NPR News: 11-12-2025 5AM EST

Summary

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NPR News Now — November 12, 2025, 5AM EST

Host: Dave Mattingly
Episode Theme: Morning update on current U.S. political developments, legal news, local reporting, economic data, and notable science updates, all within five minutes.

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Main Topics Covered

• Efforts to end the record-setting U.S. government shutdown
• Human stories from affected federal workers
• Aftermath of President Trump’s pardons related to the 2020 election
• Major settlement in Kansas newspaper police raid case
• Noteworthy natural phenomena: potential visibility of the northern lights and weather advisories for the Southeast

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Congress Moves to End Government Shutdown

[00:15–00:58]

• The House Rules Committee advanced a Senate-passed resolution to reopen the government.
• Funding extension: Most of the government funded through January; some agencies through September of the following year.
• Democratic criticism: Health care subsidies expiring at the end of the year were not extended; this remains a sticking point for Democratic leaders.
• Notable quote:
  • Teresa Ledger Fernandez (D-NM) on why extending subsidies matters:

    "And it is true we only lose this fight if we give up the fight." — Teresa Ledger Fernandez [00:53]

• Senate Majority Leader John Thune promises a vote to extend subsidies by mid-December. [00:58]

2. Federal Employees Prepare to Return

[00:58–01:59]

• Many furloughed federal employees may soon return to work.
• Personal Impact:
  • Elise Gregg (reporting from Jackson, MS) profiles Joyce Robinson, National Guard employee and volunteer during the shutdown.
  • Robinson’s experience:

    "We have not been working for the last 40 days, and I just felt like giving my time back. Doing something that's rewarding to me made me feel like I was at work." — Joyce Robinson [01:26]
    "It's not like I don't have any food in the house. It's just, you know, the unknown, not knowing that I haven't received a check in 40 days." — Joyce Robinson [01:46]

  • Joyce is optimistic about returning soon.

3. Day 43: Longest Shutdown in U.S. History

[01:59]

• Today marks the 43rd day of the shutdown, a new record.

4. Trump Pardons and Georgia Legal Fallout

[01:59–03:04]

• President Trump pardoned 77 people linked to 2020 election interference, but pardons do not shield individuals from state charges.
• Case Focus:
  • Rudy Giuliani still faces state charges in Georgia.
  • New developments:
    • The Fulton County RICO case needs a new prosecutor after DA Fani Willis was removed due to conflicts of interest.
    • If a replacement is not named by November 14, indictments could be dismissed.
  • Notable quote:

    "Trump's pardons only apply to federal charges, not state, and his office is working on their assigned task without being influenced by outside actions." — Pete Scandalakis, Georgia Prosecuting Attorneys Council [02:50]

5. Kansas Newspaper Raid Settlement

[03:04–04:12]

• Marion County, KS, to pay $3 million related to a police raid on the Marion County Record newspaper.
• Events covered:
  • 2023: Full police force and deputies raided the newsroom and publisher’s home.
  • The publisher’s 98-year-old mother died of a heart attack the following day.
  • Police seized hardware over suspicions the paper improperly accessed legal information; they had not.
  • Settlement to publisher, reporters, and ex-vice mayor whose homes and offices were raided.
  • The police chief still faces criminal and civil investigations; city’s legal status remains in question.
• Memorable summary:

  "The $3 million payment will be split between the publisher, two reporters and the town's former vice mayor, whose home was also raided." — Frank Morris [03:49]

6. Science & Weather Updates

[04:12–04:54]

• Northern Lights Alert:
  • Severe solar storms may allow aurora visibility as far south as Alabama.
  • Potential for temporary disruption to radio and GPS communications.
• Weather Advisories:
  • Frost and freeze warnings in southeast Alabama, southern Georgia, and northern/central Florida.

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Notable Quotes

• Teresa Ledger Fernandez:

  "And it is true we only lose this fight if we give up the fight." [00:53]

• Joyce Robinson, National Guard (on enduring the shutdown):

  "We have not been working for the last 40 days, and I just felt like giving my time back. Doing something that's rewarding to me made me feel like I was at work." [01:26]
  "It's not like I don't have any food in the house. It's just, you know, the unknown, not knowing that I haven't received a check in 40 days." [01:46]

• Pete Scandalakis, GA Prosecuting Attorneys Council:

  "Trump's pardons only apply to federal charges, not state, and his office is working on their assigned task without being influenced by outside actions." [02:50]

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Breakdown by Timestamps

• 00:15–00:58: Congressional actions and Democratic criticism over government funding resolution.
• 00:58–01:59: Focus on federal workers, specifically Joyce Robinson's volunteerism during furlough.
• 01:59–03:04: Details on the Trump pardons and the status of Georgia prosecution.
• 03:04–04:12: Kansas county settles lawsuit over police raid on local newspaper.
• 04:12–04:54: Northern Lights possible across the U.S.; weather advisories for the Southeast.

