Americans stashed away $2.7 trillion in excess savings over the pandemic even as inflation rates hit a record high.

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Gov. Asa Hutchinson, R-Ark., about Monday's call with the White House and governors about the pandemic.

NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with Ryan Stanley, the mayor of Joplin, Mo., about recovery efforts and lessons learned from the 2011 tornado that killed 161 people.

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of Brown University School of Public Health, about safely navigating the holidays amid rising COVID case numbers.

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of Brown University School of Public Health, about safely navigating the holidays amid rising COVID-19 case numbers.

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Michael Greenstone, professor and director of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago the impact of the rising cost of carbon on climate policy.

An increase in COVID-19 cases at Cornell University has forced officials to shut down the Ithaca campus amid final exams and a graduation ceremony.

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Reverend Don Odom Jr., the social justice ministry leader at Houston's Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church, about how Texas' redistricting plan will impact his community.

Russia is amassing more than 94,000 troops at the Ukrainian border in what officials in Ukraine call a "large-scale escalation" from Russia that is expected to take place in January.

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Dr. Saad Omer about the effectiveness of travel bans now that the omicron variant has been discovered in the United States.

The Mashpee Wampanoag first encountered the Pilgrims who arrived on the Mayflower ship in 1620. They say much is missing from the often-told Thanksgiving story.

Austria has become the first European country to instate a vaccine mandate. Monday, it was the first to initiate a nation-wide lockdown during this surge, despite protests against the restrictions.

Researchers have determined that one of the fastest motions the human body can generate is a simple snap of the fingers.

NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with Wake Forest University professor Francis Flanagan, on the role of race in a jury following the nearly all-white jury selected in the trial over the death of Ahmaud Arbery.

NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with Samson Shekhar Chauhan of the Lutheran Maritime Ministries about his work assisting crew members unable to leave ships because of COVID restrictions and shipping delays.

The highest rate of COVID-19 vaccination in the United States is not in a liberal-leaning Northeastern or West Coast state. It's in a place with a notably different political culture.

NPR's Audie Cornish speaks with Mónica Feliú-Mójer of Ciencia Puerto Rico on how grassroots organizing and responsible messaging helped Puerto Rico achieve the highest U.S. COVID vaccination rate.

Michele Carew's 14-year career as an election administrator is soon ending. Carew resigned after supporters of former president Trump pressured her out of her position with unfounded claims of fraud.

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Margaret Verble, author of When Two Feathers Fell from the Sky, a story about a young Cherokee horse-diver who is finding her way in the Jim Crow South.

Holocaust survivor Eddie Jaku, died in Sydney, Australia. He is remembered as a beacon of light who taught tolerance and led with kindness. He was 101 years old.