Bessent: China Cannot Be Trusted; SCOTUS Hears Race-based Redistricting | NTD News Today (Oct. 15)

The nation's highest court weighs in on racebased redistricting. We take a look at how this could impact the congressional makeup. The Senate fails again to pass a government funding bill, keeping the shutdown in place as both parties trade blame over spending and layoffs. Israel says one of the bodies returned by Hamas isn't a hostage. An unsettling discovery straining the fragile truce in the two-year war. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is optimistic that trade tensions with China can deescalate, but he has a message of caution to US allies amid China's economic coercion. The UK is imposing sanctions on companies in China and India today for aiding Russia. What Britain's finance minister says about the decision. This is NTD News Today live from our global headquarters in New York City. Today is Wednesday, October 15th. I'm Stephanie Aox. The Israeli military said one of the bodies handed over by the Hamas terror group yesterday is not a hostage who was held in Gaza. The development has added tension over the fragile truce in the two-year war. Four bodies were handed over by Hamas yesterday to ease pressure on the ceasefire following four on Monday. In all, Israel has been awaiting the return of the bodies of 28 deceased hostages. Israel is also handing over bodies of Palestinians under the deal. There was no immediate word on whose body it was. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu demanded today that Hamas fulfill the requirements laid out in the ceasefire deal. Netanyahu said Israel will not compromise on this. Meanwhile, the prime minister met with released Israeli hostages at a hospital in central Israel last night. And continuing with the Middle East, a convoy of trucks carrying food, fuel, and medical supplies drove through the Egyptian side of the Rafa crossing today. According to local authorities, aid to Gaza was paused for the past two days due to the prisoner and hostage exchange on Monday and a Jewish holiday yesterday. The convoy of 400 trucks includes 5,700 tons of food supplies, 1,400 tons of medical supplies, and about 2500 tons of fuel. An Israeli doctor says the released hostages under his care are in stable condition, but he said they may need months or even years to heal. The doctors treating 10 of the 20 survivors of Hamas captivity. I'm happy to report that they are all in stable condition. While I cannot share more specific details, we remember that every one of them has endured untold adversity and horrors and therefore the road for the recovery is going to be a very long one. He added that the rehabilitation process began at the hospital where the hostages will spend a few more days. Some may be discharged to outpatient care beginning next week. The doctor explained the process is tailored and very specific for each hostage depending on their condition. Right now, the hospital is focusing on their physical, medical, and nutritional care. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with some of the released hostages at a different hospital. The 20 hostages are being treated at three different hospitals. Right now in Washington, Supreme Court justices are weighing racebased redistricting. Oral arguments are underway in the case focused on Louisiana. The ruling could have ripple effects for several other states that plan to redraw their lines or have already done so. NTD's Molina Wiseup joins us live from the court. Molina, first tell us about this case. What's on the line? Hi Seth, good to be back with you. So like you mentioned this is a Louisiana focused case but the implications could stretch much further than Louisiana. Look, if the justices side with Louisiana, this could enable red states to more easily redraw their lines that could give Republicans a stronger edge in the 2026 midterms. Now, Steph, the crux of the question before the justices today is whether the popular interpretation of the section two of the Voting Rights Act is constitutional or not. Now, emotions are high out here. As you see behind me, there's a group of protesters who have been gathering here outside of the court since early this morning. And emotions are high for good reason. And this argument today is important. Steph, look, the fact that justices asked the um the the lawyers before the case to come for a second argument in this same case is a rare occasion and it indicates that justices might be preparing to make a major change to the law here. Now, arguments are still underway right now. I want to listen to what both sides have said before the justices. Listen in. That race is playing an outsized role in the electoral process in Louisiana. And so the idea that you have to show that a party uh that party is the reason for the racially polarized voting would eclipse the entire section 2 analysis which is focused on feriting out and ending race discrimination in the political process. You said several times that it's playing an outsiz outsized role. Is there what's the proper size? In other words, what are we is that wiggle room we're talking about or a significant percentage what is meant by outsized. So, this court has held for for a long time uh beginning in Shaw and in many cases sense that there's always an awareness of race. There are always racial considerations and even race consciousness in the districtricting process. What becomes potentially unlawful is when race is the motivating factor. Embedded within these expressed targets are racial stereotypes that this court has long criticized. They assume, for example, that a black voter, simply because he is black, must think like other black voters, share the same interests, and prefer the same