Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Trump's attack on 'birth tourism' faces uphill legal battle after Supreme Court ruling

When the U.S. Supreme Court https://www.reuters.com/legal/us-supreme-court/ in June ruled in favor of broad citizenship rights for babies born in the United States, one of the most conservative justices complained that the decision was so sweeping it would even cover so-called birth tourists. Women "who come here solely for the purpose of giving birth" would be able to get automatic citizenship ​for their children, Samuel Alito wrote, dissenting from the 6-3 ruling https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/supreme-court-rule-trump-bid-limit-birthright-citizenship-2026-06-30/ that invalidated President Donald Trump https://www.reuters.com/topic/person/donald-trump/ 's first attempt to curtail U.S. birthright citizenship.

US construction spending drops to nearly three-year low in July

U.S. construction spending unexpectedly fell in July, hitting the lowest level in nearly three years as higher mortgage rates ​weighed on single-family homebuilding. The Commerce Department's Census Bureau said on Tuesday that construction spending dropped 0.5% to $2.158 trillion, the lowest level since October 2023. Data for June was revised higher to show construction spending unchanged ‌instead of dipping 0.1%, as previously ​reported. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast construction spending would be unchanged in July.

Trump the builder carves his legacy in stone as pressures mount

With Iran diplomacy stalled, financial markets uneasy and his approval rating at another low point, President Donald Trump reverted to familiar territory on Wednesday, leading reporters on a tour of White House construction projects he hopes will cement his legacy. The former real estate developer spent about 30 minutes guiding reporters across the South Lawn, touting a new granite helipad, a $400 million ballroom and other renovations he said would modernize the historic complex while preserving it for future generations.

For Republicans, Dallas convention is both rally and rescue mission

President Donald Trump https://www.reuters.com/world/us/donald-trump/ 's Republican Party is increasingly viewing its first-of-a-kind midterm convention in Dallas next month as crucial to regaining momentum at a time when opinion polls show voter frustration over the economy and the Iran war, according to party officials, donors and convention planners. When Republicans announced the convention https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-republicans-stage-convention-dallas-ahead-midterms-2026-06-30/ earlier this year, some strategists dismissed it as a distraction as campaigns entered the final ‌stretch. They questioned the need for a national gathering with no official party business.

Trump administration asks US appeals court to lift order blocking mail-in voting rule

President Donald Trump's administration on Monday asked a U.S. appeals court to lift a judge's order blocking a new rule that would tighten mail-in voting requirements ahead of the November congressional elections. The U.S. Department of Justice asked the Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to put on hold a temporary restraining order that prevented the U.S. Postal Service from enforcing its new rule.

North Carolina girl, 17, charged in role in California mosque attack

A grand jury in North Carolina on Monday indicted a 17-year-old girl on suspicion of aiding and abetting the May 18 shooting that killed three people at a mosque in San Diego by recording and disseminating a live video of the attack. Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O’Neill told a press conference that officials decided to bring state charges because in North Carolina the girl can be tried as an adult. She faces a potential sentence of life in prison without parole if convicted in North Carolina, while federal charges could result in a three- or four-year sentence.

US sues Kansas school district for aiding transgender students' transitions

President Donald Trump's administration on Tuesday filed what it said was the first lawsuit of its kind seeking to block public schools in Kansas City, Kansas, from facilitating gender transitioning for transgender students. The U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit claims a policy ‌adopted by the city's school district directs staff to develop and implement transitioning plans for children without input from parents.

Smithsonian to put Latino museum in existing building, bypassing Congress approval

The Smithsonian Institution approved on Monday the conversion of one of its buildings into the National Museum of the American Latino, which will enable it to bypass congressional approval for a new site. FURTHER DETAILS:

US House passes funding bill to avert government shutdown before midterm elections

The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved legislation to keep federal agencies operating beyond October 1 when existing funds are due to expire with the start of the new fiscal year. By a vote of 370-48, the ‌House passed the extension of current spending through December 11 and sent it to President Donald Trump for signing into law. The Senate passed the measure on August 8.

