US Domestic News Roundup: Biden vows to nominate Black woman to U.S. Supreme Court by end of February; Biden to highlight manufacturing jobs, GDP growth in Pittsburgh and more

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of two years in prison on each count. Biden taps veteran team to guide historic Supreme Court nomination U.S. President Joe Biden has tapped a team of White House advisers with lengthy Supreme Court and Senate confirmation experience as he prepares to nominate the first Black woman to be an associate justice.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Biden vows to nominate Black woman to U.S. Supreme Court by end of February

President Joe Biden on Thursday said he plans by the end of February to nominate a Black woman to replace retiring U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, a historic first that he called "long overdue." Biden appeared with Breyer, whom he has known since the 1970s, at the White House after the 83-year-old justice formally announced his retirement in a letter to the president. Breyer wrote that he plans to depart at the conclusion of the court's current term, typically at the end of June, assuming his successor has been confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

Biden to highlight manufacturing jobs, GDP growth in Pittsburgh

U.S. President Joe Biden, making good on a one-year anniversary pledge to get out of the White House more often, visits the former steel town of Pittsburgh on Friday to highlight his efforts to strengthen supply chains and revitalize U.S. manufacturing. Biden, whose approval ratings have fallen in recent months amid a surge in the COVID-19 pandemic and high inflation, got a boost on Thursday when the Commerce Department reported the U.S. economy grew the fastest in nearly four decades in 2021.

Dozens of U.S. states say Apple stifles competition; back 'Fortnite' maker

Apple Inc is stifling competition through its mobile app store, attorneys general for 34 U.S. states and the District of Columbia said on Thursday, as they appealed against a ruling that let the iPhone maker continue some restrictive practices. While dozens of state attorneys general have filed recent antitrust lawsuits against other big tech companies, including Facebook owner Meta Platforms Inc and Alphabet Inc's Google, none had so far taken aim at Apple.

Biden urges Congress to act now on Equal Rights Amendment

President Joe Biden on Thursday called on Congress to immediately enshrine the Equal Rights Amendment in the U.S. Constitution and formally protect women's rights nearly a century after lawmakers first raised them. In a statement, Biden urged Congress "to pass a resolution recognizing ratification of the ERA," saying recent legal analysis showed there was nothing preventing lawmakers from acting.

Nevada man charged with threatening state election worker

U.S. federal agents arrested a Nevada man for threatening a state election worker last year and telling her that she was "going to f------ die" for stealing the 2020 presidential election from Donald Trump, the Justice Department said on Thursday, the second arrest in a week by its election threats task force. Gjergi Luke Juncaj, 50, of Las Vegas was taken into custody on Wednesday and appeared in federal court in Nevada on Thursday, charged with four counts of making threatening phone calls, the Justice Department said in a statement. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of two years in prison on each count.

Biden taps veteran team to guide historic Supreme Court nomination

U.S. President Joe Biden has tapped a team of White House advisers with lengthy Supreme Court and Senate confirmation experience as he prepares to nominate the first Black woman to be an associate justice. Biden will consult closely with Vice President Kamala Harris in a selection process that will be led in part by chief of staff Ron Klain, White House counsel Dana Remus, senior counsel Paige Herwig, and senior adviser Cedric Richmond, the White House said.

Family of Ahmaud Arbery wants racial justice as murderers face new trial

The family of Ahmaud Arbery, a Black jogger who was chased by three white men in pickup trucks and gunned down in south Georgia in 2020, says that the men's federal hate crimes trial will do what the state court did not - reckon with race. The three men - a father and son and their neighbor - were convicted last November in a Brunswick, Georgia state court of murdering Arbery, 25, and sentenced to life in prison.

Bidens welcome Willow the cat to the White House

The Biden family finally has a cat. First lady Jill Biden's office has announced America's first family is excited to welcome a two-year-old, gray-and-white-striped feline named Willow to the White House.

Search halted for survivors of capsized boat off Florida, leaving 34 lost at sea

The U.S. Coast Guard on Thursday called off a three-day search for 34 people lost at sea off Florida from a boat that capsized while engaged in what officials suspect was an attempt to smuggle migrants into the United States from the Bahamas. Round-the-clock search operations were halted at nightfall, Coast Guard Petty Officer Jose Hernandez said, hours after U.S. authorities reported recovering four more bodies, bringing the tally of confirmed fatalities to five.

U.S. judge annuls Gulf of Mexico oil auction over climate impact

A federal judge invalidated the results of an oil and gas lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday saying the Biden administration failed to properly account for the auction's climate change impact. The decision has cast uncertainty over the future of the U.S. federal offshore drilling program, which has been a big source of public revenue for decades but also drawn the ire of activists concerned about its impact on the environment and contribution to global warming.