NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (August 26)

Welcome to NTD Evening News. Our top story tonight, a cleared straight and an escalating trade war. The White House turning up the pressure on Iran and putting Canada alongside China. We're choosing retaliation over negotiation. Mario Tsu is at the White House. Chinese state-backed hackers have broken into key U.S. agencies including NASA, the Fed, even the Justice Department. Jack Bradley has an update on the DOJ's counteroffensive. A devastating flood hits Nepal's border with China, over 150 people dead, hundreds of tourists still missing, including 47 Americans. MEDA has reached a proposed nearly $17 billion settlement over allegations its platforms harmed users. The agreement could bring new limits and protections for teens on Instagram and Facebook. The first new U.S. phosphate fertilizer plant in 40 years. Why the Trump administration says it's critical to America's supply chain. Jason Blair has more. This is NTD Evening News. Live from our global headquarters in New York City, here's Kerry Dunst. Good evening. Thank you for joining us tonight. President Trump escalating pressure on two economic fronts. He's targeting Iran's global lifelines and confronting Canada. This comes as Ottawa hits back with dollar-for-dollar counter tariffs. The White House now comparing Canada's retaliation to that of communist China's. We now go live to NTD's White House correspondent, Mari Otsu. She is at the North Lawn. Mari, good evening. What is the latest? Hey, Kerry, good evening to you. Yeah, well, the U.S. Treasury is now in charge of the operation in Iran. So it's moved from the Pentagon's Operation Epic Fury to the U.S. Treasury's Operation Economic Outcast. And this is coming as President Trump is declaring that all mines have either been detonated or removed from the Strait of Hormuz, while also warning Tehran that if there's any further mine placement, those ships will be, quote, systematically destroyed. He's saying that he has a zero-tolerance policy for mine placement there. It's coming also as the U.S.'s naval blockade on Iranian ports remains in effect, with Central Command now saying that 71 commercial vessels have been redirected from either trying to enter or exit Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz. This is all part of the U.S.'s efforts to squeeze Tehran economically. Take a listen to the president earlier this morning. All the mines, we got rid of the mines. But the Strait, it's functioning. It's a functioning Strait. This coming as the Treasury is unleashing what it calls an economic D-Day on Iran, a campaign to cut off Iran's economic lifelines around the world. Secretary Besant saying the U.S. is giving countries a short window to cut those ties, warning anyone that continues to help Tehran could be kicked out of the U.S. dollar system. It is no longer acceptable to operate in the gray spaces of this conflict. Countries cannot claim they are blind to enabling this activity. And on another economic front, closer to home, President Trump putting his foot down with Ottawa, saying, I deal with many countries and Canada is easily the most difficult and unreasonable. They feel entitled, but they are not a state and will be entitled no longer. You know, the farmers can't sell anything in there because the tariffs are so enormous. And yet they want to sell enough without any tax. This coming as Ottawa is countering Washington's tariffs by imposing dollar for dollar counter tariffs on hundreds of American goods amounting to nearly 20 billion dollars. Chinese Communist Party state-run media praising Ottawa's retaliation as a Chinese-style counterattack, while the Trump administration dismisses Canada's response as bluster. I think this is a little bit of a tempest in a teapot. The White House declaring Canada is joined only by the People's Republic of China in choosing retaliation over negotiation. Their continued discriminatory treatment of U.S. commerce has burdened American workers, farmers and businesses. Canada and China have been the two worst countries when it comes to trade policy anywhere in the world. And President Trump today commemorating the five-year anniversary since the Abbey Gate bombing, honouring those 13 U.S. service members that were killed during the U.S.'s withdrawal from Afghanistan. President Trump posting this photo from his 2024 campaign with Abbey Gate Gold Star families, telling them that their loved ones will never be forgotten. Cary, back to you. Thanks for that update, Mari. And a major network of Chinese state-sponsored hackers has just been taken down. U.S. officials say the hackers targeted critical infrastructure, including the DOJ, NASA, the Federal Reserve and even the Senate. NDD's Washington correspondent Jack Bradley has more. Federal authorities say they've taken down platforms used by Chinese state-sponsored hackers. They say for nearly a decade, those hackers attacked private companies and federal agencies, including NASA, the Federal Reserve, the Energy Department, Health and Human Services, the NIH, the Justice Department and, most recently, the U.S. Senate. This action is just the latest technical operation against PRC state-sponsored hacking. We are ramping up our efforts to shape adversary behavior and defend the homeland in cyberspace. The hackers call themselves QTFY, working for the Chinese company Nanjing Xinjiwei Network Technology. And officials say the hacking group works directly for China's military and intelligence agency. This is state-sponsored, and this is a major national security issue for the United States. Officials say they've also targeted power and telecommunications companies and hospitals. And they've also been able to cover their tracks with what are known as botnets, making it difficult to trace back to China. Their services include a scanning platform that scours the internet for vulnerable smart devices like home routers and security cameras, infects thousands of them, and feeds them into a botnet, or a network of machines secretly controlled by the adversary. And the FBI says that this latest operation is part of a broader campaign against Chinese cyber activity, warning shutting down one operation won't end the threat. It's not as if by us doing this that they're going to walk away and not try again. They're going to reload and try to come at us again. And just following this announcement, President Trump signed an executive order declaring a national emergency to ban certain foreign-produced bulk