Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

White House issues new federal standards to collect data on race

The White House on Thursday announced new standards for collecting federal data on race and ethnicity, a decision that will touch organizations that receive federal funding, determine how congressional districts are drawn and whether equal employment policies can be enforced. The standards from the White House's Office of Management & Budget (OMB)- revised for the first time since 1997- requires federal agencies to use one combined question for race and ethnicity, encourages respondents to select multiple options on how they identify and adds Middle Eastern or North African as a new identification category.

US inflation increases moderately in February; consumer spending surges

U.S. prices increased moderately in February and the cost of services outside housing slowed considerably, keeping a June interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve on the table. The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index rose 0.3% last month, the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis said on Friday. Data for January was revised higher to show the PCE price index climbing 0.4% instead of 0.3% as previously reported.

Texas judge transfers lawsuit over card fees to Washington, D.C

A federal judge in a Texas court that has become a favorite for conservative challenges to Biden administration policies transferred a lawsuit challenging a rule curbing credit card late fees to a court in Washington, D.C. on Thursday. U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman said half of the business groups that sued are based in Washington, as are most of the lawyers representing them and the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which wrote the rule the groups are seeking to block.

Factbox-Major cases before the US Supreme Court this term

The U.S. Supreme Court's current term features major cases involving former President Donald Trump's ballot disqualification, his claim of immunity from prosecution, the abortion pill, gun rights, the power of federal agencies, social media regulation and Purdue Pharma's bankruptcy settlement. Here is a look at some of the rulings already issued, cases already argued and cases still to be argued this term.

Obama, Clinton on why Americans don't love the Biden economy

Former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton dug into an issue that has vexed economists, political strategists and the White House on Thursday - if the U.S.'s fiscal numbers are so good, why are Americans so unhappy about the economy? Speaking at a high-dollar fundraiser for President Joe Biden at New York's Radio City Music Hall, Obama and Clinton urged thousands there to stick with the Democratic president for a second term, while trying to pin down the reasons economic concerns are high despite job growth, healthy spending and better-than-expected GDP increases.

South Carolina voting map faulted for racial bias by court revived for 2024

A federal court that previously threw out a Republican-drawn South Carolina electoral map for bias against Black voters decided on Thursday that it can be used in this year's congressional elections, a ruling that could undercut Democratic chances of winning control of the U.S. House of Representatives. The federal three-judge panel acknowledged the "unusual" nature of its decision to reinstate a map that it found to have moved 30,000 Black residents out of a congressional district based on their race in violation of their constitutional rights.

Freighter pilot called for tugboat help before plowing into Baltimore bridge

The pilot of the cargo freighter that knocked down a highway bridge into Baltimore Harbor had radioed for tugboat help and reported a power loss minutes earlier, federal safety officials said on Wednesday, citing audio from the ship's "black box" data recorder. The head of the National Transportation Safety Board also said that Francis Scott Key Bridge, a traffic artery over the harbor built in 1976, lacked structural engineering redundancies common to newer spans, making it more vulnerable to a catastrophic collapse.

Immigrants killed in Baltimore bridge collapse died doing job 'others do not want to do'

They came to the United States for a chance at a better life. They found work filling pot holes on a bridge in the middle of the night, and they ended up dead in the Baltimore harbor. The six victims of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse were all immigrants from Mexico and Central America, doing the kind of grueling work that many immigrants take on, when a container ship crashed into a support pillar at 1:30 a.m. EDT on Tuesday (0530 GMT) and sent them plunging into the icy Patapsco River.

US House to deliver Homeland Secretary Mayorkas impeachment to Senate April 10

The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives will deliver two articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the Senate on April 10, House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Thursday. Mayorkas, who Republicans blame for record flows of migrants across the U.S.-Mexico border, was narrowly impeached by the House last month on allegations that he has not enforced U.S. immigration laws and has made false statements to Congress.

Kamala Harris pushes the envelope as Biden struggles with some Democrats

Hosting rapper Fat Joe at the White House to talk about reforming marijuana laws. Visiting an abortion clinic. Calling for a ceasefire in Gaza at the historic Selma bridge in Alabama. Walking the bloodstained crime scene of the Parkland, Florida, school shooting. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris has stepped out of the shadow of President Joe Biden in recent weeks as part of a high-profile effort to persuade the fractious coalition of voters who sent them to the White House to give them a second term.