US Proposes Critical Minerals Trading Bloc; 700 Officers Leaving MN | NTD Evening News (Feb. 4)

Welcome to NTD Evening News. Our top story tonight, President Trump holds a call with Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping as a major summit in Washington today could be a significant step forward in shaking the Chinese regime. That's as the president seeks to break the CCP's dominance over the critical minerals needed to power our everyday lives in America. Mario Tzu at the White House. Treasury Secretary Scott Besson testifies on Capitol Hill touting President Trump's plan to slash red tape on small banks and pushing for a more financially robust middle class. Jack Bradley with the key takeaways. The Supreme Court approves California's new congressional map, which would give Democrats five more seats. How the court ruling could impact this year's midterm elections. Israeli forces report striking two terrorist commanders in the Gaza Strip after terrorists shot an Israeli soldier. Meanwhile, U.S. warships remain deployed south of Iran as the two countries work through details of upcoming talks. Jason Perry reports. U.S. officials holding trilateral talks with representatives from both Russia and Ukraine. Ariane Posdar has what the Trump administration says about today's talks and the ongoing peace process. This is NTD Evening News, live from our global headquarters in New York City. Here's Tiffany Meyer. Good evening and thank you for joining us tonight. The Trump administration racing to break the Chinese Communist Party's dominance over the critical minerals needed to power our everyday lives in America. President Trump holds a call with CCP leader Xi Jinping this morning as a major summit in Washington today could be a significant step forward in shaking the Chinese regime. We now go live to NTD's Washington correspondent Mario Tzu, who has more on that story from the White House. Mario, good evening. Tiff, good evening. And that's right. President Trump today describes his call with CCP leader Xi Jinping as, quote, long and thorough, covering many topics, including Taiwan, Iran, Russia, Ukraine, trade, military issues, and the president's upcoming trip to China in April. The president says that Xi Jinping is considering increasing his U.S. soybean purchases to 20 million metric tons this season, up from 12 million metric tons, and that next year he says that he's committing to 25 tons of soybean purchases. It remains to be seen, though, if Xi ultimately follows through. If we remember back to the October Trump-Xi soybean deal made in Busan, Korea, which was hailed as a truce after months of zero U.S. soybean purchases by China, this ultimately proved fragile as China only met that 12 million ton goal amid timeline extensions and repeated delays, this underscoring how CCP commitments remain vulnerable to reneging or erosion. This call is also coming as Washington today hosts a summit, a global summit to challenge China's critical minerals monopoly. And just two days after President Trump signed an executive order launching Project Vault, a $12 billion critical mineral stockpile. Take a look. That's the key goal of a critical mineral supply. And today it's heavily concentrated in the hands of one country. And that lends itself to at worst case scenario being used as a tool of leverage in geopolitics. But it also lends itself to any sort of disruptions like a pandemic or anything that could political instability or anything that could happen. China has got a stranglehold they can control anywhere between 85 to 100 percent of the top 20 critical minerals. This is a threat not just to the U.S., but to the whole world. Over 55 countries are attending the summit with half expressing interest in joining a quote preferential trade zone that will establish price floors for critical minerals. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the goal is to prevent the kind of disruption that comes with a market monopoly or that monopoly being used as leverage against other countries. This set pricing mechanism would counter the Chinese regime's predatory pricing practices that drove global rare earths miners and processors out of business years ago. The 90s that the Chinese Communist Party were China was given kind of like the open door to corner this market. And it was by design. At the same time, they would drive in a dependency of their potential adversaries in the Western world, notably the United States. National security concerns became more urgent last year when Beijing imposed export controls on rare earths, causing production delays and shutdowns for auto manufacturers in America and Europe. Every single one of us represented in this room has become dependent on arrangements we did not choose. We all face the same vulnerability. Access to the things that protect our people and sustain our way of life, everything from missile defense systems to apply chains that support these industries sometimes can vanish in the blink of an eye without any control or influence from many of the countries in this room. Meanwhile, here in the White House's Blue Room, First Lady Melania Trump is hosting freed American-Israeli hostage Keith Siegel and his wife Aviva. Aviva Siegel was captured by Hamas and held hostage for 51 days, while her husband Keith was captured for 484 days. Aviva presented me with two of Keith's books. And when I came home that evening, I