political candidates. And this stereotyping system has no logical endpoint. We are 40 years removed from jingles. And yet, according to my friends on the other side, nothing has changed in the voting and housing patterns in Louisiana that require race-based redistricting. These problems are part of why we never wanted to be here in the first place. They have placed states in impossible situations where the only sure demand is more racial discrimination for more decades. Now, to get into the details a little bit, the deal here is that Louisiana initially had one black majority district. Then it was ordered by a lower court to create a second black majority district. Then a group of non-black voters sue to try to reverse this. So that's sort of what is what's going on in the nitty-gritty of the case. There's also a broader impact here, Molina, with so many states now racing to redraw lines after Texas and California's actions. How could this ruling impact other states and the majority in Congress more broadly? Right, Steph? The ruling that justices give here will determine whether Louisiana can keep its current map as is with the two black majority districts or has to redraw these maps and that could endanger possibly the Democrat incumbent uh Cleo Fields. Um, but of course we know there are more than 20 other black majority districts across the nation that could also be impacted by this case. And we know that of course Republicans have a very slim majority in Congress. So any of these changes could lead to Republicans holding on to their majority and even expanding it come 2026. Now, court experts have suggested and predicted that what justices may do here is to rule that race-based redistricting is unconstitutional, but just limit the scope of their order that so that the decisions effect will have a limited scope there. Seth, well, I look forward to the updates on this. Thank you so much, Molina Weissup, NTD congressional correspondent. The Supreme Court is hearing an argument on a bid by civil rights groups to preserve an electoral map in Louisiana. Let's tune into a press conference by the Legal Defense Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union outside the courtroomed by the court's president in this area. And if you think that they're confused, then you ought to see how confusing it is for legislators. So, we've said all along the court needs to clarify its president and it needs to create a a workable system for legislators to be able to do their jobs and comply with the constitution and to draw maps that can have predictability and stability for our states and their congressional rep representation. That's not what's been happening with the the the jur prudence in this area. And so whatever they do, we hope that it will result in better clarity and better instructions for legislators. I'm going to let my solicitor general make a couple of comments as well about his thoughts on the argument. Um, you know, it's a long day. We've had collectively four and a half hours of argument across this whole case and uh we're looking to hopefully we'll see some results sooner rather than later. Ben, you want to Well, thank you to the attorney general. My name is Benjamin Aginyaga. I serve as solicitor general of Louisiana. I think what you heard and saw today in the courtroom was a bench that was fully aware of the difficulties that the states have been in under the court's voting precedence. If you know Louisiana's story, you know that for the past couple of years, we have been struggling to find a map, a congressional map that satisfies the court's precedence. It's been extremely difficult. We argued it once earlier this year. We're back here. And what I told the court at the podium is look at the at the end of the day we really need clarity. The states need clarity on how they're supposed to comply with the voting rights act and with the equal protection clause. I think at the end of the day that's what we're hoping the court will give us and the court was extremely engaged. I mean a 2 and a half hour argument these days is um is almost unheard of. So we're very grateful to the court for the time that it gave us and the ability it gave us to express you know our concerns with the with the juristp prudence and how we think we can make it better. Y'all have any questions before we move off? Well, every time they handle a Voting Rights Act case, it has enormous implications across the country. And we're talking about congressional representation. You know, we've been mired in litigation over our congressional maps, not just during this decade, but since the 1990s. So, you know, we think the court needs to clarify its own rulings and make some sense of them. And what we heard today is that that's really hard even for them. Do you see that as fair? So, we've said all along that you have to look at how the population is distributed and look at how maps can be done legally and constitutionally. And that was the basis on which we defended the first map that we drew that was part of the Robinson litigation. And so, you know, I I think that we've been over and over this argument about proportionality. Proportionality is not the test. And so, you know, I think we are all bound by the rules that apply. and and the court has made that even more difficult with confusing precedent on telling legislators what they can and cannot do. Milligan was the most recent case, not counting the Charleston County case. The Milligan case basically said you can think about race, but you can't think about it too much. That is not a workable standard. Our legislature passed a map that had been pre-clared twice by the Justice Department and had been largely implemented after lengthy litigation involving prior maps where