News
New Epstein files mention Trump. And, SCOTUS rules on National Guard in Chicago
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Today’s top stories
The Justice Department yesterday released about 30,000 pages of new documents, including flight logs, memos and letters, related to disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The files contain hundreds of references to President Trump.
President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Dec. 15.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
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Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
- 🎧 It’s well established that Epstein was well-connected and knew many influential figures, including Trump and former president Bill Clinton, NPR’s Sarah McCammon tells Up First. She emphasizes that Trump has not been accused of any wrongdoing, but notes that the documents continue to highlight the relationship between Trump and Epstein, raising questions about how much Trump knew about Epstein’s activities. She adds that it’s unclear which documents are credible and which aren’t. On social media, the DOJ has claimed that one of the files — a letter from Epstein to convicted sex offender Larry Nassar — is fake.
The Supreme Court has ruled that National Guard troops must stay out of Chicago — for now. The decision is one of several “emergency docket” cases in which the conservative majority court has ruled against Trump since he began his second term as president. The justices ruled 6-3, stating that the president failed to explain why the situation in Chicago warranted an exception to a law called the Posse Comitatus Act, which limits the military’s ability to execute laws on U.S. soil.
- 🎧 Because the ruling came through an emergency decision, it does not set precedent, NPR’s Kat Lonsdorf explains. The decision applies only to this specific case in Illinois, not to troop deployments elsewhere. But deployments in other cities are currently tied up in litigation in lower courts, and Lonsdorf says lower court judges tend to look to these emergency decisions for guidance.
The U.S. economy grew faster than economists expected from July through September, according to a delayed report from the Commerce Department on the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP). The agency usually releases this report in October, but it pushed it to this month due to the government shutdown.
- 🎧 Two factors helped drive the growth, NPR’s Alina Selyukh reports. The first was people and companies spending money on artificial intelligence and other technologies. The other is what Selyukh called the “perpetual motion machine” that is the American consumer. Americans are continuing to spend, despite recent polling showing growing uncertainty about their financial prospects. A new Conference Board report on consumer confidence found that sentiment declined for the fifth consecutive month, as Americans worry about inflation, the political landscape, and the labor market.
Today’s listen
Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” first hit No. 1 in 2019 and has topped the chart every holiday season since.
Denise Truscello/Getty Images for Live Nation Las/Getty Images North America
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Denise Truscello/Getty Images for Live Nation Las/Getty Images North America
Christmas stirs a mix of joy, anticipation and … yearning. That tender longing runs through holiday classics like Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” and Judy Garland’s version of “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.” Slate music critic Carl Wilson speaks with Morning Edition about why the holiday evokes this sense of yearning, and why these songs still resonate. Listen and grab some inspiration for your Christmas playlist.
Picture show
Mason “Bric” LaDue, a hip-hop music industry professional turned cattle rancher, takes the reins off of his horse, Valero, on Feb. 5, 2025, at his family’s ranch in Marquez, Texas.
Michael Minasi/KUT News
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Michael Minasi/KUT News
As the year comes to a close, NPR photojournalists are sharing a collection of images that defined 2025. The photographs capture the biggest headlines and quiet, powerful human scenes across the U.S. They’re representative of the fact that journalism not only documents factual events but also conveys the experiences and emotions felt in the many places we call home. Here’s a look at some of the images that resonated with the photographers this year.
3 things to know before you go
A family at their Victorian-era Christmas dinner, circa 1840.
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Hulton Archive/Hulton Archive
- Today, the word “yule” conjures up images of cozy Christmas cheer. But Yuletide traditions got their start in wild parties and animal sacrifice. On this week’s Word of the Week, dive into the pagan origins of Yule festivals.
- The Middle Collegiate Church, a centuries-old space in New York City, will hold its first Christmas Eve service tonight after a six-alarm fire destroyed the building in 2020. The church officially reopened on Easter this year.
- At the Ground Zero Hurricane Katrina museum in Waveland, Miss., an exhibit showcasing letters written to Santa in the wake of the storm tells stories of resilience and recovery. (via New Orleans Public Radio)
This newsletter was edited by Majd Al-Waheidi. Brittney Melton contributed.
new video loaded: Americans Exposed to Hantavirus on Cruise Ship Arrive in United States
transcript
transcript
Americans Exposed to Hantavirus on Cruise Ship Arrive in United States
Eighteen passengers who were aboard the MV Hondius, a cruise ship with a deadly hantavirus outbreak, landed in Omaha on a U.S. government medical flight. The passengers were being monitored at medical facilities in Nebraska and Georgia.
