US Domestic News Roundup: Biden heading to Maui to console wildfire survivors; The doctors, dentists and anthropologists striving to identify Maui's victims and more

Trump has for months suggested he would likely pass on Wednesday night's debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, arguing that it did not make sense to give his Republican rivals a chance to attack him given his sizeable lead in national polls. Meadows seeks dismissal of Georgia charges against him Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows is asking a federal court to dismiss Georgia state criminal charges against him stemming from former President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 U.S. presidential election, according to a court document.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Biden heading to Maui to console wildfire survivors

President Joe Biden's duty as consoler-in-chief will be put to the test on Monday when he visits Maui, nearly two weeks after wildfires swept through the Hawaiian island and killed more than 100 people. Biden will pause his vacation in Lake Tahoe to fly from Reno, Nevada, to Maui, where he and first lady Jill Biden will take a helicopter tour of the burned-out areas.

The doctors, dentists and anthropologists striving to identify Maui's victims

Inside a temporary morgue near the Maui County coroner's office, a team of specialists – including forensic pathologists, X-ray technicians, fingerprint experts and forensic dentists – labor 12 hours a day to identify the charred remains of the victims of this month's cataclysmic wildfire. They are members of the federal Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team program, or DMORT, deployed when a mass fatality incident overwhelms local authorities.

Bidens staying at Lake Tahoe home of climate activist Tom Steyer

President Joe Biden, his wife Jill, son Hunter and other family members have arrived at Lake Tahoe for a week of August vacation, and they are staying at a home rented from billionaire climate activist Tom Steyer. The Bidens arrived late on Friday in the Glenbrook community on the eastern shore of the lake, on the Nevada side. Steyer and his wife, Kat Taylor, own the home but are not present.

Tropical Storm Hilary releases fury on Southern California

The first tropical storm to hit Los Angeles in more than 80 years unleashed furious floods across parts of Southern California more accustomed to drought, as officials urged the public to stay safe as they began to count the cost of damage. The National Weather Service downgraded the hurricane to a tropical depression but not before California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for much of Southern California, with flash flood warnings until at least 3 a.m. (1000 GMT) on Monday.

US Senate Republican says Trump should drop out of presidential race

A prominent U.S. Senate Republican on Sunday said former President Donald Trump should drop out of the 2024 Republican White House race, arguing that Trump cannot win a general election contest against Democratic President Joe Biden. Senator Bill Cassidy, one of seven Senate Republicans who voted to convict Trump at the former president's second impeachment trial in 2021, described a federal documents case against Trump as "almost a slam dunk" and warned that voters would not elect someone convicted of a crime as president.

Biden administration to urge Americans get new COVID-19 boosters

The Biden administration plans to urge all Americans to get a booster shot for the coronavirus this autumn to counter a new wave of infections, a White House official said on Sunday. The official said that while the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are reporting an increase in infections and hospital admissions from the virus, overall levels remain low.

Trump says he won't take part in Republican debates

Former U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday said he would skip the upcoming Republican primary debates, citing his large lead in opinion polls as evidence that he was already well-known and liked by voters ahead of the 2024 election. Trump has for months suggested he would likely pass on Wednesday night's debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, arguing that it did not make sense to give his Republican rivals a chance to attack him given his sizeable lead in national polls.

Meadows seeks dismissal of Georgia charges against him

Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows is asking a federal court to dismiss Georgia state criminal charges against him stemming from former President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 U.S. presidential election, according to a court document. Meadows claims that his alleged actions, including participating with Trump in a phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, should be immune from state prosecution because they were performed in his capacity as a federal official.

Republican feud over 'root canal' spending cuts raises US gov't shutdown risk

A feud over spending cuts between hardline and centrist Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives raises the risk that the federal government will suffer its fourth shutdown in a decade this fall. Members of the hardline House Freedom Caucus are pushing to cut spending to a fiscal 2022 level of $1.47 trillion, $120 billion less than President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy agreed to in their May debt ceiling compromise.

Magnitude 5.1 quake strikes Southern California during tropical storm

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake hit Southern California north of Los Angeles on Sunday, rocking much of the region as residents hunkered down for the approach of Tropical Storm Hilary. There were no immediate reports of damage or injury from the quake, which struck at 2:41 p.m. local time (2141 GMT), roughly 7 km (4.35 miles) southeast of the Southern California community of Ojai in Ventura County. It was followed by several smaller aftershocks.