we did try and draw another majority minority map that was struck down by the courts. So, you know, our legislature has been acting in good faith, not just this decade, but for decades be passed in trying to comply both with the Voting Rights Act and with this court's juristprudence. It is an impossible task. And so, you know, they need to fix this. This is real. You know, the the the the job is clear from our standpoint that the the the court needs to fix this because we think the court is what's broken the process to begin with. Good. You know, in my opinion, that makes it easier to fix, not less easy to fix. I I I hope that they will see it that way. I mean, you know, our case has just always been, I think, a a good vehicle for illustrating the problems with the court's juristprudence in this area. Our legislature has in good faith tried to comply not just this this time or the last time but for decades. And you know so they they are the ones that have to struggle with making sense out of some very vague terms and very vague tests that have been created that just ensure that we are going to be bogged down in litigation no matter what we do. We are damned if we do. We are damned if we don't. And this is that's what our case illustrates. a little bit. Um, I don't think his arraignment has been scheduled yet and I and I expected I'm expecting it. I'm not promising, but I'm expecting that it will likely be a remote arraign arraignment from Angola. They've already been arraigned and he's been charged and we expect there to be an upgrade in those charges, but he has been charged. He just hasn't been arraigned. He was charged at absentia. Oh, he just said he he was arraigned today and pled not guilty over Zoom at Angola. So, it happened while we were in court. Yeah. Good. All right. Thank y'all very much. On day 15 of the government shutdown, Republicans are emphasizing the sacrifice that service members are making while Democrats are pointing to challenges to healthcare. Here's more from their leaders today. One uh segment of the population that that truly deserves better treatment than the Democrats are giving them, and that is our military. Today, if it weren't for the bold leadership of President Trump helping us to protect our military, everyone needs to understand that 1.3 million active duty service members would be missing a paycheck. They'll get their check, thankfully, because President Trump has shown strong leadership. And under his direction, the Department of War has now uh redirected unspent funds to ensure that our troops are taken care of. And this is while Democrats are playing political games. Uh, last night they played some games. They stormed my office. Donald Trump promised to love and cherish Medicaid. Instead, Republicans enacted the largest cut to Medicaid in American history. That's unacceptable. Republicans falsely claim now to be the party of healthcare. But their policies are closing hospitals, nursing homes, and community-based health centers all throughout the country. That's unacceptable. The Trump administration is giving $20 billion to bail out a right-wing wannabe dictator in Argentina. Oh, but Republicans are unwilling to spend a dime to provide affordable health care to workingclass Americans. That's unacceptable. The American people deserve better. House Speaker Mike Johnson presented numbers of service members in each Democrat-run state. He said, "Of the 10 states with the largest military populations, six are represented by two Democrats in the Senate." He accused the Democrats of taking hostage of the troops to play political games. On the Democrat side, House Minority Leader Hakee Jeff says his party is fighting the quote broken health care system and high costs of living. He said it's time to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits and prevent rising health care premiums. A vote in the Senate to fund the federal government failed again today with 49 votes in favor and 45 opposed. entities. Daniel Monahan has more on that measure which needs 60 votes to pass. On this vote, the A's are 49, then the A are 45. The Republican sponsored continuing resolution failed 49 to 45 yesterday evening. Virtually all Republicans and a small number of Democrats supported the measure. Federal workers, including law enforcement officers, missed part of their pay last Friday. But hey, at least life is getting better for Senate Democrats. Senate Majority Leader John Thun quoted a CNN article from last week as saying that Democrats are prepared to keep on with this shutdown for several more weeks. I guess Democrats are not going to be satisfied until military families and government workers are lining up at food banks or visiting payday lenders or simply charging necessary items like milk and bread on their credit cards. Democrats argue they are trying to keep Affordable Care Act subsidies from expiring for millions of Americans who purchase insurance on Obamacare exchanges. If Republicans remain dug in, the American people will hold them responsible for rising health care costs. Most Democrats have supported an alternative measure that would permanently extend enhanced subsidies under the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare. It would also add to other areas of healthcare spending. