Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Trump rejects call to testify at his impeachment trial Former President Donald Trump's lawyers on Thursday rejected a request from Democrats to testify at his impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate next week, dismissing their invitation as a "public relations stunt." Democrats in the House of Representatives accuse Trump of inciting insurrection when he urged supporters to "fight" his election defeat before they stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, fought with police and sent lawmakers scrambling for safety.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs. Missouri state lawmaker charged with selling fake COVID-19 cure

A newly elected Missouri state representative faces 20 federal charges accusing her of selling fake COVID-19 treatments at the three health clinics she runs, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Federal prosecutors allege that Patricia Derges, 63 - a Republican who was elected in November and is an assistant physician by profession - provided patients with a prescription amniotic fluid she falsely claimed contained stem cells that can fight COVID-19, according to a news release. Special Report: Stolen election? Republican lawmakers paralyzed by Trump's false fraud claims

On Jan. 6, right after the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, 147 Republican lawmakers voted the way then-president Donald Trump and the rioters had demanded - to overturn his election loss, after months of Trump’s baseless claims that the election had been stolen. A month later, the Republican party remains paralyzed by that false narrative. Fully 133 of those lawmakers, or 90%, are now declining to either endorse or repudiate Trump’s continuing insistence that he was cheated by systemic voter fraud, according to a Reuters survey of all 147 lawmakers and a review of public statements they made to explain their votes against certifying the Electoral College results. Fired Ohio police officer under arrest on murder charge in Black man's shooting

A former Ohio police officer, who is white, will appear at a bail hearing on Friday after his arrest on a charge of murder in the fatal shooting on an unarmed Black man in December. Adam Coy, 44, a 19-year-veteran of the Columbus police force, was indicted by a grand jury on Wednesday in the Dec. 22 killing of Andre Maurice Hill, 47, officials said. Coy was responding to a nuisance call about car noise. U.S. Senate Democrats set for first step on road to new COVID-19 relief

Democrats in the U.S. Senate were poised on Thursday to take a first step toward the ultimate passage of President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief proposal, in a marathon "vote-a-rama" session aimed at overriding Republican opposition. Senate Democrats need to pass a budget resolution to unlock a legislative tool called reconciliation, which would allow them to approve Biden's proposal in the narrowly divided chamber with a simple majority. The House of Representatives approved the budget measure on Wednesday.

57.4 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines distributed, 35.2 million administered: U.S. CDC The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it had administered 35,203,710 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Thursday morning and distributed 57,489,675 doses.

The tally of vaccine doses are for both Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech, vaccines as of 6:00 a.m. ET on Thursday, the agency said. California rains starting later, extending fire season: study

California's rainy season now starts a month later than it did decades ago, prolonging the state's destructive wildfire season into November, the American Geophysical Union said on Thursday, citing new research. The study by researchers at the University of Belgrade in Serbia could not link the change directly to climate change, but said the results are consistent with scientific predictions of drier autumn months and a warming climate. Trump rejects call to testify at his impeachment trial

Former President Donald Trump's lawyers on Thursday rejected a request from Democrats to testify at his impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate next week, dismissing their invitation as a "public relations stunt." Democrats in the House of Representatives accuse Trump of inciting insurrection when he urged supporters to "fight" his election defeat before they stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, fought with police and sent lawmakers scrambling for safety. U.S. releasing hundreds of Central American families from increasingly busy custody

U.S. officials in Texas are releasing an increasing number of Central American migrant families from custody as local authorities in Mexico have baulked at taking them back and border patrol facilities risk becoming overcrowded. Two shelter managers told Reuters the U.S. Border Patrol began dropping off families last week at shelters in Laredo and Brownsville along the stretch of border with Mexico's Tamaulipas state, the busiest region for illegal immigration into the United States. Wisconsin governor clashes with lawmakers over statewide mask mandate to curb coronavirus

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers renewed his statewide mask-wearing mandate on Thursday, defying votes by the Republican-controlled legislature to repeal his earlier order requiring face coverings in public spaces to curb the spread of the coronavirus. The governor issued his latest decree of a public health emergency hours after the state Assembly voted 52-42 to end his previous mask mandate, adopting a resolution the Senate approved a week ago. High levels of toxic heavy metals found in some baby food: U.S. report

U.S. congressional investigators found "dangerous levels of toxic heavy metals" in certain baby foods that could cause neurological damage, a House Oversight subcommittee said in a report released on Thursday in calling for new standards and testing requirements. The panel examined products made by Nurture Inc, Hain Celestial Group Inc, Beech-Nut Nutrition and Gerber, a unit of Nestle, it said, adding that it was "greatly concerned" that Walmart Inc, Campbell Soup Co and Sprout Organic Foods refused to cooperate with the investigation. The U.S. baby food market was worth an estimated $8 billion in 2020, according to Euromonitor.