Annual Inflation Slows to 8-month Low; US Ends TPS for Yemen | NTD News Today (Feb. 13)

And welcome to NTD News Today. Here are today's top stories. The FBI has raised the reward to $100,000 as new details emerge about the suspect seen in Nancy Guthrie's doorbell camera. The annual inflation rate easing to an eight-month low, rising 2.4% down from 2.7% back in December. A funding showdown puts the Department of Homeland Security on the brink of a shutdown as Democrats push for changes to immigration enforcement. The Munich Security Conference opens in Germany. Secretary of State Marco Rubio leads the US team with dozens of heads of state in attendance. Astronauts aboard a SpaceX rocket blast off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. They're on a mission to the International Space Station to conduct a range of scientific experiments. This is NTD News Today, live from our global headquarters in New York City. And it's great to have you here this Friday, February 13th. I'm Paul Graney. Some good news for the economy. The annual rate of inflation slowing to an eight-month low in January. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, latest consumer price index released this morning. Consumer prices rose 2.4% for the 12 months ending in January. That's a sharp cooling from the 2.7% rate in December. On a monthly basis, prices rose at better than expected 0.2%. That's a deceleration from December. Economists had forecast a 0.3% monthly increase, which would have brought the annual rate to 2.5%. The core CPI gate, a closely watched measurement of underlying inflation that excludes volatile food and energy prices, also saw its annual rate of inflation ease. Core CPI slowing to 2.5%, which marks its lowest rate since March 2021. That was right before the pandemic era inflationary spike. Bad memories. And now there are new details about the suspect seen in Nancy Guthrie's doorbell camera footage. The FBI describes the man as having a height of 5'9 to 5'10 with an average build. The FBI has increased their reward to $100,000 for any information leading to the recovery of Nancy Guthrie. Here's more. New details from the FBI about the person they're seeking in connection with the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie. After using specialized equipment to analyze the scene, the FBI now believes that the individual is approximately 5'9 to 5'10 tall with an average build and gives us a better look at the type of backpack they say the suspect is carrying. The height and the backpack are very good clues. And what the FBI will do is they'll start with the realm of the possible, how many of these backpacks were sold, when they were sold. Also a public plea from law enforcement to the community surrounding Nancy Guthrie's home. Check your surveillance cameras. Asking neighbors within a two mile radius for any video from January 1st to February 2nd to look for any vehicles or people that look out of place. This is a targeted kidnapping. That person didn't just show up there that day and wonder, geez, will she be here? Will she be at home? They knew who she was, they knew her home. Meanwhile, investigators have recovered several items of evidence, including gloves. The Pima County Sheriff's Department said Thursday afternoon. They're gonna check this thing every possible scientific way for anything that can bring them to a clue or a person. A banner has been placed outside of KVOA where Nancy's daughter Savannah Guthrie once worked, echoing the words of her children, bring her home. And now in other news, the Department of Homeland Security is almost out of time. Democratic senators blocked the funding bill for it yesterday. And today's Daniel Monahan has more on that plus reactions from lawmakers. All other government agencies have been fully funded through September, but money for DHS got held up after Democrats demanded reforms in its immigration enforcement operations. 52 senators voted to advance a full year spending bill, not enough to overcome the 60 vote threshold, while 47 senators opposed it. Senator John Fetterman broke ranks with his party to support the measure. Fetterman says shutting DHS down has zero impacts for ICE, which he says already has $75 billion in funding from the big beautiful bill. So what it will impact is that we'll shut down important parts of DHS, whether that's FEMA, whether that's the Coast Guard. The deadline to fund DHS is actually tonight, but Congress is off all next week for the President's Day holiday. Many senators left after casting their final votes for the week. GOP leader John Thune vowed to call them back to Washington if Democrats strike a deal with the White House. Thune says Republicans made concessions in the bill, speaking on Fox News. It was a bipartisan bill. Had reforms in it. It had body cameras in it. Had de-escalation training in it. It had more oversight of ICE activities in it. These were reforms that the Democrats had requested, agreed to, and then walked away from. Nearly all DHS workers will remain on the job, but many won't get paid until Congress passes a funding bill. I don't think it's good politics for anybody, particularly when their message they're sending right now is we're okay with defunding law enforcement. We're