Reuters US Domestic News Summary

"If 142 people ask for me to resign, I will resign," he said. Special counsel to probe Biden's handling of government documents President Joe Biden's own administration named a special counsel to probe the improper storage of classified documents at his home and a former office on Thursday, an embarrassing echo of a wider-ranging inquiry directed at his main political rival, Donald Trump.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

U.S. panel proposes limiting sentencing of defendants for acquitted conduct

A U.S. government panel tasked with crafting federal sentencing policy on Thursday proposed curtailing the ability of judges to impose longer sentences on criminal defendants based on conduct for which they were acquitted at trial, a practice that the U.S. Supreme Court is considering addressing. The bipartisan U.S. Sentencing Commission unanimously voted to publish for public comment a proposed amendment to federal sentencing guidelines relied upon by judges nationally that would limit them from considering a defendant's "acquitted conduct." The action is a key step toward adopting the change.

California picks up debris from latest storm, braces for the next

Rain-soaked Californians took advantage of a break in a weeks-long deluge to haul away dead trees, restore downed power lines and prepare new stacks of sandbags before another series of storms hits the state beginning Friday. In Monterey County along the state's central coast, communities near the still-rising Salinas River were under an evacuation order, as authorities warned that the cresting waterway could cut off homes and businesses from essential services.

Proud Boys 'took aim' at U.S. democracy, prosecutor tells Jan. 6 trial

U.S. prosecutors on Thursday accused leaders of the far-right Proud Boys group of plotting an assault on American democracy as one of the most high-profile trials to stem from the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol attack got underway. In an opening argument, federal prosecutor Jason McCullough told jurors that Proud Boys chairman Henry "Enrique" Tarrio and four other leaders engaged in sedition by using force to try to keep Donald Trump in office after he lost the 2020 presidential election.

Explainer-Biden vs. Trump: What is the difference between the two classified records cases?

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland has appointed two different special counsels to independently investigate the handling of classified records by Republican former President Donald Trump and his Democratic successor, President Joe Biden. Jack Smith, a war crimes prosecutor, is investigating whether Trump or his associates improperly retained classified records at his Florida estate after he left office in 2021 and then tried to obstruct a federal investigation. Garland tapped Trump-era former U.S. Attorney Robert Hur for Maryland to investigate the removal and retention of classified records from Biden's time as vice president, and the discovery of them at his home and one-time office at a think tank.

Belief of Americans in antisemitic conspiracies, tropes doubles since 2019 -survey

Belief of Americans in antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes has nearly doubled since 2019, an Anti-Defamation League (ADL) survey showed on Thursday. The survey asked Americans how much they agreed with statements expressing anti-Jewish tropes or conspiracy theories and found that more than half of Americans believed at least one, the New York-based advocacy group said.

Biden slams House Republicans' plans on taxes, says they will make inflation worse

U.S. President Biden criticized House Republicans who have taken control of Congress for backing tax measures that he said would benefit the wealthy at the expense of middle class taxpayers, and make inflation worse. The Republican-controlled House passed a bill Monday night that would slash tens of billions of funding dollars for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The measure is not expected to pass the Senate, where Democrats are the majority, and Biden vowed to veto it even if it did.

California lawsuit accuses drugmakers of insulin overcharging

California is suing the United States' leading insulin makers and pharmacy benefit managers, accusing them of using their market power to overcharge patients for the life-saving drug, the state's attorney general announced on Thursday. The lawsuit, filed in California Superior Court in Los Angeles, targets Eli Lilly and Co, Novo Nordisk A/S and Sanofi SA, which together make more than 90% of the insulin drugs sold globally.

New York nurses end strike after reaching deals on hospital staffing

More than 7,000 nurses in New York City ended a three-day strike and returned to work on Thursday after reaching tentative deals with hospitals over staffing levels and pay increases, the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) said. Nurses at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx and Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan had taken to picket lines on Monday saying they were more concerned with patient safety than higher wages.

U.S. Rep. Santos says he won't resign, only leave if voted out in next election

U.S. Representative George Santos said on Thursday he would vacate his seat only if he loses the next election, clarifying an earlier statement that he would resign if "142 people" asked him to because of a string of false claims he made about his work and personal background. His initial remark about potentially bowing out came as he hurriedly exited his Capitol Hill office and entered an elevator on Thursday. "If 142 people ask for me to resign, I will resign," he said.

Special counsel to probe Biden's handling of government documents

President Joe Biden's own administration named a special counsel to probe the improper storage of classified documents at his home and a former office on Thursday, an embarrassing echo of a wider-ranging inquiry directed at his main political rival, Donald Trump. The inquiry is a distraction for a Democratic president who has criticized his Republican predecessor's handling of classified material, and could cast a shadow over Biden as the two gear up for a possible 2024 election rematch.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)