Reuters US Domestic News Summary

The potential program would be targeted at people in the Northern Triangle region of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, Roberta Jacobson, the White House's southern border coordinator, told Reuters in an interview, without saying who exactly would receive cash. U.S. House ethics panel launches investigation into Republican Gaetz The Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representatives Ethics Committee said on Friday it has opened an investigation into Republican congressman Matt Gaetz involving allegations including possible sexual misconduct and illicit drug use.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Exclusive-U.S. considering cash payments to Central America to stem migration

The United States is considering a conditional cash transfer program to help address economic woes that lead migrants from certain Central American countries to trek north, as well as sending COVID-19 vaccines to those countries, a senior White House official told Reuters on Friday. The potential program would be targeted at people in the Northern Triangle region of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, Roberta Jacobson, the White House's southern border coordinator, told Reuters in an interview, without saying who exactly would receive cash.

U.S. House ethics panel launches investigation into Republican Gaetz

The Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representatives Ethics Committee said on Friday it has opened an investigation into Republican congressman Matt Gaetz involving allegations including possible sexual misconduct and illicit drug use. The panel's Democratic chairman and top Republican said in a joint statement they had become "aware of public allegations" that Gaetz, one of former President Donald Trump's most prominent supporters in Congress, may have violated "House rules, laws or other standards of conduct."

Doctor who performed George Floyd autopsy stands by homicide conclusion

The medical examiner who performed the autopsy on George Floyd after last May's deadly arrest explained how he concluded the death was a homicide at the hands of police in testimony on Friday at former Minneapolis policeman Derek Chauvin's murder trial. As jurors studied graphic autopsy photographs, Dr. Andrew Baker, Hennepin County's chief medical examiner, said he stood by the cause of death he determined last year as protests in Floyd's name against police brutality spread around the world.

Pfizer, BioNTech seek U.S. emergency nod for COVID-19 vaccine in adolescents

Pfizer Inc and its German partner BioNTech SE on Friday asked U.S. regulators to allow the emergency use of their vaccine in adolescents aged 12 to 15. The vaccine is currently authorized for emergency use in the United States for people aged 16 and up. The companies said on Friday that they requested an expansion of the authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to include the younger age group.

Beehive deliveries keep New Yorkers buzzing on rooftops, backyards

Bustling New York City may not seem a bee-friendly place, but its high-rise rooftops and tiny gardens are buzzing with honeymakers threatened by pesticides in rural areas. About 2.4 million Italian honeybees waited in a white van to be taken to their new homes early Friday. It was parked near the Dakota Apartments by Central Park, where John Lennon's widow Yoko Ono has lived since 1973.

Biden forms panel to study possible U.S. Supreme Court expansion

President Joe Biden on Friday formed a bipartisan commission to study potential U.S. Supreme Court changes including expanding the number of justices beyond the current nine, a goal of some liberal Democrats hoping to end its conservative majority. Under an executive order signed by the Democratic president, the 36-member commission will consider the "merits and legality" of potential reforms to the nation's top judicial body including adding justices or imposing term limits on their service instead of the current lifetime appointments.

Former U.S. Navy Seal to take leave from Congress after eye surgery

U.S. Representative Dan Crenshaw, a former Navy Seal who lost his right eye in an explosion in Afghanistan, said on Saturday he will take a month-long leave of absence from Congress after emergency surgery for a detaching retina in his other eye. "The surgery went well, but I will be effectively blind for about a month," the Texas Republican wrote in a statement on Twitter. He said his congressional offices will remain open but apologized to constituents for being "pretty much off the grid for the next few weeks."

Four dead whales wash ashore on San Francisco Bay area beaches

Four dead gray whales washed ashore on San Francisco Bay area beaches in nine days, with experts announcing that two of the giant aquatic mammals died from ship strikes and an investigation is ongoing Saturday on the other two. Biologists with the non-profit Marine Mammal Center in California said in a release Saturday that two dead whales washed ashore in the Bay area on Thursday, joining two more that were discovered dead in area beaches since March 31.

Honduras targets U.S. aid for reconstruction after hurricanes

Honduras said on Friday it wants to use U.S. aid aimed at reducing migratory pressures in Central America to help rebuild areas battered by hurricanes last year, as officials from the two countries met in Washington. U.S. President Joe Biden has earmarked $4 billion for Central America, where Hondurans, Guatemalans and Salvadorans have helped spur a jump in unlawful immigration to the United States, creating a major challenge for his administration.

Biden's budget meets criticism from right and left on Pentagon spending

U.S. President Joe Biden asked Congress to sharply hike spending on climate change, cancer and underperforming schools, but his first budget wishlist on Friday drew howls of bipartisan concern over military spending. The $1.5 trillion budget, reflecting an 8% increase in base funding from this year, marks a sharp contrast with the goals of Biden's predecessor, Donald Trump.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)