Gaza Famine and Diplomacy, EPA Emissions Standards, GOP's Epstein Troubles

0:01The World Food Program says famine in Gaza is unlike anything seen this century. It's clear that we need urgent action now, so this is definitely not a warning. This is a call to action. The U.K. says it will recognize a Palestinian state if Israel doesn't act. I'm E. Martinez, that's Steve Inskeep, and this is Up First from NPR News. The Environmental Protection Agency says carbon dioxide is not pollution. That opinion goes against decades of scientific research. But what does it mean for the auto industry and the future of low-emission vehicles? And Republicans want to stop talking about Jeffrey Epstein, but that's not likely to happen anytime soon.

0:38Jeffrey Epstein's associate, Glenn Maxwell, says she would answer questions from lawmakers in exchange for immunity from prosecution. Stay with us. We've got all the news you need to start your day.

0:53This message comes from NPR sponsor FX, presenting The Lowdown, starring Ethan Hawke. introducing you to Lee Raybon, a quirky journalist slash rare bookstore owner slash unofficial truth seeker who is always on the tail of his latest conspiracy. This time, his most recent expose puts him head to head with a powerful family that rules Tulsa, meaning only one thing. He must be on to something big. FX's The Lowdown, all new Tuesdays on FX, stream on Hulu. This message comes from Schwab. At Schwab, how you invest is your choice, not theirs. That's why when it comes to managing your wealth, Schwab gives you more choices.

1:36You can invest and trade on your own. Plus, get advice and more comprehensive wealth solutions to help meet your unique needs. With award-winning service, low costs, and transparent advice, you can manage your wealth your way at Schwab. Visit schwab.com to learn more. This message comes from Dell Technologies, The new Dell PC with Intel Core Ultra helps you fast forward through busy work, leaving more time for U-Time. Get a new Dell PC at dell.com slash ai dash pc. Less than a week ago, France became the first G7 nation to signal its intention to recognize the state of Palestine. Now the United Kingdom has taken a step toward recognition, too.

2:20This is definitely something Israel does not want. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has for years opposed a fully independent Palestinian state. The U.K. action is framed as a move to put pressure on Israel's government. Joining us now to discuss this is NPR international correspondent Ayah Batraoui. So let's start with this announcement by the U.K. that comes with a bit of a catch. Yeah, so the Prime Minister Karas Starmer conditioned the recognition. He said the U.K. would do this at the U.N. General Assembly in September, joining more than 100 countries that have already recognized Palestine.

2:52But he says the UK could hold back if Israel takes real steps to end what he called appalling conditions in Gaza, ends the war there, and revives efforts towards Israel and a Palestinian state existing side by side. But have a listen to Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar laying out clearly his government's rejection of this. Establishing a Palestinian state today is establishing a Hamas state, a jihadist state. it ain't gonna happen so while recognition of a palestinian state by france the uk and possibly others that could follow like canada and australia certainly does carry weight it's significant but it does little to change realities on the ground israel's government is expanding jewish settlements in the west bank top ministers openly call for displacing palestinians from gaza these are territories palestinians need for a state and there's still not even a ceasefire in gaza where By the way, yesterday, the death toll from Israeli attacks surpassed 60 ,000 people killed in the war, according to its health ministry.

3:54And Israel is also being urged to let more aid into Gaza. So what can you tell us about conditions there? I mean, hunger is worse at this point than ever in the war. There's been a dramatic spike in deaths from hunger this month. And this comes after an Israeli blockade on all food entering Gaza that's really only slightly eased in recent weeks. and independent experts backed by the UN warned back in May that Gaza was at risk of famine unless more food reached people there. And now they say those thresholds for famine have been reached. Here's the World Food Program's Director of Emergencies, Ross Smith, talking about that.

