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Ryland Barton
In Washington, I'm Ryland Barton. The Justice Department has started its release of files related to the life and death of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. NPR is reviewing the website the department created to make the documents publicly available. The site shows a message to visitors that they are waiting in line once inside. It includes documents broken into court records, DOJ disclosures, FOIA records and House disclosures. The DOJ says several hundreds of thousands of pages would be released today with more to follow. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem is suspending the green card lottery program. She says that program allowed the suspect in the Brown University and MIT shootings to come to the U.S. nPR's Jasmine Garst reports.
Jasmine Garst
The green card lottery program is intended to admit individuals from countries that have a low enough level of immigration to the US Suspected shooter Claudio Neves Valente was a Portuguese national who initially entered the US on a student visa in 2000 and became a permanent resident in 2017. Nearly 20 million people applied for the 2025 visa lottery and more than 130,000 were selected, including spouses of the winners. In November, an Afghan man was identified as the suspected gunman in a fatal attack on National Guard members, which prompted the Trump administration to impose rules against immigration from Afghanistan and other countries. Jasmine Garsd, NPR News.
Ryland Barton
Secretary of State Marco Rubio says rebuilding Gaza is a, quote, long term project, some of which will take years. But he says the administration is planning to announce a board of peace soon and try to get an international force to Gaza. As NPR's Michelle Kellerman in a wide.
Michelle Kellerman
Ranging end of year news conference, Secretary Rubio says he feels generally optimistic about the diplomacy on Gaza. He says the immediate goals are to set up a technocratic Palestinian government and a board of peace chaired by President Trump, as well as an international stabilization force. He says disarming Hamas will be key.
NPR News Announcer
If Hamas is ever in a position in the future that they can threaten or attack Israel. You're not going to have peace, okay? You're not going to convince anyone to invest money in Gaza if they believe another war is going to happen in two to three years.
Michelle Kellerman
Rubio wouldn't get into details about negotiations, nor did he criticize continued deadly Israeli strikes in Gaza. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, the State Department.
Ryland Barton
The Trump administration is appealing a federal judge's order reversing billions of dollars in funding cuts to Harvard University. The move prolongs a legal battle that has tested the government's power to sway the nation's oldest and wealthiest. The Trump administration cut more than $2.6 billion from the Ivy League school over allegations that it had been slow to deal with anti Semitism on campus. A judge rejected that argument and ordered the cuts reversed. This is NPR News from Washington. The Kennedy center has added President Trump's name to the building. The Washington Performing Arts Center's board of trustees voted to rename the institution as the Trump Kennedy center yesterday. The board was handpicked by Trump. A new study finds people who regularly consume high fat cheeses may have lower risk of dementia. But as NPR's Allison Aubrey reports, nutrition experts say there's a catch.
Allison Aubrey
The study included nearly 28,000 people who were in their late 50s when the study began. They were surveyed about their eating habits, and after about 25 years of follow up, it turned out higher intake of high fat cheese was associated with a slightly lower risk of dementia. However, scientists who reviewed the data say this association does not prove that high fat cheese protects the brain. Those who consumed about an ounce and a half of cheese or more per day had about a 13% lower risk, which could be explained by chance. Also, researchers only captured a snapshot of participants dietary habits. Given the risk of dementia is determined by many factors, from genes to lifestyle habits, scientists warn against reading too much into the findings. Alison Aubrey, NPR News.
Ryland Barton
Tourists visiting the Trevi Fountain in Rome are now going to pay more than just the legendary coin toss over the shoulder. The city is imposing a two euro fee for tourists to get close to the fountain made famous by Fellini's La Dolce Vita. The view, for those admiring the late baroque masterpiece from the piazza, remains free. Rome is trying to manage tourist flows in a particularly congested part of town. Officials estimate it could net the city more than $7 million extra a year. You're listening to NPR News from Washington.
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This NPR News Now episode provides a concise, five-minute roundup of the top national and international headlines on December 19, 2025. Key stories include the Justice Department’s release of Jeffrey Epstein documents, U.S. immigration policy changes following recent shootings, Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s Gaza peace efforts, Harvard’s legal battle over federal funding, new research on high-fat cheese and dementia risk, and Rome’s new tourist fee at the Trevi Fountain.
“Several hundreds of thousands of pages would be released today with more to follow.” — Ryland Barton, on the DOJ Epstein files release (00:41)
“The green card lottery program is intended to admit individuals from countries that have a low enough level of immigration to the US…” — Jasmine Garst (01:07)
“He says the immediate goals are to set up a technocratic Palestinian government and a board of peace chaired by President Trump, as well as an international stabilization force.” — Michelle Kellerman (02:09)
“If Hamas is ever in a position in the future that they can threaten or attack Israel. You’re not going to have peace, okay? You’re not going to convince anyone to invest money in Gaza if they believe another war is going to happen in two to three years.” — NPR News Announcer, quoting Secretary Rubio (02:23)
“Those who consumed about an ounce and a half of cheese or more per day had about a 13% lower risk, which could be explained by chance.” — Allison Aubrey (03:58)
This episode effectively compresses a wide range of current-events reporting into a compact timeframe, balancing breaking political, international, health, and cultural stories with expert perspectives and official statements.