Six minutes of news from around the nation.

Trump appears ready to attack Iran as U.S. strike force takes shape; Driver's license suspensions in NC lead people off track; Solar fund cuts devastate MT Native American tribes; Removal of Acadia National Park climate change signage spurs lawsuit.

TRANSCRIPT

The Public News Service Daily Newscast, February the 20th, 2026.

I'm Mike Clifford.

The Trump administration appears ready to launch an extended military assault on Iran, current and former U.S. officials said, as the Pentagon amasses an intensive strike force in the Middle East, despite the risks of U.S. combat fatalities.

The Washington Post reports the arsenal under assembly for weeks is awaiting the arrival of the aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford and its accompanying warships.

The vessels were approaching the Strait of Gibraltar on Thursday, making an attack possible within days.

Meantime, a driver's license suspension can derail a person's life.

In North Carolina, a large number of people are impacted by the issue.

Nearly one million state residents currently have their license suspended, either for failure to pay fees or failure to appear in court after a suspension.

That's according to analysis from Monet Shum, a research assistant with the Wilson Center for Science and Justice at the Duke University School of Law.

She says there are many reasons why people miss court, including not receiving a notice to appear or a lack of transportation or childcare.

Most people in North Carolina here require a car to get to work, take their kids to school, go to medical appointments or buy groceries.

And public transportation is limited in many parts of the state with intra-city transportation limited to larger cities and intercity transportation also limited.

Shum notes that thousands of North Carolinians go years without a driver's license because of these barriers.

She says research has found failure to comply cases take an average of two and a half years to resolve and failure to appear cases take more than four years to resolve in the state.

I'm Eric Tegedorf reporting.

And the White House cut a $7 billion program to build residential solar panels in low-income communities last summer and has had a devastating impact Native American tribes in Montana.

The Chippewa Cree on the Rocky Boy reservation in northern Montana were part of a tribal coalition slated to get money from the Solar for All program.

The tribe's Joseph Eagleman says it would have slashed high electricity bills for 200 families on the reservation and losing it was a gut punch.

It was terrible.

It sucked.

There's 14 tribes that were on this coalition.

We were just one of them.

We weren't the only ones feeling it.

The coalition won a $135 million grant in 2024 through Solar for All, which was funded by the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act.

That money would have given each reservation about $7.6 million to build residential solar.

Applicants on the rural reservation showed Eaglemen their utility bills, some as high as $900 a month, and they were excited to get solar power to to reduce their bills.

The Trump administration cut solar for all last summer after the budget bill rescinded funding for it.

This story was produced with original reporting from Ilana Newman for the Daily Yonder.

I'm Laura Hatch reporting.

This is public news service.

A new Ohio study shows that youth mental health is influenced by family, peers, trauma, and interactions with the juvenile justice system.

The report from the Health Policy Institute of Ohio appropriate juvenile justice policies can prevent delinquent behavior and improve community safety.

The study's lead author, Jacob Santiago, says data provide evidence that juvenile detention can harm youth mental health.

When a child is at risk of harming themselves or someone else, they're experiencing a crisis, they're not able to take care of themselves.

Oftentimes families do call 911 and that starts their kid down a certain path towards being involved in the justice system.

The report calls for Ohio elected officials and other policy makers to improve crisis intervention, strengthen diversion from justice involvement, and increase access to mental health treatment in detention facilities.

I'm Mark Richardson.

Next a coalition of conservation groups have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration to stop the removal of historical and science-based materials from America's national parks.

That includes signage on the impacts of climate change and Wabanaki heritage in Maine's Acadia National Park and the controversial removal of a slavery exhibit in Philadelphia.

Kristen Brangel with the National Parks Conservation Association says visitors are curious about local history and the changing environment, not just cute stories.

No one is clamoring for this and no one's asking for it.

The administration is headed in the exact wrong direction.

An executive order signed by President Donald Trump last year requires park materials considered disparaging to American greatness be removed.

Bringle says that goes against longstanding National Park Service laws requiring educational signs or brochures be peer reviewed and meet the highest scientific standards.

I'm Catherine Carley.

Finally, a new project that hopes studying the benefits of tree and shrub systems used to protect farms from extreme weather, otherwise known as windbreaks, will revive the practice among Illinois farmers today.

The Corn Belt Windbreak Project will look at trees planted through the Conservation Reserve Program, with the oldest dating back to the 1980s.

Illinois farmer Dallas Glazek is compiling profitability data, particularly for crops along end rows, where farmers typically lose money.

He notes farmers are now removing windbreaks to maximize space on their farms.

It's one that we're seeing a forgotten place about.

With the use of intensive agriculture on these landscapes, they think, oh, I can squeeze out another seven rows if I get rid of this tree line. and they're losing money by doing so.

Glazek says windbreaks serve as important shields, especially during spring and winter months when soil is bare.

He notes they can reduce soil erosion by 95 percent, increase key wildlife habitat populations, and protect neighboring farmland.

I'm Judith Ruiz Branch reporting.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

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