NPR News: 03-31-2026 6PM EDT

0:00Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Ryland Barton. President Trump has signed an order that seeks to create a list of confirmed U.S. citizens who are eligible to vote in each state and use the U.S. Postal Service to verify mail-in ballots. Trump says the order is foolproof, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik says the maneuver will make elections more reliable. What the President is doing today is he's going to make sure that mail-in ballots are safe, secure, and accurate, and will have a clear distinction. If you voted by mail, you will have it on the envelope, obviously not on the ballot, but on the envelope. So we will know a million mail-in ballots, there'll be a million envelopes, and you'll be able to know exactly correctly that citizens voted. But election experts say the order will face legal challenges that Justice Department is seeking sensitive voter data from states and is engaged in more than two dozen lawsuits for that information. The administration claims it needs the data to enforce states voter list maintenance.

1:00President Trump is expressing frustration with allies who have been unwilling to join the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran. Today, he told them to go get your own oil as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz sent average U.S. gas prices past $4 a gallon for regular gas. As NPR's Tom Bowman explains, top U.S. military officials and allies have expressed concerns over the war. The three officials were telling both the White House and Capitol Hill they were concerned that the allies were not part of this war, number one, number two. They were worried about U.S. casualties, and also they were concerned about the U.S. missile inventory getting critically low. But it is amazing, though, I think that people talk about how easy it would be. I just think they completely mischaracterized what would happen once they started down the road to war. The State Department says it is tracking threats against U.S. citizens in Saudi Arabia and it is urging them to stay indoors and away from windows as NPR's Michelle Kellman reports.

2:01In its latest security alert, the embassy in Riyadh tells Americans that hotels, businesses and educational institutions could be targeted as Iran responds to ongoing U.S. and Israeli air strikes. The embassy is advising Americans to shelter in place until further notice. The advisory says if Americans want to leave, Saudi airspace is open, though there are frequent air traffic restrictions because of Iranian missiles and drone threats. The U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia has suspended most routine services and has drawn down personnel. Michelle Kellman and PR News, the State Department. U.S. stocks surge to their best day since last spring as hope spread on Wall Street about a possible end to the war with Iran. The S&P 500 lept nearly 3 percent its largest gain since May. The Dow jumped nearly 2.5 percent and the NASDAQ rallied more than 3 and 3 quarters of a percent. This is NPR News from Washington. Brazil is weathering surging oil prices because of its expanded biofuel program.

3:06Tens of millions of Brazilian drivers have a choice at the pump fill up with 100 percent sugar cane based ethanol or gasoline blend that contains 30 percent of biofuel. The massive flex fuel fleet makes vehicles capable of running on any mix of ethanol and gasoline. It's a result of a program launched during a military dictatorship in the 1970s and expanded during democratic times to reduce foreign oil dependency. Final ticket sales for the men's soccer world cup kick off tomorrow and PR's Rafael Nam has the details. The sales window for the tournament opens on Wednesday on FIFA's website. Unlike previous sales, this one is first come first serve and tickets will continue to be sold through the tournament. Realistically though, popular games such as the final will sell quickly. FIFA continues to face criticism about its high ticket prices and the adoption of a dynamic pricing. FIFA has not disclosed what prices it will be charging this time around or how many tickets it will be selling. FIFA has defended its sale saying it's adapting its pricing to the North American market and

4:07that its goal is to ensure fair access to tickets. Rafael Nam in PR News. A Brazilian rainbow boa snake at England's City of Portsmouth College gave birth to 12 babies without a mate and it isn't the first time Ronaldo the snake unexpectedly gave birth to 14 snakes in 2024 without mating and she now has birthed 12 more reproducing without a mate. Parthenogenesis has only been documented in a Brazilian rainbow boa three times. Ronaldo is the first to do it twice. This is NPR News.