US Domestic News Roundup: Biden will not face charges over classified papers, says 'memory is fine'; Nikki Haley is on a losing streak, but donors still see her as a hedge against Trump and more

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Biden will not face charges over classified papers, says 'memory is fine'

An "elderly" President Joe Biden will not face charges for knowingly taking classified documents when he left the vice presidency in 2017, a prosecutor said on Thursday, drawing a swift rebuke from the president as he seeks reelection. Special Counsel Robert Hur said in a report that he opted against bringing criminal charges following a 15-month investigation because Biden cooperated and would be difficult to convict, describing him as a "well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory."

Nikki Haley is on a losing streak, but donors still see her as a hedge against Trump

Nikki Haley finished a disappointing third in the Iowa Republican nominating contest and a distant second in New Hampshire, while in Nevada - where she was the only candidate in Tuesday's primary - she finished behind ballots marked "none of these candidates." And if opinion polls are correct, the 52-year-old former South Carolina governor faces certain defeat to Republican frontrunner Donald Trump, 77, in her home state on Feb. 24.

Trump wins Nevada, Virgin Islands to close in on Republican nomination

Donald Trump won Republican presidential nominating caucuses in Nevada and the U.S. Virgin Islands on Thursday, moving closer to becoming his party's White House standard-bearer in a likely general election rematch with U.S. President Joe Biden in November. Trump, the frontrunner in his party's nominating race, was the only major candidate competing in Nevada's caucuses and was set to win the state's 26 delegates to the party's nominating convention in July after being projected the winner on Thursday night by Edison Research.

Bruised and betrayed, Nikki Haley defies Trump juggernaut

These are testing times for Nikki Haley. The ex-envoy to the U.N. has been abandoned by allies and become an outsider in her own party. She has lost a primary where she was the only name on the ballot. The storm has come to her doorstep, with her home targeted by "swatting" hoaxes.

US confronts dangers from 'not very good' Iran-backed militants

More than a month before a deadly drone strike that killed three U.S. soldiers in Jordan, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin sought to reassure U.S. troops about the military's ability to withstand attacks by Iran-backed militants. Austin, in previously unpublished remarks to sailors aboard the Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier on Dec. 20, said the number one reason the militants had failed to that point was that "they're not very good at what they do."

Explainer-What is next for Donald Trump at the US Supreme Court?

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday seemed poised to rule in favor of former President Donald Trump in a legal fight over whether he is eligible to remain on the ballot as he seeks to regain the presidency despite his actions around the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack by his supporters. It may not be the only Trump case the court will consider this election year. Trump also is expected to go to the Supreme Court by Monday to contest a lower court's decision rejecting his claim of immunity from criminal charges related to his attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss.

Putin, in rare US interview, says Russia has no interest in wider war

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview that aired on Thursday that Russia will fight for its interests "to the end" but has no interest in expanding its war in Ukraine to other countries such as Poland and Latvia. In his first interview with an American journalist since before Russia's invasion of Ukraine nearly two years ago, Putin said Western leaders had come to realize it was impossible inflict a strategic defeat on Russia and were wondering what to do next.

Massachusetts student fights 'two genders' shirt ban in US appeals court

A federal appeals court on Thursday appeared skeptical that a Massachusetts middle school violated a student's right to free speech by requiring him to stop wearing a T-shirt that said, "There are only two genders." A lawyer for Liam Morrison, 13, told the three judges of a 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel in Boston that officials at the Nichols Middle School in Middleborough violated the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment by censoring him when he expressed a view opposing its pro-LGBTQ stances.

Trump ballot disqualification bid gets skeptical US Supreme Court reception

Donald Trump appeared to be headed for a big legal victory at the U.S. Supreme Court as the justices on Thursday signaled their readiness to reject a judicial decision kicking the former president off the ballot in Colorado for taking part in an insurrection during the 2021 Capitol attack. The nine justices heard about two hours of arguments in Trump's appeal of a Dec. 19 ruling by Colorado's top court to disqualify him from the state's Republican March 5 primary ballot under the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment after finding that he participated in an insurrection.

NFL-Super Bowl ticket prices surge, on pace to be most expensive ever

Super Bowl ticket buyers are facing a price surge for Sunday's championship game owing to the dazzling, neon-lit setting of first-time host Las Vegas and 49ers fans' hopes to reverse their 2020 loss to the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs. Ticket resale platform StubHub predicted it could end up as the most expensive Super Bowl ever with the average ticket price sold around $8,600, slightly above the price for the Los Angeles Super Bowl two years ago.

(With inputs from agencies.)