BofA vice president killed in Times Square stabbing

A Bank of America vice president was killed in a stabbing in New York City's Times Square, the second-biggest U.S. lender said on Tuesday, a random incident that took place in broad daylight in the heart of the city's tourist industry. The incident brought the streets of the area in Midtown Manhattan to a halt on Monday as emergency vehicles swarmed between the skyscrapers.

Trump selects Hung Cao to serve as US Navy secretary

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he plans to nominate Hung Cao to become the next U.S. Navy secretary. "The Senate needs to confirm this Warfighter, ASAP, so he can continue the fantastic work he has been doing over the past 4 months," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

US Army Secretary Driscoll tenders resignation, source says

U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll has submitted his resignation to the White House following months of tension with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. Driscoll, who officials said is close to U.S. Vice President JD Vance, becomes the latest senior official who has either been fired or pushed out in Hegseth's Pentagon. It also comes as the United States is still engaged in a war with Iran, with thousands of U.S. Army soldiers deployed in the Middle East.

Trump names pastor to advise administration on tobacco health

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Pastor Darrell Scott will serve his administration as an adviser for tobacco health issues on a committee that advises the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "For far too ⁠long, tobacco-related disease has taken an enormous ​toll on American Families, including Communities that have too often been overlooked and underserved," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

Tropical Storm Edouard moves ashore Gulf Coast near Texas-Louisiana border

Tropical Storm Edouard ⁠churned out of the Gulf of Mexico and sloshed ashore near the Texas-Louisiana border on Tuesday, packing sustained winds of up to 60 miles per hour and unleashing soaking downpours. According to the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Edouard made landfall near Johnson Bayou in the southwesternmost corner of Louisiana at about 2:20 p.m. Central time (1920 GMT), and veered west, spreading heavy rains and gale-force winds into southeastern Texas.

Apple Maps changes name of Lake Ontario to 'Lake America'

Apple changed the name of Lake Ontario to "Lake America" on the web version of its Apple Maps following U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order renaming the lake. The move by Apple on Tuesday followed a decision by Alphabet late on Saturday to change the name of the lake on its Google Maps for U.S. users.

Utah judge allows prosecutors to seek death penalty in Charlie Kirk murder case

A ⁠judge ruled on Tuesday that Tyler Robinson, the man accused of fatally shooting prominent U.S. conservative activist Charlie Kirk on a Utah college campus last year, should face trial on murder charges in a case eligible for the death penalty. Utah District Court Judge Tony Graf made the ruling after prosecutors laid out what they called "overwhelming" evidence that a capital trial of Robinson, 23, was warranted for the murder of one of the U.S. political right's most prominent figures. Defense lawyers had argued shooting did not meet the standard for a death penalty charge.

Exclusive-US refusals of crucial newborn vitamin spike, raising risk of dangerous bleeding

The percentage of parents and caregivers in the United States refusing a standard vitamin K shot for infants at birth has accelerated sharply this year, an exclusive data analysis for Reuters ​found, putting more newborns at risk of life-threatening bleeding episodes. The data confirms what a dozen pediatricians, neonatologists and pediatric critical care specialists told Reuters is a top concern: rising refusals of a life-protective shot and a growing wave of mistrust toward vaccines and other newborn interventions.

US states' lawsuit seeking to curb abortion drug access paused for now

A federal judge paused a lawsuit by Florida and Texas seeking to severely limit access to the abortion pill mifepristone nationwide while President Donald Trump's administration completes a review of the drug's safety. U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor in Fort Worth, Texas, said on Monday that because the states' ⁠Republican attorneys general and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which is conducting the review, had agreed to put the case on hold, it was reasonable to do so.

Deadlocked Lindsay Clancy jury sent home, to resume deliberations on Wednesday

A jury weighing whether Massachusetts mother Lindsay Clancy should be convicted of killing her three young children was sent home on Tuesday after telling the judge it was deadlocked, with deliberations set to resume on Wednesday. Judge William Sullivan in Plymouth, Massachusetts, had instructed the 12 jurors to keep deliberating after they sent him a note saying they were at an impasse after four days of deliberations in a trial that began nearly six weeks ago and featured more than 80 witnesses and over 300 exhibits.

