Tracy Mumford: From the New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today's Thursday, February 5th. Here's what we're covering.

Tracy Mumford: The statement that I shall now read is being issued simultaneously in Moscow and Washington. Washington 12:00, Moscow 7 p.m.

Tracy Mumford: Back in the early 1970s, in the middle of the Cold War, President Nixon made history, announcing he was working toward a nuclear arms treaty between the US and the Soviet Union.

Tracy Mumford: The two sides are taking this course in the conviction that it will create more favorable conditions for further negotiations to limit all strategic arms. That treaty ushered in a new era where the world's superpowers acknowledged there was a danger to letting the arms race spin out of control. After they signed it, stockpiles of nukes dropped drastically.

Tracy Mumford: So today, in the decades since, I state clearly and with conviction, America's commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons.

Tracy Mumford: The US signed on to a series of updated treaties. The most recent one was under President Obama in 2010.

Tracy Mumford: Mr. President, just one excuse me, you just have three weeks on this though. What is it?

Tracy Mumford: Well, if it expires, it expires. We'll do a better agreement.

Tracy Mumford: But as of today, it has expired. And so for the first time since 1972, the US and Russia have no limits on the size of their arsenals. Many experts agree with what the Trump administration has argued, that the treaty was in need of updates. It needed to cover more types of weapons and more countries needed to sign on etc. But the complete absence of an arms control agreement comes at the very moment world leaders are considering expanding their capabilities.

Tracy Mumford: Russia has done test launches to prepare for nuclear weapons in space and to test of an underwater drone that could detonate a warhead and trigger a radioactive tsunami. China now has the world's fastest growing nuclear arsenal, trying to rival Moscow and Washington. And Japan, South Korea, and Turkey, which are non-nuclear countries, are now discussing whether they need to change course. Some countries in Europe are wondering the same, feeling like they can no longer rely on the US for protection and might need their own weapons.

Tracy Mumford: Analysts say it leaves the Trump administration with a choice. The US can expand its own arsenal and develop specialized weapons to keep up. Or it can try and negotiate a new, broader deal. That would require Trump pushing on Moscow, though, and it would require China to engage on the topic, which it has so far refused to do. For now, two of the US's leading nuclear experts have warned that quote, "Nuclear weapons are back with a vengeance.

Tracy Mumford: In Minnesota this week, a federal prosecutor was in court in front of a judge when she made a pretty wild statement. Julie Lee was being grilled about why the Trump administration has been ignoring court orders to release immigrants who shouldn't have been detained. And in response, she said, quote, "What do you want me to do? The system sucks. This job sucks." Lee said her office was so slammed with immigration cases that she wished the judge would just hold her in contempt of court so that she could get some sleep.

Tracy Mumford: The next day, she was fired from her position. But her dramatic outburst points to the chaos that Trump's aggressive immigration crackdown has triggered in the court system, not just in Minnesota, but across the country. The surge of arrests has meant a flood of cases. Lee said that in the last few weeks she personally found herself overseeing about 90 of them. The backlog has left scores of immigrants stuck in detention in violation of judicial orders and their constitutional rights.

Tracy Mumford: Meanwhile, Mr. President, speaking of Minneapolis, what did you learn?

Tracy Mumford: Um, I learned that uh maybe we can use a little bit of a softer touch, but you still have to be tough. These are criminals.

Tracy Mumford: President Trump said that he's ordered about 700 federal immigration agents to leave Minnesota.

Tracy Mumford: This is smart law enforcement, not less law enforcement. His borders are Tom H. Homeman said the administration was doing the partial draw down because some counties were cooperating with immigration officials, though he didn't specify how many. The biggest county in the state, where Minneapolis is, has not changed its long-standing policy against working with ICE. For now, roughly 2,000 federal agents will remain in Minnesota. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Fry called the reduction a step in the right direction, but joined the governor and other state officials in calling for all federal agents to leave.

Tracy Mumford: This week, for the first time, two major American medical groups have backed limitations on gender-related surgeries for minors. The American Medical Association, the nation's largest organization representing doctors, said yesterday that the procedure should generally be deferred until patients reach adulthood. And on Tuesday, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons recommended essentially the same.

Tracy Mumford: Until now, most major medical groups in the US have opposed efforts to restrict this kind of care, and several, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, say their positions remain unchanged. Their general guidance has been that doctors should make decisions that take into account patients individual needs no matter their age. That includes in rare cases gender affirming surgeries. But in explaining their changing guidance, both the AMA and the plastic surgeons association pointed to what they said was sparse research on the risks and benefits of the procedures.

Tracy Mumford: Their shifting stance comes as there's been growing political backlash over this kind of care. The Trump administration has condemned gender treatment for minors as malpractice and made it a frequent talking point. Medical professionals have also been rattled by dozens of lawsuits filed by people who came to regret the gender-related procedures they had as teenagers.

Tracy Mumford: Last week, a jury in New York ruled in favor of a woman who claimed a mastectomy she had at 16 when she identified as male had left her disfigured. She was awarded $2 million, marking the first malpractice verdict in a case like that.

Tracy Mumford: "Everyone is looking for you, Mommy, everywhere.

Tracy Mumford: We will not rest. In an emotional video released last night, the TV news anchor Savannah Guthrie said she and her siblings were ready to listen to ransom offers as a frantic search for their mother continues.

Tracy Mumford: "We need to know without a doubt, that she is alive, and that you have her. Please reach out to us."

Tracy Mumford: 84year-old Nancy Guthrie has been missing since this weekend. She was dropped off at home in a quiet neighborhood outside of Tucson on Saturday night. On Sunday morning, she didn't show up for church. Her wallet, cell phone, and car were all left at her house. And when police went to investigate, there was red splatter on her front doorstep. The local sheriff said there was other concerning evidence at the scene. Quote, "Inside, outside, all over."

Tracy Mumford: In the past few days, at least two news outlets reported that they had received messages that appeared to be ransom notes, including one that demanded millions of dollars in Bitcoin. Officials say they're investigating the notes, but so far no suspects have been identified. Savannah Guthrie, who's an anchor on NBC's Today Show, is one of the most watched morning TV hosts in the country. She was set to play a key role in the network's Winter Olympics coverage, but pulled out after her mother's disappearance.

Tracy Mumford: And finally, even though the Olympics haven't officially started, a handful of the competitions are already underway. The tricky thing is, so it appears that there is a a partial power outage here at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium that yesterday, right at the very start of the very first event of the games, the lights went out. Here we go.

Tracy Mumford: The outage didn't last long. A little cheer goes up. After only a few minutes, the curlers were able to get back at it with their brooms. But it was a liveaction hiccup for Italy, which is hosting the games and has faced questions for months about whether its facilities would be ready. The big show will get underway tomorrow with the opening ceremonies.

Tracy Mumford: Those are the headlines. Today on the Daily, an inside look at the unfolding crisis at the Washington Post, where hundreds of staffers were let go yesterday. You can listen to that in the New York Times app or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Tracy Mumford. We'll be back tomorrow.