NPR News Now — Nov 20, 2025, 3PM EST

Host: Lakshmi Singh
Duration: ~5 minutes

Episode Overview

This NPR News Now segment provides a concise roundup of major national and global news stories as of 3:00 PM EST on November 20, 2025. The episode focuses on political tensions in Washington over President Trump’s recent social media posts, tributes at Dick Cheney's funeral, a dramatic CDC policy shift on vaccines and autism, the Nuremberg Trials' lasting legal legacy, new research on moss surviving in space, and the latest Wall Street update.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Political Crisis: President Trump’s Social Media and Calls for Violence

[00:15–01:51]

• Congressional Democrats' Outcry

  • Democrats denounce President Trump’s Truth Social posts, which they interpret as inciting deadly violence against six Democratic lawmakers—all with former military or intelligence service.
    • “The president of the United States is calling for the execution of elected officials. This is an outright threat and it's deadly serious.” — Democratic Official [00:50]

• Context: Senators’ Video

  • The backlash follows a video in which Democratic Senators and Representatives (Mark Kelly, Alissa Slotkin, Jason Crow, Chrissy Houlihan, Chris d’Aluzio, Maggie Goodlander) urge military personnel to refuse illegal orders.

• White House Response

  • White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt argues the president is reacting to lawmakers allegedly encouraging service members to disobey lawful orders, not advocating violence.
    • “No, let's be clear about what the president is responding to because many in this room want to talk about the president's response, but not what brought the president to responding in this way.” — Caroline Levitt [01:27]
    • Asserts Trump “does not actually want to see members of Congress executed” [01:40]

• Legal/Ethical Tensions

  • Lawmakers clarify their stance: service members are bound to refuse illegal orders under law.

2. National Tributes: Dick Cheney’s Funeral

[02:00–02:25]

• Bipartisan Reflections
  • Former Vice President Dick Cheney’s funeral draws tributes for putting “country over party,” with his daughter, Liz Cheney, emphasizing his values. President Trump did not attend, fitting the context of longstanding mutual criticism.
    • “With putting country over party.” — Liz Cheney, paraphrased [02:21]

3. Major Public Health Reversal: CDC on Vaccines and Autism

[02:25–03:12]

• CDC Policy Shift

  • The CDC’s website now says it “cannot rule out” a link between vaccines and autism—a stark reversal from the longstanding, research-backed assertion that there is no link.
  • The move aligns with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s (RFK Jr.) discredited views, alarming public health experts.

• Public Health Concerns

  • Experts fear the announcement could undermine vaccination rates and worsen the resurgence of diseases like measles and whooping cough.
    • “The CDC's change is alarming public health experts. They are already worried about a drop in childhood vaccination...” — Rob Stein [02:33]

4. Historical Perspective: Nuremberg Trials Anniversary

[03:12–03:32]

• 80th Anniversary of the Nuremberg Trials
  • The trials are highlighted as foundational to international justice for crimes against humanity.
  • Harvard Law School launches open online access to fully searchable archives of all 13 trials—expanding global scholarship.

5. Science Update: Moss Survives in Space

[03:57–04:47]

• Breakthrough Experiment
  • Japanese researcher Tomo Michi Fujita and his team find common moss spores can survive 283 days outside the International Space Station and still germinate.
    • “They didn't mind the space condition. They can keep their life for such a long time.” — Researcher Colleague [04:23]
    • Fujita estimates moss could possibly survive up to 15 years in these conditions [04:29]
  • Implications for developing ecosystems on the Moon or Mars.

6. Market Update

[04:47–04:48]

• Wall Street
  • The Dow is down by 175 points.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “The president of the United States is calling for the execution of elected officials. This is an outright threat and it's deadly serious.” — Democratic Official [00:50]
• “No, let's be clear about what the president is responding to because many in this room want to talk about the president's response, but not what brought the president to responding in this way.” — Caroline Levitt [01:27]
• “They didn't mind the space condition. They can keep their life for such a long time.” — Researcher Colleague, re: moss surviving space [04:23]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Political Crisis: [00:15–01:51]
• Cheney Funeral Tribute: [02:00–02:25]
• CDC Reversal – Vaccines & Autism: [02:25–03:12]
• Nuremberg Trials 80th Anniversary: [03:12–03:32]
• Moss Survives in Space: [03:57–04:47]
• Wall Street Update: [04:47–04:48]

Tone

Concise, urgent, and neutral—mirroring the NPR News Now style. The episode covers politically charged developments, historical context, public health controversies, science breakthroughs, and financial updates in a matter-of-fact, informative manner.