US Domestic News Roundup: Trump admin. asks top court to restore asylum order; Texas ready to execute man convicted of 1993 murder, assault

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Trump administration proposes weakening U.S. waterway protections

The Trump administration proposed on Tuesday reducing federal protections for U.S. waterways, an action sought by ranching and mining interests but one that will likely be held up in the courts amid lawsuits brought by environmentalists. The Environmental Protection Agency proposal would narrow the extent of protections in the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule that President Barack Obama's administration expanded in 2015 to cover a wide range of water bodies.

Virginia jury wants life sentence for neo-Nazi who killed protester

A Virginia jury on Tuesday sentenced to life in prison a self-described neo-Nazi who killed a woman when he rammed his car into a crowd protesting two days of white supremacist rallies in the college town of Charlottesville. The Charlottesville, Virginia, jury urged a judge to send James Fields, 21, to prison for the rest of his life four days after finding the Ohio man guilty of first-degree murder and nine other crimes for killing Heather Heyer, 32, and injuring 19 people after the "Unite the Right" gathering in August 2017.

Trump administration official defends tear gas use at Mexico border

The firing of tear gas canisters by U.S. border agents toward migrants in Mexico near a border crossing last month followed regulations, a senior Trump administration official said in testimony to Congress on Tuesday. On Nov. 25, U.S. border agents fired tear gas to disperse a group of migrants near the U.S.-Mexico border crossing separating Tijuana from San Diego when some rushed through fencing into the United States.

U.S. weighs China travel warning over Huawei case: sources

The United States is considering issuing a new warning to U.S. citizens, including business executives, traveling to China after Canada arrested a senior Huawei Technologies Co Ltd executive at Washington's request, two sources said on Tuesday. Such an advisory from the State Department would warn U.S. nationals of the risk that China could retaliate against them for the detention of Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou, according to one of the sources familiar with the situation.

Trump administration asks top court to restore asylum order

President Donald Trump's administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to let his order barring asylum for immigrants who enter the United States illegally take effect even as litigation over the matter proceeds. The U.S. Justice Department asked the court to lift a temporary restraining order against the asylum rules issued by San Francisco-based U.S. District Judge Jon Tigar. Trump has taken a hard line toward legal and illegal immigration since taking office last year.

Thousands without power in U.S. southeast after snow storm

At least three people had died and thousands of homes were left without power in the Carolinas and Virginia early on Tuesday after a storm dumped up to two feet of snow in parts of the southeastern United States. One person died from a heart condition while en route to a shelter and a terminally ill woman died when her oxygen device stopped working, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper's office said in a statement. A motorist also died in southwestern North Carolina on Sunday when a tree fell on the vehicle, police said.

Ex-N.Y. state university official gets prison for bid rigging

The former president of the State University of New York's Polytechnic Institute was sentenced to three and a half years in prison on Tuesday for helping to rig the bidding process for a billion-dollar, state-funded development project. Alain Kaloyeros was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Valerie Caproni in Manhattan, who also ordered him to pay a $100,000 fine, according to a spokesman for federal prosecutors in Manhattan.

Texas ready to execute man convicted of 1993 murder, assault

Texas is scheduled on Tuesday to execute a man convicted of murdering a man and sexually assaulting his wife at a Dallas-area community college more than two decades ago. Alvin Braziel, 43, is scheduled to die by lethal injection in the state's death chamber in Huntsville at 6 p.m. CST (0000 GMT), the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said.

Senate approves farm bill compromise that avoids food stamp cuts

U.S. lawmakers have reached an agreement on a farm bill that leaves out a proposal to tighten food stamps criteria backed by President Donald Trump, and offers some financial certainty to farmers suffering from the U.S. trade war with China. The bill passed the Senate 87-13. Congressional staffers are expecting the House to vote by Thursday and send the bill to Trump for his signature before Friday.

Conservation groups sue Trump administration over Atlantic oil testing

Environmental groups opposed to offshore drilling sued the federal government on Tuesday to prevent future seismic tests for oil and gas deposits in Atlantic waters off the U.S. East Coast. Seismic testing, which uses air gun blasts, violates federal laws that protect marine mammals, endangered species, and national environmental policy, according the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Charleston, South Carolina, against U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and the National Marine Fisheries Service.

(With inputs from Reuters)