gave it to my husband and informed him the situation. And I know he was fighting for all the hostages. And as we know now, all of the hostages are free and home with the families. The First Lady's sit-down with Aviva Siegel in January 2025, filmed when Keith remained captive, is chronicled in the First Lady's documentary. Premiering last week, the film exceeded expectations by earning $7 million at the domestic box office during its opening weekend. In it, the First Lady says that that initial meeting sparked a series of events that ultimately led to Keith Siegel's liberation from Hamas. I'm eternally grateful to you and President Trump for bringing me home and for bringing all the hostages back to their families. It moved me deeply. And it showed us the true meaning of holding on to hope, even in the most difficult moments. I want to thank you for being a caring, compassionate person and for supporting and helping a leader. Siegel says that after regaining freedom, he's been dedicating his time to partnering with humanitarian aid organizations. He says that giving back has been a crucial part of his recovery and his rehabilitation process. Tiff, back to you. All right, Mari, thanks for those updates. The Supreme Court is allowing a new congressional map in California to remain in place for this year's midterm elections. The high court's decision comes after the justices allowed a Texas map to be used this year as well. Challengers in California case allege unlawful racial gerrymandering, saying the new map violated the Federal Voting Rights Act. No justices dissented the ruling today, and the court did not explain its ruling. Last year, Texas Republicans redrew the state's congressional districts in an attempt to gain five seats. California Democrats responded by redrawing their own congressional lines, also in a bid to gain five seats. California voters approved the map in the November 2025 election. Justice Samuel Alito wrote in December that it appeared both states had adopted new maps for political advantage. Texas has 38 seats in the House, while California has 52. Republicans currently control the House with 218 seats, compared to In the Middle East, Israeli forces report striking two terrorist commanders in the Gaza Strip after terrorists shot an Israeli soldier. Meanwhile, U.S. warships remain deployed south of Iran as the two countries work through details of upcoming talks. NDD's Jason Perry has the details. Israeli forces on Wednesday said terrorists in the Gaza Strip opened fire on Israeli troops on the previous night, and the terrorists reportedly shot and severely injured an Israeli reserve officer who was behind the so-called yellow line in accordance with the ceasefire agreement. Afterwards, Israel launched a series of strikes in the territory, which they said was in response to the violation of the ceasefire agreement. Israel reported striking a Palestinian Islamic Jihad Brigade commander in the northern Gaza Strip and a Hamas Special Forces platoon commander in the southern Gaza Strip, who was apparently in a tent camp in Khan Yunis. A member of the Palestinian Civil Defense said there was more than one strike. Two people were martyred, a woman and a man. The Red Crescent ambulances headed to the location. The medics arrived, and the Israelis targeted the location one more time. One medic from the Red Crescent was martyred, and another was wounded. Israel later released a statement saying they took steps prior to the strike to mitigate harm to civilians, and that the Israel Defense Forces regret any harm caused to uninvolved civilians. A spokesperson for the Red Crescent said, quote, the attacks must stop, and that international law provides protection to providers of health and ambulance services. Speaking of ambulances, on the same day, Israel released footage of Hamas terrorists gathered around an ambulance and reportedly loading weapons into the emergency vehicle. Israel said that armed Hamas terrorists repeatedly and systematically use ambulances in the Gaza Strip to transport terrorists and weapons between a hospital and a school. Also in the Middle East, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he thought the talks between the U.S. and Iran were supposed to take place on Friday, but that the meeting details are still being worked out. I think in order for talks to actually lead to something meaningful, they will have to include certain things, and that includes the range of their ballistic missiles. That includes their sponsorship of terrorist organizations across the region. That includes a nuclear program, and that includes the treatment of their own people. And the U.S. Navy released footage on Wednesday of the USS Abraham Lincoln, which is currently deployed south of Iran. President Trump has suggested taking military action against Iran if they don't make a nuclear deal with the U.S. Jason Perry, NTV News. U.S. officials are holding trilateral talks today with representatives from both Russia and Ukraine. The meeting is taking place despite a major Russian attack just one day before. NTV's international correspondent, Arian Postar, has more. For the first time in a very long time, we have technical military teams from both Ukraine and Secretary of State Marco Rubio praising the trilateral talks U.S. officials are holding with Russia and Ukraine. Special Envoy Steve Whitkoff and President Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, are