okay with defunding the police. Democrats explained their position. Funding for ICE and the Department of Homeland Security should not move forward in the absence of dramatic changes that are bold, meaningful, and transformational. This vote today asked a simple question. Will you rein in ICE's abuses, or will you vote to extend the chaos? Their demands include stricter use of force standards, clearer identification for DHS officers, judicial warrants, and limits on what they describe as racial profiling. Other agencies that would be affected by a shutdown include the Transportation Security Administration and the Secret Service. Daniel Monaghan, NTD News. So as the Department of Homeland Security moves toward a possible shutdown, Secretary Kristi Noem is making a case that its funding must be continued in San Diego, touting the department's efforts to stop hundreds of thousands of pounds of lethal drugs from entering the U.S. Here are the details. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem highlighting what she says the Trump administration has done to make America safe again. Noem speaking to the press in a San Diego vault she said contains more than 1.7 billion lethal doses of seized narcotics. The vault that we've toured today holds 188,218 pounds of seized illicit drugs. Noem saying under the second Trump administration, fentanyl trafficking alone has dropped by 56%. But also right here in front of you, just in this bin in front of you, you see enough lethal doses of fentanyl that would kill 10 million Americans. Noem also says Border Patrol has released zero illegal immigrants into the U.S. for nine straight months. We're concerned about the Department of Homeland Security not being funded. In fact, I think it's the wrong message to send to the world at this point in time. Democrats are demanding better identification for ICE agents and other changes to immigration enforcement, including the use of judicial warrants. When you think about it, every other portion of the federal government has been funded except Homeland Security. That's telling the rest of the world the Democrat Party doesn't think that protecting America is safe. Noem also saying it isn't just drug and immigration enforcement that will be affected. But only 11% of that bill is ICE. The rest of it is FEMA, which is responsible for disaster response, for protecting our critical infrastructure. Other things that wouldn't be funded is TSA. The security at all of our airports is in jeopardy because they've refused to fund the Department of Homeland Security. Noem pointing out this comes on the heels of a 43-day government shutdown during which TSA employees weren't paid, and also saying the U.S. Secret Service and the Coast Guard would be impacted. This department was created recognizing that we are vulnerable to terrorist attacks, and that American homeland needs to be funded and focused on keeping us safe within our own borders. Right now, it looks likely the DHS was shut down by this weekend, with the House and Senate adjourning for recess. Lawmakers won't get another chance to revisit the issue for another 10 days. And now the Trump administration filed a new lawsuit today against Harvard. The Justice Department says the Ivy League University is failing to cooperate with the federal investigation into its admissions process. In 2023, you may remember the Supreme Court found that race considerations in the college admissions process were unconstitutional. The DOJ says it's trying to assess whether Harvard is complying, but argues that the university is withholding requested documents. The Justice Department says the lawsuit is intended to compel Harvard to produce those documents, with the DOJ adding that the suit doesn't accuse the university of discrimination and isn't seeking monetary damages or the revocation of federal funding. The Trump administration has launched a number of probes into Harvard. Last year, the administration attempted to cancel hundreds of grants over accusations the university failed to effectively address anti-Semitism on campus. The Department of Education is also examining foreign funding disclosures at Harvard and other universities. And now, citizens of Yemen will no longer be allowed to stay here in America with temporary deportation protection. The DHS announced today its ending Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, for Yemen. Yemen was initially designated for TPS in 2015. That was due to an ongoing armed conflict. Now, TPS allows people from countries affected by natural disasters, wars, or other serious problems to live and work here in America. But DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said allowing Yemen beneficiaries to remain in the United States is contrary to national interest. She added, quote, TPS was designed to be temporary and this administration is returning TPS to its originally temporary intent. Citizens of Yemen who don't have other lawful reasons to be here in the U.S. must leave within 60 days. The DHS warned it will arrest and deport those who remain unlawfully in the United States. And now, the 62nd Munich Security Conference opens today in Germany. The gathering brings together top political and defense leaders from around the world with Secretary of State Marco Rubio leading a large American delegation. