NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (May 15)

Welcome to NTD Evening News. Our top story tonight, President Trump on his way back from China after his talks with Xi Jinping. What the president told the CCP leader behind closed doors and a sign of mistrust as the U.S. delegation departs China. Mario Tsu at the White House. CIA shares photos on X showing director John Ratcliffe meeting with Cuban officials in Havana days after President Trump said the two countries would be meeting. Jason Blair has more. A suspected Iraqi terrorist arrested and charged with plotting attacks in the U.S. What his connections are to the Iranian regime. A children's hospital in Texas agreeing to pay $10 million in damages and establish America's first de-transition clinic. This comes amid allegations the hospital illegally performed gender transition procedures on children. Jason Perry with that. And this coming July 4th, 1 million people expected at the National Mall. Federal officials are ramping up law enforcement efforts across Washington ahead of major summer events and America 250 celebrations. Arlene Richards has that. This is NTD Evening News. Live from our global headquarters in New York City, here's Kerry Dunst. Good evening and thank you for joining us tonight. President Trump heading back to Washington after his talks with Chinese regime leader Xi Jinping. The president keeping his cards close to his vest on arming Taiwan as the U.S. says its policy on the self-governing island remains unchanged. We now go live to NTD's White House correspondent Mari Otu at the North Lawn. Mari, good evening. Hey Kerry, good evening to you. That's right, President Trump on his way back to Washington telling reporters aboard Air Force One there that in the next short period of he'll be making a quote determination about that $14 billion weapon sale to Taiwan, saying that he wants to speak with the Taiwanese president first. And Kerry, this is coming as the president back in December approved that record-breaking $11 billion weapon sale to the self-governing island. The Taiwanese president then thanking the U.S. for quote, helping them strengthen their defensive capabilities just a couple days before the Beijing summit. President Trump telling reporters also that he stayed tight-lipped on this very question when he was asked it behind closed doors by CCP leader Xi Jinping. Take a look. Would the U.S. defend Taiwan if it came to it? I don't want to say that. I'm not going to say that. There's only one person that knows that. You know who it is? Me. I'm the only person. That question was asked to me today by President Xi. I said, I don't talk about that. That says Secretary of State Marco Rubio states that U.S. policy on the self-governing island has not changed. Even as Xi Jinping warns of clashes and conflicts if the issue is not handled in the way he'd like it to be. Anything that would compel or force a change in what we have now would be problematic. And we would certainly, our policies on that have not changed. We think it would be a terrible mistake to force that through force or anything of that nature. There would be repercussions for that globally, not just from the United States. Meanwhile, President Trump saying he and Xi Jinping agree on wanting the Strait of Hormuz open and that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. However, that's as China has not pulled back its support for Iran with experts saying to assess the CCP's actions rather than their words. Did President Xi make any firm commitment to put pressure on the Iranians to reopen the Strait of Hormuz? I'm not asking for any favours because when you ask for favours, you have to do favours in return. We don't need favours. We wiped out their armed forces Try to look at the tectonic plates of actions more than the words. And on the plates, China hasn't pulled back from its support for Iran or Russia yet. It could in theory, but it hasn't yet. And while President Trump is announcing that China has agreed to purchase 200 Boeing jets and billions of dollars in soybeans, a history of broken commitments from the CCP says only time will tell if they hold up their end of the deal. Xi says he's going to be open for business. Does he mean it? No, he doesn't mean it. And I think Donald Trump knows it. Trump understands that words are a way to communicate information, but they can also be weapons, strategic weapons. So China's making promises it's not going to keep. But Trump understands that. That's the important thing. Experts saying President Trump is uniquely positioned to see through these tactics, having experienced them firsthand in 2017, when the CCP signed a 100 day trade deal and then failed to abide by it. He is trying something new, which is almost Chinese in its approach to flatter Chairman Xi or President Xi, to on the surface, pretend to be a great friend of China, but then to have a list of things we want from China and to make sure we get them. Now, this has not been tried by any president before. Even President Trump in his first term, remember he had Bob Lighthizer, they had a 100 page trade agreement, spent two years negotiating every word and then and then the Chinese just walked away from the trade agreement. So that didn't work. And Kerry, it's worth noting that as the US delegation was departing Beijing on the tarmac there, according to White House correspondence on the ground, nothing from China was allowed on the plane. So a reporter saying that American staff took everything that Chinese had given them like credentials, burner phones for the White House staff, delegation pins and put them, threw them in a bin at the foot of the tarmac, at the foot of Air Force One before boarding the plane and climbing those stairs. And that's after the White House press pool encountered repeated conflicts with Chinese officials barring or restricting their press freedoms during both days of this summit. So we'll see if the optics of that departure signal anything about the trust or lack thereof in the relationship there. Back to you. Thank you, Mari. And despite the diplomatic niceties of the China visit, President Trump's actions may speak louder than his words. Has anything shifted after the visit to Beijing? Analysis tonight on Capitol Report with Steve Lance at 7 p.m. Eastern. Next, Colorado Governor Jared Polis is commuting the sentence of former election clerk Tina Peters. She could be soon released from custody. Peters was convicted for her role in a security breach at the Mesa County, Colorado election office in the aftermath of the 2020 election. She