Majority of Americans oppose Trump's new Canada tariffs, renaming Lake Ontario, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds

The three-day poll, which concluded on Sunday, showed Americans are wary of the feud with ⁠Canada — for ​decades a top U.S. trading partner — which has escalated since trade talks between the two countries collapsed and Trump last week ordered the hike in tariffs on Canadian goods.

Whistleblower says USPS mail-in voting restrictions could discard thousands of legal ballots

A whistleblower told Congress that the U.S. Postal Service is moving forward with plans to restrict mail-in voting that could result in thousands of legitimate ballots being discarded.

Senator Richard Blumenthal asked U.S. Postmaster General David Steiner to answer questions and provide documents on the claims detailing "USPS’ seemingly illegal plot to interfere in November’s midterms. Their system is set up to fail – and risk the right to vote for millions of Americans who cast their ballots by mail."

'No plans' to deploy troops to midterm elections polling sites, top US general says

The top U.S. general said the military has no plans to send federal military personnel or National Guard troops to polling places during this year's midterm elections. In a letter to U.S. Senator Elissa Slotkin, a Democrat from Michigan, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine said election administration and security remain the responsibility of state and local officials.

Trump's approval stuck at 33%; Democrats appear more fired up for midterms, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds

President Donald Trump's approval rating https://www.reuters.com/data/trumps-approval-rating-2025-01-21/ was stuck at the lowest level of his political career amid broad dissatisfaction over the war in Iran and the Republican's economic stewardship, according to a Reuters/Ipsos ⁠poll https://www.reuters.com/reuters-ipsos-polls/ that concluded on Monday. Just 33% of Americans approve of the job Trump is doing in the White House - the third straight Reuters/Ipsos poll with that share of respondents giving the president a thumbs up.

Massachusetts primaries test Democratic appetite for generational change

Generational change is on the ballot in Massachusetts on Tuesday as Democratic voters choose whether to renominate 80-year-old progressive U.S. Senator Ed Markey or replace him on the ballot with 47-year-old U.S. Representative Seth Moulton. Markey, who has served in Congress for nearly 50 years, is backed by leading progressives such as Senator Bernie Sanders and U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, as well as most members of the state's ⁠congressional delegation, including U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren.

USDA to test satellites, AI to try to improve crop estimates amid farmer criticism

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is launching a pilot project that relies more heavily on ⁠technology as part of an effort to improve its closely watched U.S. crop acreage and yield estimates, Secretary Brooke Rollins said on Tuesday, in the face of mounting criticism over the reliability of government data. Rollins discussed USDA's data modernization plan at the Farm Progress Show in Boone, Iowa, following a month-long series of listening sessions with farmers and agricultural groups that have exposed frustrations with the Trump administration as the farm economy struggles.

At least 2 dead in Grand Canyon flooding; Park Service says 20-plus may be missing

At least two people were killed and as many as 20 or more others were unaccounted for after flash flooding struck the Grand Canyon in Arizona over the weekend, forcing the evacuation of dozens of hikers by helicopter, the National Park Service said. Heavy rains on Saturday sent a cascade of mud, boulders and debris rushing through Bright Angel Creek, a major side canyon that runs from the park's North Rim to the Colorado River, sweeping away trails, foot bridges and other infrastructure.

Jury finds ex-gang leader guilty ‌of murder in Tupac case

An ex-street gang leader accused of orchestrating the drive-by shooting death of hip-hop star Tupac Shakur three decades ‌ago in Las Vegas was convicted of murder on Monday for his role in a long-unsolved crime that silenced one of rap music's most influential voices. A jury in Clark County, Nevada, deliberated for nearly three hours before finding Duane "Keffe D" Davis, 63, guilty of a single count of first-degree murder with a deadly weapon, capping an 11-day ​trial in a downtown Las Vegas courtroom. Davis will face a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole at his sentencing on October 13.