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Today is Thursday, February 26th. What to know about today's high stakes talks, seen as America's last ditch effort to avoid a war with Iran and why there are conflicting reports about a deadly shootout between a Florida speedboat and Cuban forces. Also, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton returns to the hot seat today, this time to answer questions about Jeffrey Epstein. Plus, what President Trump's surgeon general pick said about vaccines, why the FBI raided one of the largest school districts headquarters, and how one song inspired people around the world to take up a new pastime. Those stories and even more news to know next. Welcome to the Newsworthy all the Days News in less than 15 minutes. I'm Erica. Mandy, thanks so much for being here. Let's do this. Today, negotiators are coming back together for a third round of Iran nuclear talks. And it's believed one of two things could happen. Either the massive military force the Trump administration has assembled in the Middle east will pressure Iran to reach a deal over its nuclear program, or they'll actually be used to strike if the talks don't go well. If that happens, Middle Eastern countries worry it could spiral into a new regional war. Already, Iran has said all US Military bases in the Middle east would be considered legitimate targets for retaliation, putting tens of thousands of American service members at risk. President Trump touched on the topic of Iran during a State of the Union address on Tuesday and saying bottom line, Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. Iran has said its nuclear program is peaceful and its government accuses Trump of conducting a disinformation and misinformation campaign against it. In his address, Trump also mentioned last month's protests in Iran and the government's crackdown that killed thousands of protesters. Similar protests have actually started up again this week. Iranian and American negotiators have already arrived in Geneva for today's talks. But US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says he's not expecting a big breakthrough. A Florida speedboat got into a shootout yesterday with the Cuban navy. Cuban state media say there were 10 people aboard the boat who started the gun battle and that they were Cuban nationals living in the US Trying to infiltrate the island and unleash terrorism. But the New York Times cites one US Official who says they were civilians trying to evacuate relatives and it's unclear whether they were Cuban or American citizens. Four of them died. The six others were hurt. It's highly unusual for shootouts to happen in open sea like this, so many American lawmakers are calling it deeply concerning. The US Is now investigating today, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is set to testify in a House investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. There's no evidence of wrongdoing on the part of either Clinton when it comes to Epstein. They both say they knew nothing of Epstein's criminal conduct and say they cut ties before his crimes came to light. But the former President Clinton is featured heavily in the Epstein files. Some photos show him on a private plane, including one with a woman whose face is redacted. Another shows him in a hot tub with a woman, among others. The former president will appear for his deposition tomorrow, becoming the first former president ever to be compelled to testify in a congressional investigation against his will. The depositions are happening behind closed doors, but lawmakers say they plan to release video and transcripts as soon as possible. By the way, several news organizations are reporting some Epstein files that included accusations a woman made against President Trump were not included in the batch made public. Specifically, the woman came forward after Epstein's 2019 arrest and claimed to have been sexually assaulted by both Trump and epstein in the 1980s when she was 13 years old. She was interviewed by the FBI four times, but only one of those interviews is included in the public files. Now the Justice Department says it's investigating and that if it finds any documents were improperly withheld, it will publish them. Democrats say they plan to open up their own investigation either way. The DOJ says the claims made against Trump were not true. So far, no new comment from the accuser or her lawyer. To be continued. Several World cup host cities have warned Congress of serious security concerns if they don't get the help they need. $625 million in security funds have already been earmarked for the 11American host cities, but with just over 100 days left before the tournament begins, they still have not been distributed. Much of the problem is FEMA is supposed to be administering the grants, and it's currently wrapped up in a partial government shutdown impacting all of the Homeland Security Department. But in testimony this week, city representatives say the delays predate the shutdown. Another issue is Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem now has to personally approve every contract over $100,000, which has created long delays in getting local authorities federal funds. Either way, local reps say time for security preparations is running out and they're about to have to start canceling certain events if they can't ensure their safety. So far, no response from DHS about the testimony. If you've been on social media the past week, you've likely seen talk of a culture war around American hockey gold medal winners and now, members of the women's team say they don't want their achievements to be overshadowed by the controversy. To catch you up, this all has to do with a conversation in the American men's locker room after the team won its first gold medal in 46 years. During the celebrations, FBI Director Kash Patel took out his phone to call President Trump, who invited the men's team to the State of the Union. Then Trump joked that if he didn't also invite the women's team, he, quote, probably would be impeached. The men erupted in laughter. Well, that set off backlash since the women also won gold, also in overtime, also against Canada. And since then, the men's team was at the State of the Union and visited the White House. The women's team declined the invitation. Well, this has divided Americans online, with some disavowing the men for laughing and others who feel there's been an overreaction. Then Yesterday on ESPN SportsCenter, women's team captain Hilary Knight said she found Trump's joke distasteful but but that she also felt the men's team was put in a tough spot. She said it should be a learning point that women aren't less than and our achievements shouldn't be overshadowed by anything else other than how great they are. Some of the men's players have now looked back and said they should have reacted differently, especially since they have so much respect for the women's team. The White House has not commented about the call, but says Trump looks forward to being able to host the women soon. We have more news just ahead, but first a quick break to tell you about our sponsor. Need an easy win As a parent, Grab Haya's Children's vitamins. Haya's vitamins and probiotics have become such a simple part of our morning routine that both my son and I love. He gets a great tasting chewable that he happily eats daily. And I get the peace of mind of knowing that Haya has looked at what modern kids are actually eating or not eating and formulated their vitamins around those specific nutritional gaps. 