Reuters US Domestic News Summary

One out of the three people who was thought missing as of Saturday, has been accounted for, Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said at a press briefing on Sunday. Fauci warns of danger of hospitalization surge due to large number of COVID cases Top U.S. infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci said there was still a danger of a surge in hospitalization due to a large number of coronavirus cases even as early data suggests the Omicron COVID-19 variant is less severe.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Omicron dampens global New Year celebrations, fewer watch ball drop in Times Square

The Omicron coronavirus variant dampened New Year festivities around much of the world, with Paris cancelling its fireworks show, London relegating its to television, and New York City scaling down its famous ball drop celebration in Times Square. The illuminated ball made of Waterford crystal panels slid down its pole at the midnight hour in Times Square, but only 15,000 spectators were allowed into the official viewing area instead of the usual 58,000.

Biden tells Ukraine that U.S. will 'respond decisively' if Russia further invades

U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday told Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy the United States and its allies will "respond decisively" if Russia further invades Ukraine, the White House said in a statement. The call came days after Biden held a second conversation https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/biden-speak-with-ukraine-president-sunday-white-house-2021-12-31 in a month with Russian President Vladimir Putin amid tensions on Russia's border with Ukraine, where Russia has massed some 100,000 troops.

Jan. 6 committee studying whether it can subpoena U.S. Republican lawmakers - chairman

The congressional committee investigating last year's Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol is looking at issuing subpoenas to Republican members of Congress to force their cooperation, the panel's chairman said on Sunday. Representative Bennie Thompson, a Democrat, said on NBC's "Meet The Press" that the committee is examining whether it can lawfully issue subpoenas to sitting members of Congress.

U.S. officials ask AT&T, Verizon to delay 5G wireless over aviation safety concerns

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and the head of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Friday asked AT&T and Verizon Communications to delay the planned Jan. 5 introduction of new 5G wireless service over aviation safety concerns. In a letter Friday seen by Reuters, Buttigieg and FAA Administrator Steve Dickson asked AT&T Chief Executive John Stankey and Verizon Chief Executive Hans Vestberg for a delay of no more than two weeks as part of a "proposal as a near-term solution for advancing the co-existence of 5G deployment in the C-Band and safe flight operations."

Dan Reeves, former NFL head coach and player, dead at 77

Dan Reeves, a longtime NFL head coach and former player, died Saturday at the age of 77, his family said in a statement. Reeves died "due to complications from dementia," the statement read. He was "surrounded by his loving family at his home in Atlanta," according to the statement.

One found, two people still missing after Colorado wildfire

Two people were still missing after a wind-stoked wildfire roared through two towns in Boulder County, Colorado, prompting thousands of evacuations and destroying nearly 1,000 homes, authorities said on Sunday. One out of the three people who was thought missing as of Saturday, has been accounted for, Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said at a press briefing on Sunday.

Fauci warns of danger of hospitalization surge due to large number of COVID cases

Top U.S. infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci said there was still a danger of a surge in hospitalization due to a large number of coronavirus cases even as early data suggests the Omicron COVID-19 variant is less severe. "The only difficulty is that if you have so many cases, even if the rate of hospitalization is lower with Omicron than it is with Delta, there is still the danger that you will have a surging of hospitalizations that might stress the healthcare system," Fauci said in an interview on Sunday with CNN.

Twitter permanently bans U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene

Twitter Inc on Sunday said it permanently banned the personal account of Republican U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene for tweets that repeatedly violated the social media's misinformation policy on COVID-19. The congresswoman from Georgia is the first member of Congress to ever have a Twitter account permanently banned.