power grid equipment over concerns that that equipment could be manipulated and sabotaged by America's adversaries. Jack Bradley, NTD News, Washington. And what data could the CCP now have and what might they use it for? How can we target their sophisticated use of proxies to prevent another breach? Tune in tonight with expert analysis on Capital Report with Steve Lance at 7 p.m. Eastern. And MEDA has reached a proposed settlement. It's worth up to $17 billion. This comes from a closely watched case involving allegations that Facebook and Instagram harm young users. The agreement would bring new restrictions and safety measures for teenagers using those platforms in the months ahead. NTD's Christina Corona has the details. MEDA has reached a proposed settlement worth up to $17 billion in a major case brought by 29 states over allegations involving the impact of Facebook and Instagram on young users. The states accused MEDA of designing its platforms to addict children and misleading consumers about their safety. MEDA has denied wrongdoing. MEDA has agreed to make significant changes that will reduce the risk of harm that Instagram and Facebook pose to teen users. Daily time limits and blocks on nighttime use that can only be lifted by a parent. Limits on notifications during school hours and overnight. The agreement would also ban plastic surgery filters, strengthen age verification, and help remove children under 13 from the platforms. In addition to platform and policy changes, MEDA has agreed to pay the states joining this agreement up to $17 billion over 10 years. California alone will receive $1.5 billion to $2.1 billion if this settlement is approved by the court. One parent who lost her daughter at the age of 16 says she is pleased with the outcome. No amount of money is ever going to bring my beautiful daughter back. I miss her every day. It's the first thing I think of when I wake up. After watching Adam Messer's performance in court yesterday, I'm not surprised they settled. Mark Zuckerberg does not want to go up against and see all the information that they have, so I'm very pleased. There's lots of lawsuits coming for these companies. MEDA says the agreement does not include an admission of liability and will support youth online safety initiatives. The company is also urging TikTok and YouTube to adopt similar protections, saying teens may simply move to another app. The proposed settlement still requires court approval, as MEDA and other social media companies face ongoing lawsuits over alleged harms to young users. Christina Corona, NTD News. Production of an essential crop fertilizer takes a major step toward on-shoring for the first time in 40 years. Louisiana breaks ground in a new phosphate fertilizer plant with the support from the Department of Agriculture. It's part of the Trump administration's push to bring critical industries back here to the U.S. NTD correspondent Jason Blair reports. If we can't feed and fuel ourselves, then there will be no, there will be no America for the future. Phosphate-based fertilizer is a critical nutrient for growing crops that can't be substituted. On Wednesday, a new phosphate fertilizer plant got underway for the first time in four decades, part of an effort to reverse America's growing reliance on foreign supplies. We used to produce almost all of it here for our own farmers over the last couple of decades. That has dwindled down to now about 40 percent. By creating more domestic production, we're able to decrease our reliance on imported product, creating a more reliable supply for our farmers that's produced here in the United States. John Griffith, an executive from the farmer-owned cooperative CHS, says the plant is expected to produce 1.3 metric tons of phosphate fertilizer each year. Let's put that into some kind of context. Today, it's around that America's farmers use about 2.5 million tons of phosphate-based fertilizer annually. Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry was also at the announcement. Our farmers are the first line of defense when it comes to national security. While we have exported our jobs, our jobs, good-paying jobs offshore, we have weakened vital supply chains that make America weak. The plant is being privately funded with a $450 million investment from the farmer-owned cooperative CHS and OCP North America. CHS credits Governor Landry for his support, while both companies have worked closely with the Trump administration to make the new plant possible. Jason Blair, Antony News. FEMA skipping houses with Trump signs during disaster relief. The DHS watchdog is concluding that FEMA violated the law during its relief operations in 2024. The Office of the Inspector General of the DHS has released its final report on the FEMA controversy. It concludes that FEMA disaster response crews violated the agency's policy, as well as the Hatch Act, by skipping 11 houses with signs showing support for President Trump. This was during canvassing in the aftermath of Hurricanes Helene and Milton in Florida back in 2024. Now, the DHS watchdog determines that the issues occurred due to weaknesses in FEMA's training, documentation, and oversight. The report says FEMA crews did not receive ethics and Hatch Act training before deploying to disasters. House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer commenting on the report, quote, political discrimination has no place in the administration of disaster relief. FEMA must immediately implement the Inspector General's recommendations to ensure that this kind of political discrimination never happens again. And the U.S. military says it carried out another lethal strike on a suspected drug smuggling boat in the Caribbean, killing four it labeled narco-traffickers. Southern Command says the operation conducted yesterday is part of an expanded campaign against cartels that the Trump administration has designated as terrorist organizations. Now, it's the latest in a string of strikes on suspected drug boats in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific since last September. And a massive flood leaves a trail of destruction. Hundreds are missing after a massive flood swept through villages along Nepal's border with China. At least 160 have been reported dead. Hundreds of tourists remain unaccounted for. NDP's Tiffany Meyer has more. Nepal's tourism board says 384 travelers are missing, including 291 foreign nationals. That includes more than 100 Indian tourists and 47 Americans so far as rescue teams search the mountainous