said she was looking for irregularities in the election software. She was sentenced to nine years in prison in 2024. The action by the Democratic governor cuts her sentence in half, and this means Peters could be paroled within a month based on the time she has already served behind bars. President Trump has been asking Colorado to free Peters. She is the last Trump supporter still in prison for actions related to the 2020 election. A Colorado appeals court recently ruled that Peters was improperly punished for her belief about fraud in the 2020 election, and the court ordered that she be resentenced. The governor, in his decision today, says he agrees with the Next, officials from the U.S. and Cuba have met in Havana in the latest sign that an agreement could be brewing between the two countries. President Trump also responding to rumored reports that former Cuban communist leader Raul Castro, of course brother of Fidel Castro, is going to be indicted by the U.S. NDD correspondent Jason Blair reports. CIA Director John Ratcliffe led a team to meet with Cuban officials in Havana on Thursday. The agency posted photos of the meeting on X, and the Cuban government stated that the meeting was with Cuba's Ministry of the Interior. The CIA has not yet provided any public updates on this meeting. NTD has reached out to the CIA for comment. The meeting came after President Trump posted on Tuesday that, quote, Cuba is asking for help and we are going to talk. The communist country's energy crisis worsened drastically after Venezuela's leadership changed and oil supplies from Venezuela to Cuba were disrupted. Secretary of State Marco Rubio commented on the situation earlier in May. Cuba used to get free oil from Venezuela, used to give them a bunch of free oil. They would take like 60 percent of that oil and resell it for cash. It wouldn't even go to benefit the people. Their economic model doesn't work. And the reason that I can't fix it is not just because they're communists, that's bad enough, but they're incompetent communists. Cuba's energy minister said on Wednesday that the country has ran out of fuel and doesn't have any reserves. He also said that power outages are happening regularly, impacting millions. Protests in Cuba have been reported in response to the crisis. There are also unconfirmed reports saying that the U.S. plans to indict Cuba's former communist leader Raul Castro in relation to a 1996 incident when Cuba shot down planes operated by a humanitarian group. President Trump was asked about it on Friday. I don't want to comment on that. I'll let DOJ comment on it. But they need help, as you know. And you talk about a declining country. They are really a nation or a country in decline. The meeting in Havana is another sign that a deal could likely be developing between Cuba and the U.S. Reporting in Washington, D.C., Jason Blair, NTD News. And an Iraqi national has been arrested and charged with plotting terror attacks in the U.S. He's believed to be a commander of a terror group backed by Iran. A criminal complaint unsealed today says Mohammed al-Saadi has been planning to kill Americans and Jews in New York and Los Angeles. This includes a plan to bomb a synagogue in New York City. It says he had also planned at least 18 terror attacks that unfolded in Europe and Canada this year in retaliation for the Iran war. Court documents say he is a commander of a terrorist proxy in Iraq, or Iran's Revolutionary Guards. The group has helped advance Iran's interests by attacking U.S. forces in the Middle East. Al-Saadi will appear in federal court in Manhattan later today. It's unclear how and where he was arrested. And the Justice Department is seeking the death penalty for the suspect accused of fatally shooting two Israeli embassy staffers in Washington, D.C. last May. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro had this to say while detailing law enforcement efforts to tackle crime in the nation's capital. I want to be clear. My message to anyone who seeks to commit political violence in this district, D.C. is not the place. You will be held accountable and you will face the full wrath of the law. Elias Rodriguez faces federal hate crime and murder charges in the killing of Yaron Leshinsky and Sarah Milgram. He is accused of gunning down the embassy staff members as they left an event at the Capitol Jewish Museum last May. Rodriguez allegedly shouted, free Palestine, during the shooting. According to the indictment, he allegedly told police, quote, I did it for Palestine. I did it for Gaza. Rodriguez's next court appearance is for June 30th. And the House this week passed its first fiscal year 2027 appropriations bill while lawmakers prepare to take up a separate border and DHS funding package through the reconciliation process. They've also advanced a new measure aimed at preventing future government shutdowns. NDD's Chris Bobb has that story. Reconciliation 2.0 legislation, which has been developing now to fully fund the immigration enforcement and border protection for three years through the rest of the Trump administration. Republicans moving on reconciliation next week, funding homeland security, including 30 billion dollars for ICE and roughly three and a half billion dollars for CBP, along with money for deportation operations and coordination with state and local law enforcement. Republicans have to do it on our own. We will do that next week and finally get that done. The push comes as lawmakers look ahead to another potential government funding fight later this year. Earlier this week, Senator John Kennedy advanced a resolution with unanimous Senate support that would withhold senators pay during shutdowns. Kennedy says lawmakers should feel the same impact as federal workers when government closes. We finally got out of that 43-day shutdown. We shut down the Department of Homeland Security. It was shut down for 76 days. We ought to hide our heads in a bag. He also warned shutdowns could become political heading into election season. I'm very concerned that my Senate colleagues on the on the Democratic side are going to try to shut down government yet again right before the elections. Try to create chaos to affect the midterm elections. Democrats are criticizing parts of the Republican package, including one billion dollars for secret service upgrades tied to the White House East Wing project. In a May 13th press release, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer wrote, quote, New Yorkers want lower costs, not a gold-plated ballroom. Funding for the White House ballroom's construction, including any gold plating, has been handled by private contributions. Meanwhile, the Senate parliamentarian has ruled several immigration provisions violate reconciliation rules, forcing Republicans to rewrite parts of the bill ahead of a June 1st deadline set by President Trump. Despite constant skepticism around here from the press that we can't perform, we are getting it done. We get it done every week. