Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Trump's campaign is reaching out to Republican state parties to push for the changes, as party officials set the parameters for contests that kick off early next year ahead of the Nov. 5, 2024 presidential election. Court says Trump must face New York civil fraud claims, tosses case against Ivanka A New York appeals court on Tuesday rejected Donald Trump's bid to end the state attorney general's lawsuit accusing him and his family business of "staggering" fraud, but dismissed all claims against his daughter Ivanka Trump and said the remaining case may be limited further.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

US Supreme Court backs man who sent female musician flood of unwanted messages

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday threw out the stalking conviction of a Colorado man who sent a barrage of unwanted messages to a female musician in a case involving constitutional free speech protections, ruling that prosecutors had not shown he understood the "threatening nature" of his words. The 7-2 decision, authored by liberal Justice Elena Kagan, vacated a lower court's ruling that had rejected defendant Billy Counterman's claim that his messages to Denver singer-songwriter Coles Whalen were protected under the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment. Whalen said he sent thousands of disturbing and threatening messages over two years to her personal and public Facebook accounts, some suggesting he had seen her in public.

Acting US Labor chief Su opponents undeterred after port worker deal

Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su's nomination to officially lead that agency is at risk even after she helped negotiate a crucial contract deal between U.S. West Coast seaport employers and the union representing 22,000 workers this month. The criticism from Republican opponents in the U.S. Congress is tied to her work as California's labor commissioner from 2011 through 2018 to classify gig workers as employees. Last week, 33 Republicans urged President Joe Biden to pull her nomination as labor chief, citing her work on that California state law.

Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol attack preceded by intelligence agency failures -Senate report

A new report detailing intelligence failures leading up to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol said government agencies responsible for anticipating trouble downplayed the threat - even as the building was being stormed in an attempt to stop Congress' certification of Joe Biden as the 46th president.

The 105-page report, issued Tuesday by Democrats on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, said intelligence personnel at the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and other agencies ignored warnings of violence in December 2020.

Georgia election official Raffensperger to speak with Jan. 6 investigators

Georgia's top election official, Brad Raffensperger, is scheduled on Wednesday to answer questions from federal investigators examining former President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, a spokesperson for Raffensperger's office said. Raffensperger, Georgia's Republican secretary of state, will likely be asked about a phone call he received from Trump in January 2021, in which Trump was recorded asking Raffensperger to "find" enough votes to reverse President Joe Biden's victory in the state.

US judge says Trump's NY criminal case likely belongs in state court

A U.S. judge on Tuesday said he would likely decline former U.S. President Donald Trump's bid to move from state to federal court a criminal case stemming from a hush money payment to a porn star. Trump's lawyers say federal court is the proper venue for the case, arguing that his actions were related to his presidency. The Manhattan District Attorney's office, which brought the charges, says the case has nothing to do with any presidential act and should remain in state court.

US Supreme Court rejects bid to give lawmakers unchecked power over elections

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday rebuffed a legal theory favored by many conservatives that could hand sweeping power to state legislatures to establish rules for presidential and congressional elections and draft electoral maps giving huge advantages to the party already in control. The justices, in a 6-3 decision authored by conservative Chief Justice John Roberts, ruled against Republican state legislators in a case arising from a legal fight over their map of North Carolina's 14 U.S. House of Representatives districts. The state's top court last year blocked the map as unlawfully biased against Democratic voters.

Trump team lobbying for primary rule changes to boost his 2024 chances

Former President Donald Trump is leveraging his connections to loyalists in key primary states to lobby for voting rules and dates that could cement his front-runner status in the race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, his team and sources in several states told Reuters. Trump's campaign is reaching out to Republican state parties to push for the changes, as party officials set the parameters for contests that kick off early next year ahead of the Nov. 5, 2024 presidential election.

Court says Trump must face New York civil fraud claims, tosses case against Ivanka

A New York appeals court on Tuesday rejected Donald Trump's bid to end the state attorney general's lawsuit accusing him and his family business of "staggering" fraud, but dismissed all claims against his daughter Ivanka Trump and said the remaining case may be limited further. Attorney General Letitia James' civil case filed last September accused Trump of lying from 2011 to 2021 about asset values, including for his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida and Trump Tower penthouse in Manhattan, as well as his own net worth, to obtain better terms from lenders and insurers.

Four more arrested in smuggling incident that killed 53 migrants in Texas

U.S. officials in Texas have arrested four Mexicans who were indicted on suspicion of operating a human smuggling ring responsible for the deaths a year ago of 53 migrants packed into a truck during sweltering heat, the Justice Department said on Tuesday. Dozens of migrants from Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras were found in a tractor-trailer with malfunctioning air conditioning that was abandoned on the outskirts of San Antonio on June 27, 2022, a day when temperatures soared as high as 103 Fahrenheit (39.4 Celsius).

Over $200 billion likely stolen from U.S. COVID relief programs, watchdog says

Over $200 billion from the U.S. government's COVID-19 relief programs were likely stolen, a federal watchdog said on Tuesday, adding that the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) had weakened its controls in a rush to disburse the funds.

At least 17% of all funds related to the government's coronavirus Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) schemes were disbursed to potentially fraudulent actors, according to a report released Tuesday by the SBA's office of inspector general.