Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Hours-long reading of legislation delays debate on Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 bill The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday to take up President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus aid bill, but put off the start of a contentious debate until the full text of the 628-page bill was read aloud.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs. Hours-long reading of legislation delays debate on Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 bill

The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday to take up President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus aid bill, but put off the start of a contentious debate until the full text of the 628-page bill was read aloud. The party-line vote of 51-50, with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris breaking the tie, illustrated that Democrats who narrowly control the chamber can expect little, if any, Republican support. Debate to begin in U.S. Senate on Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill

A sharply divided U.S. Senate will begin a contentious debate on Friday on a $1.9 trillion coronavirus aid bill that is President Joe Biden's first major legislative initiative, with Democrats pressing ahead without any Republican support. The Senate voted on Thursday to take up the bill in a party-line 51-50 vote, with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris breaking the tie. But Republicans delayed the start of the debate by forcing the hours-long reading of the full text of the 628-page measure. Advisers of New York governor pushed for changes in nursing home deaths report: papers

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's top advisers had successfully pushed the state's health officials to strip a public report of data that showed more nursing-home residents had died of COVID-19 than acknowledged by the administration, the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times reported on Thursday. The report in July had examined factors leading to the spread of the coronavirus in nursing homes and focused only on residents who died inside long-term care facilities, leaving out those who died in hospitals after becoming sick in nursing homes, the Journal said https://on.wsj.com/3uSGDN0. Greyhound asks U.S. government for emergency funds to transport migrants

Greyhound Lines, a bus company crucial to transporting newly arrived migrants in the United States, has asked the U.S. government for emergency funding to deal with an expected increase in migrant releases at the U.S.-Mexico border, according to a letter seen by Reuters. The letter, sent to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Wednesday, is another sign of a potential rise in the number of migrants from Central America and elsewhere at the southern border. President Joe Biden's administration is already scrambling to deal with a growing influx of families and unaccompanied children. U.S. Capitol calm amid high security; Trump supporters hold faith he will return

A smattering of followers of the QAnon conspiracy theory gathered near the U.S. Capitol on Thursday, the day the movement had predicted former President Donald Trump's return to office, but they were far outnumbered by security forces deployed to deter any possible attack. National Guard troops patrolled inside the fence encircling the Capitol, the scene of a deadly insurrection by Trump supporters that killed five people. Police had warned of a potential attack by militants to mark Thursday's date, and the House of Representatives canceled its session. Civil rights groups urge companies to join fight against Georgia voting restrictions

Voting rights groups are calling on companies such as Coca-Cola Co and Delta Air Lines Inc to oppose efforts by Republican lawmakers in Georgia to enact sweeping new restrictions on voting access in the battleground state. The organizations, including Black Voters Matter, the New Georgia Project and the Georgia NAACP, launched a campaign on social media and in local news outlets this week asking the corporations to take a stand against legislation they said aims to curb turnout from Democratic-leaning Black voters. Texas grid operator made $16 billion price error during winter storm, watchdog says

Texas' power grid operator Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) made a $16 billion pricing error in the week of the winter storm that led to power outages across the state, Potomac Economics, which monitors the state's power market, said. ERCOT kept market prices for power too high for more than a day after widespread outages ended late on Feb. 17, Potomac Economics, the independent market monitor for the Public Utility Commission of Texas, which oversees ERCOT, said in a filing. Alabama extends COVID mask mandate for a month amid debate between Texas, Biden

Alabama's governor on Thursday extended for another month an order mandating residents to wear face masks to protect against COVID-19, breaking with Mississippi and Texas as the issue again becomes the focus of political debate. Alabama's mask order, which had been due to expire on Friday, will now stay in effect until April 9, Republican Governor Kay Ivey told a news briefing. Alaska's Iditarod sled dog race is on, with COVID-19-altered course

The word "Iditarod" derives from an indigenous Alaskan name for a "far distant place." Due to precautions made necessary by the COVID-19 pandemic, this year's Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, which starts on Sunday, will be an especially distanced event. The trail for the world's most famous sled dog race has been drastically rerouted to avoid almost all the communities that normally serve as checkpoints, and the traditional ceremonial start in Anchorage has been eliminated. Cuomo accuser rejects his public apology in TV interview

The second of three women who have accused New York Governor Andrew Cuomo of sexual misconduct rejected his public apology on Thursday, a response likely to ratchet up pressure on the embattled Democrat. Charlotte Bennett, a 25-year-old former aide to Cuomo who has said the governor questioned her about her sex life with what she took as sexual overtones, made her comments in an interview broadcast by CBS News.

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