US Domestic News Roundup: U.S. abortion fight in 2023 to focus on state laws, medication; U.S. lawmakers back key Boeing 737 MAX deadline waiver and more

Experts predict that the uncertainty will continue in the coming year, as cases wend their way through courts, and state legislatures consider new restrictions, potentially drawing new battle lines in the fight over abortion rights. Appeals court says U.S. cannot mandate federal contractor COVID vaccines A U.S. appeals court on Monday said the White House could not require federal contractors to ensure that their workers are vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of government contracts.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

U.S. abortion fight in 2023 to focus on state laws, medication

Six months after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned its 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, the state of abortion rights around the country remains unsettled, thanks to a patchwork of lawsuits in state courts and emergency court orders. Experts predict that the uncertainty will continue in the coming year, as cases wend their way through courts, and state legislatures consider new restrictions, potentially drawing new battle lines in the fight over abortion rights.

U.S. lawmakers back key Boeing 737 MAX deadline waiver

Boeing Co won backing from Congress early on Tuesday to lift a looming deadline imposing a new safety standard for modern cockpit alerts for two new versions of the U.S. planemaker's best-selling 737 MAX aircraft. The company had been heavily lobbying for months to convince lawmakers to waive the Dec. 27 deadline that affects its MAX 7 and MAX 10 airplanes which was imposed by Congress in 2020 after two fatal 737 MAX crashes killed 346 people in Indonesia and Ethiopia.

Appeals court says U.S. cannot mandate federal contractor COVID vaccines

A U.S. appeals court on Monday said the White House could not require federal contractors to ensure that their workers are vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of government contracts. The U.S. government has contracts with thousands of companies, and courts have said the issue could affect up to 20% of U.S. workers.

Thousands reported without power after 6.4 earthquake strikes offshore California

A strong 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of northern California on Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey said, leaving thousands without power. The earthquake, which struck at 2:34 a.m. (1034 GMT), was about 10 miles (16.1 km) deep, USGS said, and struck about 7.4 (12 km) west-southwest of Ferndale, California, a Humboldt County town about a four-hour drive north of San Francisco.

U.S. House Democrats to decide whether to release Trump's tax information

A Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives committee on Tuesday is due to decide whether to release details of former President Donald Trump's tax returns, after a years-long court fight and just two weeks before their party surrenders power to Republicans. The House Ways and Means Committee is due to examine them behind closed doors at 3 p.m. ET (2000 GMT), the day after the House probe of the Jan. 6, 2021 assault on the Capitol by Trump supporters urged the Justice Department to prosecute the Republican for his role in sparking the riot.

Senator wants review of U.S. security assistance to Nigeria following abortion report

U.S. Senator Jim Risch, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has requested a review of U.S. security assistance and cooperation programs in Nigeria following Reuters reporting on an illegal abortion program and killing of children carried out by the Nigerian military. Risch, in a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken seen by Reuters, also called for the State Department to examine the potential use of sanctions in addition to an expeditious review of U.S. security assistance and cooperation.

U.S. Congress to advance $1.7 trillion govt funding bill

Negotiators in the U.S. Congress unveiled a $1.7 trillion government funding bill on Monday, as lawmakers scrambled to pass the measure, which includes record military spending, before temporary funding runs out at the week's end. The total funding proposed by the bill is up from the approximately $1.5 trillion appropriated the previous year.

University of California's striking academic workers begin vote on labor deal

Thousands of striking academic workers began voting on Monday whether to ratify a deal with the University of California and end a 5-week-old walkout that unions say is the biggest work stoppage ever at a U.S. institution of higher education. The proposed contract agreement was hailed by union and university supporters as a landmark labor deal that would set a new national standard boosting wages and working conditions for graduate students employed at public universities.

Venezuelans try to rebuild after shattered U.S. migration dreams

Julio Perez, a 38-year-old auto mechanic, sold his car and tools to make the dangerous journey from Venezuela to the United States. But like many migrants in the two months since the United States changed its immigration policy, he opted to board a plane back to Venezuela.

COVID border restrictions on migrants to stay after U.S. Supreme Court order

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday said COVID-era restrictions at the U.S.-Mexico border that have prevented hundreds of thousands of migrants from seeking asylum should be kept in place for now, siding with Republicans who brought a legal challenge. The restrictions, known as Title 42, were implemented under Republican former President Donald Trump in March 2020 at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and gave border officials the ability to rapidly expel migrants to Mexico without a chance to seek U.S. asylum.