Rob Schmitz is NPR's international correspondent based in Berlin, where he covers the human stories of a vast region reckoning with its past while it tries to guide the world toward a brighter future. From his base in the heart of Europe, Schmitz has covered Germany's levelheaded management of the COVID-19 pandemic, the rise of right-wing nationalist politics in Poland and creeping Chinese government influence inside the Czech Republic.
The fallout from DOGE staffers' efforts to access sensitive Social Security data continues as an agency watchdog disclosed a new investigation into "potential misuse" reported by a whistleblower.
President Donald Trump held a rally in Kentucky on Wednesday and blasted Rep. Thomas Massie, who has been a thorn in the president’s side in major policy disputes.
Richard Kahn testified to the House Oversight Committee that he did not know about Epstein's crimes. He said monetary gifts that Epstein made did not raise any red flags.
A military assessment suggests a U.S. Tomahawk cruise missile was responsible for at least 165 deaths at an Iranian girls' school, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly.