US Domestic News Roundup: No bump for Trump in New Hampshire as possible criminal charges loom; Utah governor signs laws curbing social media use for minors and more

Wednesday's shooting at East High School, the second in two months at the campus, occurred when two deans of the school were frisking the student for weapons as part of a specialized safety protocol devised for the youth because of his past behavioral problems, authorities said. U.S. court upholds block on Biden's vaccine order for federal workers A federal appeals court in New Orleans on Thursday upheld a judge's ruling blocking enforcement of President Joe Biden's 2021 executive order requiring all federal employees take a COVID-19 vaccine.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

No bump for Trump in New Hampshire as possible criminal charges loom

Longtime Donald Trump supporter Doug Lambert agrees with the former president that the potential criminal charges he faces in New York are being cooked up by his enemies on the left. But, Lambert worries about the "messiness" of a Trump presidential candidacy and is leaning towards voting for someone else. Like other Republicans in New Hampshire, which traditionally holds the second nominating contest in presidential election years, Lambert, 58, the owner of a manufacturing company, will be among the earliest to weigh in on Trump's viability for the Republican nomination in 2024.

Utah governor signs laws curbing social media use for minors

Utah Governor Spencer Cox on Thursday signed two laws intended to restrict social media use by minors, becoming the first U.S. state to require parental permission for anyone under 18 to use such platforms as Instagram, TikTok and Facebook. The two bills, passed earlier this month by Utah's Republican-controlled legislature, are also meant to make it easier to sue social media companies for damages.

Tethered together, Biden and Harris move toward 2024 re-election run

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris may not have won over America in her first two years in office, but she is staying put at President Joe Biden's side. The first woman vice president is gearing up for another national campaign despite low poll ratings, a failure to win over the Washington establishment and concern among fellow Democrats about an underwhelming start in the job.

Los Angeles schools to reopen after three-day workers' strike

School will be back in session on Friday for 420,000 Los Angeles students after a three-day strike by education workers disrupted classes and social services in the second-largest school district in the United States. The Los Angeles Unified School District and the Service Employees International Union Local 99 failed to reach an agreement during the work stoppage, which ended on Thursday with another day of picketing and rallies by striking bus drivers, custodians, cafeteria workers and other low-wage earners.

Student who shot 2 high school administrators was on probation for weapons charge

The student who shot and wounded two Denver high school administrators and later took his own life was on probation at the time for a previous firearms offense, Reuters confirmed through a source with knowledge of the case on Thursday. Wednesday's shooting at East High School, the second in two months at the campus, occurred when two deans of the school were frisking the student for weapons as part of a specialized safety protocol devised for the youth because of his past behavioral problems, authorities said.

U.S. court upholds block on Biden's vaccine order for federal workers

A federal appeals court in New Orleans on Thursday upheld a judge's ruling blocking enforcement of President Joe Biden's 2021 executive order requiring all federal employees take a COVID-19 vaccine. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit said that, contrary to arguments by the Biden administration, the judge had jurisdiction to issue a nationwide mandate against the requirement.

Attorney for former President Trump appears before grand jury

Donald Trump's attorney Evan Corcoran appeared on Friday before a federal grand jury investigating the former U.S. president's retention of classified documents after he left the White House in January 2021. Corcoran and his attorney Michael Levy entered the federal courthouse in Washington and went to the third floor where the grand jury typically meets.

El Nino seen boosting U.S. cotton output after worst drought in years

The El Nino weather pattern could boost yields in the second half of the year for U.S. cotton farmers, who were forced to abandon a big chunk of their cropland in 2022 after one of the worst droughts in years. While El Nino typically brings dry weather to Asia, with impacts already being felt in Australia, Indonesia and India, it is known for wet weather in parts of North and South America.

Manhattan DA: Trump created false expectation of arrest, Republicans interfered

Manhattan prosecutors on Thursday said Donald Trump misled people to expect he would be arrested this week and prompted fellow Republicans in Congress to interfere with a probe under way into his hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels. On Saturday, the former president said he would be arrested on Tuesday in the probe by the Manhattan District Attorney's office.

Amid deluge, California farmers flood their fields in order to save them

When Don Cameron first intentionally flooded his central California farm in 2011, pumping excess stormwater onto his fields, fellow growers told him he was crazy. Today, California water experts see Cameron as a pioneer. His experiment to control flooding and replenish the ground water has become a model that policy makers say others should emulate.

(With inputs from agencies.)