Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs. Historic Oakland black book store sells out of books on racial discrimination

Marcus Books in Oakland, California, has served the black community in the Bay Area with books by and about African Americans for the past 60 years. Its doors have been open during notable events in U.S. race relations ranging from the civil rights and black power movements and the assassinations of Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s to the 1991 Rodney King beating in Los Angeles and the Black Lives Matter movement of the past decade. NHC says center of storm Cristobal made landfall in southeast Louisiana

The center of Tropical Storm Cristobal has made landfall along the coast of southeast Louisiana between the mouth of the Mississippi River and Grand Isle, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in its latest advisory. Cristobal is located about 50 miles (80 km) south-southeast of New Orleans, with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (85 kph), the Miami-based weather forecaster added. Floyd's death spurs 'Gen Z' activists to set up new D.C. rights group

Jacqueline LaBayne and Kerrigan Williams met for the very first time in person on Wednesday, at a sit-in they organized in front of the U.S. Capitol over the death of George Floyd. They have been using social media, which they call a "tool of justice," to rally a new, ethnically-diverse generation of young activists connecting online to protest Floyd's May 25 death and push for civil rights reforms in the nation's capital. Exclusive: In warning sign for Trump, Republicans growing pessimistic about country's direction

Republicans are more pessimistic about the country's direction than at almost any other time during Donald Trump's presidency, as a trio of crises – the coronavirus pandemic, an economic downturn and mass protests over police brutality – buffets his administration. Only 46% of Americans who identify as Republicans say the country is on the right track, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted last week. It is the first time that number has fallen so low since August 2017, when a rally organized by white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia led to violent clashes with counter-protesters. 'Take a knee,' protesters ask black Secret Service officers in Washington

As protesters implored the black U.S. Secret Service officer to take a knee in solidarity with their demonstration against racism and brutality by law enforcement, the young man explained why he could not. "I appreciate all of this. ... I'm still black. You see what I'm saying? You guys are still fighting for my rights," the unidentified officer told the protesters through a fence outside the Treasury building in Washington. "What I'm saying is, technically we just can't do that." Saying Trump 'drifted away' from Constitution, Colin Powell picks Biden

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell on Sunday endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, joining a growing chorus of Republicans and military leaders criticizing Republican President Donald Trump amid nationwide protests. Powell, a Republican who led the U.S. military during the 1991 Gulf War in Iraq under President George H.W. Bush and later headed the State Department under President George W. Bush, said Trump "lies all the time," has "drifted away" from the U.S. Constitution and poses a danger to American democracy. Protesters march again, demanding justice after George Floyd killing

A relaxed confidence infused a new round of street protests in New York and other major cities on Sunday, a day after some of the largest demonstrations since the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody unfolded with no major violence. The near-festive tone of many of the weekend's major U.S. rallies stood in sharp contrast to scenes of clashes, looting and vandalism earlier in the week that authorities and activists blamed largely on outside agitators and criminals. New York Times opinion editor resigns after column controversy as Trump slams paper

A New York Times editorial page editor responsible for publishing a column that advocated using the military to quiet protests over U.S. racial inequality resigned from his position on Sunday, the newspaper announced. U.S. President Donald Trump slammed the newspaper in a Tweet after the announcement, saying that "The New York Times is Fake News!!!" Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Joe Biden to meet George Floyd's family

Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Joe Biden will travel to Houston on Monday and meet with the family of George Floyd, two weeks after Floyd's death in police custody triggered nationwide protests over racial injustice, aides said. Biden is expected to offer his sympathies to Floyd's relatives and record a video message for the private funeral service scheduled to take place on Tuesday in Floyd's hometown of Houston, two aides said. He is not expected to attend the service to avoid any disruption to mourners that could be caused by his Secret Service protective detail. Democrats grapple with U.S. protesters' demand to defund the police

U.S. Democrats have largely embraced the activists packing into streets nationwide to decry the killings of black men and women by law enforcement but so far express wariness at protesters' calls to defund the police. While they are clearly attuned to the cries of demonstrators from New York to Los Angeles, some top Democratic elected officials are proceeding cautiously with any suggestion they would slash police budgets to fund programs to address other social ills.