoping to come back here today and grab some souvenirs and our passport stamped.
Molly Cruz
The Park Service plans to tap into recreation fees to pay for remaining staff at the parks. But some western state governors, like Governor Jared Polis of Colorado and Governor Spencer Cox of Utah, say they plan to prop up operations in national parks with state funds. For NPR News, I'm Molly Cruz in Denver.
Shea Stevens
The federal government is preparing new advice on alcohol drinking. Existing guidelines recommend no more than two drinks a day for men and only one drink daily for women. But as NPR's Will Stone reports, there are questions about whether the updated advice will downplay the harms of alcohol.
Will Stone
Federal health officials were going to consider two different reports on alcohol. One of them from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, found moderate drinking was associated with a lower risk of dying, including from cardiovascular disease. The other study essentially came to the opposite conclusion, that even low levels of drinking increase your risk of dying from many causes, including cancer and stroke. Scientists who worked on that report were told recently it would not be considered as part of the new guidelines Mike Marshall is with the U.S. alcohol Policy Alliance.
Mike Marshall
To be focused on making America healthy again without addressing alcohol is inexplicable.
Will Stone
The U.S. department of Health and Human Services did not comment on why the report was being excluded. Will Stone, NPR News.
Shea Stevens
Rescuers are using heavy equipment and sniffer dogs to look for survivors in collapsed buildings in the central Philippines. A magnitude 6.9 earthquake has claimed at least 72 lives there, and the death toll is expected to ris in the hard hit city of Bogo and outlying rural towns. This is NPR. Organizers of an aid flotilla say Israeli forces intercepted 14 boats carrying aid for civilians in Gaza and arrested the occupants. Almost 50 boats carrying 500 activists and a shipment of aid sailed into international waters north of Egypt, hoping to breach an Israeli blockade. The Foreign Ministry says the Israeli navy tried to contact the activists to request that they change course and allow Israel to transfer the aid through other channels. Anthropologist Jane Goodall has died at the age of 91. She helped transform the world's understanding of apes. NPR's Nell Greenfield Boyce has this remembrance.
Nell Greenfield Boyce
Jane Goodall became fascinated with Africa and its animals as a child. After going to secretarial school, she visited a friend in Kenya and introduced herself to the famous paleontologist Louis Leakey. He hired her as his secretary, then later sent her off to Tanzania to humanity's closest living relative, the chimpanzee. Goodall was the first researcher to live among wild chimps and learn their ways. Within months, she made a startling discovery. Like humans, they could make and use tools. Her observations of chimp families were featured in numerous books and popular magazines like National Geographic. Later in life, she founded the Jane Goodall Institute and became a passionate advocate for the protection of wildlife and the environment. Nell Greenfield boyce, NPR News.
Shea Stevens
U.S. futures are flat in after hours trading on Wall street following the slight gains on Wednesday on Asia Pacific Markets. Shares are higher, up 1% in Hong Kong. This is NPR News.
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Host: Shea Stevens
Duration: 5 minutes
This episode provides a concise, up-to-date summary of major U.S. and international news as of early October 2, 2025. Key stories include the ongoing partial government shutdown, updates to U.S. alcohol consumption guidelines, a deadly earthquake in the Philippines, intercepted aid flotillas bound for Gaza, and a tribute to pioneering anthropologist Jane Goodall.
[00:18-01:56]
[01:56-02:57]
[02:57-03:34]
[03:34-03:57]
[03:57-04:43]
[04:43-04:57]
On Congressional Stalemate:
Political Commentator [00:34]:
“Nothing more to negotiate in a scenario like this. If the Congress's hands are tied by the minority party who will not do the right thing, then the power shifts to the executive...”
Park Visitor Experience:
Visitor at Great Sand Dunes [01:29]:
“Luckily, we were able to visit the visitor center, but we're hoping to come back here today and grab some souvenirs and our passport stamped.”
Questions Over Alcohol Policy:
Mike Marshall [02:44]:
“To be focused on making America healthy again without addressing alcohol is inexplicable.”
Highlighting Jane Goodall’s Discovery:
Nell Greenfield Boyce [04:02]:
“Goodall was the first researcher to live among wild chimps and learn their ways. Within months, she made a startling discovery. Like humans, they could make and use tools.”
This episode delivers a succinct yet rich overview of the day’s top news, capturing political divides, public health controversies, global humanitarian crises, and a commemoration of groundbreaking scientific achievement.