Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs. Trump's threat to defund cities 'unconstitutional,' mayors say

Mayors of major U.S. cities on Thursday blasted President Donald Trump's threat to cut federal funding to cities facing ongoing protests as a violation of the U.S. Constitution, and New York state said it would challenge any move to defund the city in court. Trump on Wednesday instructed Attorney General William Barr to develop a list of "anarchist jurisdictions" that "permitted violence and the destruction of property ... and have refused to undertake reasonable measures" to restore order. Pelosi, Mnuchin informally agree on stopgap bill to avoid U.S. government shutdown: ABC News

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin have informally agreed on a stopgap funding bill to avoid a government shutdown at the end of the month, ABC News reported on Thursday, citing a person familiar with a phone call between the two officials. Seven police officers in Rochester, NY suspended over Black man's death, mayor says

Seven police officers were suspended Thursday over the arrest and asphyxiation death of Black man Daniel Prude in Rochester, New York after video of the March incident was released, the city's mayor said, calling it an act of racism. Prude's family this week released body camera footage from his arrest, showing a group of officers putting a hood over his head - apparently to prevent his spit from possibly transmitting the novel coronavirus - as he knelt on the ground, handcuffed and naked. New York pushes ahead with more reopenings as COVID-19 cases rise in U.S. Midwest

Casinos statewide will welcome back visitors in New York and malls in New York City will reopen doors to shoppers as new coronavirus infections remain low in what was once the U.S. hot spot of the pandemic, even while cases mount in Midwestern states. Next Wednesday, New York City malls will be allowed to reopen at 50% capacity and casinos statewide can reopen at 25% capacity, Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Thursday. How to prepare for a school year like no other

Parents, teachers and students nationwide are preparing for a school year like no other. As part of our #AskReuters Twitter chat series, Reuters gathered a group of experts to discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic has transformed K-12 education. Below are edited highlights. Trump's U.S. EPA chief claims climate-change fight hurts the poor

The head of the Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday accused Democrats of hurting the poor with policies aimed at fighting climate change, and said the agency would keep supporting development and deregulation if President Donald Trump is re-elected. The speech, on the EPA's 50th anniversary, laid out agency priorities if Trump wins a second term in office. It reflected the gaping ideological divide between Democrats and the administration, which has loosened regulations for pollution and vehicle fuel efficiency and promoted oil and gas drilling. Oregon man says Portland shooting was self defense

A 48-year-old Oregon man said he acted in self defense during the fatal shooting of a supporter of a right-wing group in Portland as he thought he and a friend would be stabbed, Vice News reported on Thursday. "I had no choice. I mean, I, I had a choice. I could have sat there and watched them kill a friend of mine of color. But I wasn't going to do that," Michael Reinoehl said in a video interview published by Vice News about the Saturday shooting of Aaron Danielson, 39. Four state attorneys general back Trump on social media regulation push

Four Republican state attorneys general led by Texas backed President Donald Trump's push to narrow the ability of social media companies to remove objectionable content and require new transparency rules. Texas, Louisiana, Indiana and Missouri's state attorneys general said in joint comments made public on Thursday that new rules are needed. They argue social media platforms cannot be truly free "unless the participants understand the rules of the forum, and competition is able to provide alternatives when speech restrictions go too far." U.S. Homeland Security warns that Russia is trying to undermine confidence in mail-in voting

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is warning that Russia is trying to undermine Americans' confidence in the security and validity of mail-in voting. In a bulletin labelled "For official use only" circulated on Thursday, the DHS Office of Intelligence and Analysis said Russia was "likely to continue amplifying criticism of vote by mail and shifting voting processes amidst the COVID-19 pandemic to undermine public trust in the electoral process." COVID-19 vaccine could come in late October; White House says no pressure on timing

U.S. public health officials and Pfizer Inc said a COVID-19 vaccine could be ready for distribution as soon as late October, just ahead of the November election in which the coronavirus pandemic is likely to be a major factor among voters deciding whether President Donald Trump wins a second term. Even though the stakes are high for Republican Trump, who is squaring off against former Vice President Joe Biden on Nov. 3, there is no political pressure on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to quickly approve a vaccine, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said on Thursday.