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivered the opening speech. More than 70 heads of state and government plus over 140 ministers are expected to attend with prominent participants including Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky and French President Emmanuel Macron. Last year, Vice President J.D. Vance drew attention for criticizing Europe's policies on immigration and free speech. Conference will continue through Sunday and it'll focus on global security challenges and fostering international dialogue. Now, astronauts aboard a SpaceX rocket blasting off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station this morning. They're on a mission to the International Space Station. Video footage shows the 25-story tall spacecraft light up the pre-dawn sky. Take a look. Five, four, two, one. Ignition and liftoff. Go Falcon, go Dragon and Godspeed Crew 12. Godspeed. Two NASA astronauts, a French astronaut and a Russian cosmonaut are on an eight-month science mission. Their work will include studies on pneumonia-causing bacteria. It's to help improve treatments here on Earth. They'll also conduct experiments to boost food production in space with the four-person crew scheduled to reach the space station tomorrow afternoon after a 34-hour flight some 250 miles above Earth. Sounds like a fun trip. And now President Trump was talking to the media before departing the White House just moments ago. Let's take a listen. Low inflation. We brought costs way down, and the numbers were surprising, except to me they weren't surprising. So the inflation numbers that just announced, as you know, are way down, and we have it back in track. We had the worst inflation in the history of our country, and now we have very modest inflation, which is what you want to have. Are you inclined to take that three cases as the lead investigation? Well, they took it over originally. You know, it was a local case originally, and they didn't want to let go of it, which is fine. It's up to them. It's really up to the community. But ultimately, when the FBI got involved, I think, you know, progress has been made. Complicated. Are you anticipating cutting a deal with Democrats to end the potential shutdown for DHS? We'll see what happens. We have it. We always have to protect our law enforcement. Very important. They've done a great job. Remember, they've taken out hundreds of thousands of criminals out of our country, and we have the best crime numbers we've ever had everywhere. Murder numbers, crime numbers of any kind. We have the best numbers. We've taken out hundreds of thousands of criminals out of our country. We have to protect our law enforcement. Are you talking to any Democrats, though? Are you considering land strikes from Mexico, Colombia, and Venezuela? What about it? Don't worry about it. Do you still have a veto on Nouri al-Maliki to become the Iraqi prime minister? We're looking at a prime minister. We're going to see what's going to happen. We've got some ideas on it. But in the end, everybody needs the U.S. Everybody needs us. Are you planning to hold anyone accountable for the shutdown in El Paso? Why you made that choice? Well, in case we don't make a deal, we'll need it. If we don't have a deal, we'll need it. If we have a deal, we could cut it short. It'll be leaving. It'll be leaving very soon. We have one out there that just arrived. If we need it, we'll have it ready. A very big force. Mr. President, do you plan on holding anyone accountable? Do you still demand Zelensky has to hold elections before summer? Well, Zelensky's going to have to get moving. Russia wants to make a deal, and Zelensky's going to have to get moving. Otherwise, he's going to miss a great opportunity. He has to move. Mr. President, are you going to hold him? Well, I will, but you have to remember, if you look at Homeland Security, if you look at what they've done, if you look at what ICE has done and Border Patrol, we have the safest border in the history of our country. Nobody comes in other than if they come in legally. If you remember, just a little while ago, a year and a half ago, for a four-year period, they allowed 25 million people in our country. Many of these people are murderers and drug dealers. A horrible thing. We've gotten a lot of them out. We now have the best records in the history of our country on crime. It was just announced our crime numbers are the best in 125 years. So, I am here to protect law enforcement and our great police and ICE and Border Patrol and everybody. I'm here to protect them because they're protecting us, and the job they've done is incredible. Do you believe Prime Minister Netanyahu will receive a pardon? I do think so, yes. Mr. President, do you have confidence in Christy Noem, Mr. President? Yeah, I do. I do. Mr. President. We have safe borders. We have low crime numbers to answer. Mr. President, do you think anyone can be held accountable? You mean the way it happened? People learn. You know, people learn. Who has people? Who should learn? Well, I think Greenland's going to want us, but we get along very well with Europe. We'll see how it all works out. We're negotiating right now for