Rasuwa district. The U.S. State Department says it's closely monitoring the situation. Surveillance video shows people scrambling to escape moments before a mudslide engulfed a border crossing. Floodwaters also destroyed buildings, bridges and roads along the boat Hikoshi River. Nepali police say the flooding came from the Tibetan side and are urging residents to move to safer areas. The flooding is believed to have been triggered by an earthquake that caused part of a glacier to collapse into a running through both Nepal and Tibet. Nepal's army and police have been deployed to help with rescue and relief efforts. Coming up, a federal judge lifts an injunction blocking President Trump's executive order limiting mail-in voting. The decision coming amid a new lawsuit brought by Democrat-led states. And journalist Nick Shirley is rallying crowds against a new privacy law in California. What they say about the Safe at Work Act. David Lam at the Sacramento rally. Today's seniors are enjoying life more than ever before and part of that comes from the independence of driving. However, car insurance for older drivers becomes more expensive the older we get. Just because I'm a senior and maybe you are too, do we really have to pay outrageously high insurance rates? Well the answer is no we don't. When was the last time you checked to make sure you're paying the lowest available rate? Well maybe it's time to give your car insurance a tune-up just to make sure your rates are running properly. You change your oil, you change your tires, well maybe it's time to change your car's insurance company. Are you paying too much for your auto insurance? If so, you're just throwing your money away. So the only way to really know if you're paying too much is to call the number on your screen 1-800-952-5196 1-800-952-5196. You'll speak with a licensed insurance agent. They may have an insurance plan that could lower your yearly premiums by hundreds of dollars. Seniors can save money on their car insurance. So call right now and find out just how much money you might be able to save. Come on, call now. You may be able to save a lot of money, maybe hundreds of dollars a year. Just call the number on your screen and speak with a licensed insurance agent. Yes, it is possible for seniors to save on car insurance. You could lower your premiums by hundreds of dollars a year. As a responsible driver, you always check your gauges, right? And you check for other cars and pedestrians. You check your oil and you check your mirrors. Well, now is the time to check on your auto insurance rates. You need to make sure that you're not paying more than you need to. Call the number on your screen right now. 1-800-952-5196 1-800-952-5196. Say goodbye to harsh bitter coffee and hello to a delicious smooth brew. With specialty quality beans expertly roasted in-house, you'll taste the difference with every sip. Fermented with a blend of 50 enzymes, Day's Coffee delivers a rich brew like no other. Made with the highest grade specialty beans available, you're sure to taste the difference. Elevate your morning with Day's Enzyme Fermented Coffee. Welcome back to NTD Evening News. I'm Cary Dunst. Results are in from South Carolina's special Senate runoff. Darlene Graham, the late Senator, Lindsey Graham's younger sister, wins the GOP nomination for a full six-year Senate term. And it is Melinda Weiskopf reports. An endorsement from President Trump and a name recognition gave Darlene Graham a victory in the South Carolina Senate runoff. South Carolina is truly Trump country. She won with around 52% of the vote to Congressman Ralph Norman's nearly 48%. The president didn't give a link to the response but acknowledged the win, posting this photo on social media. Norman telling a crowd of supporters. Y'all, his policies are good. I never understood why he got in this race to beat, you know, but it is, it is what it is and I'll accept it. We will something good and I've always said something good will come out of out of this. Norman said his campaign was funded on the grassroots level and couldn't compete with the massive super PAC funds poured into his opponent's campaign. We had eight million dollars spent against us. Senator Darlene Graham told her supporters she was feeling mixed emotions after the win, touched by her brother's legacy and still grieving his death. Our state and nation are much better and safer because of him. Thank you, Lindsay, for your service to South Carolina and to this country. It's just not the same without you here. Graham will face Democrat Annie Andrews in November. Reporting from Washington D.C., Melina Weiskopf, NTD News. A federal judge has lifted an injunction blocking President Trump's executive order that limits mail-in voting. The decision follows a new lawsuit brought by Democratic-led states. Democratic attorneys general from 23 states as well as the District of Columbia and Pennsylvania's governor all filed the lawsuit in Boston federal court. Now, the Boston-based district judge made her ruling after the Supreme Court lifted an earlier injunction which was blocking President Trump's order. Under the new Postal Service rule, states would be required to provide the agency lists of voters who are seeking to cast ballots by mail. Now, the rule would also impose new unique barcodes for mail-in ballot envelopes and it would mean that the USPS would be allowed to reject mail-in ballots if they do not comply with those new standards. And a Massachusetts state representative and a local mayor have been arrested and they're charged in alleged pandemic fraud schemes. U.S. Attorney Leah Foley laying out the charges at a federal courthouse in Boston. Good morning everyone. This morning we arrested Massachusetts state representative Francisco Paulino who represents the 16th Essex district which includes the cities of Lawrence and Methuen for pandemic unemployment insurance fraud, pandemic loan fraud and money laundering. He is charged in an 11 count indictment that was unsealed today. A grand jury in Boston also returned an 11 count indictment charging the sitting mayor of Lawrence, Brian DiPina with pandemic loan fraud and money laundering. As many of you know, Mayor DiPina was arrested last week on a criminal complaint. He is alleged to have stolen approximately 1.5 million dollars in public taxpayer money. Money he used to fund his mayoral campaign, pay his personal tax liabilities and pay off personal loans. Foley said Paulino allegedly orchestrated a scheme to fraudulently obtain