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee is scheduled to take up its reconciliation recommendations Tuesday. Reporting from Washington, D.C., Chris Bobb, NTD News. Thanks to Chris reporting in D.C. Next, the Justice Department and federal agency partners today announcing increased efforts to ensure safety ahead of the America 250 celebrations. Planners are expecting one million people on the National Mall for the July 4th celebrations. NTD's Arlene Richards has more on that. Today, we announce a new summer surge. Federal officials are ramping up security efforts across Washington ahead of major summer events and preparations for America 250 celebrations. This summer, Washington, D.C. will host one of the most significant, if not the most significant, national celebrations in a generation. Officials expect more than one million people to gather on the National Mall on July 4th for America's 250th anniversary celebrations, including fireworks, a parade, flyovers, and performances. Authorities say the D.C. Summer Safe Task Force is expanding federal law enforcement efforts. This summer, starting now, the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force is going even deeper, even further to surge even more federal law enforcement resources to this district. Officials say the effort brings together more than 30 federal and local agencies, including the U.S. Attorney's Office, the U.S. Marshal Service, the D.C. National Guard, and the Metropolitan Police Department, and that the initiative will target issues such as violent crime, firearms trafficking, fraud investigations, and parole supervision. And as we approach, finally, the 250th anniversary, I want to be clear. My message to anyone who seeks to commit political violence in this district, D.C. is not the place. Officials say the coordinated effort will continue through the summer to help residents and visitors feel safer across the nation's capital. Arlene Richards, NTD News. And President Trump announcing plans for the National Garden of American Heroes. That's a new statue exhibition to be built in West Potomac Park in Washington, D.C. President says the site is now a, quote, totally barren field of prime waterfront real estate along the Potomac River. President Trump says it will be transformed into a world-class public space with landscaping and monuments honoring American figures. President saying the garden will feature statues of founding fathers, military leaders, civil rights champions, athletes, artists, and entertainers. He says the project is part of preparations marking the 250th anniversary of the United States. And coming up, a children's hospital in Texas agreeing to pay $10 million in damages and establish America's first detransition clinic. This comes amid allegations the hospital illegally performed gender transition procedures on children. Jason Perry has that. And the Trump administration says that during the past year, zero illegal immigrants have been released into the U.S. after being apprehended at the southern border. Officials also say illegal crossings are down sharply. Christina Corona reports. The bladder control aisle. You won't shop here again. Your private business is your own. The constant struggle is over. Now there's a better way. It's HGIS. We home deliver bladder control products. We understand how you feel. 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There's a whirlwind of emotion and activity going on in this painting. And there's chaos all around and threat from below. The wolves surrounding her and they're anything but unmoved. They're moving all the time and we sense that. But this little girl remains unmoved. She's in quite a perilous situation, but she's completely strong and serene and she's actually meditating. It was very, very well liked because no matter what culture or what sort of walk of life you're from, I think people, they see it and they immediately understand what that energy, what that message is. And they're drawn to it because everybody kind of needs a little bit of that in their own life of, you know, the steadfast calmness and something to hold on to. It's definitely an inner peace in the midst of something very chaotic. And for a lot of people right now, the whole world is very, very chaotic. So I guess that's another reason why so many people are very drawn to this. Welcome back to Antity Evening News. I'm Cary Dunst. The Justice Department announcing its first resolution of a case involving gender transition procedures on children. Texas Children's Hospital agreeing to pay $10 million in damages and establish America's first detransition clinic. Antity's Jason Perry has the details. In a landmark settlement on Wednesday, Texas Children's Hospital agreed to pay the state of Texas $10 million in damages connected to its alleged involvement in performing gender transition procedures on minors. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton also accused the hospital of using false diagnosis codes to bill Texas's Medicaid program for illegal gender transition interventions. Texas Children's Hospital entering into agreements with state and federal authorities not to provide gender transition procedures or drugs. Paxton saying that the settlement also compels Texas Children's to establish America's first ever detransition clinic to quote provide medical care to patients who are subjected to gender transition procedures. And for the first five years of the new detransition clinic, all services will be free of charge to patients and funded by Texas Children's Hospital. Paxton also saying that Texas Children's has agreed to terminate five doctors who allegedly performed what he called harmful medical interventions on Texans. The Department of Justice notes that the claims in the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability. In a statement, Texas Children's Hospital says they have complied with all laws, cooperated fully with state and federal authorities and agreed to the settlement to protect its resources from costly litigation. Jason Perry, NTD News. Next, President Trump is calling for a suspension of the federal gas tax to help alleviate the high gas prices for Americans. We