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget has said the package would add $1.5 trillion in debt over the following 10 years. The Trump administration has dismissed over 4,100 employees since October 1st, the day the government shutdown began. President Trump blamed the cuts on the shutdown. Since 1981, the US has had 15 federal government shutdowns that furled hundreds of thousands of workers. Federal worker unions are suing to overturn the firings. The union said that implementing layoffs is not an essential service that can be performed during a government closure. A federal judge is due to hear the case on October 15th. The Pentagon confirms US troops have been paid after President Trump redirected $8 billion from defense research funds during the shutdown. The White House says it's now working to ensure federal law enforcement officers also receive their paychecks. President Trump says his administration will soon release a list of Democrat programs to be permanently cut amid the ongoing government shutdown. The Democrats are getting killed on the shutdown because we're closing up programs that are Democrat programs that we were opposed to. So, we're being a and and they're never going to come back in many cases. Trump called some of the targeted initiatives socialist and semi-communist. closing up some of the most egregious socialist semi-communist, probably not full communist, we're saving that for New York, but semi-communist programs and we're closing them up. Trump says Republicanbacked programs will stay open, quote, because they work. The president was speaking at a White House meeting with Argentina's President Javier Malay. Daniel Monahan, NTD News. Thank you, Daniel. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant said to today the shutdown will cost the US economy up to $15 billion per day. He called on moderate Democrats to negotiate. Democratic party leaders have said that any talks on reopening the government should include the extension of health care subsidies. Republicans say that the shutdown and health care are separate issues and that talks on the policy can be opened up as soon as the government shutdown ends. Next, Massachusetts Congressman Seth Molton says he's challenging Senator Ed Marky in next year's Democratic primary, calling what he des for what he describes as a new generation of leadership. In a campaign video, the 46-year-old Marine veteran said Democrats are stuck in the status quo and not fighting hard enough to win the future. Marky has served in Congress for nearly 50 years. He would be 80 when his next term begins. Molton's campaign will focus on affordability, health care, and protecting democracy. The race sets up a high-profile generational clash in one of the nation's blest states, and we'll keep you updated there. The Department of Homeland Security says cartels are placing bounties on ICE and border agents. Thousands of dollars are being offered, but the US says it's not backing down in its enforcement operations. NTD's David Lamb reports. The Department of Homeland Security said on Tuesday it has obtained credible intelligence that Mexican criminals and cartels are involved putting bounties on federal agents. Criminal networks are allegedly instructing street gangs in Chicago to monitor, track, harass, and assassinate agents. Bounties range from $2,000 for doxing an agent up to $10,000 for a kidnapping and up to $50,000 for assassinating high-ranking officials. According to Homeland Security, Antifa groups in Portland and Chicago have been shielding cartel linked individuals from deportation. Secretary Christy Noom said US agents are facing ambushes, surveillance, and death threats. But she also said, quote, "We will not back down from these threats, and every criminal, terrorist, and illegal alien will face American justice." Under Operation Midway Blitz, DHS says it has made over 1,500 arrests in Illinois, including pedophiles, gang members, and armed robbers. At least 1,000 suspects were arrested in Chicago alone. The operation was launched on September 8th, targeting criminal illegal immigrants. David Lamb, NCD News. The US and China are opening a new front in their trade war, this time at sea. The two countries are now charging tit fortat port fees, a move that began yesterday. That's while here at home, the DOJ is accusing a State Department employee of removing classified documents and meeting with CCP officials. NTD's Washington correspondent Jack Bradley has that story. The US and China are now collecting new fees from each other's cargo ships. The charges impact shipping firms that transport everything from holiday gifts to crude oil. But China is exempting Chinese-built vessels from the tax. Earlier this year, the Trump administration planned to impose fees on Chinese ships to encourage domestic ship building. And paving the way for that policy is an investigation under the Biden administration which found that the Chinese Communist Party uses unfair policies to dominate maritime and ship building sectors. This comes as China is tightening its rare earth mineral exports and the US in response is threatening to tack on an additional 100% tariff on China by November 1st. What the Chinese are doing is broad. It's on the whole world. a broad range of products that contain a tiny 0.1% of it is is is rare earth materials. Um, and they're doing it to low tech stuff. And we can't have a situation where the Chinese keep this regime in place where they want to have veto power over the world's high-tech supply chain. President Trump says he's considering terminating deals with China regarding cooking oil and other trade elements because they're boycotting American soybeans, thereby harming American farmers. Trump calls China's move an economically hostile act and that the US can easily produce its own cooking oil. China is instead purchasing more soybeans from Argentina. Was China trying to draw a wedge between the US and Argentina by buying soybeans from Argentina, not US farmers and and China on China on US ships, too. The Chinese have unfortunately turned our soybean farmers into pawns. uh they're trying to manipulate them. Meanwhile, there's a new case concerning Chinese espionage. A State