more than 700,000 dollars in federal pandemic related relief funds. Now the indictment alleges the Massachusetts state representative used some of that money for real estate expenses as well as transfers to his campaign's account. Other money he allegedly lent to other individuals at higher interest rates than the pandemic loan rate. Foley said her office would continue to combat fraud in the state, quote, until the stealing stops. And after California's, quote, safe at work act was signed into law, opponents are debating over its substance. They say it allows corruption and fraud to be overlooked. NDD's David Lamb reports from Sacramento, California. Journalist Nick Shirley and his supporters are rallying in Sacramento against a law that they say will stop independent investigations and prevent uncovering fraud. Called the Safe at Work Act, Governor Gavin Newsom signed it into law on Saturday. Crowds gathered in Sacramento against the law Wednesday, dubbing it the Stop Nick Shirley Act. Politicians have learned that they can use immigrant communities and use non-profits and NGOs and funnel millions upon millions of your tax dollars into these non-profits, NGOs, and for so long nobody ever looked into it. Then I did, and look what they're doing now. Introduced by state representative Mia Bonta, it's designed to protect people who provide immigration support services. If the provider is deemed fearful of their lives, people cannot post images, videos, or information of the person. Bonta says the law would only penalize those who publish information with the intent to incite or threaten violence and harassment, but some say the law shields organizations from public oversight. New legislation and in response to what Nick Shirley was doing, it is what I consider legislative cover for fraudulent activity and it's designed for accountability and also it violates our first amendment rights. The rally also drew counter protesters holding signs against ICE during the rally. In Shirley's viral posts, he's seen investigating alleged hospice fraud in California. I just believe it's it's our duty as as Americans to make sure that our legislators are using their money wisely on my behalf and our citizens behalf. Rally goers call the bill unconstitutional and say it will be challenged. In Sacramento, California, David Lamb, NTD News. If you think AI is an existential threat, well you're in good company. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates sounding the alarm on artificial intelligence. He published an essay today that warns AI will bring one of the quote most turbulent periods in human history and there is no plan to navigate it. Gates told the New York Times the industry knows what is going on and is downplaying it. He said behind the scenes tech insiders are very worried. They've seen AI go rogue, break out of constraints and do things like make recipes for bioweapons. Gates is calling for taxes on AI usage as well as flat bans on certain types of uses. And the U.S. Postal Service plans to raise prices for the peak holiday season. It's asking the Postal Regulatory Commission for permission to temporarily raise prices for some packaged products. It's to help cover the extra handling costs at that time of the year. The increases would be for priority mail express, priority mail, USPS ground advantage as well as parcel select. Now the changes would be in effect from early October through mid-January. Postal Service governors have already signed off on the increases. Now it's being reviewed by the And coming up, Meta will settle a lawsuit alleging social media harms children for $17 billion. We talk with founder of ScreenStrong and hear her advice for parents. And President Trump confirms that the head of the CIA was in Russia yesterday. Ariane Pasdar has what we know so far about the reason for this trip. There is a road laid out for me. Boxes everywhere. And this is going to be Addie's room. First night here with Amy seems cool. I got this. During high school, I hung with the wrong crowd and I never graduated. I helped Santiago in many different ways, like all fathers do, because he always wanted to go to college. I felt a little embarrassed to come back to school, but eventually once I came here, I knew that it's for a bigger goal. He was very dedicated, hardworking. He connected with his teachers, he connected with other students. That was one of the key reasons why he was able to keep forging ahead. It was amazing to see him graduate. This was one thing that meant so much to him. And of course, it meant so much to us too. With the help of my father and having my son, that was all the motivation that I needed. That support is everything. Find free adult education classes near you at finishyourdiploma.org. The impact of a meal goes well beyond feeding our bodies. Because when people are fed, futures are nourished. Everyone deserves to live a full life. And with your help, together we can end hunger. Join the movement at feedingamerica.org. Even the mighty might not see it coming. It's prediabetes and it captures one in three adults. But you can escape. Take the one-minute prediabetes risk test at doihaveprediabetes.org. Be your own hero. You can talk to me if you're feeling sad. Thanks for hearing me out, bro. Whenever you need to talk, I'm here, okay? Welcome back to Entity Evening News. I'm Cary Dunst. Today, MEDA settled its lawsuit defending against claims it designed Facebook and Instagram to addict children, deceive consumers about the platform's safety, as well as collected personal data from children who use the platform. Joining us now is Melanie Kempe. She's founder and president of ScreenStrong. She's also a registered nurse. Thanks for joining us today, Melanie. You've dedicated your life's work to this topic. So I want to just get your reaction to the settlement. Yeah, thank you so much for having me. And yes, I have. I'm very passionate about this issue. There's so many parents that are struggling. And this is a watershed moment for us because parents have been sounding the alarm for years. And now we know that it's not just a parenting problem. You know, it wasn't about all those parental controls after all, right? It's the design of the technology that matters. And the lawsuit focuses on how the platforms are actually designed. And that's what I love so much about it. If you've ever had a child who's been in a screen addiction, it's very, very frustrating. And you keep thinking you can do all these things, but the bottom line is we can't. As