hear from people in California where the average price per gallon is in the $6 range. NTD's David Lamb has more. The federal gas tax could be suspended as President Trump is seeking to alleviate high gas prices for Americans. As of Friday, the national average for regular gasoline is $4.53 per gallon. That's about 50% higher than it was before the start of the Iran war and premium averages $5.39. But California's average gas price ranges from $6 to $6.50. Yikes! Currently, the federal tax on fuel is $18.4 per gallon for gasoline and $24.4 per gallon for diesel. Supporters say briefly pausing these taxes could help Americans, but others note that it could increase financial pressure on the government. Here's what some Californians say. I mean, every penny helps, but it's not a huge difference from what we're paying, but anything would help. It will not make a dent because when the gas stations are going to hike the prices anyway, 18 cents in $6 doesn't make a big difference. What do you think about gas prices in California right now? I think you need a second job to pay for it. It's miserable. I spend 85 or so every two days. I'm up by Walnut Creek. That's probably about 60 miles one way, so 120 miles a day. What do you think would make a difference? The state, the California state should bring down the taxes. The state almost makes, if I'm right, about $2 for every gallon, so the state should bring down the taxes. President Trump says once the Middle East conflict is resolved... As soon as this is over with Iran, as soon as it's over, you're going to see gasoline and oil drop like a rock. The Iranian conflict, now in its 11th week, has shuttered the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that handles about one-fifth of the world's oil supply. The federal gas tax first started in 1932 to reduce the U.S. deficit during the Great Depression. The funds have since been used to mainly build and repair roadways. What happens if the tax is halted? Analysts estimate if paused for one month, it could cost the U.S. $3.5 billion. Suspending the federal gas tax would require action from Congress. While members on both sides of the aisle remain divided, Republican and Democratic senators have introduced legislation that could suspend the tax for up to six months. Several states have already reduced gas taxes at the state level, including Georgia, Indiana, and Utah. If the federal gas tax is suspended, President Trump will be the first president to successfully do so. In California, David Lam, NTD News. Thanks to David, $6 a gallon, yikes indeed. The Department of Homeland Security says April marked the 12th straight month in which zero illegal immigrants were released into the U.S. at the southern border. Customs and Border Protection also reports apprehensions are down sharply compared with previous years. NTD's Christina Corona has more on the latest immigration enforcement numbers. The Trump administration says the U.S. has now gone a full year without releasing any illegal immigrants into the country after they were apprehended at the southern border. Officials say April marked the 12th consecutive month of what they call zero releases. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott says that in April 2024, more than 68,000 illegal immigrants were released into the United States. The Department of Homeland Security says illegal crossings at the southwest border remain at record low levels. According to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Border Patrol agents recorded 8,943 apprehensions in April. Customs and Border Protection says that is 94% lower than the monthly average during the Biden administration and 96% below the peak reached in December of 2023. On average, agents encountered 298 migrants per day in April. The administration says that is fewer than were apprehended in a single hour during the highest crossing levels under the previous administration. DHS Secretary Mark Wayne Mullen says the days of catch and release are over. We are enforcing the nation's laws and sending illegal aliens back to their home countries. Officials also highlighted increased drug seizures. Customs and Border Protection says nationwide seizures of cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl and marijuana rose 60% compared with April of last year. Agents seized 463 pounds of fentanyl in April alone. Federal officials say the numbers show increased border security, more drug seizures and stronger trade enforcement. Full border statistics are available on the U.S. Customs and Border Protection website. Reporting from the city of El Monte, Christina Corona, NTD News. And next, self-driving taxis, Waymos, appear to be driving aimlessly around a cul-de-sac in Atlanta and they don't seem to have any passengers. Video shows the autonomous vehicles struggling to navigate around each other in a local neighborhood. Some residents say they've tried to put out cones or yellow slow-down signs to block the Waymos from entering into the area, but that's only caused a driverless traffic jam. Others say they've reached out to the company about the neighborhood problem, but they haven't heard back. Waymo says it has addressed the issue, adding that the company values its relationship with Atlanta residents. And coming up, President Trump just landed on Joint Base Andrew, wrapping up a high-stakes two-day summit with Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping in What are the key takeaways from the visit? And Israel and Lebanon agree to extend a ceasefire for 45 days. The State Department says the agreement comes after the U.S. hosted productive talks between the two neighbors. As a quarterback at Hardaway High School, college first-round draft pick, on and off the field, we were taught to not show any signs of weakness. During the football season, I would stop eating, but I didn't know I was depressed. I thought that something was wrong with me. For 20-plus years, it was physical, physical, physical. We didn't have any education behind what mental health was. I started to learn it starts here first. If this is together, I'll be better as a father, as a man, and as a husband. Put the importance on your mental health. I'm not scared to talk about it anymore. The first tool is therapy. The second one is positive self-talk and then journaling, putting your thoughts on paper. We have to redefine what being a strong man is and heal, love your mind. My mom and dad were traditional Asian parents. Now my father would go to work before I woke up in the morning, and then he would come home too tired to play with