Department employee is accused of removing classified documents and meeting with Chinese Communist Party officials. Ashley Telus started working for the State Department in 2001. He's also a contractor with the Department of War. The Justice Department accuses Telus of stealing classified documents, including military aircraft secrets. Federal prosecutors say he allegedly met with CCP officials at restaurants on multiple occasions. One time bringing a Manila envelope, another time allegedly telling them about Iranian Chinese relations and emerging technologies, and also allegedly receiving a gift bag from them. We'll have more on this case as it progresses. Reporting by Jack Bradley, NTD News. Thank you, Jack. Next, the Trump administration is condemning the Chinese regime's latest restrictions on rare earth products. US Trade Representative Jameson Greer and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant provided the latest updates today. China's announcement is nothing more than a global supply chain power grab. While China has taken a number of retaliatory trade actions against the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia, and others in recent years, this move is not proportional retaliation. It is an exercise in economic coercion on every country in the world. At its core, China's new measures include a rule saying that any product of which more than.1% of minerals consist of minerals mined or processed in China, one must seek approval from the Chinese government before trading it. Since many important semiconductors, for example, have these critical minerals and semiconductors are in nearly everything. Uh this rule gives China control over basically the entire global economy and the technology supply chain. Greer said China's export controls are a clear repudiation of the past six months of trade negotiations. Meanwhile, Bessant is optimistic that the trade tensions can be deescalated. He said the US has had substantial communication with China over the past few days and that there will be more this week. The Treasury Secretary noted that the Trump administration wants to help China, not hurt it. That's because a slowdown in the global economy will hurt China the most. But he stressed that China cannot be trusted with the global supply chain. This should be a clear sign to our allies that we must work together and work together we will. There will be series of meetings this week during World Bank IMF week and we are all aligned. Not only is China fueling Russia's war, but China's actions have once again demonstrated the risk of being dependent on them on rare earth and for that matter anything. If China wants to be an unreliable partner to the world, then the world will have to decouple. The world does not want to decouple. We want to derisk. But signals like this are signs of decoupling which we don't believe China wants. And again, we do not want to decouple. We should work together to de-risk and diversify our supply chains away from China as quickly as possible. Gray said there are a lot of low-risk areas where the US can trade with China. Besson emphasized that the US will not be commanded or controlled by China's economic coercion. He noted that President Trump is still expected to meet with Chinese regime leader Xi Jinping at the Apex summit in South Korea at the end of this month. And today's comments from Greer and Bessant come on the heels of that truth social post by the president saying yesterday that the US may cancel some of its business dealings with China altogether. Joining us to discuss is Brian Risinger, a farmer and journalist and the author of the book Land Rich Catch Poor. Good to have you with us, Brian. Some of the president's gripes with China are about American soybeans no longer being bought by China. How much of an impact could that have on American farmers? Yeah, the Chinese hostility toward America has always been a problem for farmers, but it's getting really, really elevated. It's a huge problem that's becoming worse at this crucial time of harvest. Many farmers are harvesting or have been harvesting the last couple weeks their soybeans. You have to do that a certain time a year for the right moisture levels. And now China's snub is really a strategic targeting of the American farmer trying to weaken our resolve. So the reality is that farmers want fair trade deals. They want China and other countries to have to get in line and to have more meaningful fair trade with us. But in the meantime, China is able to inflict pain on our farmers who are dealing with lower prices as China, a great big buyer, is refusing to deal with them. And we heard it just earlier, new reciprocal port fees from the US and China and also trade representative Jameson Greer saying yesterday an additional 100% tariffs on China depending on what China does next. How do you anticipate these changes could impact US farmers? What we're going to see is that China right now has the continued ability to hurt our farmers. And I do think that China is going to be able to force soybean prices down. And that's going to be a problem for farmers here in America all across the heartland. The farm I grew up on that my dad's still farming, my sister's working to take over is one that grows soybeans among many other types of crops, cash crops and other things we're experimenting with, but soybeans is part of it. A lot of farms are all soybeans all across the heartland. And so farms like that are going to have a really really big impact. What we need to be able to do is a couple things. One is while we're getting tougher with China and trying to get them to a trade deal that is more fair to American farmer and American worker, we do have to try to find domestic sources to sell those soybeans. If