NPR News Now – November 14, 2025, 2PM EST

Main Theme

This fast-paced episode delivers a concise round-up of major U.S. news stories, highlighting political legal developments, immigration concerns, administrative shakeups, economic pressures due to trade tariffs, significant leadership changes at a major corporation, and new insights on the use of popular weight-loss drugs.

Key News Segments and Insights

1. Georgia Election Interference Case – Prosecutor Change

• [00:15] NPR’s Lakshmi Singh reports a change in the prosecution team handling the 2020 election interference case against President Trump and his associates in Georgia.
  • Fulton County DA Fani Willis has been disqualified due to “an appearance of impropriety” based on a personal relationship with a lead prosecutor.
  • Peter Skandalakis, Executive Director of the Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia, now leads the high-profile case.

2. Border Patrol Presence in Charlotte, NC Schools

• [00:36] James Farrell (WFAE) discusses concerns as Border Patrol agents prepare to arrive in Charlotte.
  • The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) district says they've had no notification of enforcement activity.
  • Liz Monterey Duvall, CMS board member, emphasizes the impact on immigrant families:

    • "It's devastating. I'm a daughter of immigrants, and I'm very protective of our students and our kids, and I'm worried about absenteeism and learning loss." (01:08)

  • CMS reiterated its commitment to laws ensuring every child’s right to public education, regardless of immigration status.
  • Latino students are the second largest demographic in CMS.

3. NIH Employee Placed on Leave after Criticizing Trump Policies

• [01:31] Rob Stein reports on Jenna Norton, a National Institutes of Health (NIH) program director:
  • Jenna Norton was put on indefinite paid administrative leave on her first day back from the government shutdown.
  • She had been outspoken about cuts and new policies at NIH.
  • Administration stance (via a statement to NPR):

    • "[R]adical leftist Jenna Norton chooses to constantly criticize this administration, even when she's supposed to be working." (01:56)

  • No explicit reason for the leave was provided by NIH.

4. Tariffs Increase Coffee Prices

• [02:26] Skylar Rossi (Public Media) examines the impact of tariffs on American coffee shops.
  • John Cates, co-owner of Broadway Roasting Company (Kansas City, MO), details cost pressures:

    • "We've been in business for 30 years, and we've never seen anything like this before where you raise your price and it's for no reason other than to stay in business." (02:49)

  • The average retail price of ground coffee rose to a record $9.14 per pound in September.
  • Brazil, a key supplier, now faces a 50% tariff imposed by the U.S.

5. Walmart Leadership Change

• [03:09] Lakshmi Singh reports a major transition at Walmart:
  • CEO Doug McMillan, credited with Walmart’s economic and tech expansion, will retire early next year at age 59 but remain on the board.
  • John Furner, current U.S. operations head, will take over in February.

6. Surge in Use of Weight Loss Drugs (Ozempic, Wegovy)

• [03:43] Cyndi Lupkin shares new KFF survey findings:
  • 1 in 8 U.S. adults now use GLP-1 drugs (Ozempic, Wegovy, Zepbound, Mounjaro) for conditions including diabetes, heart disease, and weight loss.
  • Usage doubled from 6% to 12% in 18 months.
    • Ashley Kurtzinger (KFF pollster) observes:

      • "What was really striking to us [was] that there wasn't one demographic group that was kind of driving the increase. It looked like there was a pretty steady increase in use across demographic groups." (04:25)

  • While most have some insurance coverage, over half report affordability as a challenge.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Liz Monterey Duvall ([01:08]): “It's devastating. I'm a daughter of immigrants, and I'm very protective of our students and our kids, and I'm worried about absenteeism and learning loss.”
• NIH Administration Official ([01:56]): “Radical leftist Jenna Norton chooses to constantly criticize this administration, even when she's supposed to be working, unquote.”
• John Cates ([02:49]): “We’ve been in business for 30 years, and we've never seen anything like this before where you raise your price and it’s for no reason other than to stay in business.”
• Ashley Kurtzinger ([04:25]): “There wasn't one demographic group that was...driving the increase. It looked like there was a pretty steady increase in use across demographic groups.”

Important Segment Timestamps

• Election Case Prosecutor Change: 00:15–00:36
• Immigration and Schools in Charlotte: 00:36–01:31
• NIH/Health Policy Controversy: 01:31–02:26
• Coffee Shop Tariffs: 02:26–03:09
• Walmart Leadership News: 03:09–03:43
• Ozempic/GLP-1 Drug Use Survey: 03:43–04:50

This episode delivers a succinct yet thorough update on national legal, political, economic, and health trends, with on-the-ground perspectives and expert comment, all in under five minutes.