US Domestic News Roundup: Analysis-Biden's IRA climate bill won't cut deficit as expected; U.S. lawmakers hope Ukraine can fight Russia with Russian assets and more

Biden and his wife, Jill, hosted a showing of "Flamin' Hot," a film directed by actress Eva Longoria, on the South Lawn of the White House for a crowd that included the film's cast, Latino leaders, and "Dreamers," who were not born in the U.S. but came to the country as children and know it as their home. Miami Mayor Suarez announces 2024 Republican presidential bid Miami Mayor Francis Suarez announced on Thursday he is running for president, joining a host of Republican candidates vying for the 2024 nomination days after front-runner Donald Trump faced federal charges in his city.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Brutal heat wave to scorch US South through holiday weekend

An oppressive heat wave settled over a wide swath of the U.S. South on Thursday, bringing record-breaking temperatures that topped 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) in many spots and creating dangerously hot conditions from Texas to Florida. At midday, more than 35 million people in southern Texas, Louisiana and Florida were under excessive heat warnings, watches and advisories extending through the three-day Juneteenth weekend, the National Weather Service said.

Analysis-Biden's IRA climate bill won't cut deficit as expected

When President Joe Biden signed his signature Inflation Reduction Act last August, he hailed the collection of green energy tax credits as a major victory for climate change, and flagged "another win" for the American people: cutting the deficit. "We're cutting the deficit to fight inflation by having the wealthy and big corporations pay part of their fair share," Biden said, while signing the bill. The White House estimated, and independent budget analysts agreed, it could cut the deficit by $300 billion over the next decade.

U.S. lawmakers hope Ukraine can fight Russia with Russian assets

Republican and Democratic members of the U.S. Congress introduced legislation on Thursday that would make it easier for Ukraine to fund its fight against Russian invaders by using seized and frozen Russian assets. The U.S. Congress has approved more than $100 billion in military, humanitarian and economic aid for Ukraine since Russia invaded in February 2022. While leaders of both parties insist U.S. support for the Kyiv government remains strong, some members of Congress have questioned how long that level of aid can continue amid calls to clamp down on government spending.

Texas panhandle town hit by tornado, deaths reported

The Texas panhandle town of Perryton was struck on Thursday by one or more tornadoes, causing fatalities, the mayor said, as images from the ground showed much of the town left in rubble by the twister as emergency crews searched for survivors.

"It's bad, it's very bad. It's non-stop crazy. It couldn't have hit in a more vulnerable place," Mayor Kerry Symons said by telephone, adding that he would be unable to say how many people had died until Friday morning.

Texas governor signs law shutting diversity offices at public universities

All state-funded colleges and universities in Texas will have to close their diversity, equity and inclusion offices under a measure signed into law by Texas Governor Greg Abbott. The law, which one of its sponsors in the Texas state Senate called the most significant ban on diversity offices in higher education in the country, comes as the U.S. Supreme Court later this month is widely expected to ban colleges and universities from considering race as a factor in their admissions decisions.

E. Jean Carroll defamation trial against Donald Trump set for January 2024

A federal judge on Thursday scheduled the writer E. Jean Carroll's second defamation trial against former U.S. President Donald Trump for next January. U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan said the civil trial, where the former Elle magazine columnist is seeking at least $10 million in damages, will began on Jan. 15, 2024, "unless this case has previously been entirely disposed of."

US grand jury indicts Pentagon leak suspect Teixeira, Justice Department says

A federal grand jury has indicted a U.S. Air National Guardsman accused of leaking top-secret military intelligence records online, the Justice Department said in a statement on Thursday. Jack Douglas Teixeira, 21, of North Dighton, Massachusetts, was indicted on six counts of willful retention and transmission of classified information relating to national defense, the statement said.

US energy department, other agencies hit in global hacking spree

The U.S. Department of Energy and several other federal agencies were hit in a global hacking campaign that exploited a vulnerability in widely used file-transfer software, officials said on Thursday. Data was "compromised" at two entities within the energy department when hackers gained access through a security flaw in MOVEit Transfer, the department said in a statement.

Biden pushes for 'Dreamers' to get US citizenship at 'Flamin' Hot' film showing

President Joe Biden on Thursday urged Congress to pass a law that would provide a pathway to U.S. citizenship for young people brought to the country illegally as children, using a White House movie night to underscore his support for Latinos. Biden and his wife, Jill, hosted a showing of "Flamin' Hot," a film directed by actress Eva Longoria, on the South Lawn of the White House for a crowd that included the film's cast, Latino leaders, and "Dreamers," who were not born in the U.S. but came to the country as children and know it as their home.

Miami Mayor Suarez announces 2024 Republican presidential bid

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez announced on Thursday he is running for president, joining a host of Republican candidates vying for the 2024 nomination days after front-runner Donald Trump faced federal charges in his city. Suarez, 45, released a campaign video titled "I'm Running," which showed him jogging around the south Florida city. He described his vision for a youthful, upbeat and cross-cultural campaign in an interview with Reuters.