Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Three takeaways from Tuesday's South Carolina Republican Senate primary

South Carolina Republicans on Tuesday nominated Darline Graham to run in November's general election for her late brother's U.S. Senate seat, as she defeated Representative Ralph Norman in a primary runoff. Here are some takeaways from the result:

In win for Trump, Graham secures Republican nomination for US Senate in South Carolina

Darline Graham, sister of the late Senator Lindsey Graham, won the Republican primary runoff in South ​Carolina for U.S. Senate on Tuesday, according to U.S. media projections, in a triumph for President Donald Trump. Graham, who was appointed to hold the Senate seat until the beginning of January following her brother's death on July 11, defeated Representative Ralph Norman and will run in November's election for a full, six-year Senate term.

US conservative ​gay rights group says it is ending advocacy for transgender causes

Log Cabin Republicans, a conservative gay rights group, said it is ending advocacy and support for transgender causes, with the decision coming at a time when ‌Republican President Donald Trump's administration has ​acted to limit transgender rights. Ross Hemminger, the conservative gay rights group's board president, said in an online essay that the board of directors has voted for its advocacy to "concentrate specifically on issues of sexual orientation and conservative values — in other words, we are an LGB advocacy organization."

Lake America? Trump mulls renaming Lake Ontario, expresses love for French Canadians amid trade war

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he was considering changing the name of Lake Ontario to "Lake America" and denied that a rift over French language requirements contributed to a breakdown in trade talks between the U.S. and Canada. "The United States is giving serious consideration to changing the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America in that we don’t expect to doing much business with Ontario any longer," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

Retired teacher Dan J. Sullivan advances in US Senate race in Alaska

Retired teacher Dan J. Sullivan advanced to the general election for U.S. Senate in Alaska, according to U.S. media projections on Tuesday, creating potential voter confusion with incumbent Senator Dan Sullivan, who also advanced.

Trump ‌administration defends Kennedy Center renaming plan, warns of demolition risk

President Donald Trump's administration argued in a court filing that the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts could eventually face demolition if major repairs are not undertaken, as it defended a renewed effort to restore Trump's name to the landmark's facade. In the filing late on Monday, lawyers for the administration urged U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper to reject a new legal challenge to Trump's renaming efforts by a Democratic Kennedy Center board member.

Cyclosporiasis cases in US climb to 17,180, CDC says

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday reported 17,180 confirmed cases of cyclosporiasis in the United States, an increase of 1,464 cases from a week ago. Here are some details:

US Senate Democrats urge Israel to rein in West Bank violence

U.S. Senate Democrats on Wednesday urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to rein in a "surge" of violence by West Bank settlers and mass arrests of Palestinians by Israeli security forces in the occupied territory. In the letter to Netanyahu, seen by Reuters and signed by 45 of the Senate's 47-member Democratic caucus, the lawmakers noted increasing levels of "fatal violence by settlers."

US military says it struck vessel in the Caribbean, killing four

The U.S. military said on Tuesday four people were killed in a strike on a vessel in the Caribbean, the latest in a series of attacks that Washington says target "narco-terrorists" but human rights groups condemn as extrajudicial killings. FURTHER DETAILS:

California AG says no settlement talks scheduled with Paramount

California Attorney General Rob Bonta said on Tuesday there are ‌no settlement talks scheduled with Paramount Skydance to resolve the antitrust suit seeking to block the studio's proposed $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery. Bonta said he canceled a scheduled Monday meeting after details of confidential settlement discussions leaked to the press, which he said was "unacceptable."

Darline Graham wins South Carolina Republican primary runoff for US Senate

Darline Graham, sister of late U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, won the Republican primary runoff in South Carolina for U.S. Senate, U.S. media projected on Tuesday. Graham was appointed to hold the Senate seat until the beginning of January following her brother's death in July. She defeated Representative Ralph Norman and will run in November's election for a full, six-year Senate term.