me. I tell my son, I love you every single day. Now my dad has never said that to me. Not because he doesn't love me, but because culturally it wasn't comfortable for him. So I teased him the other day and I said, how come you never say that to me? And he said, you're too old now. Now that he's a grandfather, he says I love you to my son every time he sees him. My advice to all the fathers out there, forget the material things, forget the cultural restrictions. They grow up way too fast for you to waste even a single precious minute or moment. Welcome back to NTD Evening News. I'm Cary Dunst. President Trump is coming back from China with new trade deals, but how reliable a trading partner has the Chinese regime been with the US? NTD's Washington correspondent Jack Bradley has more on China's track record. The Chinese Communist Party's track record reveals an ongoing history of broken trade deals and failed promises. Looking back at what was called the phase one trade deal in 2020, China promised to purchase an extra $200 billion in US goods over two years, but they fell over 40% short. And when US officials pressed China on this at the time, there really was no accountability. It's pretty clear that China has not been meeting its agricultural purchasing or intellectual property commitments in that phase one agreement. We have fought very, very hard to secure accommodations from China for the shortfalls that are apparent in the trade data. So far, as I've noted, the conversations have been very difficult. Now, the office of the US trade representative under the Trump administration back in October conducted an investigation into China's implementation of that deal, finding they fell far short, saying China's lack of compliance with the phase one agreement appears to have undermined the conditions of competition for US companies seeking to trade with and operate in China. In 2001, China joined the World Trade Organization, but until this day, the CCP ignores their rules on state-owned enterprises. China still heavily subsidizes key sectors like semiconductors, steel, electric vehicles, solar, you name it, and creates overcapacity, producing far more than the market needs and flooding global markets with cheap goods, undercutting other nations' manufacturers. China also continues to use the title of developing nation status, even as it became the world's second largest economy, allowing them longer timelines to comply with world trading rules and more flexibility on subsidies and tariffs. Beyond trade, the CCP also violated its treaty with the United Kingdom when it took back control of Hong Kong. Hong Kong was supposed to be granted autonomy until 2047, but the CCP crushed the city's freedoms 27 years early, imposing a draconian national security law and arresting political dissidents. In 2015, Xi Jinping told former President Obama in the White House Rose Garden that China wouldn't conduct cyber theft of American intellectual property for commercial gain. Yet China continues large-scale cyber espionage, contributing to an estimated $15 trillion in stolen U.S. IP. So following these new trade agreements from China after this U.S. delegation returns from Beijing, the question on many people's minds are, can they really be trusted? For NTD News Washington, I'm Jack Bradley. And as President Trump's two-day summit in Beijing has come to an end, what was the outcome? Trade, Iran, Taiwan, human rights, and the treatment of the U.S. press corps, as well as the security precautions of those traveling back on Air Force One, all grabbing headlines. Joining us to put it all in perspective is Casey Fleming. He's chairman and CEO of Black Ops Partners Corporation. He's a national security advisor specializing in unrestricted warfare, as well as the author of The Red Tsunami, The Silent Storm, Killing Your Freedom. Casey, thank you for joining us this evening. What stands out for you about the summit and the two-day meetings between Trump and Xi? I saw a lot of pageantry. That kind of shocked me, the level of pageantry that came out of it. But anytime you're dealing with the Chinese Communist Party, you have to look at what they're doing and not what they're saying. So the pageantry actually just surprised the heck out of me, when nothing really got done as far as what happened under the table and above the table. Yeah, I guess when you see President Trump's greetings in the Middle East on his previous trip and how they really rolled out the red carpet, you would expect something. And I think your point is very interesting, that it's not necessarily what they do or how they welcome, but what they're actually held accountable to. I want to get your thoughts on Xi's red lines, because he had a few over the course of the two-day meeting. Well, first of all, let's get to the truth, OK? Let's get to the unbiased and unvarnished truth. You're never going to negotiations with red lines, OK? Therefore, it's not a negotiation if somebody has red lines. But let's break those down. The number one red line was their most important target is Taiwan, the Taiwan question, OK? So that is number one. They're basically signaling their intent, because Trump went after Venezuela and Iran. They feel it's now there. It's the window for them to go take Taiwan. It's very, very serious. Taiwan is a staunch U.S. ally. They are a model ally, and they are not a bargaining token at trade negotiations. They also produce 80 to 90 percent of our chips and our AI chips. Very, very serious. But number one, that's the red line. Trump should have been very ready with his red lines. Answering the Taiwan red line, I would have said, great, here's my first red line. I don't want any more fentanyl deaths out of 150,000 a year. I don't want to see one more fentanyl death after July 1st. Are we good? The second was with democracy and human rights. That's another key silver bullet against the Chinese Communist Party. They don't want the rest of the world to show, to be able to see, that they have zero regard for human life, including American human lives. So that's number two. Number three, we don't want to discuss paths and political systems, okay? And then China's development rights. China has a right to development, and they want to still maintain that they're a rising power, they're a developing nation, while they're number two in the world. Remember, the Chinese Communist Party, underscore communist. Let everybody, let that sink in. Communist. It cannot coexist in their books. And if you study the Chinese Communist Party, they cannot coexist with freedom, democracy, and liberty, because