Greenland. You can't say that yet. It's a little bit early, but it's somebody either knew what they were doing very well or they were rank amateurs. Either way, it's not a good situation. Mr. President, do you think Sean Jaffee should be held accountable? Well, I have a great relationship with them. If it wasn't for me, they'd be paying 2% and not paying. Instead, they're paying 5% and they're paying. We have a very good relationship with NATO. Mr. President, how confident are you that our negotiations with Iran will be successful? I think they'll be successful, and if they're not, it's going to be a bad day for Iran. Very bad. We're talking, but, you know, we have to protect law enforcement. ISIS has done a phenomenal job. Border Patrol, we have a shut. We have a closed border for the first time in history. We have to protect law enforcement. Our police, our Border Patrol, ICE, and others in law enforcement. And I'm very much, look, I know what they want. I know what they can live with. The Democrats have gone crazy. They're radical left lunatics. That's why their cities are so unsafe. The blue cities are the cities that are unsafe. So, we have to protect our law enforcement. Well, we have a very good relationship with the President of Venezuela. As you know, we're working together very closely. We have our big oil companies going in. They're going to be taking out the oil and selling the oil for a lot of money, and Venezuela is going to get a big part of that money. And the relationship we have right now with Venezuela is, I would say, a 10. And the biggest beneficiary will be the people of Venezuela. On Venezuela, will you be recognizing Delta Rodriguez's government as the official government of Venezuela? Well, right now, we have done that. We're dealing with them. And really, right now, they've done a great job. She's done, Delta's done a very, very good job, and the relationship is strong. The oil is coming out, and a lot of money is being paid for oil by other nations, and we're taking care of it. We're refining it, and we're the only one that has the capability to refine it. Right now, the relationship with Venezuela is as good as it could be. When are you planning to visit Venezuela, sir? I'm going to make a visit to Venezuela. When? When? We haven't decided. Are you from Venezuela? From Colombia, sir. We share a border with Venezuela. He's the president. You just had a good meeting with the president. With the president of Colombia, yeah. On the Munich Security Conference, what is your message? I think the only message is we have a great relationship with NATO. We're a very powerful part of NATO. The people that are the heads of the countries, the various countries that we're talking about, they're all friends of mine. And that was President Trump leaving the White House just earlier today. He spoke on inflation and crime numbers. He says they're way down. He also was asked why the U.S. is sending another aircraft carrier to the Middle East. He said it's being sent there in case Iran does not make a deal. Now, after the break, former CNN anchor Don Lemon is due in federal court today. He's going to enter a plea. He faces criminal charges after live-streaming protests inside a Minnesota church just last month. Welcome back. I'm Paul Graney. Don Lemon is expected to appear in a Minnesota courtroom today. The media personality will be arraigned on charges related to a protest at a church in St. Paul. Prosecutors say he was part of a takeover-style attack where protesters entered the sanctuary during a service. He's going to face two federal charges related to violating First Amendment rights. Lemon, though, insists he was only covering the protest and didn't participate. He has vowed to fight the case. We'll keep you updated. And now Goldman Sachs General Counsel Katherine Rumler is stepping down. She made the announcement just yesterday amid the fallout from the Justice Department's release of millions of pages of Jeffrey Epstein documents. Rumler was White House counsel during the Obama administration, and she joined Goldman Sachs back in 2020. According to the DOJ release files, Rumler repeatedly exchanged emails with Epstein over the years, but she insists she only had a professional relationship with him. Rumler says her resignation from the investment banking firm is effective June 30th. And now a developing story about a shooting at a South Carolina State University. The university says that two people are dead and one person is wounded. The university says they issued a campus lockdown around 9 p.m. last night. That was after a report of a shooting at a residential complex. The university officials haven't confirmed the victim's identities or the condition of the person wounded. The university canceled all classes today and said that the state law enforcement division is investigating the shooting. The university lifted the lockdown at about 5 a.m. And now federal prosecutors in Chicago have indicted two foreign nationals in a $10 million healthcare fraud scheme. Authorities say the pair used fake labs and medical equipment companies to submit false Medicare and private insurance claims. The claims were for services that were never provided. The defendants are originally from