joined by U.S. military experts for their talks in Abu Dhabi. According to Rubio, since President Trump returned to office, the U.S. already made significant progress in its goal to bring peace to Ukraine. We've committed a year to this. We think we've made real progress. If you look at the checklist of open items that existed at this time last year and the checklist of open items that remain now in terms of reaching a peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia, that list has been substantially diminished. But Rubio added the bad news is that the items still remaining unsolved are also the most difficult ones to solve. The European Union also weighing in on the talks in Abu Dhabi, saying Russia is abusing the ceasefire talks to attack civilian infrastructure in Ukraine. Putin can't end this war right now. He doesn't show any signs of wanting to do so. He misuses even the discussions on the ceasefire to continuously attack the civilian infrastructure and kill innocent people. Just one day before the talks, Russia launched a major attack on Ukraine using over 500 drones and 30 ballistic missiles. Kyiv officials say the attack left over a thousand people without heating in their apartments. This attack was significant because Ukraine says it violated a one-week ceasefire on energy infrastructure. President Trump brokered the temporary truce amid frigid temperatures across Ukraine. Russia's attacks on energy often leave thousands without heating, similar to what happened on Tuesday. But according to Trump, Tuesday's strikes didn't violate the ceasefire because it had already expired on Sunday. The Ukrainian side says Wednesday's trilateral talks were successful, but President Volodymyr Zelensky is calling for more pressure on Russia. Today was a long day with many internal issues. Ukraine's position is very clear. The war must truly be brought to an end. Russia must be ready for this. New footage shows how ice is spreading over a power plant in Kyiv, which was damaged in a Russian strike. The pictures show the extreme temperatures Ukrainians have to endure when heating fails after attacks on energy facilities. Zelensky says Ukraine is now importing gas from additional countries, including the U.S., to help civilians amid the attacks. Ariane Pastor, NTD News. On Capitol Hill, Treasury Secretary Scott Besson testifying, defending the Trump administration's plan to cut regulations and build up Main Street. NTD's Washington correspondent Jack Bradley has more. Treasury Secretary Scott Besson testifying before the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday, a hearing that at times got pretty heated. For the American people, don't be a cover up for a mob. Besson made it clear that the Trump administration is going full speed ahead on cutting regulations for small and community banks. The goal? Make it easier for home buyers and small business owners and farmers to actually get the loans they need. Small banks became too small to succeed. Besson says small banks are the primary lenders to middle class Americans. Boosting their lending power and slashing the red tape is absolutely essential. More than 55 percent of community banks have vanished since the 2008 financial crisis. Now, this lines right up on his annual report on the Financial Stability Oversight Council, which he's presenting to both chambers of Congress this week. And things got testy, especially when tariffs came up. Are tariffs inflationary? Yes or no? According to the San Francisco Federal Reserve, with 150 years of data. Yes or no? Tariffs do not cause inflation. Lumber. Reclaiming my time. Lumber is at a five year low, Congresswoman. Reclaiming my time. That the mass unfettered immigration, adding 10 to 20 million new people demanding housing, Congresswoman, is what caused a great deal of housing inflation for working Americans. Besson also touted President Trump's other policies, like deregulation and those $1,000 Trump savings accounts for newborns. How will these Trump accounts impact this new generation of Americans' view of financial independence versus socialism? History would show that people who own a piece of the action do not want to bring down the system when you weren't part of the system. The goal here should be to have everyone own a piece of the American economic engine. Besson also made clear two big priorities for the administration, cracking down on Chinese money laundering and cutting off funding that supports China's military. We were very focused on Chinese money laundering organizations, which originally began as a way for Chinese citizens to get money out of the country. As China clamped down on the leakage, they morphed into partners with the Mexican drug cartels. Reporting by Jack Bradley, NTD News. Coming up, major medical institutions are now advising against gender transition surgery for minors. This comes after a landmark trial that awarded $2 million to a woman who underwent gender transition surgery as a teen. Sam Wong has that update. A former ambassador tells Congress that authoritarian regimes are using surveillance technology to identify and suppress people of faith. He says China alone spends billions on religious persecution. Chris Vaughn brings us the highlights from a hearing on Capitol Hill when we come back. Welcome back. I'm Tiffany Meyer. Two major medical institutions are advising against gender transition surgery for minors. That includes the American Medical Association, which is the nation's largest organization representing doctors. The new guidance comes after a landmark trial that awarded $2 million to a woman who underwent gender transition surgery as a teen. NTD's Sam Wong has the story. