Trump sets new tariffs; Rabbis on Gaza : NPR

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Today’s top stories

President Trump last night signed executive orders setting updated tariff rates on more than 65 countries and the European Union. While the administration has said for weeks that today is the deadline to implement these tariffs, the new executive orders indicate many won’t take effect for at least another week. Trump has repeatedly moved trade deadlines as he continues to negotiate with various countries. Here’s where all of his tariff threats and deals currently stand.

A general view shows shipping containers at the port in Keelung on Aug. 1

I-Hwa Cheng/AFP via Getty Images

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I-Hwa Cheng/AFP via Getty Images

• 🎧 Mexico is one of the countries that will see a delay in tariffs. Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced a 90-day delay, and Trump hinted at broad agreements with a handful of other trading partners, including the EU and South Korea. Some of these are not done deals, but announcing them allows the administration to “tell the story that they’re getting things done,” NPR’s Danielle Kurtzleben tells Up First. She adds that there are signs consumer spending is slowing and prices are picking up. Many economists say these tariffs are modestly weakening the economy.

U.S. special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee are visiting an Israeli-backed food distribution site in Gaza today, as international outrage over starvation in the area grows. The Israeli government continues to deny that there is starvation in Gaza. Earlier this week, Trump told reporters he didn’t agree with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s assessment, saying, “those children look very hungry.”

• 🎧 A photo and video provided by the Israeli government of a food distribution site shows about a tenth of the people who usually visit the site, according to NPR’s producer in Gaza, Anas Baba. The picture looks orderly, according to NPR’s Eleanor Beardsley. But other videos from such sites have shown chaos, and a number of Palestinians have been shot at them while trying to get food. Beardsley says there was a demonstration in Tel Aviv last night to end the war and starvation. She says it was the first demonstration where freeing Israeli hostages wasn’t the main focus. But the majority of the Israeli population doesn’t believe that there is famine in Gaza, according to Beardsley.
• 🎧 More than 1,000 rabbis and other Jewish leaders have signed a public letter urging Israel to allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza. They say they cannot keep silent about what they call “the use of starvation as a weapon of war.” NPR’s Steve Inskeep talks with Rabbi Charles Feinberg about why he signed the letter.
• ➡️ France, the U.K. and Canada are the latest countries to signal openness to recognizing a Palestinian state. Here’s what would change if that happens.

A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from terminating Temporary Protected Status for people from Honduras, Nicaragua and Nepal. The decision postpones the terminations until November and affects about 60,000 immigrants, many of whom have been living in the U.S. for more than 20 years. The law that created TPS gives the president the authority to grant protected status to migrants from countries experiencing conditions that prevent them from returning safely. Hondurans and Nicaraguans were granted TPS for the first time in 1999, after Hurricane Mitch caused widespread destruction. Nepal was added after a devastating earthquake in 2015.

Deep dive

Heat poses an extra risk for millions of Americans who take medications for issues ranging from high blood pressure to antidepressants.

David Goldman/AP

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David Goldman/AP

For millions of Americans, the medications they take for common issues like high blood pressure can pose additional risks during extreme heat. Some can interfere with one’s ability to sweat or stay hydrated, and others can affect the way bodies perceive or react to heat. Doctors advise that people continue to take their meds, but it’s important to develop a plan to stay cool.

• 🥵 Heart strain, kidney issues, brain damage and even death are possible when internal temperatures climb too high for too long.
• 🥵The CDC has a list of medications that may interfere with the body’s ability to manage heat and explains how each type of drug functions. Blood pressure medication can affect your ability to sense thirst. Beta blockers keep blood from flowing toward the skin, where it can get cooled by a breeze or evaporating sweat. Diuretics could contribute to dehydration. Antipsychotics can make it harder to sense your own temperature.
• 🥵 Making sure you have access to a cool space and keeping yourself from getting too hot in the first place should be priorities if you take these medications.

Weekend picks

Joe Musashi, longstanding hero of the Shinobi series, returns in Art of Vengeance.

SEGA

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SEGA

Check out what NPR is watching, reading and listening to this weekend:

🍿 Movies: Liam Neeson stars as Detective Frank Drebin Jr. in a Naked Gun reboot. NPR’s Linda Holmes says the movie is all about the joke pileups. If comedy’s not your genre, don’t worry: Hollywood’s got it all this week with new releases for everyone.

📺 TV: The Hunting Wives is a soapy murder mystery about a group of Texas women up to no good. Pop Culture Happy Hour recommends the show if you always thought Desperate Housewives would’ve been better if the housewives were sleeping with each other.

📚 Books: An Oral History of Atlantis is a short-story collection set in our absurd present, where lives are narrated through sleep medication side effects and Internet passwords. This book and three others have “magic at work” in them, according to critic Colin Dwyer.

🎵 Music: British rapper and singer Jim Legxacy’s latest project, black british music (2025), explores the U.K. rap scene and its connections to Afrobeats, emo, drill, and garage.

🎮 Gaming: Shinobi: Art of Vengeance blends classic action with smooth animation and metroidvania-inspired exploration. The game releases on Aug. 29, but NPR’s Lindsay Totty and James Perkins Mastromarino were able to get a preview. Here’s their assessment.

❓Quiz: I scored a 7/11 on this week’s quiz. Did you pay better attention to the news than I did?

3 things to know before you go

NPR wants to hear from people concerned about how they’ll support themselves after they stop working.

Charles Krupa/AP

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Charles Krupa/AP

1. Many adults 50 and over have little to no retirement savings or are worried about their financial future. If that sounds like you, NPR wants to hear your story. It could be featured in an upcoming series.
2. Fans of the vodka seltzer brand High Noon may have gotten an unexpected boost of energy from their drinks. The company is recalling certain 12-packs because they actually contained the energy drink Celsius.
3. Dude, can you believe this? On Word of the Week today, NPR dives into the wild history of the word “dude.”

This newsletter was edited by Yvonne Dennis.