NPR News: 11-28-2025 10AM EST

Summary

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NPR News Now: November 28, 2025, 10AM EST

Host: Jeanine Herbst
Duration: ~5 minutes

Episode Overview

This fast-paced episode delivers a snapshot of major international and domestic news updates. Key topics include President Trump’s response to a fatal shooting involving National Guard members, a devastating fire in Hong Kong’s public housing, Wall Street’s post-holiday rebound, scientific insights about fevers, and weather warnings for the Northern Plains and Great Lakes.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Trump Vows Crackdown on Legal Migrants After National Guard Shooting

(00:11 – 01:16)

• Incident: West Virginia National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom (20) died after a shooting near the White House. The suspect is a 29-year-old Afghan national.
• Response: President Trump calls for aggressive action against legal migrants, particularly those admitted from Afghanistan under the Biden administration.
  • He announced Beckstrom’s death on a conference call with military leaders.

    "Her parents are with her. This just happened. She was savagely attacked. She's dead."
    — President Donald Trump [00:42]

• On social media, Trump advocates for:
  • Pausing migration from what he called “threatened Third World countries.”
  • Deportations of many legal foreign residents.
• Government Action: Federal authorities are re-examining green cards and legal status of residents from Afghanistan and 18+ countries.

2. Hong Kong Public Housing Fire: Death Toll Tops 128

(01:16 – 02:10)

• Update: At least 128 fatalities in a public housing fire; bodies are still being recovered two days after the incident.
• Fire Details:
  • Occurred amid renovations; bamboo scaffolding and netting had initially been suspected, but netting met fire standards.
  • Authorities now blame other construction materials for rapid spread; fire alarms failed to operate.
• Historical Context: One of Hong Kong’s deadliest fires.

  • "Rescue efforts have now shifted to recovery operations. Many of the deceased haven't been fully identified."
    — Charisse Pham [01:31]

3. Wall Street Opens Higher Post-Thanksgiving & Markets Update

(02:10 – 03:00, 03:00 – 03:29)

• Market Movement: Dow up ~140-156 points in early trading; NASDAQ and S&P 500 also rising.
• Technical Glitch: CME futures trading was halted overnight due to data center issues before resuming.
• Additional Business Headlines:
  • Canadian oil pipeline deal with Alberta to reduce US dependency, in response to President Trump’s tariffs.
  • UPS’s MD11 cargo planes remain grounded after a deadly crash, likely affecting holiday shipping.

4. Science Spotlight: Why Fevers Help Fight Infections

(03:29 – 04:10)

• Big Question: How does fever assist the body during viral infections?
• New Study (in Science): Laboratory mice, which don’t naturally get fevers, survived flu better with artificially elevated temperatures.
  • Suggests fever’s heat, not just immune system reactions, thwarts viral infections.

  • "There are two main ideas for how fevers fight infection... The new research... suggests that the heat helped them fight the flu."
    — Jonathan Lambert [03:29]

5. Winter Storms Disrupting the Northern Plains and Great Lakes

(04:10 – 04:54)

• Impact: Major winter storm brings snow and gusty winds, posing travel hazards through the weekend.
• Risks: Snow squalls create low visibility, slippery roads, and below-average temperatures, complicating post-Thanksgiving travel.

  • "Heavy lake effect snow squalls creating low visibility in slippery areas could impact post Thanksgiving travel."
    — Jeanine Herbst [04:10]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• President Trump on the loss of Sarah Beckstrom:
  "Her parents are with her. This just happened. She was savagely attacked. She's dead." [00:42]
• Charisse Pham on Hong Kong fire recovery:
  "Many of the deceased haven't been fully identified and more than a dozen burned bodies remain in the buildings, authorities said at a press conference." [01:31]
• Jonathan Lambert on fever research:
  "Mice housed at room temperature got sick after infection, but those housed in conditions simulating a fever fared much better." [03:29]
• Jeanine Herbst on winter storm threat:
  "Heavy lake effect snow squalls creating low visibility in slippery areas could impact post Thanksgiving travel as many make their way out to stores or home from holiday celebrations." [04:10]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:11 — President Trump’s vow on migrants and Afghan refugee shooting
• 01:16 — Hong Kong fire update
• 02:10 — Wall Street’s open and financial top lines
• 03:29 — Science of fevers and new research
• 04:10 — Winter storm and travel warnings

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Episode provides a brisk, informative news summary grounded in the latest major events, with quick transitions between domestic, international, scientific, and weather stories.

