US News Roundup: Amid resistance, California imposes strict stay-at-home orders; U.S. green groups say honeymoon is over, turn up heat on Biden and more

In his first rally appearance since he lost to Democrat Joe Biden in the Nov. 3 presidential contest, Trump urged the crowd to vote for Republican candidates in the Georgia runoff election on Jan. 5 despite his unsubstantiated claims of significant electoral fraud in the state.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Trump keeps up false claims of widespread fraud at Georgia rally for U.S. senators

U.S. President Donald Trump campaigned in Georgia on Saturday for two Republican senators at a rally that some in his party feared could end up hurting, not helping, their chances by focusing on his efforts to reverse his own election defeat. In his first rally appearance since he lost to Democrat Joe Biden in the Nov. 3 presidential contest, Trump urged the crowd to vote for Republican candidates in the Georgia runoff election on Jan. 5 despite his unsubstantiated claims of significant electoral fraud in the state.

Biden picks Becerra as health secretary as he builds team to battle COVID-19

President-elect Joe Biden will nominate California Attorney General Xavier Becerra for secretary of health and human services as soon as Monday, a source familiar with the decision said, as he builds up his team to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The choice of Becerra, 62, a Latino former congressman, comes as Biden faces more pressure to add diversity to his cabinet appointments, including complaints from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus about the number of Latinos.

Trump admin set to approve Arizona land swap for mine opposed by Native Americans

U.S. President Donald Trump's outgoing administration is set to approve a controversial land swap later this month that would give Rio Tinto Ltd and partners more than 2,400 acres (9.7 square kilometers) to build an Arizona copper mine, even though the project would destroy religious and cultural sites sacred to Native Americans. Tribal leaders and other critics allege that the U.S. government is fast-tracking the environmental review process before Trump is replaced by President-elect Joe Biden next month, charges the government and Rio Tinto deny.

Biden seen nominating infectious diseases expert Walensky to run CDC: person familiar

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden is expected to nominate Rochelle Walensky, chief of infectious diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital, to run the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a person familiar with the decision said on Sunday.

Former U.S. Senator and anti-fraud law co-sponsor Paul Sarbanes dies at 87

Paul Sarbanes, a Maryland Democrat who served in the U.S. Congress for more than three decades, helped clean up the Chesapeake Bay and corporate scandals and pressured Richard Nixon to resign as president, died on Sunday at 87. The soft-spoken champion of liberal causes who shunned publicity and was known for speaking bluntly, passed away peacefully in Baltimore, his son and congressman John Sarbanes said in a statement https://sarbanes.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/congressman-john-sarbanes-announces-passing-senator-paul-sarbanes.

U.S. green groups say honeymoon is over, turn up heat on Biden

U.S. environmental groups that poured money and effort behind Democrat Joe Biden's successful run for president are shifting to a new more adversarial role now that he has been elected, launching a pressure campaign to make sure he delivers on his promises to fight climate change. The dynamic reflects a return to influence for environmental advocacy groups after four years in which they were shut out by the administration of President Donald Trump, a climate skeptic who crafted policies to maximize U.S. fossil fuel development with the help of industry.

Michigan Secretary of State says armed protesters gathered outside her home

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said dozens of armed protesters gathered in a threatening manner outside her home on Saturday evening chanting "bogus" claims about electoral fraud. Michigan officials last month certified the state's election results showing President-elect Joe Biden had won Michigan, one of a handful of key battleground states, in the course of his Nov. 3 election victory.

Giuliani tests positive for COVID-19, latest in Trump's inner circle

President Donald Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani has tested positive for COVID-19, Trump said on Sunday, prompting one state legislature to close for a week after Giuliani visited to try to persuade lawmakers to help reverse Trump's election defeat. The 76-year-old former New York mayor is the latest in a long string of people close to the White House, including Trump himself, sickened in a pandemic that has killed more than 280,000 Americans.

Georgia Republican Senator Loeffler dodges questions on Trump during debate with challenger Warnock

Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler danced around questions about whether President Donald Trump lost the Nov. 3 election in a debate with her Democratic challenger on Sunday before two Georgia runoffs that will decide control of the U.S. Senate. Facing off with the Rev. Raphael Warnock on a debate stage in Atlanta, Loeffler repeatedly called the political newcomer a "radical liberal," while Warnock criticized Loeffler's stock trades after the wealthy businesswoman was appointed senator a year ago. Each criticized the other's interpretation of the Christian faith.

Amid resistance, California imposes strict stay-at-home orders

California compelled much of the state to close shop and stay at home on Monday, when some of the harshest coronavirus restrictions in the United States came into effect one day after the state set a record with more than 30,000 new COVID-19 cases. Governor Gavin Newsom's order was triggered in areas where fewer than 15 percent of intensive care hospital beds were available, affecting more than 23 million people in Southern California.