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We’re working diligently to ensure no one leaves the security in an unsecured way at an inappropriate time. No one who poses a risk to public health is walking out the front door of the streets of Omaha or beyond.
By Axel Boada
May 11, 2026
The man charged with attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner last month pleaded not guilty at a Monday arraignment in federal court.
Cole Tomas Allen, 31, wearing an orange shirt and trousers, was handcuffed and shackled as he was brought into the courtroom in Washington, D.C., federal court. His handcuffs were attached to a chain around his waist, which clanked as he was led to the defense table.
Speaking on behalf of Allen, federal public defender Tezira Abe said her client “pleads not guilty to all four counts as charged,” including attempting to assassinate the president of the United States, in connection with the April 25 incident at the Washington Hilton hotel.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Jones advised the court that they plan to start producing their first tranche of discovery to the defense by the end of the week.
Officials said Allen, a California teacher and engineer, was armed with multiple guns, as well as knives, when he sprinted through a security checkpoint near the event where Trump and other White House officials had gathered with journalists.
He was arrested after an exchange of gunfire with a U.S. Secret Service officer who fired at him multiple times, a criminal complaint said. Allen was not shot during the exchange. The officer, who was wearing a ballistic vest, was shot once in the chest, treated at a hospital and released.
Trump and top members of his Cabinet and Congress were quickly evacuated from the room as others ducked under tables.
Allen was initially charged with attempting to assassinate the president, transportation of a firearm and ammunition through interstate commerce with intent to commit a felony, and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence. On Tuesday, a federal grand jury indicted him on a new charge in the shooting of a Secret Service agent.
Moments before the attack, Allen had sent his family members a note apologizing and criticizing Trump without mentioning the president by name, according to a transcript of some of his writings provided to NBC News by a senior administration official. Allen also wrote that “administration officials (not including Mr. Patel)” were “targets.”
He also appeared to have taken a selfie in his hotel room. Prosecutors said Allen, who was dressed in a black button-down shirt and black pants, was “wearing a small leather bag consistent in appearance with the ammunition-filled bag later recovered from his person,” as well as a shoulder holster, a sheathed knife, pliers and wire cutters.
Officials have said they believe Allen had traveled by train from California to Washington, D.C., before checking into the hotel.
Allen’s sister, Avriana Allen, told law enforcement that her brother would make radical comments and constantly referenced a plan to fix the world, but said their parents were unaware that he had firearms in the home and that he would regularly train at shooting ranges.
Records show that he had purchased a Maverick 12-gauge shotgun in August 2025 and an Armscor Precision .38 semiautomatic pistol in October 2023.
After his arrest, Allen told the FBI that he did not expect to survive the incident, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Jocelyn Ballantine. He was briefly placed on suicide watch at the Washington, D.C., jail, where he’s being held.
Allen is expected to appear in court for a June 29 hearing.
At Monday’s arraignment, his legal team said they plan on asking for the “entire office” of the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia to be recused because of U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s apparent involvement in the case in a “supervisory role.” Federal public defender Eugene Ohm said some of the evidence they receive from the government will further inform that decision.
Note: Map shows the area with a shake intensity of 3 or greater, which U.S.G.S. defines as “weak,” though the earthquake may be felt outside the areas shown. The New York Times
Shake intensity
Pop. density
A cluster of earthquakes have struck near the U.S.-Mexico border, including ones with a 4.5 and 4.7 magnitude, according to the United States Geological Survey.
As seismologists review available data, they may revise the earthquake’s reported magnitude. Additional information collected about the earthquake may also prompt U.S.G.S. scientists to update the shake-severity map.
Subsequent quakes have been reported in the same area. Such temblors are typically aftershocks caused by minor adjustments along the portion of a fault that slipped at the time of the initial earthquake.
Aftershocks detected
Quakes and aftershocks within 100 miles
Aftershocks can occur days, weeks or even years after the first earthquake. These events can be of equal or larger magnitude to the initial earthquake, and they can continue to affect already damaged locations.
The New York Times
When quakes and aftershocks occurred
Sources: United States Geological Survey (epicenter, aftershocks, shake intensity); LandScan via Oak Ridge National Laboratory (population density) | Notes: Shaking categories are based on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale. When aftershock data is available, the corresponding maps and charts include earthquakes within 100 miles and seven days of the initial quake. All times above are Pacific time. Shake data is as of Saturday, May 9 at 11:55 p.m. Eastern. Aftershocks data is as of Sunday, May 10 at 11:54 p.m. Eastern.
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