long as they are on, the designs are so strong and they pull our kids in so much. And that is now agreeing to these major changes. So this is what is so interesting. They're including, you know, limits on teen usage and nighttime restrictions and notifications and all that and how the algorithms are being pushed. And what I want to say to parents is, wow, if something requires that much work, it's probably not worth it. It's probably not designed for our kids. So we're very excited that all this is happening today. We're excited that this lawsuit is really coming to raise awareness, right? That's really what it's doing more than anything. It is just telling us that minors are not, you know, designed to use technology. Yeah, I think you described something that many parents can relate to. You open up that screen time app to see how much time has been used and where, and it can be quite confronting. And I want to point out that they did not admit guilt, but they did make a list of concessions and they've agreed to set a default two-hour limit for minors and a ban on cosmetic filters for them. So I want to get your reactions to what these concessions that they did make. Yeah, I think it's just a total admission. I mean, why would you have to limit it? If it's so great and if there's nothing wrong, then why would you limit it? And this is what I want parents to see through some of the smoke and mirrors here. If it's not good, it's not good for two hours. It's not good really for one minute, right? Because it's replacing all the things that kids should be doing. And we also need to move further upstream and start teaching our kids about this before they get pulled into it. So I get that they're trying to put some Band-Aids on it. I can tell you right now that probably their kids aren't using it. So that's one thing that you always need to remember. But we, as parents, need to come in and replace. We've got to start replacing this. We have to start getting a bolder vision, if you will, for our kids. Technology's here. It's going to be here. It's here to stay. But your kids don't need it right now. And if we're getting to the point where they're having to change the way it's made because it's not good for kids, that's just a real warning sign, don't you think, that parents should be paying a lot of attention to this? Now, in terms of TikTok, YouTube, do you expect them to quickly follow suit to be at parity with meta or will that require a whole other process? Well, I think they're on the sidelines taking notes, right? Because it's all basically the same. The persuasive design is all very similar across all the platforms. I think this is a wake-up call, of course, for every tech company out there. But I think it's really a wake-up call for parents and for kids. And we need to start educating our kids about why we're saying no for now. We need to educate them why this is not good for them, just like we educated them years ago about smoking, right? Smoking is not good for teenagers and we never thought we'd ever be able to take the cigarettes out of their hands. But with education, we can do that. I do think that it's kind of all the same, whether it's Instagram with the filters and the time, and then there's TikTok. It all kind of uses the same brain science, if you will. And the problem is that we are expecting a developing brain to out-discipline a product that was designed to capture attention. It doesn't fit and it doesn't work. So I'm not celebrating quite yet over the lawsuit. There's a lot of work to be done with educating the public on this. And the settlement doesn't undo the years of exposure these kids have already had. And the other thing is, you have to remember, the settlement does not make social media healthy. So it's not a healthy activity for kids. And I hope it helps parents really start to follow their intuition on this. I hope also that schools take note and realize that phones really are not a good idea in schools. And we're dealing with a very vulnerable population of our kids and teenagers that are dealing with this and we're making it really harder for them. And I love the states that are coming out with phone-free school policies. I think that's fabulous. I think that parents need to be a little bolder. And that's what we do over here at ScreenStrong. We help you with that. We help you get through some of that so you can be a little more bold and understand the science. And we also have all the tools over here to help you teach your kids about this with our curriculum that we have in schools right now for lower school, middle school. We have all the grades and we help kids understand this so you're no longer having this battle with your kids. And now with this lawsuit, you can point to that and say, look, guys, this is what they're even admitting themselves that this is causing a lot of problems for you. So we're going to be here to protect you. We're going to start protecting your time. We're going to protect your sleep. We're going to spend more time in face-to-face relationships and physical activity. We're going to teach you what to do when you're bored so you don't have to pick up your social media. And ScreenStrong is not anti-technology, but we do believe that this technology, this type of technology is not designed for minors. Our kids are not getting harmed on school screens like Excel spreadsheets, right? No one has ever come to me to tell me their kids are addicted to typing essays. That's not what they're getting harmed by. They're getting harmed by these things. This lawsuit really brings out this clarity. And I think that we shouldn't ask, how much technology can we get away with with our kids? I think we should ask, is this helping our kids develop the best way they can? Do they need it at all? Yeah, and I was having an innocent giggle, but on the inside, I'm crying when you take a step back and think about it. Now, I want you to address, what are some of the best ways for parents to maintain somewhat of a middle ground if they choose to allow their children video games and social media access? Well, it's really hard. So it's a slippery slope, right? And that's why over the years, I've spent so many years helping families do this. And the most success you have is when you eliminate as much access as you can. So it's sort of like smoking. You know, how many cigarettes are really okay? Well, probably not a good idea to smoke any cigarettes because it's such an addictive activity. So I think this is a myth that we have to start