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons issued new guidance on Tuesday, urging doctors to delay gender transition surgeries until the age of 19. In a statement, the group says there's evidence of, quote, treatment complications and potential harms in procedures like mastectomies. It's based on 12 to 14 year data out of Europe, actually. Many very progressive-leaning political countries in Europe like England, Sweden and Finland have already stopped doing these procedures. And I can tell you that they're just coming back to common sense, coming back to science. The announcement comes after Fox Varian, a former transgender teen, won a $2 million settlement against her surgeon last week. The doctor performed breast removal surgery on Varian when she was only 16. I think that $2 million is not nearly enough to compensate for the damages that these doctors have done to my generation. I think that it would only be right if next, every single doctor, every single clinic that's been involved in this has their wallets completely drained, they're all thrown in prison. In a landmark decision, a jury in upstate New York held the surgeon liable for malpractice. According to Varian's mother, the doctor pressured her into agreeing to a double mastectomy, warning that her daughter would commit suicide if the surgery were denied. Varian, who no longer identifies as transgender, is now the first known detransitioner to win a civil medical malpractice lawsuit. She and her attorneys say they hope the verdict will lead to similar results in future cases. There are thousands and thousands of young people across this country who were treated in the same egregious manner that this patient was, who deserve their day in court, and their parents too. Last month, the Department of Health and Human Services proposed regulations that will bar hospitals from performing gender transition procedures on minors. The agency says such treatments cause irreversible damage, including infertility, reduced bone density, and other physiological effects. Sam Wong, NTD News. Hear more about this case and the implications around the nation from Epoch Times reporter Stacey Robinson tonight on Capitol Report with Steve Lance at 7 p.m. Eastern time. At a House hearing today titled Defending Religious Freedom Around the World, lawmakers heard from a variety of witnesses on the topic of religious persecution abroad. They highlighted the tactics authoritarian regimes use to suppress faith. NTD's Chris Bobb has the story. At a Capitol Hill hearing Wednesday, former Ambassador-at-Large Sam Brownback told lawmakers that the Chinese Communist Party is leading a global persecution campaign against faith, targeting Christians, Buddhists, Uighur Muslims, and especially Falun Gong practitioners. Communist China will spend billions of dollars this year alone to suppress every faith that exists in that country, and they save their greatest anger and bile for the Falun Gong. We should see them as our greatest ally. These are people behind enemy lines that will stand up to the regime, that will stand up to the oppressors, because they overcome their fear with their interior faith. They will fight, even if it means their life. Brownback says China uses advanced surveillance technology to crush religious freedom. Literally, it's a war on God. They can find that one person out of 100,000 that will actually lead people against a regime that's driven by their faith. They can pinpoint that person and get him or her. Brownback urged the U.S. government to more openly support religious leaders targeted by authoritarian regimes. But you act through these people that are people of faith and back them. Have the vice president, the secretary of state, go to Dharamsala, India, and meet with the Dalai Lama and say, we are behind you guys. Bring the head of Falun Gong, the gentleman that brought Falun Gong out, who is now exiled in the United States, bring him here and laud them for what they have done in standing up and trying to bring ancient Chinese civilization back. Dr. Stephen Schneck warned that U.S. programs supporting religious freedom abroad are at risk. That the programs of USAID, programs at the Department of State, some programs at the U.S. Institute of Peace, Voice of America, these programs, nation building programs, frankly, have been a critical component of the United States effort to promote religious freedom abroad. So around the world, the funding that the United States government has been providing, that money has largely withered and dried up as a result of the Doge cuts. As lawmakers seek to hold the Chinese regime accountable, one bill moving through the Senate is the Falun Gong Protection Act. Passed by the House last May, the legislation now has eight Senate co-sponsors and targets forced organ harvesting and other systematic abuses against people of faith in China. Reporting from Washington, D.C., Chris Bobb, NTD News. Brian Ruth, the man convicted of attempting to assassinate then-presidential candidate Donald Trump in 2024, was sentenced to life in prison today. His court-appointed attorney said he