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Tone & Style

The episode maintains NPR’s signature brisk, factual tone, focusing on clarity, brevity, and balanced reporting, giving human context to political news, and highlighting both national implications and local impacts.

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For more detailed news and full stories, visit npr.org.

Transcript

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[Dave Mattingly]

Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dave Mattingly. Congress could formally end the government shutdown as soon as today. Early this morning, the House Rules Committee voted to advance a resolution passed by the Senate to that calls for the government to be reopened. It funds much of the government through January and some federal agencies through September of next year. Democratic leaders in the House and Senate are unhappy the measure does not extend health care subsidies set to expire at the end of the year. That's something they've been demanding. Democrat Teresa Ledger Fernandez of New Mexico says she, too, wants those subsidies extended.

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And it is true we only lose this fight if we give up the fight.

[Dave Mattingly]

Senate Majority Leader John Thune is promising a Senate vote to extend the subsidies by mid December. Federal employees who've been furloughed are preparing to go back to work with the government shutdown expected to end. Elise Gregg with the Gulf States newsroom spoke to one such worker who says she's been using her time to volunteer in the community.

[Elise Gregg]

For Joyce Robinson, a veteran and civilian employee with the National Guard, staying busy while she's away from her job isn't an option.

[Joyce Robinson]

We have not been working for the last 40 days, and I just felt like giving my time back. Doing something that's rewarding to me made me feel like I was at work.

[Elise Gregg]

She's been volunteering with Mississippi Food Network, which has helped support those who haven't received SNAP benefits this month. In the meantime, she's trying to make ends meet herself.

[Joyce Robinson]

It's not like I don't have any food in the house. It's just, you know, the unknown, not knowing that I haven't received a check in 40 days.

[Elise Gregg]

She's optimistic about coming back to work soon, though. For NPR News, I'm Elise Gregg in Jackson.

[Dave Mattingly]

This is day 43 of the government shutdown, the longest on record. President Trump's recent pardons of 77 people linked to efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election do not apply to any state charges against the individuals. That includes Trump's one time lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, who's involved in a criminal case in Georgia. Alex Helmick with member station WABE has more from Atlanta.

[Alex Helmick]

The massive RICO case, originally brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fawney Willis, still does not have a prosecuting attorney. That's after a Georgia court removed Willis because her relationship with a special prosecutor created an appearance of impropriety. The prosecuting attorney's counsel of Georgia has to name her replacement by November 14th or the indictments are dismissed. In a statement, the council's executive director, Pete Scandalakis, said Trump's pardons only apply to federal charges, not state, and his office is working on their assigned task without being influenced by outside actions. For NPR News, I'm Alex Helmick in Atlanta.

[Dave Mattingly]

Wall street futures are higher this morning. Dow futures are up 89 points. Nasdaq futures are up 179. This is NPR News. A rural county in Kansas has agreed to pay $3 million to settle a lawsuit over its role in a police raid on a local newspaper. Frank Morris with member station KCUR reports.

[Frank Morris]

In the summer of 2023, Marion, Kansas, entire five member police force and two sheriff's deputies stormed the town's newspaper office and the publisher's home, confronting the publisher's 98 year old mother, who had a heart attack and died the next day. The officers seized computers and cel looking for evidence that the paper had improperly obtained confirmation of a local business owner's drunk driving conviction. It hadn't. The $3 million payment will be split between the publisher, two reporters and the town's former vice mayor, whose home was also raided. The agreement does not clear the police chief of criminal charges for allegedly obstructing an investigation of the raids or the city's liability in approving them. For NPR News, I'm Frank Morris.

[Dave Mattingly]

Scientists say the colorful northern lights could be visible today across much of the upper half of the US the reason? Severe solar storms that may also disrupt radio and GPS communications temporarily. Forecasters at the national oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or noaa, say the effects of the solar bursts will depend in part on how they interact with Earth's atmosphere. They say the northern lights could be visible as far south as Alabama. Frost advisories and freeze warnings were in effect this morning in the southeastern U.S. the areas include southeast Alabama, southern Georgia and northern and central Florida. I'm Dave Mattingly, NPR News, in Washington.

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