getting over. We have to understand that this lawsuit even points out how strong these algorithms are and how strong the design is. So we have to be really careful. And this is what I've learned in all my years of doing this. When you just say no, when you just get a basic phone for your child so they can call you when they're late for baseball or whatever it is, that's okay. Our kids adjust and they adjust up. So what I mean by that is, you know, for now, let's just say no to video games for a while. And you know what? They will find something else to do that they will love even more. And they will look back and they will say, what the heck? Games are so boring. This is so much more fun to get out in real life and do these things. The same with social media. My younger children right now are in college. They still don't have social media. And that is not because I'm making them not have social media. They're watching all the kids around them. They're like, all they do is scroll their phone. Like we have so much more fun in real life. So I know everybody looks for the balance and the balance is no for now. It's no for now. Let me dive into real life first. Let me teach you all these wonderful things and spend time with you, spend time as a family together and teach your children how to fill their downtime with healthy activities. So again, is it a little bit? In my book, according to the medical science and according to all my research and all my experience, nah, not so much. It's like saying, how about just a little bit of pornography today? You know, just a little bit. No, we would never do that. Or just a little bit of alcohol. This is very addictive activities we're talking about and meta, whether or not they think they've admitted it or not, they just admitted it because they're saying now they have to change their platform. So if it's all fine, then why do we have to change the platforms? I just hope that parents can just follow their gut. You know, childhood is really short. It's only a few short years. And for those people like myself with my oldest child, I didn't think it was ever possible to pull it away. But then when we did, we find it's like a nirvana. It's like, oh my gosh, this is so much easier. It is so much easier to raise a child off this stuff than in the middle of it. Even if it is, I don't know, just a little bit. My final advice for as far as what to do as a parent, you know, code you, you know, watch a movie together, watch a baseball game together. Whenever they're on a screen, you gotta be present because you cannot expect your child's developing brain to figure this out. They cannot figure it out. And before long, they're down a rabbit hole. They're down a slippery slope and the outcome is usually not very good. There've been so many families, so many children that have been so hurt by this. Well, these are powerful worlds of advice and it's from real world experience. Melanie Hempe, thank you so much for your work and for joining us tonight. Thank you. Thank you. Next, President Trump today confirming that the head of the CIA was in Russia yesterday. It's not exactly clear yet what the agency chief visited Moscow for. NTD's international correspondent, Arian Pasdar has the latest. Airplane believed to be carrying CIA director John Ratcliffe landing in Latvia after a surprise trip to Russia. It's the first time in half a decade that a US intelligence chief visits the Russian capital. Some are speculating that the goal of the visit was to talk Russia out of potentially attacking the UK or to discuss further sanctions. But President Trump now clarifying the situation on the Glenn Beck program. Well, none of the above. He's there and, you know, very sort of semi routine. I hate to disappoint people. We would like to see the war with Ukraine end. Russia on Wednesday also confirming that meetings did take place, although it's not exactly clear at which level. I can only tell you that there were contacts between the special services. I can tell you that there were no meetings with the president of Russia. That is all I can tell you on this subject. The spokesman also hints at progress possibly being made in the ongoing peace process. Contacts between special services are in themselves a positive phenomenon. Such contacts often continue even during the most difficult moments in bilateral relations. He added that Ratcliffe had no contact with the Kremlin during his visit. A statement the American side has not confirmed yet. Ratcliffe's visit is widely believed to be part of an effort to stop the war. The last such visit was nearly five years ago when Ratcliffe's predecessor, William Burns, held talks with Moscow in November of 2021. Just three months after that meeting, Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. Some experts predict the U.S. might be trying to prevent an escalation of the conflict. Arian Pasdar, NTD News. And as the trade war escalates between the U.S. and Canada, Ottawa is seeking closer business ties with communist China. But is this a strategic mistake given the Chinese Communist Party's track record in violating trade rules? NTD's Sam Wong was out on the National Mall in D.C. to hear from the people. Do you think Canada is making a strategic mistake by leaning closer to China, not to us? Oh, absolutely. China's just going to play them. I think anybody's making a strategic mistake that leans closer to China. It's fine if you think that that's going to get you somewhere today, but you have to remember the side of the line that they stand on, and it's communism. I think that's crazy. They're our neighbors. I mean, you're supposed to be kind to your neighbors, right? Can't they see what's happening to our country, aligning what we did when we aligned with China? Can't they see how we made mistakes? Why don't people learn from other people's mistakes? I'm looking at geopolitically. I don't believe what they're doing is sustainable. Canada and the United States, because we're locked, landlocked, before we see that happen with China and it becoming an issue, I think their leadership in Canada is going to change, and somebody's going to write it up and say, hey, look, this is all dumb. Let's just fix this. Do you think by working with China, do you think Canada is trading short-term benefit for long-term vulnerabilities? I don't see that they're going to get a great short-term benefit. I think it's scary and scary for everybody because that's our neighbor. When you sell your soul to the devil, then you know there's