4:27This is unlike anything we have seen in this century. It reminds us of previous disasters in Ethiopia or Biafra in the past century. And it's clear that we need urgent action now. So Now, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Nanyau, he did acknowledge yesterday that, quote, the situation in Gaza is difficult, but he denies their starvation. He says Israel is allowing large amounts of aid into Gaza. Well, so has that happened and has it made a difference? There's some movement, but the short answer is no. The World Food Program, the backbone of food aid in Gaza, says only half of the minimal amount of aid they're asking to bring in has been approved for entry.

5:04So only about 50 trucks a day carrying mostly flour have been coming in in recent days from them. And when these trucks enter, they're all looted, mostly either by armed gangs or people risking their lives just to feed their families. That's according to our own reporting and testimony on the ground. But look, you know, on Monday, for example, all 150 aid trucks from the World Food Program, UNICEF, Egypt, Emirates, the Charity Kitchen aid trucks, all of them were looted right near the border where Israeli troops are. Now, our producer there, Anas Bhabha, he reports markets are bare. Gangs are stealing aid and selling some of it at really jacked up prices.

5:38So, for example, he found a merchant yesterday selling two pounds of apples for$180. Wow. That's NPR's international correspondent, Ayabatrawi. Thanks a lot. Thank you.

5:56For years now, the Environmental Protection Agency has sought to limit the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere in order to reduce the effects of climate change. Yesterday, the Trump administration announced plans to reverse course and stop considering carbon dioxide a pollutant. Now, this has huge implications for rules that push automakers to make cleaner cars. NPR's Camila Dominovsky covers the auto industry, so we called her up. Camila, good morning. Good morning. What exactly did the EPA do? They laid out a plan to get rid of the endangerment finding. That was the EPA determination that they should regulate greenhouse gases as pollutants because climate change threatens human health.

6:34The Trump administration says that the EPA doesn't have the authority to regulate greenhouse gases and that there's not a strong reason to regulate them at all. And that's in part based on a report from five scientists who reject the scientific consensus on climate change. If finalized, this proposal would mean that all the EPA standards based on fighting climate change would not be valid. Now, there would still be rules on some chemicals like ozone and particulates that are bad for human health very directly, but the rules about carbon dioxide would be wiped out. This is a proposal. It's not a done deal.

7:11It's currently open for public comment, and it's likely, if finalized, to face litigation. Well, let's say it becomes final. You said it underlies a bunch of rules about the auto industry. What are those rules? Well, these are rules about greenhouse gases that in their current version are so strict that carmakers who only make traditional gas cars would eventually not be able to meet them. So the only realistic way to comply would be to make fewer gas cars and more electric and plug-in hybrids. If these rules go away, carmakers could, and many probably would, make fewer EVs. And this was a major campaign promise for President Trump, right?

7:48He promised to go after EV mandates. And he's gone farther than that. He's also targeted rules that encourage EVs or even just cleaner gas cars. If you're looking at things like the tax credits incentivizing electric vehicles, which are being eliminated soon. California also had rules requiring electric vehicles. The federal government revoked their ability to do that. And then there are rules about fuel economy, how many miles per gallon cars have to get. And those rules no longer have any penalties associated with them. So the EPA regs are really the last ones left standing. I'm trying to think of the implications of this.

8:24This is a global industry, the auto industry. China is huge in EVs. The United States is lagging behind, but there are some versions that are popular. So what does this mean for anybody who's shopping for a car? Well, first, nothing would change right away, right? Obviously, cars being sold next year are already being made right now. Automakers had warned that the current rules were not achievable, so it is likely that they would take advantage. of the ability to make fewer EVs. But on the other hand, they're not going to abandon efficient cars entirely. People like getting better gas mileage or not having to get gas at all, right?

8:58To the extent that they change course, looser rules could lower sticker prices a bit because it's expensive to engineer EVs or super efficient gas cars. But for drivers, that would be outweighed by having to buy more gasoline over time, over the life of the cars. And as long as we're talking about implications, we should acknowledge this is a big setback for efforts to fight climate change. Transportation is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. And health advocates also warn that rolling back these rules could mean worse air quality, which hurts health. And Pierce, Camila Domenoski, thanks for the update.