Pakistan. They allegedly used personal and provider information without consent to support the fraudulent claims. One is also accused of laundering the scheme's proceeds and sending the money overseas. Three co-conspirators have already pleaded guilty with officials saying the fraud took money intended for seniors and disabled Americans. They vowed to continue cracking down on healthcare fraud with court dates have not been set just yet. And now the state of Utah making a major move to protect itself against the Chinese communist regime. The state forced a Chinese company to sell land near a military site. The move comes after Utah passed laws to restrict foreign entities from owning land near military installations with officials saying the land in question is near a motorsports complex which is located near an army depot. They say this is the first forced divestiture of land by a Chinese company in Utah as a result of state law. The names of the Chinese company and the U.S. buyer have not been disclosed. Governor Spencer Cox, though, saying the move will protect Utah's citizens and institutions from adversarial foreign influence. He said Utah takes national security very seriously, adding, quote, we recognize that there are certainly threats out there and that we have adversaries who are targeting our country. And now coming up, the U.S. and Taiwan strike a major new trade deal cutting tariffs, expanding market access, and boosting American exports. What's in the agreement? What happens next? Coming up. And the new round of U.S.-brokered peace talks between Russia and Ukraine will take place next week with more details on the efforts to end the war. I'm Paul Grinney. This is World Watch. The next round of talks between Ukraine, Russia, and the United States will take place next week. In an ex-post this morning, Ukraine's Secretary of National Security said the trilateral meetings will be held next Tuesday and Wednesday in Geneva. He said the Ukrainian delegation has already begun preparations, adding that the goal remains the same, a sustainable and lasting peace. A Kremlin spokesperson also confirmed the talks will happen next week, but gave no details about location or date. And now the United States and Taiwan have reached a major reciprocal trade agreement. The deal is aimed at strengthening economic ties and expanding market access. Taiwan will eliminate or reduce nearly all tariffs on U.S. industrial and agricultural products that includes autos, machinery, beef, pork, dairy, and seafood. It'll also remove a range of non-tariff barriers on vehicles, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals. The United States will apply a 15% tariff rate on imports from Taiwan that's down from earlier higher levels. Taiwan has also pleaded to a significant pledge to significantly boost purchases of U.S. goods all the way through 2029 that includes energy, civil aircraft, and power equipment. The deal now awaits approval by Taiwan's parliament. Japanese authorities say they seized a Chinese fishing boat. The boat's captain was arrested after allegedly refusing an inspection. Officials say the Chinese national ignored repeated orders to stop inside the country's exclusive economic zone but the government spokesman saying enforcement against illegal fishing will continue with what he called firm and resolute stance. China hasn't yet issued an official response. The arrest comes amid heightened tensions between the region's two largest economies. And Secretary of State Chris Wright visited a Venezuelan oil field today with Venezuela's acting president, Del C. Rodriguez. They announced cooperation focused on oil and energy as well as a focus on diplomacy. During the visit, Rodriguez pointed to longtime cooperation with Chevron. It's been in Venezuela for over a century. Other major American oil companies have kind of hesitated about returning to the country with Rodriguez's government expecting changes to the country's oil law as to serve as assurances to draw them back. The new law grants private companies control over oil production and sales ending a state-controlled monopoly. The policy also allows for independent arbitration of disputes. The visit follows traumatic shifts in U.S.-Venezuelan relations after U.S. forces captured President Nicolas Maduro in early January. French police have arrested nine people in an investigation into a Louvre ticket fraud ring. Now, the Paris prosecutor's office says may have cost the world's most visited museum more than $11 million. The case follows several recent incidents including a daring jewel heist last fall. That investigation began in December 2024 when two Chinese guides were suspected of getting Chinese tourists inside by reusing single-entry tickets. Now, after more than a year of checks, police identified a decade-long widespread fraud network that include bribing Louvre officials. Those in custody include two Louvre officials, several guides, and the alleged organizer of the plot. Police have also seized around $1 million in cash and almost $600,000 from bank accounts. Big money. Now, February 3rd marks a special day not only for the Chinese family but many U.S. asylum seekers. Guan Hong was released last Tuesday one week after a New York judge granted him