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Go to H I Y-A H E-A-L-T-Com Newsworthy and get your kids the full body nourishment they need to grow into healthy adults. Now back to the news. A wellness influencer shared her vision for addressing the nation's health during her confirmation hearing. To become the Next Surgeon General, Dr. Casey Means told lawmakers the country needs to be focused on addressing the root causes of chronic disease through nutrition instead of feeding into what she called reactive sick care or whack a mole medicine. It's an idea that has bipartisan support. But the nominee also faced some bipartisan pushback, partly because she has no government or clinical experience and her license to practice as a physician is not currently active. Plus, she's made some controversial statements. So Means was grilled by senators from both sides of the aisle about her positions on vaccines, abortion and contraception, and more on vaccines. She said she would not be bringing her own agenda, but would instead defer to the cdc, and she declined to promise she'd recommend measles and flu shots for all children. She also declined to take a firm stance on limiting the abortion, pill or birth control, saying it was outside of her purview. If confirmed, Means could issue advisories that warn of public health threats and could advocate on certain issues. She says her experience as an author and influencer makes her uniquely positioned to do just that. The Trump administration is now pausing some Medicaid funding to Minnesota. Specifically, it's holding off on paying nearly $260 million, Vice President J.D. vance explained, saying Minnesota will only get the money if its leaders can show they've investigated whether it will actually go to who it's meant for. He's giving Democratic governor Tim Walz two months to come up with a plan. Well, Walz says no matter what the Trump administration claims, the move has nothing to do with fraud. He accuses the president of just wanting to punish states led by Democrats who did not vote for him, and that he's only hurting veterans, families with young kids and people with disabilities in the process. Of course, Minnesota also is where thousands of federal agents carried out controversial immigration operations, in part because of allegations of fraud. The Trump administration is also looking for potential fraud in Minnesota's unemployment program, paycheck protection program, federal housing programs and more. Federal authorities have raided the home and office of the person in charge of Los Angeles public schools. The FBI served search warrants yesterday. It did not give details about exactly what it was investigating, but the LA Times says it seems to be related to a company that developed an AI chatbot for America's second largest school district. The founder of the AI company was charged with fraud in 2024, and the chatbot was never fully deployed in LA schools, but the school system did spend about $3 million on it. Now the district says it's cooperating with the investigation, but also did not give any details. The local school board scheduled a last minute meeting for today. Anthropic is dramatically scaling back its safety policy in the face of government and industry pressure. Remember, Anthropic is the artificial intelligence company founded by former OpenAI employees who wanted more AI safeguards. But now it's removed the commitment to stop developing its AI models if they become potentially dangerous, the company explained by saying the industry has not reached a consensus on AI risks and it wouldn't make sense to pause development while while others moved forward with even fewer guardrails. Of course, this policy change comes as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is also threatening to pull a $200 million Pentagon contract and blacklist the company if it doesn't relax its rules for military usage by tomorrow. But Anthropic says those negotiations are unrelated to its safety policy change. Several big name artists were nominated for induction into one of music's most exclusive, exclusive clubs. We're talking about the Rock and Roll hall of Fame, which actually celebrates iconic artists across many genres. This year's nominees include Phil Collins, Mariah Carey, Lauryn Hill, Luther Vandross Pink, Iron Maiden, Billy Idol and more. An international panel of more than 1200 artists, historians and music industry professionals will vote on who gets to enter the Hall. There will also be one fan ballot comprised of online votes, so the rest of us can also get a say. The winners will be announced in April, with a ceremony to come in the fall. That's it for the May News today. So now it's time for Thing to Know Thursday. But first, this episode is brought to you by Rosetta Stone. There's something so satisfying about learning something new, doing more than you even thought possible, and just watching yourself grow and progress over time. Well, Rosetta Stone is a great way to start learning a new language and take on a fun and useful hobby in a way that actually fits your busy schedule. I know for me, learning a new language would never be possible if it wasn't flexible. But thanks to Rosetta Stone, you can learn anytime, anywhere with on the go learning from your desktop or mobile app, whether you have just five minutes or a full hour. Plus, Rosetta Stone has been the trusted leader in language learning for more than 30 years, and their method ensures you're learning the language naturally. So no memorizing random vocabulary lists or feeling lost. 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The they were salsa dancing. So now in New York and beyond, dance floors continue to fill up and the number of people going to Salsa 101 has doubled. Teachers say students who had never partner danced before were suddenly showing up and staying. And for longtime salsa dancers, the moment landed differently. Too many saw Bad Bunny as a bridge between generations and between old school and new. By dancing salsa the way people do at weddings, a little awkward, a little joyful, Bad Bunny sent a simple message to millions of people. Give salsa dancing a try without fear. Thank you so much for listening today. We'll catch you up on more news to know tomorrow. Until then, have a great.