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Ex-FBI Director Charged, Mysterious Military Meeting & Record Amazon Payout - Friday, September 26, 2025
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The news to know for Friday, September 26, 2025! We’ll tell you why charges have been brought against the former head of the FBI in an unprecedented indictment—and how it’s stirring debate about whether politics are guiding prosecutions. Also, a...
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Today is Friday, September 26th. We'll tell you why charges have been brought against the former head of the FBI in an unprecedented indictment and how it's stirring debate about whether politics are guiding prosecutions. Also, a rare urgent meeting bringing hundreds of senior US Military officers together for an unknown reason. Plus, how some companies will get to avoid paying the newest round of tariffs. Who could get a piece of the multi billion dollar settlement Amazon agreed to pay. And how to call a hotline for life advice from some senior citizens. Those stories and even more news to know coming up. Welcome. Welcome to the Newsworthy. All the day's news in around 10 minutes. Fast, fair, fun and on the go. I'm Erica Mandy. Thanks so much for being here. You ready? Let's do this. The former head of the FBI is now facing criminal charges. James Comey was charged yesterday with lying to Congress. The same week President Trump demanded his attorney general move now to prosecute Comey and more of his perceived enemies. It also comes less than a week after President Trump fired the U.S. attorney who said there wasn't enough evidence to bring the Comey charges. Other Justice Department officials also expressed doubts. Trump immediately replaced him with a White House aide who's actually never prosecuted a criminal case since. She's a former insurance lawyer, but Trump said he trusted her to get things moving. Remember, Trump first fired Comey during Trump's first term over the investigation into his 2016 campaign and its alleged ties to Russia. Since then, Comey has been a vocal critic of what he says are the president's efforts to politicize the justice system. And now the U.S. attorney says Comey lied in 2020 when he told lawmakers he didn't tell anyone else at the FBI to be an anonymous source for news reports. After being charged, Comey posted his own video on social media saying, quote, I'm innocent, so let's have a trial. He's expected to surrender today. If convicted, Comey faces up to five years in prison. The FBI is now sharing more details about the sniper who opened fire on an Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Dallas. Authorities say he acted alone. And even though the people he shot were being held in ICE custody, they say he really wanted to kill ICE agents. The suspect died after turning the gun on himself, but law enforcement apparently found notes in his home detailing the game plan for the attack. President Trump and others in his administration say the shooting proves hostile rhetoric toward ICE agents is putting them at risk. And now Trump is warning that bad things happen when so called radical left Democrats provoke conservatives. When asked for comment about the Dallas shooting, the president said, quote, the right is a lot tougher than the left. They better not get them energized. Overall, Axio says America has witnessed more high profile assassination attempts in the last 14 months than at any point since Martin Luther King Jr. And Robert F. Kennedy were shot in 1968. Those include attempts on the lives of both Republicans and Democrats. Defense Secretary, AKA War Secretary Pete Hegseth, has given a highly unusual urgent order. He ordered virtually all of the US Military's top commanders worldwide to Quantico, Virginia, next week. That's about 800 of the US military's generals and admirals, all set to gather on short notice. Even senior military leaders stationed in combat zones are expected to be there, which is very rare since the Defense Department usually uses highly secure videoconferencing technology when overseas. Military officers need to talk about sensitive matters with the White House or Pentagon. But Hegseth reportedly didn't even tell them what the meeting would be about, and the Pentagon would only confirm the meeting is happening without any other details. So to be continued, President Trump announced another round of tariffs set to go into effect next week. They include 100% tariffs on pharmaceutical drugs, 30% tariffs on certain kinds of furniture, 25% tariffs on heavy trucks, and more. On social media, Trump explained by saying, we need to protect American manufacturing for, quote, national security and other reasons. There are some exceptions to those tariffs, though. For example, the pharmaceutical tariffs will not apply for any company building a manufacturing plant in the US Already this year, more than a dozen drug makers have promised to collectively spend more than $350 billion on manufacturing, research and development, and more in the U.S. all of this comes as President Trump's legal authority to impose tariffs is being questioned. The U.S. supreme Court is set to consider that case in November. Tropical Storm Umberto is expected to become a major hurricane this weekend, but it's actually the next storm the US has its eye on. It's set to become Imelda, and forecasters say that one could be a much bigger threat to parts of the southeastern US Already, it's brought thunderstorms to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, but as it moves north, it's expected to strengthen. There's also the possibility Imelda and Umberto get close enough to rotate around each other and and become an even stronger storm. Then they could turn harmlessly out to sea or closer to land. If it does start heading toward the U.S. it could make landfall as soon as Monday. That said, there's still a lot of uncertainty about exactly how it will all shake out and meteorologists say to expect the forecast to keep changing. Stay tuned. More news still coming up, but first, this episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. When life gets tough, it's easy to vent to friends or family. But sometimes I'm not sure how much I really want to share or if I'm taking over over the conversation. And sometimes even the most well meaning people don't know what to say or have the best advice. That's why I appreciate having a therapist. It's a space where I can talk honestly and always get a response that is actually helpful. They know when to support, when to ask a tough question and want to help me think differently in order to be my best, happiest self. My therapist always seems to know how to handle difficult situations and teaches me a lot of strategies I can use along the way. With BetterHelp, you don't have to struggle to find that match. They've been connecting people with licensed therapists for more than 10 years. Everything is online, flexible and designed to fit into your life. As the largest online therapy provider in the world, BetterHelp can provide access to mental health professionals with a diverse variety of expertise. So find the one with betterhelp, our listeners get 10% off the first month@betterhelp.com newsworthy that's betterhelph e l p.com newsworthy now back to the news. As expected, President Trump signed an