it basically renders totalitarianism, authoritarianism, and communism obsolete. So the long term, they cannot coexist. So all what's happening today is just a bunch of dancing around, because what you have under the surface, you have a stalemate. We started with a stalemate before Trump landed, and we still have a stalemate after Trump landed. There may have been some discussion, China, CCP, Xi Jinping will buy some soybeans, buy some Boeing planes, but that'll be it. So it's something that's very, very suspect. And if you understand the CCP, this is standard operating procedure. Yeah, very interesting points you bring up there about a stalemate before and after, but a bunch of pageantry in the middle. Hopefully some good comes out of that. We want to also welcome to this conversation Adam Savitt. He's director of the China Policy Initiative at the America First Policy Institute. He's also a former senior advisor for national security at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. And I want to get your take now on particularly the Taiwan discussion, because as Casey said, the very first red line, you actually have a different view, though, than a lot of people do on Taiwan. So what are your thoughts there? I don't think it's different. I think it's complementary. And I think I echo Casey's sentiments that they're an important ally and that we should hold the line. But I also think that Xi and China are in a weaker position than many analysts think. And that's because Xi has really eviscerated his officer corps and his party leadership, starting with the rocket force about three or four years ago, which, of course, would be essential to any invasion of Taiwan. That's the missiles, which are crucial to that equation. He's also completely stripped out his central military commission, which used to have seven members, including generals. There's now him and one general. There's only two on that commission. There used to be seven. And that general is faced towards discipline as opposed to actually leading troops. He's not in that position. And every day that goes by, it makes it more difficult. It's already difficult. It's 100 miles of water. It puts the D-Day invasion to shame and difficulty. And while we have some backup and some issues with delivering on our weapons sales and aid to Taiwan because of our own defense industrial base issues, every day they do get stronger. Every day the Taiwanese do get more serious about their own defense. And our other allies on the first island chain, especially the Japanese, are kicking in more defense spending and, more meaningfully, the actual system. So they're building their own surface-to-air missile systems and surface-to-surface systems. And that's what he would face if he decided to go across the strait. Yeah, fascinating point you bring up, Adam, that maybe Taiwan is actually in a position of strength. So with that in mind, and you, of course, mentioned the sideline generals, some facing death sentences, which most likely would be commuted to life sentences. But what is Taiwan's capability, actually? This big defense package from the U.S., potentially their own parliament sidelining purchasing that. So what is actually happening inside of the Taiwan politics related to this issue? That's right. Well, they have their core defense budget, which is the more traditional items that they already have, you know, the fighter jets, artillery, tanks, and that sort of thing. Both parties agree on that. Both the DPP of President Lai, which is a little bit more adversarial towards China, and the KMT, which is a little bit more appeasing towards China. It's more complex than that. But the KMT had held up this supplemental budget for months. And the supplemental budget is the one that contained, for example, drones and shoulder-fired missiles, these innovative new weapons that Taiwan wants and that the Ukraine war has proven can be essential on the battlefield. That also included domestic production of those drones in the thousands, you know, which Ukraine has kicked into high gear. Taiwan needs to do that, too. And, you know, stripping out those elements of the budget are going to hurt Taiwan. Yeah, indeed. Taiwan certainly, as Casey pointed out, probably the number one area of tension between the two. Casey, I want to come to you, though, and get your views on what may or may not have advanced in regards to the Iran situation. Again, CCP, Xi Jinping speaks out of both sides of his mouth. Number one, for the past dozen years, they've been building up their forward operating base in the Middle East called Iran and the IRGC. So, you know, keeping them in power and keeping them as strong as they possibly can, keeping the nuke issue on the table and keeping Hormuz in the power of the IRGC is clearly what the CCP wants. Yes, they would like to see the strait open because they get about 40, 50 percent of their oil from the Strait of Hormuz. So they want to keep IRGC in power. At the same time, they want to try to appease Trump. And they will do it verbally. But be very careful and watch what they actually do. Again, they spent over a dozen years helping them militarily, product wise, technology wise, CCP engineers, CCP surveillance and AI to keep the dissidents out and oppressed so the IRGC can remain in power. So the CCP is very, very significant and serial to the Iran issue and the IRGC. I wouldn't think much will change other than the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, but IRGC will still have their hands all over. Yeah, you're pointing out this point that our reporter Jack Bradley made earlier in his report that she in the Rose Garden made promises to Obama and completely disregarded them. So as you point out, Casey, it's not what they say. It's what they actually do. And to that point, Adam, something quite notable came out of this two day summit. The White House took these extra precautions. They banned journalists from bringing any items that they got in China, like badges or pins. These are normally kept by journalists as souvenirs, etc. None of that could be brought on to Air Force One. What does that say about the U.S.