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On October 18, more than 7 million people flooded the streets of America for the “No Kings!” protests, a follow-up to the actions over the summer decrying the authoritarianism and tyranny of the second Trump administration.The latest protests come at “a time when Trump and his accommodationists have attacked freedom of speech and freedom of the press; when they have sent masked men and armed troops into American cities; when they have threatened to jail political Democratic governors, mayors, and attorneys general; and when scholars of totalitarianism warn that American democracy is in peril,” wrote John Nichols, the executive editor…

Good morning. You’re reading the Up First newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox, and listen to the Up First podcast for all the news you need to start your day. Today’s top stories The ceasefire in Gaza was tested this weekend when Israel launched an assault on the territory in response to an attack on its troops. The Israeli military said Sunday that “terrorists” attacked Israeli troops operating in the Rafah area resulting in two soldiers being killed. Hamas denied involvement in any attacks. Gaza officials say dozens were killed in the Israeli strikes. Both sides are accusing the other…

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, sits before a meeting with President Donald Trump, from right, Vice President JD Vance and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in the Cabinet Room of the White House, Friday, Oct. 17, 2025, in Washington. Alex Brandon/AP hide caption toggle caption Alex Brandon/AP WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Friday called on Kyiv and Moscow to “stop where they are” and end their brutal war following a lengthy White House meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump’s frustration with the conflict has surfaced repeatedly in the nine months since he returned to office, but with his latest…

U.S. Capitol Police close an entrance to the Capitol as the federal government continued its shutdown on Oct. 9. Because of the shutdown, officers missed their first full paycheck Oct. 10. Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images Most of the effects of the ongoing government shutdown are far-removed from the halls of Congress. But the situation facing one group of federal employees who are working without pay is difficult for lawmakers to overlook: The Capitol Police officers who protect them every day. The officers missed their first full paycheck Oct. 10th. “They’re…

Dominion Voting Systems ballot-counting machines are lined up at a Torrance County warehouse during a testing of election equipment in Estancia, N.M., on Sept. 29, 2022. Andres Leighton/AP hide caption toggle caption Andres Leighton/AP When Scott Leiendecker announced he was buying Dominion Voting Systems — the elections technology company at the heart of countless 2020 election conspiracy theories — he teased a transformation. “As of today, Dominion is gone,” read the first line of a press release that seemed to many readers to lean into the unfounded rumors that have swirled around the company (and led to hundreds of millions…

Protesters march down Pennsylvania Avenue for Saturday’s “No Kings” protest in Washington, D.C. Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call Inc. via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call Inc. via Getty Images Demonstrators across the U.S. took to the streets on Saturday to protest the policies of President Trump. The overriding theme of the marches was the accusation that the president is behaving more like a monarch than an elected official. This is the second massive wave of protests organized by No Kings — a network of progressive organizations fighting against Trump’s agenda. Organizers projected a turnout in the millions across…

Roman Surovtsev and Samantha Surovtsev are seen in a photo from August 2024. Credit: Surovtsev family hide caption toggle caption Credit: Surovtsev family Samantha Surovtsev met her husband, Roman Surovtsev, in 2017 while jet skiing. When they started dating, Surovtsev was honest about his past. He told her that he had come from the former Soviet Union as a refugee at the age of four. And that when he was a teenager, his green card was revoked after pleading guilty to carjacking and burglary charges in California. He explained that after being released from prison, in 2014, he spent time…

The government shutdown goes on and House Speaker Mike Johnson refuses to swear in a Democratic representative-elect. President Trump thinks he has momentum to get a Russia-Ukraine peace deal done. SCOTT SIMON, HOST: Senior political contributor Ron Elving joins us. Ron, thanks so much for being with us.RON ELVING, BYLINE: Good to be with you, Scott.SIMON: Of course, there were big protests during the first Trump administration, women’s marches among them, many demonstrations against his immigration policies. How do these No Kings protests compare?ELVING: The day after Trump’s first inauguration in 2017, close to half a million people – most…

Society / October 15, 2025 Asad Dandia sued the NYPD after it spied on his family and community. Now he uses people’s history to reclaim the streets from the systems that surveilled him. Ad Policy Asad Dandia.(Lara-Nour Walton) In winter 2012, Asad Dandia, 19, discovered that his friend who crashed at his house in Brighton Beach and dined at his family table was a New York Police Department plant. The department’s Intelligence Division was dispatching spies and plainclothes officers to compile dossiers on Muslim “hot spots.” They infiltrated local bookstores, restaurants, and mosques, eavesdropping on casual conversations and befriending unwitting…

The Trump administration has adopted an aggressive approach to foreign policy in Latin America. NPR’s Scott Simon speaks with Ivan Briscoe at the International Crisis Group about the shift. SCOTT SIMON, HOST: When it comes to foreign policy in Latin America, the Trump administration has favored a more muscular approach, demanding control of the Panama Canal, a bailout for Argentina with strings attached and opposing tariffs on Brazil to influence the trial of a former president – and as we just heard, killing alleged drug smugglers on boats in the Caribbean – all part of an escalating pressure campaign against…