asylum. That was following more than five months in immigration detention. He's a whistleblower who documented evidence of Beijing's human rights abuses against Uyghur Muslims in the Xinjiang region. Guan sat down with NTD's Flora Hua less than 48 hours after his release to unpack his journey. Let's dive in. This is Guan Hong. He was born in China and lived there for more than three decades. So what drove him to flee from his home country? It all started in 2020 when Guan traveled to China's Xinjiang region on a secret mission. So what prompted you to go to Xinjiang? Let's start from here. I read some reports on China's persecution of Uyghurs. Given my understanding of the Chinese regime and as an ordinary citizen whose freedom of speech is restricted, I was sympathetic for what they were going through. I thought, all right, I could use my videos to provide testimony for their situation. Most of China's Muslim minority, the Uyghurs, live in the Xinjiang region of Western China. The U.S. and U.K. have accused China of genocide targeting Uyghurs. A million people have been reportedly detained in Xinjiang in nearly 400 so-called re-education camps. Beijing blocks foreign media from reaching the public, but Guan says he started bypassing censorship over a decade ago. In 2020, a BuzzFeed report on Uyghur persecution caught his eye. Having visited Xinjiang the year before, he was struck by the street controls and heavy police presence there. The report made me think, maybe I should go back and make a video about this. Driving through the locations marking the news report, Guan found that some of the largest are in Wurunji, the biggest city in Xinjiang. You said these places look like detention facilities. Can you tell us what features made you think that they were detention camps? Many of them are located in Wurunji city. These sites had no names or signage and were under heavy security. There was a school with barbed wire on top of the walls, very unusual. What's more, some of the facilities Guan saw in person aren't even documented on Chinese maps. From what I remember, along that stretch of Gaoqiao Road, there was a massive camp. You can't find it on maps at all, but from the outside, it looks like any other prison. Guan recorded extensive footage and safely returned to his hometown in central China. The idea of publishing it, however, carried serious risks. At the time, I understood very clearly that if I published the video while I was still in China, I would definitely be arrested. That wouldn't just put my personal safety at risk, it would also erase everything I had filmed. And especially this film, no one would ever be able to see it. That was an outcome I simply couldn't accept. So he decided to leave China. After traveling through several countries in Latin America, Guan eventually crossed the U.S. southern border into Florida in 2021 and applied for asylum. Media and human rights groups say Guan's significant findings provide long sought on the ground evidence supporting claims of the regime's abuses. Meanwhile, across the Pacific, Guan's mother told me the family faced a coordinated campaign by the CCP months after he released the videos in the U.S. Police interrogated his father and close relatives. At the same time, officers raided Guan's apartment and confiscated his computer. She says the CCP is closely watching Guan's trial. On the 17th, I received a text message from Guan's father saying that the police had summoned him again. A national security officer took him to their office and asked him some questions, saying, we know everything about your son in the United States. He's now going to be sent to a third country. We will eliminate Guan's household registration. Another twist for Guan came last year when ICE agents arrested him over illegal entry. He was initially in the process of deportation to Uganda, but his case quickly garnered attention. The House Select China Committee sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security urging for Guan's release. Two weeks ago, a New York immigration judge granted him asylum, citing a well-founded fear of returning to China. Looking back, I asked him whether he regretted visiting Xinjiang and publishing the videos. No, from the very beginning, the reason I made videos was to do something more meaningful, something more significant than just filming my own life. And that's how it's always been. Guan says he wishes the people in China to remain vigilant against the CCP's suppression. He adds that he's inspired by other Chinese dissidents, including civil reporter Zhang Zhan and the founder of the blog Both remain detained in Chinese prisons today. Flora Hua, NPD News. Flora Hua, great report. And coming up, carpets crafted for Louis XIV are now on display in Paris. And for the first time, these royal masterpieces are reunited in a rare exhibition. Welcome back, I'm Paul Graney. The detailed carpets made for Louis XIV are now on display at a Paris museum. And for the first time, the elaborate pieces have been brought together for a rare exhibition. Anthony's Andrew Thomas is more on the tapestries that once belonged to the King of France. 