-China relationship? That says that despite the fact that we do need to talk, it's good that we tried to make some sort of agreement. It shows fundamentally underlying that is a complete lack of trust and for good reason. Because, yes, all those little trinkets and pins, they're guaranteed to have surveillance devices on them, listening devices on them. The whole time that the delegation was there, everything was spied on. Absolutely. I'm sure they were briefed. I was on a trip with think tankers and congressional staff back in summer of 2024. Of course, we brought burner phones. I wish it would have gotten a more expensive one because it was so crappy. It was hard to connect. We were just conscious of the fact that we were being monitored the entire time electronically, that our notes were visible. I had a colleague who wore his clothes to bed and put his notebook in his pants. I think it was a little too extreme. And also, they probably picked up that material on the cameras. But listen, that underlines the fact, you know, when you're on the ground there, you're under total surveillance. It's only when you get off the plane, famously at Dulles Airport, there's a garbage can where all of those burner phones and trinkets that you're describing are chucked out by everyone who's been in China. And that's real. And that needs to be done because they'll take any, they'll scrape any data they can, passwords, any sort of access in order to leverage that information, especially with such a high level delegation with the president. Fascinating. I guess you have to be there to experience it. Now, I want to come to you, Casey, and shift gears a little bit. It's slightly related to China. Certainly, Cuba as an ally of China. CIA Director John Ratcliffe, of course, traveling there during the Trump-Xi trip. What are your thoughts on that, as well as how China's general influence in the Western Hemisphere since Trump took office in his second term? Well, Venezuela was China and Russia's forward operating base in the Western Hemisphere. So when we went after Venezuela, Venezuela was also the support mechanism for Cuba. So going after Cuba while everything was focused on Beijing was a smart play. It was a strategic play. Don't forget, we're also choking them with oil and gasoline. So we're trying to bring in the control back into that and make them a free nation, because those four folks in Cuba are hurting very much so in that communist regime. So it's a strategic move. Incidentally, when we went after Iraq, people need to understand, I'm sorry, when we went after Iran and the IRGC, during the first several weeks, China went after an island 300 kilometers south of their current position. So now they just extended, they've controlled the island. And now they've extended the South China Sea and their perimeter another 300 kilometers. So they're in a massive land grab. Taiwan is certainly a part of that. And so what you're seeing is they like to say it's a multipolar world with Russia and so on. It's not. It's been a bipolar world. It will continue to be a bipolar world. And I actually have a quote, the world will be won or lost within the next 10 years. And that's very serious. Wow, serious indeed. And Adam, as we come to you, as we start to finish up, I'd just like to get your thoughts on the meeting in Cuba and what that could represent in China relations and specifically just to the Western Hemisphere. Well, what I'd add and underline is the fact that, you know, both the national security strategy and national defense strategy first mention the Western Hemisphere, the Monroe Doctrine or the Donro Doctrine, as they call it. And a big part of that is countering Chinese influence, because we need to start in our own backyard. As Casey pointed out, the Venezuela, you know, that was the first move this year to take Maduro out of power there. Which cut off a lot of energy to Cuba. And that's why Cuba is vulnerable now. Also early in the administration, remember Panama, there are Chinese corporations, C.K. Hutchinson, which controls the ports on either side of Panama. We tried to pressure them out. Rubio made a big play there. Unfortunately, China pushed back. But what that means is that that's very important to China. They also just installed a mega port in Peru on the Pacific Ocean to aid their Belt and Road initiative. And part of that, speaking of the soybeans, is to get agricultural products out of Brazil to China. And among those is soybeans, because China is dedicated to food self-sufficiency. And if they can't do that, they at least want to get off of American soybeans. So they can remove that leverage. Yeah, so much to look out for. As Casey pointed out, the next 10 years could determine pretty much everything. And we'll be watching with great interest as always. Thank you for joining. Casey Fleming, Adam Savitt. Thank you. And how are everyday Americans reacting to the turmoil in Cuba and the potential end of communism in the Western hemisphere? Indeed, Sam Wong was out on the National Mall in D.C. to hear from the people. Seems like Cuba is on its way out. What do you make of that? Yeah, and it should. I mean, it's been horrible for the Cuban people. I'd love to see them have a chance to live a more free life. The same way it was with Venezuela. We didn't see anything different. We saw all the talking, all the people, you know, divided. But at the end, you know, they were liberated. And I think Cuba is ready for liberation. So I feel confident that President Trump is going to do what he's going to do. Cuba was basically in the fold back in the 50s and 60s. It was a nice country to go and visit. When Castro took over, it kind of changed and they became communists. But the people there, they want democracy. So I'm all for Cuba and getting a democratic government in there. I saw something today that they want to indict Raul Castro for stuff that he had done before. I know that they cut off the oil and everything else to them and they're trying to freeze them out, you know, starve them out. Another thing that should have been done 30 years ago. They used to bring Castro up, Fidel Castro, up into New York City. I'm from New York. They'd bring him up to New York City to the UN and he's charging up hundreds of thousands of dollars on, you know, with dinners and everything else while everybody's glad handing him. Then he walks out and the bill goes back to Cuba and laughs at us. Talking about Cuba, talking about Venezuela, it seems like communism's on its way out from the Western Hemisphere. What do you think about that? No one wants communism. That's why people flock to come to America, because it's the best country in the world. Communism is linked to so many other things. They want to infiltrate our schools. They've gone so far to infiltrate our churches. So no, we don't want communism in America. It's great to see that it's on its way out in the Western Hemisphere in countries like Venezuela and Cuba. And it's also taking over in states like New York and Massachusetts. People in this