we're going to have cooking oil and other things produced here in America rather than bought from China, perhaps soybeans can go toward that. We need to have that market infrastructure standing up and quickly so that we're using these soybeans domestically as much as possible. The second thing we need to do in addition to trying to focus on that domestic market while China stays out of line is we need to be diversifying. We need to find more places across the globe. In the years between the Biden and Trump administrations, there were only about 20 trade deals with other countries. There are hundreds of countries out there. So, if we diversify and find more places to sell our soybeans and other crops, we don't have to be hostage to China quite as much. Even if one day they will do fair business with us, these are steps that we need to take meantime. What will it take? How easy might a pivot be uh if the US does decide to really reinvest those soybeans into transforming them into cooking oil? Because the president has suggested that they may stop buy the US may stop buying cooking oil from China and may well need to produce more of its own. Well, America has proven time and time again that when we pull together and head in one direction and put all of our resource, we can accomplish a lot. And so if we want to make a shift toward having a stronger domestic market for soybeans and I would say we should also add to that having a more diversified international market where we're not depending on China alone. We want to do those things. We can do that. We can focus on that. It will take time. We have farmers who have pain meantime. That's why you've heard the administration talk about an tariff aid package to farmers. And unfortunately right now because of the government shutdown and the congressional squabbling that package has been delayed. Whether people agree with the exact package or not, the issue of debating how we're going to make sure that our farmers that are impacted by this trade dispute are properly supported is something that's being held up right now by the government shutdown. You point to such an interesting nexus, this government shutdown and farmers currently harvesting their beans that they just can't sell and don't currently know where to sell them even internally and domestically. How are farmers seeing this promise of um aid through tariffs until the farmers can reap the benefits of those tariffs themselves? Yeah. You know, I don't speak for all farmers, but what I can tell you from where I grew up and the people that I talked to, no farmer wants the government to have to assist them. Every farmer just wants to grow something and be able to sell it on the market to someone who wants to buy it and keep their farm going by earning a dollar that way. That said, when the government is taking an action, you know, the federal government has said, "Hey, we're going to take these tariff actions because it means we can have tougher negotiations with China, means we can have better deals for farmers long term." When the government takes that kind of an action that can have an impact, it makes sense for the government to help uh address the consequences of that impact. So, if we're going to draw a harder line with China, it does make sense for some of that tariff revenue to be used to help support farmers and some of the other folks who are paying the cost meantime. So it can be short-term pain, long-term gain if we have a strategy for getting China to the negotiating table and making a deal that's more fair. And if in the meantime we use that tariff revenue to help the farmers and other folks who are paying the cost meantime. When the government takes an action like that, it makes sense for the government to want to do things to help farmers that otherwise just want to operate in a normal market. Short-term pain, long-term gain. Is that how you see the president's current additional tariffs more broadly on all nations? That's the way that farmers have traditionally viewed it. And I think that where we're at right now is we're really going to have that tested. We're going to see, are we going to see progress toward more trade deals with more countries or not? Over the summer, there was the UK, there was Japan, there were various other countries. There were good discussions with the EU. So, if we can continue to strike more trade deals and have them be trade deals that come out of tougher negotiations where family farms are put first, this can be long-term a good thing. Um, and if China is an exception right now, but we're getting China in line over time, it can be a doubly good thing. But if China keeps spinning out of control and continues to snub the American farmer and other countries don't get in line and have negotiations with America that lead to trade deals, we're going to see increasing pressure put on farmers. So farmers both want tough trade deals and they need markets to be opened up. And so I think we need to see if this is going to work out over time, but we have to bear in mind that there is pain meantime and then we have to keep moving forward on these trade deals as aggressively as we can. Well, very glad to hear your insights from out there in the fields, so to speak. Uh, but you know, especially regarding the fact that this is so much in flux and you're right there on the front lines dealing with it. Thank you so much, Brian Risinger. Good to speak with you. Thank you. Appreciate it. Louisiana is taking a stand against foreign AI threats. Governor Jeff Landry signed an executive order on Monday banning Chinese AI tools like DeepSeek from schools, universities, and state agencies. NTD's Tiffany Meyer has this report. The order targets AI systems run by hostile foreign