9:34Thank you.

9:40President Trump has returned from Scotland to face more questions about Jeffrey Epstein. This is a story the president says he would like to die down. He even called his own supporters, quote, weaklings for focusing on his administration's decision to stop releasing information about the late sex offender with past ties to many rich and famous people, including Trump. But Trump himself keeps discussing this story he says he doesn't like. On Air Force One yesterday, the president told reporters about his falling out with Epstein some two decades ago. And he said he kicked Epstein out of Mar-a-Lago in Florida for stealing employees from the club Spa.

10:15When I heard about it, I told him, I said, listen, we don't want you taking our people, whether it was Spa or not Spa. I don't want him taking people. And he was fine. And then not too long after that, he did it again. And I said, out of here. To Spa or not to Spa. All of this came as imprisoned Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell told lawmakers that she would speak with them in exchange for immunity. NPR congressional correspondent Claudia Grisales has been following this. Let's start with Maxwell and her potential testimony before Congress. Where does that stand? Good morning, A. Her lawyers wrote to the House Oversight Committee yesterday saying she would invoke her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination or not testify at all.

10:58but they said there was a path to make this testimony happen. First, to give her immunity and second, delay the testimony to after Supreme Court action on her case. Now, the Supreme Court does not reconvene again until October, and it's not even clear they'll take up her case. Committee Chairman James Comer issued the subpoena last week saying he wanted to conduct the interview about two weeks from today. The committee, however, quickly responded to Maxwell's attorneys yesterday to say immunity is off the table, but they did not rule out a delay. So that Comer subpoena, then how does that play into the controversy around the Epstein case?

11:37Well, as we know, Republicans are eager to put this behind them. After all, the House left early for their August recess to avoid votes on this issue. That said, they hope new efforts like the Maxwell interview will appease these demands for more information from their base. But we should note this subpoena for Maxwell already came with a lot of internal turmoil for the party, and they've struggled to move past this Epstein story. Yeah, President Trump can't seem to shake questions about Jeffrey Epstein. They've fallen to Scotland and all the way back. So what else did he say yesterday? Right.

12:10Our colleague, White House correspondent Frank Ordonez, asked Trump if the workers Epstein hired away from Mar-a-Lago were young women. Initially, Trump said he wouldn't answer, but then did confirm this was the case. That story's been pretty well out there. And the answer is yes, they were. It's unclear exactly when Trump's fallout with Epstein over these employees took place, but he's repeatedly said their friendship ended before Epstein's 2006 indictment. Yeah. And President Trump was also asked about one victim in particular, Virginia Giuffre. What can you tell us about that? Right. He shared that the young women taken by Epstein were spa workers and may have included Giuffre, who died by suicide earlier this year.

12:49Giuffre advocated for sex trafficking victims. She marked one of the more high profile victims who escaped and fought Epstein in the courts. And we know she worked at Mar-a-Lago because she talked about it during a 2016 deposition. She said she worked there in 2000 when she was 16. And she said she was a locker room attendant in the spa area and wanted to be a masseuse. So Trump for the first time confirmed that connection between her and abstain. And it came after the Scotland trip that was hounded with questions and related protests. So it's clear, even though the president would like to move on, it's also triggered a new wave of questions that will continue to plague the party.

13:26That's NPR's Claudia Grisales. Thanks a lot. Thank you.

13:33And that's a first for Wednesday, July 30th. I'm E. Martinez. And I'm Steve Inskeep. Consider this. Your next listen could be Consider This from NPR News. We here at Up First give you the three big stories of the day, while Consider This drills down on one. Listen now on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts. Today's episode of Up First was edited by Hannah Block, Jason Breslow, Cara Plattoni, Mohamed Elbardisi, and Alice Wolple. It was produced by Zia Butch, Nia Dumas, and Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott, and our technical director is Carly Strange. Join us again tomorrow.

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