country aren't learning that lesson between socialism and communism. It doesn't work. Marco Rubio said so eloquently, I'll take our system over any others. It's not perfect. We've got our problems and challenges, but I'd much rather have ours than communism or extreme socialism. Next, the United States is set to host the first ever half-time show during a Soccer World Cup final. That's as the sports world is still awaiting confirmation if some star players are going to take part. NAD's international correspondent, Arian Pasdar, has that story from the soccer capital of the world, Brazil. Whoa! Wow! Elmo! Nice catch, Mr. Chris. But you don't play football with your hands. No. A half-time show? Yeah, a half-time show. A half-time show? A half-time show. The singer for Coldplay is joining teams with Elmo from the Sesame Street to announce the first ever half-time show during the Soccer World Cup final. Now, the event will take place on July 19th at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Madonna, Shakira and K-pop band BTS are set to be part of the squad to perform at the event. I mean, Shakira, Madonna, BTS, in the biggest stage in the world today of the World Cup final. This year's tournament is also setting the stage for another milestone. The Caribbean nation of Curaçao will be joining the Cup for the first time ever. The island is home to only around 150,000 people. That's 10 times less than Manhattan in New York City has. But just this week, their head coach quit just a month before the World Cup, so their chances of winning are probably even smaller now than they were before. Now, also this week, more and more nations are confirming which players will be part of their squad to play at the World Cup. And some big names are already being confirmed, such as Argentina's Messi and Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo. But one major figure in global soccer is still being left out, and that's Brazil's Neymar. And some of the people here in Brazil have pretty strong feelings about that. I want to see Brazil win the World Cup for the first time in my lifetime. It's my dream to see Brazil win the Cup. Do you think Neymar will be playing? Yes, he will, because Brazilian media are all reporting on the question of him playing or not. If he doesn't play and Brazil loses, they'll all say they lost because Neymar didn't play. Now, on Monday night, Brazil's head coach is set to announce the final squad for the tournament. And only then will we know if Neymar is going to play at the World Cup in the United States or not. Reporting in Brazil, Aryan Pastor, NTD News. And staying with sports news, we're now joined by NTD's Dave Martin. Dave, we got a big golf championship this weekend, but let's start with the NBA because we're starting to get down to the nitty-gritty. What's happening in the NBA playoffs? We got two games tonight after none last night. That was obviously a rough night for us, right? We went through a draw yesterday. So we got two games tonight. Both series could end tonight versus 7 p.m. Just a couple of minutes here. Cleveland hosts Detroit. Cavs lead this series. Three games to do after winning the last three games. Should they clinch tonight, it'd be their first appearance in the conference finals since LeBron James and company back in 2018. Now, should the Cavs lose, it would force a game seven on Sunday in Detroit. Now, awaiting the winner of this one is the New York Knicks, which probably won't mind if this series just goes to the distance. New York forward O.G. Ananobi could use the extra rest after injuring his hamstring in the last round against the Sixers. Of course, the Knicks ended up sweeping them anyway. Also tonight, Minnesota hosts San Antonio at 9.30 Eastern time. Timberwolves trail that series three games to two. They need to win to avoid elimination and, of course, a game seven. The winner of that series, of course, will face the Oklahoma City Thunder in the conference finals here. So we got Spurs and Timberwolves, three games to two, lead by the Spurs. And then we got the Cleveland versus Detroit. Cavs leads that series three to two. Got all that? I got it. It's getting down there. OKC is going to be a tough opponent for whoever comes out of that one series. You know, we were talking about this. The Spurs won, beat Oklahoma City four of their five games this year. We don't believe OKC is rooting for it. They're the only team that has seemed to have no trouble with OKC ever, but it's a lot of trouble. Meanwhile, on this one, I think the Knicks, honestly, would be favored against either team the way the Knicks are playing. But just so you know, Kerry, big Knicks fan. From your lips to God's ears. We'll see what happens with that one. And of course, I've almost been right in predicting, right? It's in blood now, Dave. Let's talk golf. I know that you mentioned Rory was coming off a bit of a hangover from his Masters win. What's going on with that? You know, yeah. Rory had that tough end to round two yesterday of the BTA Championship. Four straight bogeys there. He actually had a good rebound today. See, he had two under through 10 holes. He's in position to play this weekend and make the weekend cut. Now, Scotty Scheffler, meanwhile, was tied for first coming into today. He actually started off with bogeys on three of his first four holes. He did rebound on the second nine there. He's at minus two under. He actually commented on the low scores, saying it's the hardest set of pin locations he's seen since he's been on tour for, what, eight years now? Now, they're playing at Aronamic Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. You say that four times fast, right? If I was my dad, I'd say four times fast, right? Anyway, it was very windy there. Gusts of up to 20 miles an hour. So that, plus the difficult pin locations, made for some tough conditions there today. Anyway, Maverick McNeely, an American, is in sole possession of first through five under through 15 holes today. The second round, though, is still ongoing, last I saw a few minutes ago. These guys are playing golfer living. They're all winners in my book. Yeah, I mean, if I hit the ball when I swing, I usually consider it a win, you know? If you miss, you consider, you know, it was a practice swing, of course, you know? Well, that's much appreciated. Lots to look forward to tonight and the weekend. Thanks, Dave. Thank you, Kerry. And that is all the time we have for today's news. But for round-the-clock original coverage, you can visit us at NTD.com or use our NTD app. Thank you for tuning in. I'm Kerry Dunst. Good night.