NPR News: 04-02-2026 1AM EDT

0:00Live from MPR News, I'm Giles Snyder. In his first formal address to the nation since starting the war with Iran, President Trump said the U.S. would finish its mission there within a few weeks, as MPR's quill Lawrence reports. President Trump didn't say much that it was new, repeating that Iran's military has been destroyed and promising more bombing to come. The President said the closure of the Strait of Hormuz was not America's problem, but should be dealt with by other countries that rely on it more heavily. They are decimated, both militarily and economically, and every other way, and the countries of the world that do receive oil through the Hormuz Strait must take care of that passage. Iran's closure of the Strait has driven up the price of oil worldwide, and it's not clear any other country besides the U.S. could open it by force. Trump did not suggest a major ground operation is imminent, despite thousands of additional troops in or en route to the region. Quill Lawrence and PR News. In his own address to the nation Wednesday, British Prime Minister Kira Starmer said that

1:03the U.K. will host a meeting with other nations to discuss the Strait of Hormuz. The meeting Thursday among 35 countries has to be held virtually. Outside the U.S. Supreme Court, people gathered for a rally Wednesday as Supreme Court justices heard arguments on the birthright citizenship case. Trump administration is appealing a lower court ruling that struck down President Trump's day one executive order that would end citizenship for babies born to people who are in the country illegally, who are here to work or visit on a temporary basis. Trump himself was in the courtroom spending just over an hour, staying only, though, for arguments by the government's lawyer. Well, man, Security Secretary Mark Wayne Mullin has rescinded a rule that DHS expenditures over $100,000 be approved by his office. The decision marks Mullin's first major action after his swearing in last week. It ends a widely criticized policy, implemented by predecessor Kristi Nome.

2:05Critics said it hamstrung the Federal Emergency Management Agency's disaster response and recovery efforts. For astronaut said, for a trip around the moon, after Wednesday evening successful launch from the Kennedy Space Center, MPR's Nell Greenfield voice was there for the launch. The rocket is just arcing up into the sky. There's a tremendous noise and just a bright, bright star like streaking star in the sky. As it goes up and up, the sound was like physical. You could feel your body shaking and there's a long, straight cloud, white cloud coming down from the rocket, which is still very visible high up in the blue sky. There's four astronauts on board and it's amazing to think that they're on top of this thing. And it's just going up and up and up and we can still hear it. It's like a very loud, flag flapping sound and all eyes are on this thing. MPR's Nell Greenfield voice reporting and this is MPR News. Federal appeals court has rejected an attempt by Arizona Republicans to nullify a nearly

3:06million acre national monument near the Grand Canyon. Judges determined that none of the plaintiffs had standing in the case, Ryan Hynchus of Member Station KNAU reports. The ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the arguments brought by the Arizona legislature, state treasurer and three local governments were speculative. The plaintiffs claimed President Joe Biden's 2023 designation of the Bosno-Avjo-Eta Kukveni ancestral footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument would cause lost tax revenue, reduce land value, and create higher energy prices. The area is culturally significant to numerous northern Arizona tribes who worry about a possible surge in uranium mining claims if protections are lifted, despite the ruling conservationists say the monument is still under threat. For NPR News, I'm Ryan Hynchus in Flagstaff. A Utah Sheriff's Office as DNA testing has definitively linked the unsolved death of a Utah teenager in 1974 to the serial killer Ted Bundy.

4:10Investigators have long suspected that Bundy was responsible for the murder of 17-year-old Laura Ann Amy on Halloween night 51 years ago. Police say he confessed to the killing before his execution in Florida in 1989, but her case remained open. Following President Trump's first address to the nation since the start of the Ron Moore oil prices are climbing Brent Crude as added more than 6 percent, now trading above $107 per barrel. I'm Giles Snyder. This is NPR News. This message comes from Easy Cater, the workplace food platform. Easy Cater helps organizations order food from favorite restaurants, meet dietary needs, and stay on budget. With employee meal programs, flexible payment options, and 24-7 customer support, all on one platform. For more at EasyCater.com.