disagreed with the judge's reasoning. She's the judge. She's well within her prerogative to express her opinions. And the question of the defendant's character is pertinent in her calculation of what an appropriate sentence would be. So I don't want to criticize the fact that she drew her own conclusions. I just disagree with them. Federal Judge Eileen Cannon in Florida handed down the sentence, plus a mandatory additional seven years, for a firearms offense. Prosecutors had asked for the life sentence, stating in court filings that Ruth was not shown any remorse. In calling the assassination attempt heinous, Ruth's court-appointed attorney for the sentencing had argued a 27-year sentence would be punishment enough for the failed plot to kill Trump, a crime he said hurt no one. The sentence comes four months after a jury convicted Ruth for several offenses, including the assassination attempt, assaulting a federal officer, and several firearms offenses. His attorney said he would appeal the sentencing decision. Coming up, a Senate committee hears testimony today about allegations of massive welfare fraud in Minnesota. Arlene Richards brings us some of the highlights from that hearing. And due to more cooperation from county jails, Border Czar Tom Homan says he's pulling hundreds of federal agents out of Minnesota, but he says the operation is still moving at full steam. Jason Blair reports for the break. Welcome back. I'm Tiffany Meyer. A Senate subcommittee today heard witness testimony on allegations of large-scale fraud in Minnesota's social service programs. Entity's Arlene Richards has some of the highlights. We will explain how the fraud actually took place, the mechanics by which these schemes operated, and the very real harms they inflicted. Not only on taxpayers, but on vulnerable children, and on law-abiding Somali families whose trusts and identities were exploited. Republican Senator Ted Cruz kicked off a hearing on Wednesday that examined allegations of massive fraud in Minnesota's social services programs. He partially blamed Minnesota Democrats for what he called deliberately turning a blind eye. A federal probe into the alleged fraud was triggered after 23-year-old independent journalist Nick Shirley published a report saying that multiple daycare centers in Minneapolis, run by members of the Somali community, were fraudulently collecting millions in government aid. So I know Minneapolis very well. Most notably the enormous number of child care facilities that had opened up. I would drive around the Twin Cities and it seemed these child care facilities were literally on every block. Independent investigative journalist David Hoke worked with Shirley. He said the fraud is easily in excess of $30 billion. Public affairs activist Robert Weissman said there was no evidence to support that estimate. Unfortunately, the reality is the Trump administration is systematically dismantling the anti-fraud programs of the federal government. Meanwhile, Hoke said the way to fix this is for the federal government to go into Minnesota agencies and arrest those who commit fraud. Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse criticized the hearing for not addressing the federal deployment of ICE agents in the state, which he called an occupation in which two American citizens have died. Marlene Richards, NTD News. 700 federal agents are leaving Minnesota after Border Guard Tom Homan cites more cooperation from county jails and reports of anti-ICE blockades in the Minneapolis area spark concern from local police unions, which say that officers who try to remove the blockades are being met with hostility. NTD correspondent Jason Blair has more. Again, I'm not saying we agree on everything, but I think we all already accomplished great things in Minnesota. I am optimistic we will achieve even more. Whitehouse Borders Guard Tom Homan says that due to a, quote, unprecedented amount of county jails that are now telling ICE when a criminal illegal alien is being released, that he is pulling back 700 federal agents from the state. This is efficient, requires only one or two officers to assume custody of a criminal alien target rather than eight or 10 officers going into the community. Homan adds that this also frees up local law enforcement to deal with other issues rather than potentially deal with another public safety threat being released on the street. More officers taking custody of criminal aliens directly from the jails means less officers on the street doing criminal operations. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz responded to the withdrawal of 700 agents, saying, today's announcement is a step in the right direction, but we need a faster and larger drawdown of forces and state-led investigations into the killings of Alex Pretty and Renee Good. