Reuters US Domestic News Summary

The justices granted a request by Idaho officials to temporarily lift a federal judge's ruling that blocked the state's abortion measure after concluding it must yield to a federal law that ensures that patients can receive emergency "stabilizing care." Key quotes from US President Biden's Jan. 6 democracy speech U.S. President Joe Biden had scathing criticism of his likely 2024 election opponent Donald Trump and the Republicans who follow him in a speech on Friday commemorating the third anniversary of the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, attacks on the U.S. Capitol by Trump loyalists.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Trump seeks 'revenge and retribution' Biden says in Jan. 6 anniversary speech

Joe Biden on Friday accused Republican Donald Trump, his likely 2024 election opponent, of instigating the Jan. 6 attacks and plotting revenge on those seeking to punish him, as the president put the future of U.S. democracy at the center of his bid for re-election. "He told the crowd to fight like hell. And all hell was unleashed," Biden said of the 2021 attack. "Then as usual he left the dirty work to others. He retreated to the White House."

US Supreme Court to hear Trump appeal of Colorado ballot disqualification

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear Donald Trump's appeal of a judicial decision barring the former president from the state's Republican primary ballot, taking up a politically explosive case with major implications for the 2024 presidential election. At issue is the Colorado Supreme Court's Dec. 19 ruling disqualifying Trump from the state's primary ballot based on language in the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment for engaging in insurrection, involving the Jan. 6, 2021, attack by his supporters on the U.S. Capitol.

Powerful NRA chief LaPierre resigns ahead of New York corruption trial

Wayne LaPierre resigned as leader of the National Rifle Association on Friday, ending a long career during which the NRA became one of the most powerful lobbies in Washington, only to see its prestige tarnished by corruption allegations and a bankruptcy filing. LaPierre, 74, chief executive since 1991, steps down just as New York state Attorney General Letitia James brings a corruption trial against the NRA, due to begin in state Supreme Court on Monday. James had been seeking LaPierre's removal from office, but he is still among four individual defendants in the case and is expected to testify.

CDC says JN.1 variant accounts for about 62% of COVID cases in US

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday that COVID subvariant JN.1 accounts for about 62% of cases in the U.S. as of Jan. 5, according to the agency's projections. The agency said JN.1, which is an offspring of BA.2.86, is now the most widely circulated variant in the U.S. and globally.

Trump should be banned from NY real estate for 'outrageous' fraud, attorney general says

Donald Trump should be permanently barred from New York's real estate industry for "outrageous" fraud, the state's attorney general said in a court filing on Friday ahead of closing arguments in a civil case against the former U.S. president. Attorney General Letitia James and lawyers for Trump and the other defendants filed their final briefs ahead of closing arguments scheduled for next Thursday in Manhattan in a case that threatens to strip him of prized real estate assets.

Colorado officer sentenced to 14 months in jail in killing of Elijah McClain

A former Colorado police officer was sentenced to 14 months in jail for his role in the 2019 killing of Elijah McClain, a young Black man who was not suspected of any crime when police roughly restrained him and paramedics injected him with a powerful sedative. Former Aurora police officer Randy Roedema, 41, who faced up to three years in prison, was found guilty by a jury in October of criminally negligent homicide and third-degree assault. The same jury found fellow police officer Jason Rosenblatt, 35, not guilty in a joint trial.

White House official not optimistic about averting partial government shutdown

White House budget director Shalanda Young said Friday she is not optimistic about reaching a deal to avoid a partial government shutdown later this month. "I wouldn't say pessimistic but I'm not optimistic," Young said at a breakfast meeting with reporters sponsored by the Christian Science Monitor, citing a trip by House Republicans this week to the U.S.-Mexico border and comments by some lawmakers advocating for a partial shutdown with two weeks remaining. "The rhetoric this week has concerned me that (a shutdown) is the path that House Republicans are headed down."

Trailing Trump in Iowa, Haley touts foreign policy but VP question remains

Nikki Haley gave Iowa voters some tough talk on Friday over their scrambled eggs and sausage. It was Haley’s first campaign stop of 2024 in Iowa with only 10 days to go before the Republican Party's first-in-the nation presidential nominating contest there, and it came after rival Ron DeSantis has been in the state for days.

US Supreme Court to rule on Idaho's strict abortion ban in medical emergencies

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday let Idaho enforce its near-total abortion ban in medical-emergency situations while also agreeing to hear the fight between state officials and President Joe Biden's administration over the legality of the Republican-backed measure. The justices granted a request by Idaho officials to temporarily lift a federal judge's ruling that blocked the state's abortion measure after concluding it must yield to a federal law that ensures that patients can receive emergency "stabilizing care."

Key quotes from US President Biden's Jan. 6 democracy speech

U.S. President Joe Biden had scathing criticism of his likely 2024 election opponent Donald Trump and the Republicans who follow him in a speech on Friday commemorating the third anniversary of the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, attacks on the U.S. Capitol by Trump loyalists. Here are key excerpts: