Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Lawyers for both sides had sought at least five additional months to prepare for trial. Rhetoric over US debt limit boils over as Republicans, Democrats joust Partisan sniping over raising U.S. borrowing authority ratcheted up on Friday when House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy accused President Joe Biden of ignoring the issue, even as Republicans have failed to detail budget cuts they want before allowing a debt limit increase.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

In victory for labor unions, Michigan governor repeals 'right-to-work' law

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer on Friday signed a package of bills repealing the state's so-called "right to work" law that allowed workers to opt out of unions, a long-sought victory for labor organizers facing an era of diminished power. Whitmer became the first governor since the 1960s to roll back right-to-work legislation. Twenty-six other U.S. states and the territory of Guam still have right-to-work laws on the books, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

McCarthy expects US House will pass legislation to address TikTok

U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy thinks lawmakers will pass bipartisan legislation to address national security worries about Chinese-owned short video app TikTok, he said on Friday, and called the testimony of the company's CEO "very concerning."

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew appeared before a U.S. House Committee for about five hours on Thursday and lawmakers from both parties grilled him about national security and other concerns about the app used by 150 million Americans. "Here's a CEO that can't tell you that China's not spying on the data," McCarthy said.

U.S. senators urge Biden to share information on war crimes with ICC as it pursues Putin

Democratic and Republican U.S. senators urged the Biden administration on Friday to share information with the International Criminal Court that could assist as it pursues war crimes charges against Russian President Vladimir Putin. Last week, the court issued an arrest warrant for Putin, accusing him of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. The legal move will obligate the court's 123 member states to arrest Putin and transfer him to The Hague for trial if he sets foot on their territory.

Biden, Trudeau united against authoritarian regimes after China-Russia summit

U.S. President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau presented a united front on Friday against authoritarian regimes as Biden visited the Canadian capital days after the leaders of China and Russia held a Moscow summit. Images of Biden and Trudeau standing side by side in Ottawa announcing agreements including on semiconductors and migration represented a counter point to the scene in Moscow days ago.

US FDA approves Pharming's immune disorder drug

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday approved Pharming Group's drug to treat a rare genetic disorder that leads to a weakened immune system, the Dutch company said. Leniolisib, to be sold under the brand name Joenja, becomes the first approved drug in the United States to treat activated phosphoinositide 3-kinase delta syndrome (APDS), a primary immunodeficiency that affects about 1 to 2 people in a million.

Ex-Trump lawyer appears before grand jury as U.S. probes swirl

Evan Corcoran, a lawyer for Donald Trump, appeared on Friday before a federal grand jury looking into Trump's retention of classified documents following the end of his presidency, testifying only after a U.S. judge rejected Corcoran's claim that doing so would violate attorney-client privilege. Corcoran's 3-1/2 hour appearance behind closed doors was another signal that two criminal investigations into Trump led by Special Counsel Jack Smith - one centered on the documents and the other on efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn his 2020 election defeat - are gathering pace.

US Justice Dept's Google advertising case gets fast-paced schedule

A federal judge on Friday set a fast-paced schedule in the U.S. Justice Department's antitrust lawsuit challenging Google LLC's digital advertising technology practices, moving the case along more quickly than either side had proposed. U.S. Magistrate Judge John Anderson in Alexandria, Virginia, after a brief hearing issued an order setting Jan. 18, 2024, as the date when Alphabet Inc's Google and Justice Department lawyers must disclose factual evidence and experts reports. Lawyers for both sides had sought at least five additional months to prepare for trial.

Rhetoric over US debt limit boils over as Republicans, Democrats joust

Partisan sniping over raising U.S. borrowing authority ratcheted up on Friday when House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy accused President Joe Biden of ignoring the issue, even as Republicans have failed to detail budget cuts they want before allowing a debt limit increase. At a news conference in the U.S. Capitol, the Republican speaker attacked the Democratic president for not holding negotiating sessions with him since an initial meeting early last month.

Trump warns of 'death & destruction' if charged with a crime

Former U.S. President Donald Trump warned of potential "death & destruction" if he faces criminal charges, hours after New York prosecutors probing his hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels said they would not be intimidated. The early Friday post on Trump's Truth Social media site was the latest in a string of verbal attacks on Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg since last Saturday when Trump wrongly predicted he would be arrested three days later.

Kentucky governor vetoes bill targeting transgender youth

Kentucky's Democratic governor on Friday vetoed a Republican bill to ban transgender youths from gender-affirming healthcare and restrict public toilets they use, bucking a national Republican-led movement. Governor Andy Beshear, running in November for a second-term in Republican-leaning Kentucky, said the bill would increase youth suicides and permit excessive government interference in personal healthcare decisions.