Transcript

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[Jeanine Herbst]

[e-mail] Live from NPR News, I'm Jeanine Herbst. President Trump is vowing to crack down on legal migrants and review all Afghan immigrants admitted under the Biden administration after one of the West Virginia National Guard members shot this week not far from the White House died from her injuries. Sarah Beckstrom was 20 years old. The suspect is a 29 year old Afghan national. NPR's Brian Mann has more.

[Brian Mann]

Trump announced Beckstrom's death during a conference call with military leaders.

[President Donald Trump]

Her parents are with her. This just happened. She was savagely attacked. She's dead.

[Brian Mann]

A second National Guard soldier remains in critical condition. Federal authorities have identified the alleged gunman as an Afghan refugee. In a social media post, Trump called for a pause on migrants from what he described as threatened Third World countries and said many foreign nationals living in the US Legally should be deported. Federal officials say they've begun a reexamination of migrants green cards, scrutinizing legal residents from Afghanistan and at least 18 other countries. Brian Mann, NPR News.

[Jeanine Herbst]

The death toll from a massive fire that tore through a public housing complex in Hong Kong has risen to at least 128. Sharice Pham reports Bodies are still being recovered from the wreckage today, two days after the fire started.

[Charisse Pham]

Rescue efforts have now shifted to recovery operations. Many of the deceased haven't been fully identified and more than a dozen burned bodies remain in the buildings, authorities said at a press conference. The fire is one of the deadliest in the city's history. The apartment complex had been under renovation and was covered in bamboo scaffolding and netting. Authorities initially suspected that the netting was a problem, but but they now say it met fire resistance standards. Other construction material is believed to have spread the fire. Fire alarms also failed to operate properly, according to public broadcaster rthk. For NPR News, I'm Charisse Pham in Hong Kong.

[Jeanine Herbst]

Stocks opened higher this morning after a technical glitch snarled futures trading overnight. NPR Scott Horsley reports. The dow rose about 140 points in early trading.

[Scott Horsley]

Futures trading on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange was halted for hours overnight due to problems with computer servers at a data center in Illinois. Trading resumed this morning. It'll be a short day for stock traders. The market closes at 1pm Eastern Time after being closed yesterday for Thanksgiving. Canada's prime minister has struck a deal with the provincial leader of Alberta that aims to build an oil pipeline to the country's West Coast. The move is designed to make Canada less dependent on US Oil customers in response to tariffs imposed by President Trump. And UPS has its MD11 cargo planes, grounded since the deadly crash in Kentucky earlier this month, will likely remain out of service throughout the peak holiday shipping season. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington.

[Jeanine Herbst]

Wall Street's trading higher at this hour. The dow is up 150 points, the NASDAQ up 65 points, the S&P 500 up 15. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. Fever is a common response to viral infection. Many researchers think it helps fight the virus, but precisely how it helps has been a myst. NPR's Jonathan Lambert reports on new research that suggests an answer.

[Jonathan Lambert]

There are two main ideas for how fevers fight infection. One is that the high temperature is itself the point and helps cook off the virus by messing with its ability to hijack our cells. The other is that high temperatures somehow help our immune system work better. New research in the journal Science suggests that it's the heat that counts, at least in mice. Lab mice just so happen to not get feverish when infected with the flu. So to study this question, researchers infected mice and turned up the heat. Mice housed at room temperature got sick after infection, but those housed in conditions simulating a fever fared much better, suggesting that the heat helped them fight the flu. Jonathan Lambert, NPR News.

[Jeanine Herbst]

A major winter storm tore through the Northern Plains, bringing snow to parts of the area and the Great Lakes, and it continues through tomorrow with moderate to heavy accumulating snow and gusty winds forecast from the Eastern Plains to the western Great Lakes. The National Weather Weather Service says the heavy lake effect snow squalls creating low visibility in slippery areas could impact post Thanksgiving travel as many make their way out to stores or home from holiday celebrations. All of that is coupled with below average temperatures to much of the central and eastern US through the weekend. On Wall street, the dow is up 156 points. I'm Jeanine Herbst, NPR News, in Washington.

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