Mamdani opposes NYC ‌event with leader of India's Hindu nationalist group

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on Tuesday he did not support an upcoming event in his city featuring the leader of the Hindu nationalist group that is the ideological parent of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Mohan Bhagwat, chief of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), is scheduled to speak at a Manhattan event on Saturday, according to the event's website.

What are H-1B visas for skilled workers and what changes loom?

U.S. employers seeking to hire skilled foreign workers can use the federal government's H-1B visa program for a fee, allowing tech and other professionals from abroad to work in the United States for a few years. U.S. President Donald Trump, who has pursued a broad immigration crackdown since taking office last year, has lambasted the program and wants to permanently raise the fee from between $2,000 and $5,000 to more than $100,000.

US voters favor Democratic Party on cost of living, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds

The Democratic Party has gained a significant edge over Republicans in voter perceptions on which party has a better approach to the cost of living, a troubling sign for President Donald Trump's party heading into the midterm elections, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found. The four-day poll, completed on Monday, asked 951 registered voters which party had a better plan or approach for handling the cost of living. Thirty-six percent picked Democrats and 28% picked Republicans. The rest weren't sure or said neither party was good on the matter.

Trump administration issues pause on immigrant visa appointments for applicants worldwide

President Donald Trump's administration has issued a pause on immigrant visa appointments for applicants around the world during an ongoing immigration crackdown by the U.S. government in the Republican leader's second term in the White House. A U.S. State Department spokesperson said on Tuesday that it launched a global training initiative at all U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide and that appointments ⁠for visa services will be adjusted to accommodate ​the training.

US FAA says antenna relocated after Marine One safety incident

The head of the Federal Aviation Administration said on Tuesday that an antenna was relocated and a procedure changed after a military helicopter ⁠carrying President Donald Trump came too close to a passenger jet departing Reagan Washington National Airport. The Aug. 4 incident raised serious questions about why the passenger airplane was allowed to depart while Marine One was nearby, a time when commercial traffic is typically halted. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford told reporters after an aviation event he was confident the communication issue had been resolved.

Exclusive-Hack of water sector supplier draws FBI scrutiny as Iran-linked cyber concerns grow

U.S. authorities are investigating a data breach at a small maker of water utility technology, highlighting infrastructure cybersecurity threats even though the Kansas firm was apparently not part of a suspected Iranian-affiliated campaign against water plants in Minnesota and other states starting in July. The company and the FBI confirmed the attack at Micro-Comm in Olathe, Kansas, which has not previously been reported. Responsibility was claimed by Barracuda, a relatively new ransomware group that says it is ⁠motivated by profit and is not government sponsored.

US inflation remains sticky in July; 2nd-quarter GDP unrevised at 1.5%

Annual U.S. inflation unexpectedly held steady in July well above the Federal Reserve's 2% target for the 65th straight month, and the pause in the decline from a recent Iran-war induced peak is likely to add to the central bank's tense debate over whether interest rates should be lifted or held steady. The Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index increased 3.7% in the 12 months through July unchanged from June, the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis said on Wednesday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a reading for PCE, which the Fed uses to set its target, of 3.6%.

US appeals court blocks FCC plan to expand discounted political advertising rates

The U.S. Court of Appeals on Tuesday blocked a move to extend discounted ​broadcast television advertising rates to political party and joint fundraising committees ahead of midterm elections in November. The Republican-controlled Federal Communications Commission said it would allow the committees to get the same heavily discounted rate as political candidates, in a move Democratic FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez had warned would unleash a flood of coordinated campaign money into broadcast advertising.

Pennsylvania reports first US measles deaths this year as outbreak grows

Two Pennsylvania residents died after contracting measles, health officials said on Tuesday, the first such deaths this year in the United States, which is contending with the highest number of cases of the highly infectious disease in more than three decades as vaccination ⁠rates drop. Both people were unvaccinated residents of Lancaster County, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health, which did not release additional details, citing privacy concerns.

