President Trump said he called off a third night of airstrikes on Iranian targets. In the Oval Office, he again said that a deal was close between the U.S. and Iran, and that it might be signed this weekend. Iran denied any movement towards a longer-term agreement. William Brangham reports.

To discuss the latest developments in the conflict between the U.S. and Iran, Amna Nawz spoke with Joel Rayburn and Suzanne Maloney. Rayburn is a retired Army colonel and is now at the Hudson Institute. Maloney served in the State Department during the George W. Bush administration and is now at the Brookings Institution.

President Donald Trump opened three marine protected areas in the Pacific Ocean to commercial fishing with a proclamation on Thursday that he said will boost the U.S. seafood industry.

In our news wrap Thursday, the Interior Department is investigating what appears to be an anti-Trump message etched into the grass of the National Mall in Washington, severe storms in the Midwest are disrupting travel and the gunman who killed Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband pleaded guilty in federal court.

President Trump announced his plans to nominate Jay Clayton as director of national intelligence. The choice comes as lawmakers refused to extend a key surveillance tool over stalled privacy concerns and questions about the qualifications of the interim intelligence chief. Congressional correspondent Lisa Desjardins reports.