NPR News Now – December 22, 2025, 4PM EST

Host: Doualisai Kowtel, NPR
Duration: ~5 minutes
Main Theme:
A concise roundup of significant national and international news developments, including U.S. policy moves toward Venezuela, conservative political shifts, the passing of a national icon, diplomatic tensions with Denmark, and developments in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

Key News Segments & Insights

1. U.S.-Venezuela Tensions and Military Actions

Timestamps: 00:16–01:14

• White House Event: President Trump is scheduled to hold an unspecified event about the Navy, with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of the Navy John Phelan.
• Escalation: The U.S. has seized a second Venezuelan oil tanker following Trump’s announcement of a blockade on sanctioned oil vessels around Venezuela and is pursuing a third seizure.
• Venezuelan Response: Venezuela decries the U.S. actions as criminal.
• Additional Actions: The Trump administration continues strikes against boats off Venezuela suspected of drug trafficking; these have resulted in over 100 deaths.
• Quote (Deepa Shivaram, 00:36):
  "The US seized a second Venezuelan oil tanker after Trump announced a blockade... Venezuela has disputed the US’s actions and called them criminal. The seizures come as the Trump administration also continues to launch strikes on boats off the shore of Venezuela that they say are carrying drugs. More than 100 people have died in those strikes."

2. Conservative Movement Shakeup: Heritage Foundation Departures

Timestamps: 01:14–02:10

• Staff Exodus: Over a dozen members, including key legal, economic, and data leads, leave the influential Heritage Foundation for Advancing American Freedom, a think tank founded by former VP Mike Pence.
• Internal Conservative Struggles: Heritage grapples with how to respond to the influence of right-wing voices promoting anti-Semitic and extremist ideas.
• Statements:
  • Pence praises the departing staff's deep constitutional commitment.
  • Heritage accuses some departing staff of disloyalty.
  • A task force on antisemitism has severed ties with Heritage amid related concerns.
• Quote (Sarah McCammon, 01:49):
  "Heritage, meanwhile, issued a statement accusing some of the staff members who left of disloyalty. A task force focused on fighting antisemitism recently cut ties with Heritage over related concerns."

3. Passing of Betty Reid Soskin: Historic Park Ranger and Activist

Timestamps: 02:10–03:05

• Notable Legacy: Betty Reid Soskin, the nation’s oldest active park ranger, has died at 104.
• Life Highlights:
  • Worked for an all-Black boilermakers union in Richmond, CA, in her 80s.
  • Later became involved in the civil rights movement.
• Reflective Wisdom: Aired clip underscores her evolving view of democracy and civil rights.
• Quote (Betty Reid Soskin, 02:32):
  "I don't any longer expect the world to be as cohesive as I once did. I think now that every generation has to recreate democracy because it will never stay fixed, that one of our rights is to be wrong and that that's a protected right. One of our rights is to be a bigot. One of our rights is to recognize that the only thing that corrects a bad idea is a good idea."

4. Diplomatic Fallout: Trump Appoints U.S. Envoy to Greenland

Timestamps: 03:05–04:13

• Diplomatic Shockwaves: After President Trump appoints Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry as special envoy for Greenland, Denmark and European officials express outrage.
• Sovereignty Asserted: Joint Danish/Greenlandic and EU statements emphasize that national borders are matters of international law and not up for unilateral alteration.
• Nordic Solidarity: Finland, Norway, and Sweden strongly back Denmark in resisting perceived threats to Greenland’s sovereignty.
• Quote (European Commission spokesman, 03:51):
  "The sovereignty and the inviolability of its borders is essential for the European Union."

5. Israeli Settlements Undermine Peace Negotiations

Timestamps: 04:13–04:55

• Settlement Expansion: As Israel and Hamas negotiate in the peace process, Israel approves 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank.
• Political Intent: Far-right Israeli ministers directly link the move to efforts to block a Palestinian state.
• International Condemnation: The U.N., Saudi Arabia, and the U.K. denounce the settlements, calling their expansion illegal under international law.
• Quote (United Nations, paraphrased by Doualisai Kowtel, 04:41):
  "The UN Secretary General Antonio Gutierrez has long said Israel's relentless settlement expansion fuels tension and threatens the viability of a sovereign Palestinian state."

Notable Moments & Quotes

• Betty Reid Soskin on Democracy (02:32):
  "Every generation has to recreate democracy because it will never stay fixed, that one of our rights is to be wrong and that that's a protected right."
• European Commission Spokesman (03:51):
  "The sovereignty and the inviolability of its borders is essential for the European Union."

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Venezuela/U.S. Tensions: 00:16–01:14
• Heritage Foundation Staff Exodus: 01:14–02:10
• Betty Reid Soskin Tribute: 02:10–03:05
• Greenland/Danish Diplomatic Row: 03:05–04:13
• Israeli Settlements and Peace Talks: 04:13–04:55

Summary:
This NPR News Now episode covers pressing global and national events: from U.S. escalations against Venezuela and conservative infighting to tributes to a civil rights icon; from transatlantic diplomatic rifts over Greenland to the fraught Israeli-Palestinian peace process and settlement expansion. The episode is rich in timely news, illuminating political, ethical, and social challenges at home and abroad.