Instagram head Mosseri, at children's addiction trial, says few teenagers knew of safety feature

The top executive at Instagram said few teenagers used a key safety feature to limit their use before it was turned on by default, at a trial over whether Meta Platforms designed Instagram and Facebook to addict children. Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram since 2018, denied any suggestion by U.S. states suing Meta that Instagram stalled by not making the "Take a Break" feature the default setting for teenagers until September 2024, nearly three years after its launch.

Dolly Parton, queen of country music, dies at 80

Dolly Parton was around six when she wrote her first song: "Little Tiny Tasseltop," an ode to her corncob doll with corn-silk hair. Her mother stored it preciously in a shoebox. "I loved that little doll," Parton ⁠wrote decades ​later. "I expressed myself and my feelings through writing — I’m sure what I was thinking was, 'Well, Tasseltop has to have a song about her.'"

Exclusive-US produce supplier Taylor Farms frequently fails to disclose workplace injury tallies, records show

Taylor Farms, the produce company at the center of a U.S. cyclospora outbreak, frequently failed to submit federally required workplace injury logs in recent years, including for at least four facilities where workers suffered fatal or otherwise serious injuries, a Reuters review of federal records found. Over the past five years, five to seven Taylor Farms facilities filed the annual report within the following year, with some showing injury rates above industry averages, while others recording below-average rates. From 2021 to 2025, at least 17 facilities required such filings based on the number of employees and nature of the work, according to a review of intermittent U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspection filings.

U.S. Secret Service aware of Iranian video threat against Barron Trump

The U.S. Secret Service is aware of a video broadcast by Iranian state television discussing a potential plot to assassinate U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, a spokesperson said on Tuesday. "The U.S. Secret Service is aware of the video and investigates anything that can be perceived as a threat toward our protectees. Out of concern for operational security, we do not discuss matters of protective intelligence," Secret Service spokesperson Nate Herring said in an email.

Father of sailor aboard US aircraft carrier freed from immigration detention

A Nicaraguan immigrant taken into custody by U.S. ⁠Border Patrol agents while his son, a U.S. Navy sailor, was deployed at sea aboard an aircraft carrier during the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, was freed from detention, his family said on Tuesday. The family's announcement on Facebook that Luis Manuel Aviles Roa had been released came three days after Joshua Aviles went public about his father's arrest, lamenting the heartbreak he felt serving his country while his father was locked away.

Judge chides US Postal Service over mail-in voting rule but will not block it

A federal judge on Tuesday declined for now to block a final rule that the U.S. Postal Service adopted at the direction of President Donald Trump that would tighten ⁠requirements for mail-in voting, even as she concluded the agency had violated a court order by issuing it. Boston-based U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani ruled a day after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted one of two court ⁠orders she had issued that had prevented USPS from implementing an executive order Trump signed targeting mail-in ballots.

As Cook case smolders, Trump has other paths to shape Fed policy team

U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to oust Federal Reserve officials to clear room for his own appointees have been stalled so far by the courts and political pushback in the Senate, but he may still have as many as four opportunities to try to beef up his influence over the central bank's policy committee. Trump has so far stood behind Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh even though his handpicked appointee sidelined talk of the interest rate cuts the president has been demanding. Warsh also set aside all rate guidance in June, shortly after becoming head of the central bank.

Ghislaine Maxwell loses bid to throw out conviction for aiding Jeffrey Epstein

A U.S. judge rejected Ghislaine Maxwell's bid to throw out her conviction and 20-year prison sentence for helping the late financier Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse teenage girls. In a decision made public on Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer in Manhattan said Maxwell's claims were ‌all meritless, and all or almost all were frivolous.

Meta, US states have discussed settling teen social media harm case, Bloomberg News reports

Meta ‌Platforms and state attorneys general have discussed a potential mid-trial settlement of a lawsuit accusing the company of deliberately designing Facebook and Instagram to be addictive to young users, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The report comes during a federal court trial in California over claims brought by 29 states, in what is one of the highest-profile ​tests of allegations that social media companies have harmed young users. Just days before jury selection began on August 12, a federal appeals court declined to halt the trial.