NPR News: 10-20-2025 11AM EDT

Summary

NPR News Now — October 20, 2025, 11AM EDT

Host: Korva Coleman
Podcast: NPR News Now

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Episode Overview

This concise five-minute NPR News Now episode delivers breaking updates on major national and global stories as of October 20, 2025. Key topics include escalating US-Colombia tensions, the latest on Russia’s war on Ukraine, domestic military deployment considerations, a potential security threat near President Trump’s travel, and a dramatic art heist in Paris.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. US-Colombia Relations and Caribbean Incident

• US Aid Cut and Tariffs: President Trump announced a cut to US aid to Colombia and threatened new tariffs, citing concerns over drug trafficking.
• Boat Attack Controversy:
  • The US claims military strikes in the Caribbean target drug traffickers, while Colombia's president accuses the US of attacking civilian fishing vessels, labeling recent attacks as "murder."
  • Quote:
    “[The US] says it is attacking boats there to stop international drug trafficking.” (Ada Peralta, 00:18)
  • Significance: This represents an unusually aggressive US military posture in the Americas, leading to high regional tension.
  • Quote:
    “It has been decades since the US Military has taken this kind of posture in the Americas. So the region is tense.” (Pete Hegseth, 00:39)

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2. Russia-Ukraine War & Donbas Solution Proposal

• Trump’s Proposal: President Trump suggests that ceding the Donbas region to Russia could end the war.
• Ukrainian Response: President Zelensky rejects this, warning it would not prevent future Russian aggression and doubts Putin's intentions.
• Media Briefing:
  • Zelensky downplayed reported tension in his recent meeting with Trump, but says Trump appears to be easing up on Putin after prior criticism.
  • Quote:
    “Zelensky said Russian President Vladimir Putin wants these regions to show that he has, quote, won this war, but that Russia will attack Ukraine again.” (Joanna Kakissis, 01:24)
  • Quote:
    “Zelensky did say that Trump appears to be giving President Putin another chance after weeks of criticizing the Kremlin.” (Joanna Kakissis, 01:24-02:10)

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3. National Guard & The Insurrection Act in San Francisco

• Federal Intervention: Trump threatened to send National Guard troops to San Francisco and cited the Insurrection Act as the legal basis.
• Legal Analysis:
  • Loyola Law School’s Jessica Levinson notes this would be an unprecedented use in modern times and likely faces court challenges.
  • Quote:
    “It would be a escalation of the president's ability to use the military on domestic soil and that we really have not seen the Insurrection act used in modern American history in the way that that President Trump wants to use it.” (Jessica Levinson, 02:45)
  • Note: The Insurrection Act has not been invoked in over 30 years.

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4. FBI Investigates Hunting Stand Near President Trump in Florida

• Security Breach:
  • A hunting stand with a view of Air Force One’s approach path was found near West Palm Beach International Airport.
  • No suspects were found on site; advanced cell phone analytics are being deployed as part of the investigation.
  • Quote:
    “FBI Director Kash Patel says...the FBI is deploying, quote, cell phone analytics capabilities and collecting all evidence at the scene.” (Luke Garrett, 03:32)
• Context:
  • Trump has faced two assassination attempts in the last year, adding gravity to the security incident.

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5. Louvre Jewel Heist in Paris

• Theft Details:
  • Thieves stole jewels once owned by Emperor Napoleon in a swift museum heist.
• Art Recovery Perspective:
  • Christopher Marinello warns the gems will likely be broken up to avoid detection.
  • Quote:
    “Nobody would buy them intact. So this is why they have to hide what they've done by breaking them up. And that's an unbelievable crime against cultural heritage.” (Christopher Marinello, 04:33)

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6. Markets Update

• Dow Jones: The Dow is up over 400 points, or about 1%. (No timestamped quote necessary; reported at 04:43)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On US-Colombia Boat Strike:
  “It has been decades since the US Military has taken this kind of posture in the Americas. So the region is tense.”
  — Pete Hegseth (00:39)

• On Ukraine War Negotiations:
  “Zelensky said Russian President Vladimir Putin wants these regions to show that he has, quote, won this war, but that Russia will attack Ukraine again.”
  — Joanna Kakissis (01:24)

• On Insurrection Act Usage:
  “It would be a escalation of the president's ability to use the military on domestic soil and that we really have not seen the Insurrection act used in modern American history in the way that that President Trump wants to use it.”
  — Jessica Levinson (02:45)

• On Louvre Jewel Theft:
  “Nobody would buy them intact… that’s an unbelievable crime against cultural heritage.”
  — Christopher Marinello (04:33)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• US-Colombia Tensions & Boat Attack: 00:18–01:01
• Ukraine-Russia Donbas Proposal & Zelensky Response: 01:01–02:10
• San Francisco/National Guard/Insurrection Act: 02:10–03:05
• FBI Investigates Hunting Stand Near Trump: 03:12–04:14
• Louvre Museum Jewel Heist: 04:14–04:43
• Markets Update: 04:43–04:56

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This NPR News Now segment provides a snapshot of significant political, security, and cultural developments as of October 20, 2025.

