Reuters US Domestic News Summary

The chamber has just four days left to pass the measure -- which would suspend the debt limit through Jan. 1, 2025 -- and send it to President Joe Biden to sign, averting a catastrophic default. Biden trips and falls during graduation ceremony, recovers quickly President Joe Biden tripped and fell after handing out the last diploma at a graduation ceremony at the U.S. Air Force Academy on Thursday, but got up quickly and walked back to his seat.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

J&J secures dismissal of whistleblower case over misuse of confidential info

A federal appeals court, in a decision unsealed Wednesday, upheld the dismissal of a whistleblower lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson as a sanction for the plaintiffs' misuse of confidential records they obtained through related litigation. The lawsuit, which accused J&J's DePuy Orthopaedics unit of defrauding the federal government by marketing defective hip implants, was dismissed in December 2021.

Two Oath Keepers convicted of sedition in US Capitol attack sentenced to prison

Two more members of the far-right Oath Keepers militant group were given multi-year prison sentences on Thursday for seditious conspiracy and other crimes arising from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by then-President Donald Trump's supporters. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta sentenced Roberto Minuta to 4-1/2 years in prison and Edward Vallejo to three years in prison following their convictions by a jury in January - far less than the 17-year sentences the prosecution had recommended.

US Supreme Court hands defeat to organized labor in truckers strike case

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday dealt another setback to organized labor by making it easier for employers to sue over strikes that cause property destruction in a ruling siding with a concrete business in Washington state that sued the union representing its truck drivers after a work stoppage. The 8-1 decision overturned a lower court's ruling that said the lawsuit filed by Glacier Northwest Inc, which sells and delivers ready-mix concrete, against a local affiliate of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters was preempted by a U.S. law called the National Labor Relations Act. Glacier Northwest is a unit of Japan-based Taiheiyo Cement Corp.

FTC chair Khan accused of 'abuse of power' in new US House probe

The House Oversight Committee's Chairman James Comer opened a probe Thursday into U.S. Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan's management of the agency, citing complaints of abuse of power. Khan has angered companies and trade groups like the Chamber of Commerce by pushing the FTC, which enforces antitrust law and laws against deceptive marketing, to be more aggressive in investigations and law enforcement.

Biden plans to pick former North Carolina health secretary to lead CDC - source

U.S. President Joe Biden plans to select former North Carolina health secretary Mandy Cohen to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), according to a source familiar with the matter. Biden's formal announcement is expected later this month, according to the Washington Post, which first reported the news.

Arizona limits Phoenix-area construction due to water shortage

The state of Arizona on Thursday restricted future home-building in the Phoenix area due to a lack of water, based on projections showing that wells will run dry under existing conditions. The measure announced by the Arizona Department of Water Resources stands to slow population growth for the Phoenix Active Management Area, home to 4.6 million people and one of the most rapidly expanding areas of the United States.

Biden says Sweden will 'soon' join NATO at U.S. Air Force address

U.S. President Joe Biden predicted on Thursday Sweden will join NATO "soon", speaking at the U.S. Air Force Academy days after he hinted at a possible deal to overcome Turkey's opposition to admitting the Nordic country to the alliance. Biden, in a flag-waving commencement address in Colorado Springs, Colorado, warned graduates they will enter service in an increasingly unstable world, citing challenges from Russia and China.

U.S. Supreme Court gives boost to whistleblowers in drug pricing case

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday gave a boost to whistleblowers in their bid to revive lawsuits accusing pharmacy operators of knowingly overbilling government health insurance programs for prescription drugs at taxpayers' expense. The justices in a 9-0 decision threw out a lower court's ruling that said the pharmacies could not be held responsible for fraud in whistleblower cases pursued against Safeway Inc, owned by Albertsons Companies Inc, and SuperValu Inc, part of United Natural Foods Inc.

US Senate will stay in session until debt ceiling bill passed -Schumer

The U.S. Senate will stay in session until it passes a bill to lift the government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling, Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Thursday, as some members pushed him to allow amendment votes that risks delaying the process. The chamber has just four days left to pass the measure -- which would suspend the debt limit through Jan. 1, 2025 -- and send it to President Joe Biden to sign, averting a catastrophic default.

Biden trips and falls during graduation ceremony, recovers quickly

President Joe Biden tripped and fell after handing out the last diploma at a graduation ceremony at the U.S. Air Force Academy on Thursday, but got up quickly and walked back to his seat. The 80-year-old U.S. president fell forward, caught himself with his hands, then got up on one knee helped by three people. He walked back to his seat unassisted.

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