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey also calls it a step in the right direction, but says the operation needs to end immediately. Homan says that his goal is to end the surge of agents in Minnesota. However, he explained that it can't be done while agents are still being met with violence and being doxed. But that is largely contingent upon the end of the illegal and threatening activities against ICE. So we will not draw down on personnel providing security and responding to hostile incidents until we see a change. One issue being reported in the Minneapolis, St. Paul area are the anti-ICE license plate checkpoints that activists are setting up on the streets. Media reports show activists stopping traffic, running license plates through databases and not allowing drivers to pass who they think are ICE. The local police unions have raised concern over the practice. The Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis says peaceful protest is a constitutional right. Impersonating law enforcement, conducting stop and frisk activities or physically blocking public roadways is not. The St. Paul Police Federation says when officers move in and request the illegal blockades be removed, they are not met with cooperation, but open hostility. Homan says the blockades are only harming the local community. You're not going to stop ICE. You're not going to stop Border Patrol. The only thing you're doing is irritating your community and want to go get groceries or pick the children up or whatever. Homan also gave an update on illegal immigrant arrests. We've arrested 14 people who had homicide convictions, 139 assault convictions, 87 sex offenses, 28 gang members have been arrested, just to name a few. Jason Blair, NTD News. Joining us now to discuss White House borders are Tom Homan. Polling 700 immigration officers out of Minnesota is Laura Reese. She's the director of the Border Security and Immigration Center at the Heritage Foundation. Laura, thank you so much for joining us. Great to have you. Now, Homan saying this is possible due to unprecedented cooperation with local counties. Calling this smarter enforcement, not less. First, is the level of cooperation you're seeing enough to have a clean and successful immigration operation? Well, in the short answer, I would say no. It's good to see that he is getting more cooperation than they were before Tom Homan was sent to Minneapolis. And always, when you are dealing law enforcement agents to law enforcement agents, whether that's state to state or federal with state or even international, you're going to get the best level of cooperation. But once you add in politicians like the mayor of Minneapolis, the governor of Minnesota, the attorney general there, and members of Congress, they are continuing to demonize ICE agents. And so I just see the illegal obstruction going elsewhere. I mean, perhaps it may continue and flare up more in Minneapolis. But for example, in New York, you've got the attorney general, Letitia James, calling for her own quote unquote legal observers project in the streets there. Now, that's a nice euphemism for illegal obstructionists. And you've got just disqualifying comments from Jerry Nadler, the US representative from New York, saying Americans would be justified in shooting ICE agents if they thought that they were just masked hoodlums instead of government goons. So the left is not going to stop. On that note, with this drawdown in Minnesota, how likely are we to see a de-escalation in the anti-ICE protest? Well, we'll see in the short term. I mean, right now, what's happening in Minneapolis is these ridiculous buildups of putting stuff in the street and then the radical rent rioters coming out and checking IDs and trying to keep out anyone they suspect is an ICE agent. And as Tom Holman said, it just annoys the neighbors and the community members. They're not going to stop ICE agents. The question is, is it going to stay at that level? Is that going to dissipate as well? Or is it going to flare up again into something else? And it may not stay in Minneapolis. LA is always a potential cauldron. Portland, Oregon flares up every few nights. We've got calls for similar obstruction in New York City. You can never forget about Chicago. So it's not going to stop. It's just a matter of where. And this also comes as DHS deploys body cameras for all federal agents in Minnesota. What are your thoughts on that and how it could impact law enforcement and the public? Well, transparency is a good thing. When the left demanded that, you know, defund police and demanded that police wear body cameras, it turned out to help police defend against false claims when they were making an arrest. And it shows the public what the police have to deal with and split second decisions that they have to make when they are potentially being attacked. It's no different with ICE agents. And so Tom Homan announced today that ICE will use body cameras. And again, you know, that transparency will be a good thing and it will allow the ICE agents to defend themselves against false claims made against them. And looking ahead, what constitutes success in Minnesota? What are the steps needed before that? Well, every criminal that is removed from the streets makes the community more safer, and none of these politicians should oppose removing murderers, rapists, gang members, et cetera, from their communities. I wish more journalists would ask these politicians and these rioters, why are you defending these terrible criminals and why do you want to keep them on the streets to hurt more people? But also there's a lot of fraud in Minnesota, and the timing is not accidental, that when so much welfare fraud and potential election fraud, and there was already ongoing immigration fraud investigations in the Twin City area, that's when the left sent their protesters, their obstructionists to interfere with what ICE was doing, not only to halt deportations, but to get the attention away from the fraud. And those