U.S.-Iran; DHS demands; Nancy Guthrie; Virginia : NPR

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Today’s best stories

The United States and Iran set to hold high-stakes talks in Oman today negotiate the Iranian nuclear program. Typically, if both sides of a negotiation cannot reach an agreement, diplomats return home, regroup, and decide whether or not to hold a new round of negotiations. But NPR’s Greg Myre reports First that the United States has spent a month moving warships and planes to the region, and that if a deal is not reached this time, President Trump could launch an attack on Iran.

An Iranian woman walks past a huge national flag hanging above shops, in Tehran, February 6, 2026. Iran and the United States began negotiations in Oman on February 6, with Washington refusing to rule out military action against the Islamic republic over its deadly crackdown on mass protests.

AFP via Getty Images/AFP

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AFP via Getty Images/AFP

• 🎧 Iran is in a weak position and will likely offer concessions during negotiations, said Myre. The country has suffered several setbacks over the past two years, including the US and Israeli bombing campaign against its nuclear facilities last June. Myre says a limited nuclear deal with Iran likely won’t be enough for Trump. The United States wants to discuss broader issues, including limits on Iran’s ballistic missiles. The United States also seeks to prevent Iran from supporting mandated militant groups like Hamas and Hezbollah.

Democrats released a 10-point plan for the Department of Homeland Security’s immigration enforcement officers. in a letter to the GOP. In addition to their initial demands, which included removing officers’ masks, Democrats want officers to wear identifying information, such as their last name. Lawmakers also want those officers to have standard uniforms and equipment, bringing them in line with those of civilian law enforcement officers.

• 🎧 NPR’s Claudia Grisales says Republicans aren’t rejecting the proposal yet, but there is still a lot of negotiation to be done and little time to get there. Grisales says another stopgap bill is an option, allowing lawmakers to delay the process for a few more weeks.

The FBI has confirmed that there is a ransom letter for Nancy Guthrie, 84, the mother of Today show host Savannah Guthrie. Some media outlets received the letter earlier this week. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to the recovery of Nancy and/or the arrest and conviction of anyone involved. Nancy was reported missing from her home in Tucson, Arizona, on Sunday.

• 🎧 The FBI said it was taking the ransom demand seriously. The ransom attackers have not contacted the Guthrie family since the message was sent to the media, officials said. Heith Janke of the FBI’s Phoenix office says it’s unusual that those responsible for the kidnapping have not contacted the victim’s family at this point in the case. Nancy’s disappearance attracted massive national attention, including from the president, who offered federal resources to help find Nancy, NPR’s Alana Wise said.

Virginia lawmakers unveiled a proposed map last night aimed at helping Democrats win four congressional seats this fall. The move follows the president’s redistricting efforts aimed at tilting the midterm elections in favor of the Republicans. Democratic Senate President Louise Lucas confirmed the plan after it was posted on the legislature’s website. However, the map and accompanying legislation must overcome several hurdles before it can be implemented in time for this year’s elections.

Deep dive

The rules could soon change in school districts that receive federal funding for school meals. The Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) unveiled new dietary guidelines for Americans earlier this year, which included a new food pyramid emphasizing protein, encouraging full-fat dairy and limiting highly processed foods. Here’s how the new food pyramid could potentially impact schools:

• 🍽️ Cutting back on highly processed, ready-to-eat foods like mac and cheese and pizza won’t be easy. Businesses may need to adapt their recipes and schools may need to prepare more meals from scratch to reduce added sugars and salt.
• 🍽️ The agency could change school breakfast standards, which currently lack a protein mandate. It is not certain that milk will meet the new protein needs.
• 🍽️ Federal law limits saturated fat in school meals, and whole milk contains more saturated fat than low-fat or fat-free varieties. However, recent federal legislation exempts milk fat from these limits.

Weekend Picks

Charli XCX in L’Instant.

A24

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A24

Find out what NPR watch, read and listen this weekend:

🍿 Movies: The momenta hyperpop mockumentary, comments on the intense reaction to Charli XCX’s album Kid and his fickle relationship with fame.

📺 Television: At Marvel Wonderful manYahya Abdul-Mateen II stars as a struggling actor with incredible superpowers trying to make it in Hollywood. Ben Kingsley plays his new friend with a dark past.

📚 Books: In The dandelion is deada grieving woman named Poppy enters her deceased older sister’s phone and logs into her dating app. Author, Rosie Storey, discusses her debut novel with NPR’s Juana Summers on the Book of the day podcast.

🎵 Music: Don Toliver Octane is presented as the first LP produced by the artist. Even without knowing it, NPR’s Sheldon Pearce says the album is the finest, most cohesive music of the rapper’s career.

❓Quizzes: Lots of things happened this week, from a new tax at a Roman tourist site to a company reducing the price of crisps. How attentive were you? I got a good score of seven out of 10. Do you think you can do better? Try it.

3 things to know before you leave

France’s Cathy Fechoz performs her routine during the ski ballet competition at the 1992 Olympic Games in Albertville, France.

Chris Cole/Getty Images

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Chris Cole/Getty Images

1. The Olympic Games used to feature “demonstration sports” for many decades. While some, like curling, were given a permanent spot, others never made the official list. Here’s a look at some of the sports played at past Winter Games.
2. Some blind and visually impaired football fans will be able to use a OneCourt device during Super Bowl 60. The device resembles a tabletop version of the field and allows fans to feel the movement of the ball in real time on its surface.
3. A new social media platform, Moltbook, has launched as a Reddit-like platform for AI bots. Bots can perform tasks autonomously, such as booking travel

This newsletter was published by Suzanne Nuyen.