US Domestic News Roundup: Biden brings '24 pitch to South Carolina as campaign scrutinized; Storm may not be wintry enough to end New York City's snow drought and more

Biden's trip, to the Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, where an avowed white supremacist gunned down nine Black parishioners in 2015, comes as his campaign sharpens its attacks on Donald Trump, the former president who is the frontrunner for the Republican Party's 2024 nomination. NRA, Wayne LaPierre head for New York graft trial after his resignation The corruption trial of the National Rifle Association and its longtime leader Wayne LaPierre is likely to begin on Monday in a Manhattan courtroom, just three days after LaPierre's sudden resignation as the gun rights group's chief executive.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Biden brings '24 pitch to South Carolina as campaign scrutinized

U.S. President Joe Biden takes his pitch for re-election to South Carolina, where Black voters helped propel him to the presidency, on Monday in a visit aimed at shoring up a critical constituency whose support has waned since he took office. Biden's trip, to the Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, where an avowed white supremacist gunned down nine Black parishioners in 2015, comes as his campaign sharpens its attacks on Donald Trump, the former president who is the frontrunner for the Republican Party's 2024 nomination.

NRA, Wayne LaPierre head for New York graft trial after his resignation

The corruption trial of the National Rifle Association and its longtime leader Wayne LaPierre is likely to begin on Monday in a Manhattan courtroom, just three days after LaPierre's sudden resignation as the gun rights group's chief executive. New York Attorney General Letitia James sued the NRA and LaPierre in August 2020, saying the group diverted millions of dollars to fund luxuries for top officials, including travel expenses for LaPierre to several resorts.

Storm may not be wintry enough to end New York City's snow drought

New York City's historic, two-year snow drought may not come to an end this weekend, despite the arrival of a winter storm system that began passing through the most populous U.S. city and across the East Coast on Saturday. The city's 8.5 million residents have not seen more than 1 inch (2.54 cm) of snow fall in Manhattan's Central Park since Feb. 13, 2022, a record-long streak of 692 days.

Top US Congress Democrat, Republican reach spending deal, starting race to pass it

The top Democrat and Republican in the U.S. Congress on Sunday agreed on a $1.59 trillion spending deal, setting up a race for bitterly divided lawmakers to pass the bills that would appropriate the money before the government begins to shut down this month. Since early last year, House of Representatives and Senate appropriations committees had been unable to agree on the 12 annual bills needed to fund the government for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1 because of disagreements over the total amount of money to be spent.

US defense secretary's hospitalization kept secret even from deputy

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's hospitalization was kept far more secret than previously known, officials disclosed on Sunday, adding his deputy to a long list of people right up to President Joe Biden who were kept in the dark for days. Austin, who is 70, was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center's Intensive Care Unit on New Year's Day after experiencing severe pain following a still-undisclosed elective medical procedure on Dec. 22.

US appeals court prevents California from banning guns in most public places

A federal appeals court on Saturday allowed a judge's ruling that barred California from enforcing a new law that bans the carrying of guns in most public places on the grounds that it was unconstitutional to take effect. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals dissolved an order by a different 9th Circuit panel from a week earlier that suspended an injunction issued by a judge who concluded the Democratic-led state's law violated the right of citizens to keep and bear arms under the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment.

Analysis-Unloved healthcare stocks draw investors despite US election risks

The U.S. healthcare sector is showing signs of life after lagging in 2023 as investors bet cheap valuations will offset a tendency to underperform during presidential election years. The S&P 500 healthcare sector has climbed about 6% since the start of December, doubling the gain of the broader index during that period. Its performance during 2023 overall was far less impressive, as it rose just 0.3% compared to the S&P 500's 24% jump.

Trump says he will attend federal appeals court arguments on presidential immunity

Donald Trump said he will be attending an appeals court hearing regarding the scope of his presidential immunity in Washington D.C. on Tuesday, in comments in a Truth Social post on Monday. "Of course I was entitled, as President of the United States and Commander in Chief, to Immunity," Trump said in the post.

US investigators retrieve 737 MAX jet panel, Boeing shares sink

U.S. officials have recovered a panel that blew off an Alaska Airlines airliner triggering a partial grounding of Boeing's 737 MAX 9 and sending shares in the planemaker tumbling on Monday. A door plug tore off on Friday following takeoff from Portland, Oregon, en route to Ontario, California, depressurizing the plane and forcing pilots to turn back.

Explainer-What Republicans and Democrats want to do on US-Mexico border security

Republicans in the U.S. Congress are blocking emergency funding for Ukraine and threatening to force a government shutdown in an effort to tighten security along the U.S.-Mexico border. WHY ARE REPUBLICANS FOCUSING ON BORDER SECURITY?