US Domestic News Roundup; Nikki Haley to end White House bid, clearing path for a Trump-Biden rematch; Biden's post-Super Tuesday message: It's Trump or me, folks and more

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

US SEC to vote on long-awaited overhaul of corporate climate disclosure rules

Wall Street's top regulator will vote on Wednesday whether to adopt rules that could overhaul requirements for U.S.-listed companies to report climate-related risks. The proposed U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rules aim to standardize climate-related company disclosures about greenhouse gas emissions, risks and how much money they are spending on the transition to a low-carbon economy. The agency says such information is important for investors.

'Rust' armorer manslaughter trial set for closing arguments

Closing arguments were expected on Wednesday in the manslaughter trial of "Rust" weapons handler Hannah Gutierrez for the 2021 fatal shooting of the movie's cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins. Ten days of testimony have focused on whether the young, relatively inexperienced armorer endangered fellow crew and cast members in her handling and supervision of firearms on the low-budget production set in New Mexico.

From dutiful to defiant: The evolution of Nikki Haley's failed presidential campaign

For much of her 2024 presidential campaign, Nikki Haley spoke fondly of serving under former President Donald Trump for two years as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Trump, she often told voters, was "the right president at the right time."

US VP Harris heads to Wisconsin to sell 'Bidenomics'

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris travels to Wisconsin on Wednesday to trumpet White House economic policies as she and President Joe Biden struggle to convince voters to give them more credit for U.S. economic strength. Harris will make a stop in Madison, a college town filled with young voters critical to Biden and Harris's re-election efforts, to talk about apprenticeship programs and "good-paying union jobs," the White House said.

Analysis-Discontent over immigration and the economy fuel Trump's Super Tuesday romp

Donald Trump is sailing into battle against President Joe Biden powered by anger over the two policy issues that have driven his comeback campaign so far: immigration and the economy. Trump came close to sweeping the board in the 16 "Super Tuesday" Republican primary races, putting him on the verge of clinching the party's nomination and allowing him to train his full fire on Biden ahead of the November election.

Patients or payroll? US healthcare hack creates hard choices

Nearly two weeks after the ransomware attack on UnitedHealth's Change Healthcare unit that has disrupted claims processing across the U.S., doctors are beginning to face a no win choice - stop treating patients or stop paying staff. The attack, which was disclosed on Feb. 21, shut down the system that many doctors depend on to verify insurance coverage, file claims and get paid, sparking a campaign by hospitals and doctors for the U.S. government to provide financial relief as it did during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nikki Haley to end White House bid, clearing path for a Trump-Biden rematch

Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley will suspend her presidential campaign on Wednesday, according to a source familiar with her plans, ensuring that Donald Trump will win the Republican nomination and once again face Democratic President Joe Biden in November's election. Haley will give a speech at 10 a.m. local time (1500 GMT) to address her future in the race, the source said, but she will not make an endorsement at that time. She will urge Trump to try to win the backing of her supporters, which include a significant chunk of moderate Republicans and independent voters, the source added.

Biden's post-Super Tuesday message: It's Trump or me, folks

Now that Donald Trump has all but sealed the Republican nomination to run for the White House, President Joe Biden will try to sharpen the contrast between the two men and their vision for America. Biden, 81, and his reelection team have spent the past months crisscrossing the U.S. to raise money and tout his legislative accomplishments.

OpenAI, Microsoft AI tools generate misleading election images, researchers say

Image creation tools powered by artificial intelligence from companies including OpenAI and Microsoft can be used to produce photos that could promote election or voting-related disinformation, despite each having policies against creating misleading content, researchers said in a report on Wednesday. The Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), a nonprofit that monitors online hate speech, used generative AI tools to create images of U.S. President Joe Biden laying in a hospital bed and election workers smashing voting machines, raising worries about falsehoods ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November.

US officials face tough choices for subsidizing AI chip manufacturing

U.S. officials have earmarked close to $30 billion in subsidies for advanced semiconductor manufacturing, aiming to bring cutting-edge artificial-intelligence chip development and manufacturing to American soil. But with money set to start flowing in the next few weeks, accomplishing that goal is far from certain, industry experts say. The Biden administration must weigh how much taxpayer money to allocate among Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, a powerful foreign leader, and Intel, a beleaguered homegrown company whose turnaround efforts remain promising but untested.

(With inputs from agencies.)