Reuters US Domestic News Summary

'Failure at the top:' After U.S. Capitol stormed, lawmakers want security heads out U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi called on Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund to resign on Thursday, after the federal force charged with protecting Congress was unable to keep supporters of Republican President Donald Trump from storming the building.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs. U.S. wants faster vaccinations as pandemic worsens, job market suffers

Federal, state and local officials sought to speed up slow-moving vaccinations on Thursday, a day after a record 4,000 Americans died and as employment statistics showed the pandemic and accompanying government lockdowns had slammed the job market. As of Thursday roughly 6 million people across the United States had been given the first of two shots, despite the nationwide distribution of more than 21 million doses, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Surrounded by a shrinking circle of aides, a brooding Trump lays into Pence

U.S. President Donald Trump has increasingly isolated himself in the White House, relying on a small group of diehard loyalists and lashing out at those who dare to cross him, including Vice President Mike Pence, said four sources familiar with the matter. Some longtime advisers are steering clear of talking to Trump after he fired up hundreds of supporters who swarmed the U.S. Capitol in what even fellow Republicans called a deep stain on Trump's legacy. Trump team 'folds' on Georgia election challenge: state official

The Trump campaign has dropped its legal challenge to Georgia's election results that gave Democrat Joe Biden a victory in the southern state, Georgia's top election official said on Thursday. "Rather than presenting their evidence and witnesses to a court and to cross-examination under oath, the Trump campaign wisely decided the smartest course was to dismiss their frivolous cases," Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said in a statement. How security failures enabled Trump mob to storm U.S. Capitol

The bloody chaos inside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday came after the police force that protects the legislative complex was overrun by a mob of Trump supporters in what law enforcement officials called a catastrophic failure to prepare. The siege of the Capitol, home to both the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives, represents one of the gravest security lapses in recent U.S. history, current and former law enforcement officials said, turning one of the most recognizable symbols of American power into a locus of political violence. FCC chairman will not move to set new U.S. social media rules sought by Trump

Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai will not move forward to set any new rules sought by outgoing U.S. President Donald Trump to limit key social media liability protections, a spokesman for the agency confirmed. Trump last year demanded the FCC set new rules to limit protections for social media firms under Section 230, a provision of the 1996 Communications Decency Act that shields social media companies from liability for content posted by their users and allows them to remove lawful but objectionable posts. Vice President Pence opposes using 25th amendment to remove Trump: Business Insider, NY Times

Vice President Mike Pence opposes using the 25th amendment to remove President Donald Trump from power, according to reports from Business Insider and the New York Times. Democrats and some Republicans have called for Trump administration officials to invoke the 25th amendment to relieve Trump of his powers, less than two weeks before he is to leave office. Absent that, leading Democrats, including House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, have called for impeachment proceedings to remove Trump after his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday. White House fires State Department official after tweets critical of Trump

A State Department adviser on Iran who expressed anger on Twitter over the storming of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump and said Trump "needs to go," was fired on Thursday, a U.S. official familiar with the matter said. Gabriel Noronha, a special adviser to the Iran Action group, which handles the State Department's Iran policy and reports directly to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, accused Trump in a tweet late on Wednesday of inciting the angry mob and said he was no longer fit for office, in a rare public criticism of the president by an administration official. U.S. Capitol Police chief resigns after pro-Trump mob breaches building: reports

U.S. Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund said on Thursday he would resign effective Jan. 16, according to a letter cited by news outlets, a day after supporters of President Donald Trump swarmed the building and sent lawmakers into hiding. Sund's resignation was sought by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi after the federal force charged with protecting Congress was unable to keep Trump's supporters from storming the Capitol on Wednesday. After Capitol siege, an increasingly isolated Trump faces calls for removal

The top two Democrats in Congress on Thursday called for President Donald Trump's removal from office, one day after his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol in an assault that provoked widespread condemnation and global alarm. With 13 days left in Trump's term, House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said Vice President Mike Pence and the Cabinet should invoke the 25th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution to remove the president. 'Failure at the top:' After U.S. Capitol stormed, lawmakers want security heads out

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi called on Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund to resign on Thursday, after the federal force charged with protecting Congress was unable to keep supporters of Republican President Donald Trump from storming the building. Officers in the 2,000-member Capitol Police fell back as crowds advanced on Wednesday, enabling Trump supporters angry about his election defeat to invade the halls of Congress to disrupt certification of Democratic President-elect Joe Biden's victory. Other officers fought to keep lawmakers and staff safe.