National

National

Bostonians Bet On When 12-Foot Ice Mound Will Finally Melt

4:56pm July 15, 2015

The record amount of snow that fell in Boston this winter is still hanging around. NPR's Kelly McEvers talks with Michael Dennehy, the city's commissioner of public works, about the pile of ice.

Queue Listen Now

Obama: 'No Precedent' To Revoke Bill Cosby's Presidential Medal Of Freedom

4:56pm July 15, 2015

by Krishnadev Calamur

The president said: "If you give a woman — or a man for that matter — without his or her knowledge a drug, and then have sex with that person without consent, that's rape."

Obama Says Iran Nuclear Deal Meets U.S. National Security Interests

4:41pm July 15, 2015

by Krishnadev Calamur

In a news conference that lasted over an hour, the president urged Congress to evaluate "this agreement based on the facts, not on politics." The deal faces much skepticism in Congress and in Israel.

New details of Pluto's largest moon, Charon, are revealed in this image from New Horizons' Long Range Reconnaissance Imager.

Strange Worlds At The Edge Of Our Solar System Finally Come Into Focus

4:22pm July 15, 2015

by Geoff Brumfiel

NASA's New Horizons spacecraft has beamed back its best photos of Pluto and its moons. Scientists will puzzle over them for years to come.

"Somebody's values are going to reign supreme," said David Lane, who has organized political training sessions for evangelical pastors. "We want people with our values to be elected to office and to represent our interests there."

Pastors Eye A Move From God's House To The Statehouse

4:11pm July 15, 2015

by Tom Gjelten

Hundreds of conservative pastors around the country are so upset about what they see as a moral crisis in government that they are preparing to run for public office themselves.

As of Wednesday, Kentucky has made it legal for people on motorcycles to run red lights after waiting for them to change. A motorcyclist rides in Kentucky in this file photo.

National

Motorcycles Can Now Run Problematic Red Lights In Kentucky

3:17pm July 15, 2015

by Bill Chappell

A new law that takes effect today was prompted by motorcycles' inability to trigger sensors at traffic signals, forcing them to wait long periods at red lights.

"When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. ... They're bringing drugs; they're bringing crime, [bringing] their rapists. And some, I assume, are good people," Donald Trump said while announcing his campaign last month.

Donald Trump, 'Wrestling A Pig,' And The GOP's Struggle To Reform

2:22pm July 15, 2015

by Mara Liasson

The last thing the GOP wants is to be seen as anti-immigrant, anti-gay and anti-science. The party has vowed to reform since President Obama's re-election, but change is proving hard.

Secondary school teacher Sarah Ward at home on maternity leave with her 3-month-old daughter, Esme Kelliher. A resident of New Zealand, Ward has access to paid leave, something many American mothers do not.

Lots Of Other Countries Mandate Paid Leave. Why Not The U.S.?

2:18pm July 15, 2015

by Danielle Kurtzleben

Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and President Obama are fond of pointing out that the U.S. stands nearly alone in not giving its workers paid leave. Here's how it got that way.

National

In Birmingham, A Debate Over Confederate Monuments

2:17pm July 15, 2015

by Rachel Lindley

After the fatal church shootings in Charleston, S.C., some communities are taking down Confederate monuments. Birmingham, Ala., with its rich civil rights history, is weighing the options.

Queue Listen Now

Many Iranians Celebrate Nuclear Deal As Opening To The West

2:10pm July 15, 2015

NPR's Audie Cornish speaks with Scott Peterson, a correspondent for The Christian Science Monitor, about the reaction in Iran to the newly-struck nuclear deal.

Queue Listen Now