US News Roundup: Trump seeks to put COVID-19 behind him; U.S. COVID-19 cases hit two-month high and more

U.S. COVID-19 cases hit two-month high, 10 states report record increases New cases of COVID-19 in the United States hit a two-month high on Friday with over 58,000 infections of the new coronavirus reported and hospitalizations in the Midwest at record levels for a fifth day in a row, according to a Reuters analysis.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

U.S. CDC reports 213,037 deaths from coronavirus

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Saturday reported 7,641,502 cases of new coronavirus, an increase of 58,302 cases from its previous count, and said that the number of deaths had risen by 926 to 213,037. The CDC reported its tally of cases of the respiratory illness known as COVID-19, caused by a new coronavirus, as of 4 pm ET on Oct. 09 versus its previous report a day earlier. (https://bit.ly/3npgGkp)

Biden says 'chicanery' at polls is the only way he could lose U.S. election

Democratic U.S. presidential nominee Joe Biden said on Saturday "the only way" he could lose to President Donald Trump was through "chicanery," before clarifying that he will accept the election result. Biden encouraged potential voters at a campaign stop in the must-win battleground of Pennsylvania, telling them "make sure to vote because the only way we lose this is by the chicanery going on relative to polling places."

Hurricane Delta leaves Louisianans reeling and out of power, as the clean-up begins

Weary residents of coastal Louisiana began cleaning up on Saturday from wind and water damage inflicted by Hurricane Delta to their already storm-battered region, even as it weakened and moved northeast. Delta made landfall near the town of Creole in Cameron Parish early Friday evening as a Category 2 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale, packing sustained winds of 100 miles per hour.

Appeals court keeps alive for now Texas' limit on drop boxes for absentee ballots

A U.S. federal appeals court on Saturday issued a temporary stay that allows the Republican governor of Texas to continue limiting counties to a single drop-off site for absentee ballots in the Nov. 3 presidential election. Texas is a longtime Republican stronghold but this year President Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger Joe Biden are fighting what could be a tight race to win the state's electoral votes.

U.S. COVID-19 cases hit two-month high, 10 states report record increases

New cases of COVID-19 in the United States hit a two-month high on Friday with over 58,000 infections of the new coronavirus reported and hospitalizations in the Midwest at record levels for a fifth day in a row, according to a Reuters analysis. Ten of the 50 states reported record one-day rises in cases on Friday, including the Midwestern states of Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri and Ohio. Wisconsin and Illinois recorded over 3,000 new cases for a second day in a row - a two-day trend not seen even during the height of the previous outbreak in the spring, according to Reuters data.

It's 'all hands on deck' this week in Senate on Trump court nominee

Senate Republicans turn in earnest this week toward making good on President Donald Trump's top objective in Congress ahead of the Nov. 3 election - placing his nominee Amy Coney Barrett on the U.S. Supreme Court and moving it even further to the right over furious Democratic objections. A four-day Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing for the conservative appellate court judge is set to begin on Monday, a key step before a final full Senate vote by the end of October on her nomination for a lifetime job on the court.

Pennsylvania judge tosses Trump lawsuit over mail-in voting

A federal judge on Saturday dismissed a lawsuit by U.S. President Donald Trump's re-election campaign that sought to block drop boxes for Pennsylvania's vote by mail system, a victory for Democrats in a key swing state ahead of November's election. The Nov. 3 election promises to be the nation's largest test of voting by mail due to the novel coronavirus pandemic and Democrats and Republicans are locked in numerous lawsuits that will shape how millions of Americans vote this autumn.

Man shot dead at dueling Denver rallies, suspect in custody

A man was fatally shot on Saturday during dueling protests by left-wing and right-wing groups in downtown Denver, and police arrested a suspect they said was working as a private security guard. An NBC News affiliate, KUSA-TV, said on its website that the man taken arrested for the shooting was a security guard hired by the television station to provide protection to its crew.

Delta knocks out power for Louisiana residents who just got it restored

More than half a million Louisiana residents woke up on Saturday without electricity after Hurricane Delta tore across the state, some only having just had their power restored after Hurricane Laura wiped it out weeks ago. By mid-morning, some 575,000 customers across Louisiana were without power, down from nearly 600,000, according to PowerOutage.US, which tracks disruptions across the United States.

Trump seeks to put COVID-19 behind him, get back to election campaign

Donald Trump is no longer a transmission risk for COVID-19, his doctor said late on Saturday, as the U.S. president seeks to put his bout with coronavirus behind him and return to the campaign fray. Trump, trailing his Democratic challenger Joe Biden in opinion polls, addressed supporters from a White House balcony on Saturday afternoon. He urged a crowd of hundreds of largely Black and Latino supporters to help get out the vote in the Nov. 3 election.