repercussions for that. And so at the end of the day, China is about communism. And that kind of brings me back to the socialist party and our party. Do they not see what's happened in Cuba and all these places that were socialism? It's not what it's cracked up to be. The State Department is pausing visa appointments worldwide, beginning a new global training program at U.S. embassies and consulates. Appointments will be rescheduled to accommodate the training, which is aimed at strengthening screening of visa applicants. Now, the department has not said how long this adjustment period will last. Immigrant visa applicants with scheduled interviews have now been contacted about changes to their appointments. The move comes as the Trump administration continues its broader immigration enforcement, which includes visa and green card revocations. Now, the administration's immigration policies have also faced legal challenges, including a ruling last week striking down a separate visa suspension policy. And coming up in college football, the Southeastern Conference, otherwise known as the SEC, it sides with the Big Ten in barring former pro players from returning and then takes it a step further. Dave Martin joins us to explain. Hi, my name is Brady. When I was born, my parents thought everything was okay. My mom and dad were so excited to take me home. I still get goosebumps telling this story. Several days in, his skin started to become very cold and clammy. We noticed that he had become blue around his mouth and something was just very off. We packed up as fast as we could. Brady stopped breathing twice on the way to the pediatrician. And that was one of the number one things that just haunts me to this day. I was born with a congenital heart defect called aortic coarctation. If my parents waited just one more hour to drive me to the hospital, I would not be here today. But thanks to research funded by the American Heart Association, I had heart surgery that saved my life. But not every kid is as lucky as me, which is why we need your help. Just call the number on the screen or go to helpheart.org for only $19 a month, just 63 cents a day. You can help get people trained in CPR, get more hospitals certified in high quality cardiovascular care, and help fund the next medical breakthroughs to help save kids like me. When you donate to the American Heart Association, you're helping save lives like my son. And now my son is happy and healthy thanks to the support of people like you. When you call with your $19 a month, you'll get this really cool t-shirt as a thank you. Many children die from congenital heart defects. I can't wait to grow up to become a heart surgeon and fix baby's hearts. But until then, I'll keep helping the American Heart Association. So please join me. Just call the number on your screen or go to helpheart.org to become a monthly donor and help save lives. My biggest fear in the middle of my addiction was that I would never be able to get over it and that my kids wouldn't have a father. I overdosed on heroin and I lived. And I started thinking, you know what, this isn't my story. For the longest time, fear held me back from ultimately being who I wanted to. I found the fatherhood program and it was one of the best decisions I've ever made in my life. My desire to change had finally outweighed my desire to stay the same. I felt powerless for so much of my life that it's important to me that my kids are empowered and truly believe that if they can think it, they can do it. I definitely had to become a better man to be a better father. For the first time, I finally feel like I'm exactly where I should be, where I want to be. Now for your sports news, we're joined by NTD's Dave Martin. Welcome, Dave. Good to see you. Thank you, Terry. I know you got baseball and basketball on deck, but we're going to start in college football. We reported on Monday that the Big Ten would not take pro players back who can now do this fifth eligible year. What's the SEC on this now? Well, you know, SEC released that statement saying they would, but today or last night, they actually made a rule here. The new rule bars not only any player who declared for the NFL draft and did not withdraw, but also the NBA and WNBA drafts as well. It also excludes any player who signed a contract with one of those leagues or was at any time on one of their rosters. Now penalties have yet to be announced for this, but this was approved by a unanimous 16-0 vote. And each school gets a vote, so this means that even the powers that be, that LSU are against their own school, kind of getting a leg up on the competition here. Now we talked in the last two days about the two LSU possibly getting those two former NFL players who weren't drafted, but were cut this summer. In addition though, basketball star R.J. Lewis Jr., who was the second team All-American in 2025 while playing for St. John's, received a court injunction to play for LSU this season as well. It was when undrafted in the 2025 NBA draft. He signed contract with both Utah Jazz and Boston Celtics, but has not actually played in an NBA game. It looks like that won't happen. So meanwhile, Big 12 and ACC could be doing the same. If I was like the remnants, I should say, of the Pac-10 conference, once one of the great conference, I'd be looking at possibly signing these players for this season. I can't imagine, they're really thrilled with the power conferences at this point after they raided all their teams the last few years. Maybe that's their landing spot for these guys, but it does not look like it's going to be in a power conference for Notre Dame. Well, it seems like if you're in basketball, there's a lot of opportunities to play professional in tour. You're up in Asia. Yes, for sure. For football, that's truly American football is an American game. You have a limited amount. It's NFL, or maybe you can go to CFL, Canada Football League. That's about it. That's a whole other issue with trade and whatnot. That's right. UFL, is that that other league in the spring maybe? I don't know. There's not, you're right. There's not too many options. There's not much of a minor league team there. So I'm not sure that, I think these guys are going to find that landing spot somewhere though in college football too. That's my guess. If I was commissioner, I would think about taking these guys. Yeah, but you had said when we were off screen here that maybe like Clemson and Miami, these other power conferences, besides the big two, they might follow suit as well. ACC and Big 12 are having meetings this week. I would guess they're probably going to do the same. I wouldn't be surprised if Notre Dame does the same. So that's the four power conferences and Notre Dame. So if they follow suit, then they'd be looking at, you know, group of five conference, which is now packed in is included. We also have Big East, right? Big East is included. Miami, wasn't Miami still in the Big East? Miami is not in the Big East. Oh, OK. They are in the ACC. Clemson, ACC, yeah. Clemson is ACC as well. It's all musical chairs, man. It's changed so much in the last 25 years, especially. 