Up First

CIA Director William Burns talked with NPR in his first interview since being confirmed in March. Also, slain Haitian President Jovenel Moïse is being laid to rest weeks after his assassination, while the investigation into his murder and unrest in Haiti continues. And, the 2021 Tokyo Olympics officially begin with opening ceremonies today. How different will it look during a pandemic?

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi vetoed two Republican nominees to the panel set to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection, saying she was rejecting their nominations "with respect for the integrity of the investigation." Also, a $26 billion national settlement was reached with drug maker Johnson & Johnson and three companies that distributed opioid painkillers even as addiction and overdose deaths skyrocketed. And, ESPN host Maria Taylor has announced she is leaving the sports network just weeks...

A bipartisan infrastructure bill faces a crucial test in the Senate today. But here's the thing: there's no actual bill yet. Also, the massive Bootleg Fire has ravaged southern Oregon and is the fourth-largest fire in the state's modern history. And, we check-in at the Tokyo Olympics ahead of opening ceremonies as COVID cases there are on the rise.

Almost two weeks after the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse, the struggle for power in the Caribbean nation appears to be over. Also, the U.S. Justice Department is condemning a proposed bankruptcy settlement for Purdue Pharma, the maker of Oxycontin. And, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is set to blast off through the atmosphere on his company's rocket from his remote ranch in West Texas.

After declining steeply for six months, coronavirus cases are once again on the rise, thanks to the delta variant. Also, devastating floods spread farther south in Europe into the Alps over the weekend, inundating towns and villages in Austria and southern Germany as the death toll rose to at least 180. And, after a federal district judge in Texas ruled against the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, President Biden said the Department of Justice intends to appeal the decision.

This week's bonus episode comes from the limited-run podcast On Our Watch from NPR and KQED. One of the first police shootings to be captured on cell phone, millions saw Bay Area Rapid Transit police Officer Johannes Mehserle fire a single, fatal gunshot into Oscar Grant's back as the 22-year-old lay face down on the train station platform. Now, a lawsuit filed by NPR member station KQED has forced BART to comply with California's 2019 police transparency law, and release never-before-heard...

Details from NPR's exclusive interview with Haiti's interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph. COVID-19 infection rates climb as vaccination rates lag. And Lebanon's population suffers as the economy crumbles.

In an interview with NPR, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says the child tax credit under the American Rescue Plan should be made permanent. Also, Haiti is preparing for a state funeral following the assassination of its president little more than a week ago as the investigation continues. And, South Africa is ending one of its most violent weeks since the end of apartheid.

The sweeping $3.5 trillion resolution has a long way to go before passage, but the White House lauded it as a "breakthrough" on one of President Biden's major legislative priorities. Also, an internal report sharply criticized the F.B.I.'s handling of the sexual abuse case involving Larry Nassar, the former doctor for the U.S.A. Gymnastics national team. And, the European Union unveiled broad new legislation to help meet its pledge to cut emissions of the gases that cause global warming by...

In an interview with NPR, Vice President Kamala Harris suggested that she has talked to senators about exceptions to the legislative filibuster in order to advance legislation on voting rights. Also, Senate Democrats say they have reached a budget agreement among themselves that envisions spending an enormous $3.5 trillion over the coming decade. And, the latest on the investigation into the assassination of Haiti's President Jovenel Moïse.

Texas House Democrats left the state on Monday in a second high-profile effort to block controversial GOP legislation that critics have slammed as voter suppression. Also, President Biden is expected to address the need for voting rights legislation in Congress in a major speech. And, the Food & Drug Administration is adding a warning label to the Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine after it has been linked to an extremely rare neurological disorder.

The Taliban are rapidly expanding their territorial control in Afghanistan as U.S. troops are packing up and leaving the country. Also, officials from multiple United States agencies are joining the investigation into last week's assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse. And, thousands of Cubans marched over the weekend to protest food and medicine shortages and high prices amid the coronavirus crisis.

On this week's bonus episode of Up First, NPR's labor and workplace correspondent Andrea Hsu looks at why Americans are quitting their jobs at record rates, and how this might be affecting employers. After that, host Rachel Martin speaks with three people who are reimagining what their working lives can be.

The U.S. is lending federal investigators to help Haiti investigate the assassination of the president there. More remains are identified at the Surfside, Fla., collapse site. Pres. Biden signs an executive order intended to boost competition in the economy.

Two Haitian Americans were among 17 suspects arrested in the killing of Haiti's President Jovenel Moïse, authorities said. Also, hotspots in the U.S. of the highly-contagious delta variant of the coronavirus is being driven by low vaccination rates. And, President Biden is defending his decision to pull U.S. troops out of Afghanistan, America's longest-running war. So how is the country responding?

Fourteen days after the catastrophic collapse of the Champlain Towers South condo building in Surfside, Fla., officials have called off the search for survivors. Also, Haiti's President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated early Wednesday and now police say four of the suspected gunmen have been killed. And, the U.S. is bracing for another ugly fire season and it is not just the west that is under threat.

Crews searching the building collapse site in Surfside, Fla., have discovered four more victims since Tuesday morning, bringing the death toll to 36. Also, the highly contagious delta variant now accounts for more than 51% of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., according to new estimates released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams has won the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City.

As search operations continue, four more bodies have been recovered from the ruins of the collapsed condo tower in Surfside, Fl., bringing the total death toll to 28. Also, President Biden is walking a thin line as he tries to tackle a surge in homicides in the country while also getting a police reform bill across the finish line. And, England plans to lift all of its coronavirus restrictions by the end of July.

Crews used explosives late Sunday night to demolish the remaining structure at Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Fla. Also, with little fanfare, the last major U.S. military base in Afghanistan has been handed over to the Afghans and the Taliban is gaining ground there faster than anybody expected. And, the CEOs of the world's major tech and media companies will meet this week to hike, golf and most likely make deals.

This week's bonus episode comes from the newest season of NPR's Rough Translation, "Home/Front." The military and Silicon Valley used to work hand in hand. But over the years, distrust grew and collaborations stalled. While Silicon Valley raced toward the future with its unofficial "move fast and break things" motto, the military has failed to keep up — slowed by a complex bureaucracy. How will the two reach across this divide to solve the military's urgent tech problems?