32 detailed carpets have been rolled out at the Grand Palais in Paris. In part, the exhibition illustrates the decadence of French King Louis XIV. Curator Wolf Burchard says the event is a first. We rolled out 32 of the carpets that were made for Louis XIV 350 years ago. This was a series of 92 carpets that were made for the long gallery at the Louvre. And they were never rolled out in their entirety because Louis XIV lost interest in the Louvre and moved to Versailles. The carpets were commissioned to cover over 1,600 feet and took nearly 20 years to complete. Tapestries fit for a king. What you see when you look at the gallery is just how much yellow there is. And all that is supposed to evoke gold, so sort of gilt wood frames. And the idea was really that this was supposed to be a sort of golden path to the throne of the King of France. The carpets were designed to make a statement. Burchard says the tapestries would have been accompanied by silver furniture and a painted ceiling. The idea was that an ambassador of the Court of France would walk across that gallery that's half a kilometer long. And by the time you'd reach the throne, you would really be in awe of the wealth and the power of the King of France. Producing carpets on this scale required a large team of weavers. Burchard explains how each carpet has its own story to tell. And this one on the subject of love is particularly well-preserved. It was in the office of the President of France at Belize for several decades, and it's absolutely beautiful and a really sophisticated design with a wonderful white background that almost looks like porcelain with all kinds of ribbon. Many pieces were sold, cut, or scattered across Europe over centuries. Andrew Thomas, NTD News. And Valentine's Day is tomorrow. Buying sweets for your sweetie might set you back a little more this year. Chocolate prices up more than 14% this Valentine's Day season. It comes after they rose nearly 8% last year and 10.5% in 2024. What's going on? Well, it's due to the price of cocoa beans. And most of them come from West Africa and have been having a pretty weak harvest recently due to extreme weather. Meanwhile, demand for chocolate hasn't flattened. Good news is, though, prices came down a lot this year, but chocolate companies buy beans months in advance, so consumers are not gonna see some relief for now. No excuse not to buy the chocolates, though. And now one fast food restaurant is promising not to nuke anything. Steak and Shave said yesterday it's eliminating microwaves in all its locations by April. It's not clear exactly which menu items were ever microwaved, but the move comes less than a year after the chain switched from seed oil to beef tallow in its deep-fat fryers. That brought it in line with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Make America Healthy Again campaign, which, of course, has been a critic of seed oils due to how they're processed. But many health experts warn that beef tallow contains higher levels of saturated fat and is worse for your heart, just to let you know. And now dozens of rescued dogs and cats swapped kennels with dates for pet lovers yesterday at an animal shelter in Manila, the Philippine capital launching a Valentine's Day fur event pairing sheltered animals with pet lovers, hoping to offer them new homes. Native dogs, a lot of people see them on the streets in very bad condition, and there is a myth that if it's an Aspen and it's a rescued dog, that it's a damaged animal that can be ferocious, that cannot be adopted. So we want to smash that myth. We want to tell people that sheltered dogs are not damaged goods. They're actually the best type of pets that you can get, and they need to be given a second chance because those that are given second chances really make the best of a lifetime friend. Handlers from Philippine Animal Welfare Society arranged short meet and greet dates, allowing visitors to spend one-on-one time with the animals. The Valentine's Day program was designed to help people connect with animals beyond the usual shelter walkthrough. Among the participants was Tali, who was a pup rescued in 2021 with a wire collar painfully embedded around her neck. But despite her trauma, she eagerly bounded towards visitors with treats and with a shelter. The dates may last only minutes, but for the animals, organizers hope they lead to a lifetime match. Here's hoping. And our police in Minnesota got an unusual wildlife call earlier this month. It was a deer that had gotten caught in a batting cage net in someone's backyard. You can see here that two officers struggling to free the deer's antler. In the body cam video, you can hear them telling the agitated animal to chill, but it didn't seem to work. One of the officers was able to hold the antlers while the other cut the net. And once freed, the deer ran off. And before we wrap up this hour, I'd like to remind you of a little change to our broadcast schedule. Starting next Monday, February 16th, this show, NTD News Today, will air from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Eastern. Stay tuned. See you there. And as always, if you have any feedback in the show, maybe you'd like to see us cover something in particular, got a tip for us, send us an email. News.today at ntd.com. We'd love to hear from you. I'm Paul Graney. Thanks for watching.