Transcript

[Narrator/Announcer]

Support for this podcast and the following message come from the University at Buffalo, where researchers have developed an imaging system that uses radar and AI to assess wounds without removing bandages. More at Buffalo edunpr Live from NPR News.

[Korva Coleman]

In Washington, I'm Korva Coleman. President Trump says he's cutting US Aid to Colombia and will impose new tariffs on the country. The president of Colombia says Trump administration attacks on boats in the Caribbean Sea recently amount to murder. NPR's Ada Peralta reports. The Trump administration says it is attacking boats there to stop international drug trafficking.

[Pete Hegseth]

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said another strike had occurred on Friday and that that boat belonged to a leftist Colombian guerrilla group. Three were killed in that attack, and Colombia's president said what the US Blew up was a fishing vessel. I think the big picture here is that it has been decades since the US Military has taken this kind of posture in the Americas. So the region is tense.

[Korva Coleman]

NPR's Ada Peralta reporting. President Trump says the best way to end Russia's war on Ukraine is to carve up the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas. Russia is currently occupying part of it, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says that solution would not stop Russia from invading Ukraine again. NPR's Joanna Kakisis reports from Kyiv.

[Joanna Kakissis]

Zelensky made the comments during a closed door meeting with media that included npr. He said the Kremlin has long insisted that Ukraine withdraw from two eastern regions, Donetsk and Luhansk, which are partly controlled by Russia. Zelensky said Russian President Vladimir Putin wants these regions to show that he has, quote, won this war, but that Russia will attack Ukraine again. Zelensky seemed to downplay reports that his meeting with Trump in Washington on Friday was unusually tense, adding that Ukraine shares Trump's, quote, positive outlook to end the war. However, Zelensky did say that Trump appears to be giving President Putin another chance after weeks of criticizing the Kremlin. Joanna Kakissis, NPR News, Kyiv.

[Korva Coleman]

President Trump has suggested that San Francisco may be the next city to receive National Guard troops. From member station kqed, Sarah Hosseini has more.

[Sarah Hosseini]

Trump told Fox News he plans to send the National Guard to San Francisco next and that he could use the Insurrection act to do so, calling it unquestioned power. The rarely used law allows the president to deploy the military domestically in cases of unrest or rebellion. Legal expert Jessica Levinson of Loyola Law School in Los Angeles says that will likely trigger court scrutiny.

[Jessica Levinson]

It would be a escalation of the president's ability to use the military on domestic soil and that we really have not seen the Insurrection act used in modern American history in the way that that President Trump wants to use it.

[Sarah Hosseini]

The Insurrection act hasn't been used in more than 30 years. For NPR News, I'm Sarah Hosseini in San Francisco.

[Korva Coleman]

You're listening to NPR News from Washington. The FBI is investigating the discovery of a hunting stand in West Palm beach over the weekend. The stand had a sight line to the Air Force One landing zone near where President Trump spent the weekend. NPR's Luke Garrett has more.

[Luke Garrett]

FBI Director Kash Patel says in a statement that no one was found near the hunting stand near the Palm Beach International Airport. But Patel says the FBI is deploying, quote, cell phone analytics capabilities and collecting all evidence at the scene without providing further details. A photo shared by US Secret Service shows the hunting stand positioned in a large tree. Trump traveled to Florida on Friday and spent the weekend in West Palm beach at his Mar a Lago resort. Trump faced two assassination attempts during his campaign, one in Butler, Pennsylvania, last July and the while golfing in Florida last September. A jury found Ryan Ruth guilty on assassination charges for the Florida attempt last month. He is set to be sentenced in December. Luke Garrett, NPR News, Washington.

[Korva Coleman]

French police are still searching for the group of thieves that stole jewels from the Louvre museum yesterday. These jewels were once owned by the Emperor Napoleon. Christopher Marinello is the CEO and founder of Art Recovery International. He says it's likely the thieves will break up the jewels for money.

[Jessica Levinson]

Nobody would buy them intact. So this is why they have to hide what they've done by breaking them up. And that's an unbelievable crime against cultural heritage.

[Korva Coleman]

The thieves only needed a few minutes yesterday to complete the museum heist. At last check on Wall street, the Dow was up more than 400 points, or about 1%. This is NPR.

[Narrator/Announcer]

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