US News Roundup: U.S. tops 130,000 deaths from COVID-19; U.S. to force out foreign students taking classes fully online and more

U.S. tops 130,000 deaths from COVID-19 after record surge in cases The number of U.S. coronavirus deaths exceeded 130,000 on Monday, following a surge of new cases that has put President Donald Trump's handling of the crisis under the microscope and derailed efforts to restart the economy.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Republicans to require coronavirus testing at party convention

The Republican Party will provide mandatory coronavirus testing at its August national convention in Jacksonville, according to a memo delivered on Monday. The plan to require thousands of attendees to get tested for the coronavirus before entering the convention site illustrates the efforts the party is undertaking to ensure President Donald Trump speaks to a packed house when he accepts the nomination.

U.S. tops 130,000 deaths from COVID-19 after record surge in cases

The number of U.S. coronavirus deaths exceeded 130,000 on Monday, following a surge of new cases that has put President Donald Trump's handling of the crisis under the microscope and derailed efforts to restart the economy. The overall rate of increase in U.S. deaths has been on a downward trend despite case numbers surging to record levels in recent days, but health experts warn fatalities are a lagging indicator, showing up weeks or even months after cases rise.

'Crushing experience' awaits Ghislaine Maxwell at troubled jail

Ghislaine Maxwell was detained on Monday in a troubled U.S. jail in Brooklyn where she will undergo humiliating searches and be denied nearly all possessions, a far cry from the luxury estate where she was arrested as an accused accomplice of Jeffrey Epstein. Maxwell, 58, arrived at the federal Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn on Monday and is expected to appear in a Manhattan courtroom on Friday when a judge will consider a government request to detain her without bail.

U.S. to force out foreign students taking classes fully online

Foreign students must leave the United States if their school's classes this fall will be taught completely online or transfer to another school with in-person instruction, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency announced on Monday. It was not immediately clear how many student visa holders would be affected by the move, but foreign students are a key source of revenue for many U.S. universities as they often pay full tuition.

Regeneron signs $450 million contract with U.S. government for COVID-19 therapy

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc said on Tuesday the U.S. government signed a $450 million contract with the drugmaker to make and supply its potential double-antibody cocktail for COVID-19. The cocktail, REGN-COV2, is in separate clinical trials assessing its effectiveness in preventing and treating COVID-19, the company said https://reut.rs/2O2ADgu.

Giffords group takes aim at key U.S. Senate races in new push for gun limits

The gun safety group Giffords will launch a nationwide effort next week aimed at boosting Democratic candidates in key U.S. Senate races who support universal background checks for firearms purchases. With Democrats' chances of flipping the Senate improving as Republican President Donald Trump's poll numbers slide ahead of the Nov. 3 election, the group said background checks were a wedge issue that could win support from critical voting blocs in close races and beyond.

As Confederate monuments fall, a Florida community to vote on putting one up

As Confederate Civil War monuments fall across the United States, one central Florida community with a racist past will vote on plans to put up a statue of a Confederate general who lived in the Sunshine State briefly as a child. The 2019 decision to be the new home of the 9-foot-tall bronze statue of General Edmund Kirby Smith, now in the National Statuary Hall in Washington, D.C., is under review.

Economists call for more direct cash payments tied to the health of the economy

Direct cash payments can improve financial security, boost consumer spending, and may speed up the recovery, according to a letter from a group of economists calling on U.S. policymakers to keep providing direct cash payments to Americans until the economy is stronger. The stimulus payments should be issued automatically, based on certain economic indicators such as the unemployment rate, until there is enough evidence that the economy is recovering, the group of mostly left-leaning economists said in an open letter organized by the Economic Security Project and The Justice Collaborative.

Hospitalizations jump 50% in California as coronavirus infections soar

New coronavirus cases soared in California over the July Fourth weekend, stressing some hospital systems and leading to the temporary closure of the state capitol building in Sacramento for deep cleaning, officials said on Monday. The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 has increased by 50% over the past two weeks to about 5,800, Governor Gavin Newsom said at a briefing.

Exclusive: U.S. government's boxed food aid promise falls short

The U.S. government delivered far less food aid than it had pledged by the end of June, according to food bank managers and data from the agriculture department sent to Reuters, after it hired inexperienced companies to box food during the pandemic. The Farmers to Families Food Box program, one of several new government efforts to relieve struggling Americans, aimed to take food from farmers typically produced for restaurants and deliver it to the millions of people who lost their jobs or were otherwise hit by the coronavirus lockdown.