investigations will continue, and we need to see prosecutions come from that. A lot to watch for, for sure. Laura Reese, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you. Coming up, the U.S. Coast Guard is ramping up its security presence in advance of this coming Sunday's Super Bowl. They provide an update on how they're securing both land and the waterways, David Lamb reports. And in the NBA, several prominent players are on the move as the Dave Martin joins us to discuss. And self-driving cars are back in the spotlight on Capitol Hill. Lawmakers heard from Tesla and Waymo as they weigh new rules aimed at expanding autonomous vehicles. Christina Corona has the details when we come back. Come back, I'm Tiffany Meyer. The U.S. Coast Guard is ramping up security presence for Super Bowl week. Today, they gave an update on those efforts. NTD's David Lamb has more from San Francisco. The U.S. Coast Guard is already increasing presence on the waterways and assisting in a safe Super Bowl 60. As with large events like the Super Bowl, they want to make sure there are no bad actors, crime, as well as negligent boating incidents. Overall, the Coast Guard is ready to support the public and participants during the Super Bowl festivities February 3rd through 8th, working with our port partners to maintain situational awareness and promote safe events throughout the week. With a backdrop of a sunny day and cool air from the Pacific Ocean, Coast Guard officials say their team is well-versed and practiced, and their Super Bowl support is a more robust and augmented form of their daily duties. Support includes canine units, boat operators, and the Pacific Strike team to handle any hazardous materials. So just if there were to be any sort of hazmat incident, we're available to help clean our first responders and help them either, you know, go home or get back to work in this within the stadium or the events. This is what we call a level A suit, so this would be for an incident involving hazards that to your breathing and to your skin, and so we would wear a full-face mask, boots, and a protective suit. There is also a drone restriction in the area. If there are incursions, we either use our equipment to stop that drone or we send ground units working with local police and our own operators to enforce the TFR. The U.S. Coast Guard's motto is Semper Paratus, which means always ready, and as of Wednesday, they said there are no specific threats to the Super Bowl. Reporting in San Francisco, California, David Lam, NTD News. Dave Martin. Dave, we've got some Olympic news and more Super Bowl news, but let's start in the NBA as the LA Clippers have reportedly traded 11-time all-star James Harden to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Why would they want to trade Harden at this juncture? Well, in short, because he still brings a good return at age 36. You know, I mean, like you said, they have not confirmed this trade yet. But it does make sense for the Clippers. Now, even though they have played much better the last six weeks, I mean, they've won 17 of their last 22 games. It's not like they're a title contender right now. They're still ninth place in the West. Harden, meanwhile, he's having a tremendous season. He's 25 points per game. That's 16th best in the league. Meanwhile, his eight assists are third best in the league. So he goes to Cleveland. Cleveland is in the playoff race. They are tied for fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 30-21 record. Now, the Clippers also get much younger with this trade. They get two-time all-star guard Darius Garland, who is 10 years younger than Harden. Plus, they get a future second-round pick. Now, Garden is 12th in the league in assists per game. So the Cavs, meanwhile, they can probably get a jump start with this trade. I mean, I mentioned they're 30-21. Last year, though, they've only lost 18 games the entire season. So I'm interested to see how much of an impact Harden going to Cleveland makes on them. So down the road, Tiff, I will be reporting on how much of an impact it is. Stay tuned. Exactly. While staying in the NBA, the Dallas Mavericks have also reportedly traded a big star, Anthony Davis. Now, Davis goes to Washington in a multiplayer deal. This happens just over a year after he was traded for Luka Doncic. Yes. Unfortunately for the Mavs, that Doncic trade did not work out well for Dallas. No, it's not that Anthony Davis didn't perform well. It was just that he and teammate Kyrie Irving both got injured soon after that trade. Davis has actually had multiple injuries since then. In fact, he's only played 29 of a possible 82 games in his tenure for Dallas. Now, this season, meanwhile, he has not played since January 8 with a hand injury. Irving, meanwhile, he tore his ACL last March. He still has not returned from that. So the Mavericks in this trade, they get three-time All-Star Chris Middleton, plus two future first-round picks and three future second-round picks, plus three more players from Washington for Davis, plus three more players included there for Dallas. So it's a big trade. There are eight players in all. The trade was reported by ESPN. So the Wizards now, they also recently traded for guard Trey Young, who's also injured right now. So the Wizards right now, their best players are on the shelf. They are not in playoff contention this year. I'm really not sure what their purpose