governments like the Chinese Communist regime. It references national security and privacy concerns. Landry pointed to programs like Deep Seek, which federal investigators say can spread propaganda and transfer Americans personal data to China. The governor said the move is about putting Louisiana and the US first by protecting students, state agencies, and sensitive data from potential spying. He said, quote, "As technology advances, so do the threats." Adding that this order is designed to safeguard both people and national security. And for more exclusive China news and in-depth analysis, tune in to China in Focus with Tiffany Meyer at 9:00 PM Eastern, right here on NTD. China's new restrictions on rare earth exports are raising concerns in Europe. European officials say the EU is teaming up with the US and other G7 partners to craft a united response to the Chinese Communist Party. China, the world's top rare earth producer, just tightened its export rules, adding new elements and restrictions for semiconductor makers ahead of planned talks between Presidents Trump and Xi Jinping. The EU trade commissioner yesterday called the move unjustified, saying EU ministers meeting in Denmark see it as a critical concern. He said the G7 could hold a video call this week to coordinate next steps, including potential plans to diversify supply chains and speed up new mining projects. The Danish foreign minister urged Europe to stay tough and united, but also to work closely with Washington. Trump, meanwhile, has threatened China with 100% tariffs, sparking a brief selloff on Wall Street. And a spying case involving China is in the spotlight. British Prime Minister Kier Starmer today promised to release evidence provided to prosecutors by a senior official. Here's Starmer. The the final statement in this case was submitted in August 2025. There was no further submission of evidence one way or the other after any discussion in September. This is a red herring, a completely scurless allegation made by the leader of the opposition. And let me be clear, Mr. Speaker, about what has happened. A serious case involving national security has collapsed because this government is too weak to stand up to China. And if the prime minister cannot protect the members of this house, what does that say about his ability to protect this country? In an unexpected move last month, Britain's Crown Prosecution Service dropped charges against two men. The pair denied passing politically sensitive information to a Chinese intelligence agent. The prosecution said the decision was made because the evidence it needed was not provided by the government after months of effort. This evidence would clarify that China was a threat to the UK's national security. Starmer said the fault lay with the previous Conservative administration, which was in power when the men were charged. The trials collapse led to accusations from opposition parties saying the government did not want to jeopardize ties with China. Secretary of War Pete Haggsath is in Brussels today. He said that commitments from NATO countries will translate into enhanced firepower. Here's Haggath. Firepower, that's what uh is coming, we expect, and is coming from NATO. Uh and it was a historic summit just a couple of months ago brought about by leadership of President Trump to say we need our allies to step up and and they did and they have in those commitments. Now those commitments will soon translate into capabilities which is the most important aspect of it. And one part of that of course is Pearl is the initiative where European countries buy US weapons transferred to NATO for the fight in Ukraine to bring peace to that conflict. And if there's anything we've learned under President Trump is the active application of peace through strength. Now, if this war does not end, if there is no path to peace in the short term, then the United States along with our allies will take the steps necessary to impose costs on Russia for its continued aggression. If we must take this step, the US War Department stands ready to do our part in ways that only the United States can do. Hags said that strength doesn't mean using strong words or wagging your finger. The war secretary remarked that you achieve peace by having strong and real capabilities that adversaries respect. Today's meeting of NATO defense ministers aims to boost military support for Ukraine as new data shows Western aid has fallen by 43% in recent months. NATO Secretary Mark Rutz said continued support deters Russian aggression. His remarks come amid rising tensions from drone incursions and Russian airspace violations. Defense ministers also discussed lifting restrictions on NATO equipment to better defend the alliance's eastern borders. The UK is targeting companies in China and India for helping Russia avoid sanctions and sell its oil. Britain is also sanctioning two Russian companies as the country's finance minister explained this morning. We are introducing uh targeted se sanctions against the two biggest oil companies in Russia uh L oil and Roseneft and at the same time we are ramping up pressure on companies in third countries including India and China that continue to facilitate getting Russian oil onto global markets. She added that there's no place for Russia in global markets. The finance minister also made clear that Britain would take all necessary steps to stop Moscow from funding its war in Ukraine. The new sanctions target 51 ships within the shadow fleet as well as multiple individual entities. The shadow fleet is a network of older tankers that officials say are used to avoid sanctions on Russian oil. The fleet has increasingly been the target of sanctions from Britain, the United States, and the European Union.