executive order that will keep TikTok available in the US it officially approves transferring the app's American operations to a group of mostly American investors. Trump says he also got the go ahead from Chinese President Xi Jinping, which had been a big hurdle until now. What's not clear is if American lawmakers will agree too, and they say they're reviewing the agreement now to make sure it complies with the bipartisan law they passed last year with over fears TikTok could help the Chinese government spy on or influence Americans with misinformation. Now the new mostly American buyers are linked to businessmen known for their longtime support of President Trump. So the president was asked whether the new American spinoff of TikTok would be more positive toward him and his administration. To that, he said, quote, if I could, I'd make it 100% MAGA related, but it's not going to work out that way. Unfortunately, he went on to say that every philosophy will be treated fairly. To be continued, Amazon has agreed to settle a landmark case over its prime membership program for a record $2.5 billion. It came just a few days into a trial between Amazon and the Federal Trade Commission, or ftc. The FTC accused Amazon of illegally using manipulative or deceptive designs to trick shoppers into enrolling in prime subscriptions that renew automatically. Then, it says Amazon purposely built a convoluted multi step cancellation process to discourage people from quitting. Amazon still insists it did nothing wrong, that most prime users find signing up and canceling simple and clear. But the company says it just wants to move forward. So now Amazon is paying a billion dollars in penalties to the government and another one and a half billion dollars to affected customers. Millions of people who paid for Amazon prime between 2019-2025 are expected to be reimbursed automatically and get up to $51 back. Other Amazon users will be able to submit claims for refunds. All of it will be explained on Amazon's website. Starbucks is downsizing the coffee giant announced it's closing hundreds of stores and laying off close to 1,000 workers as part of a turnaround effort. The impacted employees will get the news today. The store closures will also start right away in locations where executives thought the environment would not be able to be upgraded. Still, the company plans to end this fiscal year with more than 18,000 stores in North America. And Starbucks plans to start growing its footprint again next year. It also has plans to remodel existing locations to make them more attractive to people who want to linger in a coffee shop, not just get in and out. All this comes in the face of a sales slump that's been going on for a while, and after the latest announcements, Starbucks stock went down again. Fans now have a chance to take home pieces of entertainment history. There are a couple of pretty high profile auctions we want to tell you about. One comes from the sprawling horror and fantasy collection of Oscar winning director Guillermo del Toro. He's known for movies like Pan's Labyrinth, the Shape of Water and most recently an adaptation of Frankenstein, and his memorabilia is highly coveted. He says he was inspired to auction it off after the devastating wildfires that hit Los Angeles earlier this year, saying he realized how easily it could all be lost. Items include concept sketches from his movies, costumes, models and more. That auction kicks off online today. Another one includes puppets and props from Muppets creator Jim Henson. It's actually the first auction from the Jim Henson Company's archives and it will feature 400 items, many of which were on children's shows like Fraggle Rock. Online bidding for that one starts next month. One of the most high profile golfing events in the world kicks off today. We're talking about the Ryder cup that pits Team USA against Team Europe this year. It's happening at Long Island's Bethpage Black Golf Course, where there's plenty of fanfare on display. There are 100,000 people expected to be there, even though ticket prices are 350% higher than they were the last time the Ryder cup was held in the U.S. about 3,000 spectators are expected to shuttle in and out by helicopter, so 15 helipads have been constructed to accommodate guests. Unlike most golf events, this one often has cheering, chants and even costumes. And today there will also be a lot of extra security since President Trump is planning to be there. You can watch from home today on USA and over the weekend on NBC. That's it for the main news today. So now it's time for Feel Good Friday when we bring you one extra feel good or positive news story before the weekend. But first, a break to thank our sponsor. I've been using Oneskin products for a while now and I love how they approach aging at the cellular level. It's science backed skincare that helps me take care of myself in a smart, preventative way. So I was excited to try their newest launch OS1 hair. It's a lightweight water like serum powered by the OS1 peptide. The same breakthrough behind their skincare, but this one is designed specifically for the scalp. I like knowing I'm doing something to help my hair be as healthy and resilient as possible for years to come. And I like that it's drug free, prescription free and easy to work into my routine. Plus it doesn't interfere with how I style my hair. Plus the reviews speak for themselves. Customers say their hair feels fuller, smoother and shinier, some even noticing it's starting to grow back. Oneskin is the world's first skin longevity company. By focusing on the cellular aspects of aging, Oneskin keeps your skin looking and acting younger for longer. For a limited time you can try OneSkin with 15% off using the code newsworthy at OneSkin co. That's 15% off OneSkin co with the code Newsworthy. And after your purchase they'll ask you where you heard about them. So please support our show and tell them we sent you. Now back to Feel Good Friday. Senior citizens with decades worth of wisdom to offer have decided not to let it go to waste. They're sharing tips on everything from love to fashion to moose hunting. They all live at a care home in Canada that just set up a new advice line. It's live now. So if you want to give them a call, all you have to do is dial the number 204-788-8660. You'll hear pre recorded messages from the residents. For example, you can press zero for Cheryl's tips on being true to yourself. Press one to hear Carl's advice on following your dreams and so on. The whole idea came from artists at the facility who would hear stories from the residents while they were making art with them and that sparked the idea to bring some of their pearls of wisdom to the public. And many of the residents say they were excited since they're not asked their opinions very often. Now the plan is to update the hotline regularly so people can keep calling in and get fresh advice. So again, we can share the number with you. It's 204-788-8060. We'll also add it to today's show notes as well. Thank you so much for listening today. We'll be back tomorrow with our special edition Saturday episode, checking in with the company that brought back the once extinct dire wolf species and has its sights on other ancient animals next. Then we'll be back on Monday with the latest news to know. For now, have a great weekend.