US Domestic News Roundup: Trump lawyer says judge's possible conflict may taint $83 million Carroll verdict; Political pressure builds on Biden to strike Iran after US deaths and more

In a letter filed in federal court in Manhattan, the lawyer Alina Habba cited a Jan. 27 New York Post article discussing U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan's alleged prior working relationship with Carroll's lawyer Roberta Kaplan, who is not related. Exclusive-Republican candidate Nikki Haley was targeted in second swatting attempt Two days after a man called in a fake emergency at the South Carolina home of Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, she was targeted by a second "swatting" attempt on New Year’s Day, this time by someone who said Haley had shot her daughter, according to an incident report seen by Reuters.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Republican US House panel to push forward on impeaching border chief Mayorkas

A Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives panel on Tuesday plans to debate impeachment charges against Democratic President Joe Biden's top border official, a near-unprecedented move that comes as political tensions around immigration ramp up. The House Homeland Security Committee will consider two articles of impeachment targeting Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. The charges allege Mayorkas intentionally encouraged illegal immigration with lax policies and violated public trust by making false statements to Congress.

NRA deserved 'pat on back' for reforms, ex-chief LaPierre says at graft trial

Wayne LaPierre, the longtime chief of the National Rifle Association, defended himself at a corruption trial on Monday, saying New York's attorney general should have given the gun rights group a pat on the back for implementing reforms. Under questioning by NRA lawyer Sarah Rogers, LaPierre said the group underwent a "course correction" to improve accounting practices in 2018, two years before Attorney General Letitia James sued it for violating state law governing nonprofits.

Analysis-California and Big Oil are splitting after century-long affair

It is the end of an era for Big Oil in California, as the most populous U.S. state divorces itself from fossil fuels in its fight against climate change. California's oil output a century ago amounted to it being the fourth-largest crude producer in the U.S., and spawned hundreds of oil drillers, including some of the largest still in existence. Oil led to its car culture of iconic highways, drive-in theaters, banks and restaurants that endures today.

Biden raising money on Trump's home turf in Florida

U.S. President Joe Biden will be on Donald Trump's home turf on Tuesday, raising money for his 2024 reelection bid against the Republican primary frontrunner in Florida. Biden, a Democrat who is seeking another four-year term in the Nov. 5 election, is stopping at fundraising events in Miami and Palm Beach.

Exclusive-US disabled Chinese hacking network targeting critical infrastructure, sources say

The U.S. government in recent months launched an operation to fight a pervasive Chinese hacking operation that successfully compromised thousands of internet-connected devices, according to two Western security officials and one person familiar with the matter. The Justice Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation sought and received legal authorization to remotely disable aspects of the Chinese hacking campaign, the sources told Reuters.

Suspects arrested in 6 California desert murders tied to marijuana trade

Five men have been arrested on suspicion of murdering six people last week in a remote patch of California's Mojave Desert, a mass killing investigators believe stemmed from the illicit marijuana trade, local law enforcement officials said on Monday. The six victims, all men, were shot to death, and four of them also were partially burned, their bodies left strewn in a grisly crime scene discovered last Tuesday night at the junction of two dirt roads about 60 miles (97 km) northeast of Los Angeles, officials said.

One in 10 US hate crimes occur at schools, FBI says

As many as one in 10 hate crimes in the U.S. take place at schools - from kindergarten through college - according to an FBI report released on Monday, with Black students the most frequent targets, followed by Jewish and LGBTQ victims. Schools were the third most frequent location for hate crimes - after residences and roadways or alleys - from 2018 to 2022, even though most schools experienced months of closures during the 2020-2021 academic year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Political pressure builds on Biden to strike Iran after US deaths

The killing of three U.S. troops and wounding of dozens more on Sunday by Iran-backed militants is piling political pressure on President Joe Biden to deal a blow directly against Iran, a move he's been reluctant to do out of fear of igniting a broader war. Biden's response options could range anywhere from targeting Iranian forces outside to even inside Iran, or opting for a more cautious retaliatory attack solely against the Iran-backed militants responsible, experts say.

Trump lawyer says judge's possible conflict may taint $83 million Carroll verdict

A lawyer for Donald Trump said on Monday a possible conflict of interest involving the judge who oversaw E. Jean Carroll's recent defamation trial may justify overturning the writer's $83.3 million award. In a letter filed in federal court in Manhattan, the lawyer Alina Habba cited a Jan. 27 New York Post article discussing U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan's alleged prior working relationship with Carroll's lawyer Roberta Kaplan, who is not related.

Exclusive-Republican candidate Nikki Haley was targeted in second swatting attempt

Two days after a man called in a fake emergency at the South Carolina home of Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, she was targeted by a second "swatting" attempt on New Year's Day, this time by someone who said Haley had shot her daughter, according to an incident report seen by Reuters. A Charleston County sheriff's deputy responded on Jan. 1 to Haley's home after a person who identified themself as "Rose" called 911 claiming Haley's daughter was lying in a pool of blood and Haley was threatening to shoot herself, a sheriff's office report said. The caller claimed to be on the phone with Haley.