is. Maybe they wanted to get better next year when, you know, Young and Davis are both healthy. But that'll be another thing I'll report on down the line. It might be next November, but down the line, too. All right. You heard it here. Looking at Olympic news, though, yesterday we reported on women's downhill skier Lindsey Vaughn. She's planning to compete despite a ruptured ACL injury. What is the latest on that? Well, she actually caught a break today, at least according to her coach, when the Olympic organizers had to cancel the downhill training session for tomorrow because some seven inches of snow has fallen on the mountain there. Now, her coach previously said she could use more time for her own recovery from the ACL injury, but there's still training sessions scheduled for Friday and Saturday. Now, some fellow Olympic skiers were actually asked about trying to ski with a torn ACL like Lindsey Vaughn has. Let's actually listen to their responses. It is entirely possible to ski moguls without an ACL. I actually tore mine last December and skied multiple events without it. It's like Liz said, it all really depends on how severe it is and if your quad's firing. And if you have strength and stability in your knee, it's entirely possible to be done. It is very painful, but us athletes will do whatever it takes. I think it all depends on the magnitude of the injury. I've read a few things about Lindsey's injury. She has torn her ACL fully. She has a few meniscus issues as well. I think it's entirely possible for her to perform because as long as your quad is firing correctly, you can still move your knee in the way that you want it to. It's just an ACL. It just stabilizes your knee a bit better. So as long as Lindsey's able to fire her quad and move it in the way that she wants to, I think she still has a lot of potential. It sounds like as long as her quad is firing, it's okay. I don't know about you, Tiff, but my quads, maybe this is why I'm not a skier. My quads, they don't seem to fire, you know? Do yours? I mean, maybe that's some ski thing, but my quads, they don't fire. That's probably why I'm not an Olympian. I like what the guy said at the end, though. Skiers, athletes, they're willing to do this thing, you know? Kudos to them. Kudos to them. It's a lot of pain. I can't imagine trying to ski on a torn ACL or do much of anything on a torn ACL. By the way, I didn't want to mention the Olympics actually kicked off today with the first curling matches, though the opening ceremony will be on Friday. All right. So buckle up, all right? Well, speaking of big games, let's talk about the Super Bowl. We've shown a number of sneak peeks at some of the commercials. What do you have today? We've got a pretty funny one. Of course, I thought all of these were funny. Maybe you haven't thought that. This is one for Pringles. Now, unlike some of the other Super Bowl ads, the Pringles product actually fits prominently into this funny ad here. Let's take a look. I'm so tired of boys. I need a man. Pringle-io. Once you pop, the pop don't stop. So that was pop singer Sabrina Carpenter in that Pringles ad. Pretty funny, huh? Well, we'll see what else you have tomorrow, but Dave, as always, thanks for joining us. Thank you, Tiff. The Senate Commerce Committee heard testimony from Tesla, Waymo, and industry experts on autonomous vehicles as lawmakers debated safety concerns and the push for national standards. Entity's Christina Corona tells us more. Lawmakers heard from Waymo, Tesla, and industry experts Wednesday as the Senate Commerce Committee considered legislation aimed at speeding up development of autonomous vehicles, or AVs. Senator Ted Cruz argued that AV technology could reduce crashes, saying most accidents are caused by humans. The overwhelming causes of roadway fatalities today are drunk driving and distracted driving. Autonomous technologies never drive drunk. Autonomous technologies, they don't text while driving. They don't change the radio station. Waymo says its system is about 10 times less likely than human drivers to be involved in a serious injury crash. However, concerns remain after recent robo-taxi incidents, including Waymo cars failing to yield to school buses in Austin and a crash involving a child in Santa Monica. Waymo's chief safety officer says the system detected the child and reduced harm. Our analysis indicates that our technology was able to detect the young girl as she emerged from behind a total SUV, brake hard, reduce speed, and reduce harm. And we found that the Waymo driver would have responded faster than our models of an attentive human driver. On cybersecurity, Waymo says its safety systems are protected from outside connections. So you cannot actually hack into it, connect to it, and drive it remotely. Tesla was also pressed on driver safety, whether the company can detect if someone is drunk, distracted, or too impaired to take control. And it requires driver supervision. In those vehicles, we use a variety of detections to ensure that the driver is attentive, including eye monitoring, hands-on detection. Both companies said they'd accept liability for system failures, and senators also push for better access for people with disabilities. Christina Corona, NTD News. And that's all for today's news. For on-the-clock coverage, visit us at ntd.com slash live or download our NTD app. Thanks for tuning in. I'm Tiffany Meyer. Good night.