Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs. U.S. COVID-19 vaccine supplies strain to meet wider eligibility, second doses

Scattered shortages of COVID-19 vaccines persisted on Saturday under pressure from growing demand, as previously inoculated Americans returned for their required second shots and millions of newly eligible people scrambled to get their first. The supply gaps, coming as the U.S. vaccination effort enters its second month, prompted some healthcare systems to suspend appointments for first-time vaccine seekers and one New York healthcare system to cancel a slew of existing ones. 'Baked Alaska' arrested in Capitol Hill riot: FBI

Far-right media personality Tim Gionet, who goes by the handle "Baked Alaska," was arrested on Friday by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Houston, Texas, according to documents the agency posted online, and charged with participating in the violent riot on Capitol Hill on Jan. 6. According to a sworn statement filed by an FBI agent, Gionet livestreamed a 27-minute video from the Capitol using a service called "DLive." Retired doctors and more syringes: Biden lays out plan to get America vaccinated

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden on Friday said he would order increased production of syringes and other supplies to ramp up vaccinations against COVID-19 and improve upon the Trump administration rollout that he called a "dismal failure." Under Biden's plan, federal disaster-relief workers would set up thousands of vaccination centers, where retired doctors would administer shots to teachers, grocery store workers, people over 65 years old and other groups who do not currently qualify. The fight to avert one last execution on Trump's watch

On Thursday evening, Dustin Higgs, 48, waited in a cell on death row at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana, his scheduled execution less than 24 hours away. A five-minute drive down the road, members of his legal team sat around a laminated plastic table in the lobby of a no-frills hotel off the interstate. Federal Defender Shawn Nolan sipped beer as he waited for his colleagues in Philadelphia to patch together the four or five points needed for a last-ditch court filing aimed at delaying Higgs’ execution by lethal injection. Biden plans 'roughly a dozen' Day One executive actions: aide

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden will cap a busy day of inauguration pageantry by using the powers of his new office to push policy changes on housing, student loans, climate change and immigration, a top aide said on Saturday. Biden, who campaigned on a raft of promises to undo President Donald Trump’s legacy even before the novel coronavirus pandemic walloped the nation, will unveil “roughly a dozen” previously promised executive actions on Wednesday, incoming Biden chief of staff Ron Klain said in a memo distributed to reporters. Facebook to ban ads promoting weapon accessories, protective gear in U.S.

Facebook Inc said on Saturday it will ban advertisements for weapon accessories and protective equipment in the United States with immediate effect until at least two days after U.S. President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration on Jan. 20. Following the attack by supporters of President Donald Trump against the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, the social media company said it will now prohibit ads for accessories such as gun safes, vests and gun holsters in the United States. Explainer: Can Trump pardon himself? Would the courts reject the move?

As he prepares to end a tumultuous four years as U.S. president facing potential legal jeopardy, Donald Trump has discussed the possibility of pardoning himself, according to a source familiar with the matter. But there are questions about whether a president's broad executive clemency powers under the U.S. Constitution would permit such action. The Justice Department has previously taken the view that the Constitution does not allow a sitting president to be indicted, but a former president enjoys no such protections. Biden nominates veteran diplomats for top State posts

Democratic President-elect Joe Biden on Saturday nominated U.S. foreign policy veteran Wendy Sherman, a key negotiator of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, to be the No. 2 official at the State Department. Biden also nominated Victoria Nuland, a retired career foreign service officer who was the top U.S. diplomat for Europe, NATO ambassador and State Department spokeswoman, to be Under Secretary for Political Affairs, effectively the third-ranking U.S. diplomat. U.S. capitals gird for pro-Trump armed protests as FBI flags risk of violence

Protesters are expected to descend on statehouses across the United States on Sunday in support of baseless claims that electoral fraud robbed President Donald Trump of a second term, as law enforcement officials girded for possible violence. More than a dozen states have activated National Guard troops to help secure their capitol buildings following an FBI warning of armed protests, with right-wing extremists emboldened by the deadly siege at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6. U.S. closing landmarks, announces vehicle checks in Washington for inauguration

The nation's capital on Friday continued to boost security by shutting down access to iconic landmarks and erecting vehicle checkpoints at a security perimeter surrounding central Washington ahead of President-elect Joe Biden's Jan. 20. inauguration. Presidential inaugurations are always tightly secure events with operations led by the U.S. Secret Service, but this year's measures have been amped up after Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 in a bid to prevent the final certification of Biden's victory. Law enforcement officials have warned of threats and armed groups in all 50 states.