25 years ago, the Big 12 was actually 12 teams. Well, and those three Florida teams who were all powerhouses back in the 90s, they were all in separate conferences. Well, Florida State and Miami are both in the ACC. OK, thanks for clarifying. All right. All right, well, you flashed the WNBA logo as part of that story. Going back to this Ennis Cantor freedom story where he got ejected for wearing a T-shirt and I guess supposedly supporting Sophie Cunningham in Chicago. This story keeps going. Apparently the ratings were like the best ever. What's going on there? This is day three of as the world turns in the WNBA for sure. Yes, well, pretty much wherever Caitlin Clark goes for sure. You have high TV ratings, but this is actually the highest. This is that Sunday game between Chicago and Indiana. Highest rated WNBA game since 1997. 3.31 million viewers there. I think fans were actually expecting to see some more on-court fireworks because the last time these two teams played, Sophie Cunningham got a hard foul by Dejounta Carrington, who was then kicked out of the game. But those two behaved themselves this time. As you mentioned, Kerry, this really was the game. Ennis Freedom was ejected as a spectator. Now he's been since been banned from the arena. Freedom, meanwhile, sent a letter to WNBA Commissioner Kathy Engelbert wanting information about what rule he broke, who made the decision to eject him, whether the player who shouted at him is going to have their conduct reviewed. He also wants her to review all video materials from the game. And he is asking for a full refund of his tickets. Now, I would be very surprised to see the WNBA's response. Yeah, I have no idea what those courtside tickets go to. It's probably a little bit more than $100. I mean, trying to explain this incident of him getting kicked out, it seems like he was yelled at by a player and then they escorted him out. I don't know how else to describe the incident. You know, he did stand up and kind of say a couple of things, but he seemed pretty peaceful, I gotta say that. So I would be very interested to see what the WNBA's response is, because it's going to be tough for them to stand behind this one. Do you ever see one of those WWE matches where there's shouting and there's drama and there's ratings? I don't know. It all seems like... Someone gets body slammed onto a table that then breaks. Yeah, that's all we needed to happen. That would have been, you know, Super Slam Sunday or something like that. That would have been fun. All right, we're going to move on from the WNBA and we're going to talk baseball. We've had several games on today already. We've got nine more tonight. What do you think piques your interest, Dave? Well, Kerry, we finally get to mention my Kansas City Royals for once. Now, they are in last place right now, but they are in a nine-game winning streak. Now, the streak has actually brought their chances, get this, making the playoffs from less than one-tenth of one percent to exactly one-tenth of one percent, according to ESPN. So a very, very, very slight chance. That's how bad their record still is, 59-74. But just a week and a half ago, they were 50-74. And in the week, American League, that puts them just eight games out of the playoffs. Now, that final playoff spot is taken up by the Cleveland Guardians, who have a 67-66 record. Of course, there's six teams in between that they'd still have to pass just to get to Cleveland, but it's better than it was a month ago anyway. In any case, they play the Toronto Blue Jays tonight, starting at 7-07 Eastern time. The Blue Jays kind of have been still having a hangover after making the World Series last year, nearly beating the Los Angeles Dodgers, but they are one of those teams between the Royals and a wild-card spot. So we'll see what happens. Maybe they get to, maybe they win number 10 in a row tonight and then are still 14 games under .500. So basically, the Royals would have to have a 24-game winning streak just to get to .500, and then who knows what could happen. The last playoff team is right around .500, so that could put them close. In any sport, it's a game of momentum, isn't it? It definitely is. They're picking the right time to have a good run, I'll say that, you know? If nothing else, the fans have a reason to go to the stadium and cheer the team on. Yeah, because really, the Royals have been in last place for such a long time. The fans, like me, we've really gave up for a long time. It wasn't until a couple days ago, I was like, you know what? They won seven in a row here. Now it's up to nine in a row. My brother's texting me, he's like, oh my goodness, less than one-tenth of a percent to exactly one-tenth of a percent to make the playoffs. That's something to behold, all right? There were dark days as a Knicks fan, Dave, so you never know. You had a tough two-decade run there, all right? I just remember when Linsanity happened, people were just happy for anything to cheer about, you know? That was a lot to cheer about. He made the cover of SI two straight weeks. I don't think anyone has done that since, so that was something to behold. No Royals players made the cover of SI two straight weeks, just FYI. All right, final word on baseball for tonight. Final word, yeah, Royals are at, Royals are the big talk, all right? It's all KC at this point. Nine game winning streak, going for 10 in a row, taking on the Blue Jays, be there. All right, well, Mahomes looking promising, so it's not all bad news, doubting Kansas. Yeah, that's right, if the Royals lose, at least you have the Chiefs football to look forward to. There you go. All right, Dave, thanks for joining. Great stuff. Thank you, Kerry. And that is all for today's evening news, but for round-the-clock coverage, you can always visit us at ntd.com. You can also use our Ntd app. He's Dave Martin. I'm Kerry Dunst. Be true and kind and hold the line.