Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

US House votes to force weapons shipments to Israel, rebuking Biden

The Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill on Thursday that would force President Joe Biden to send weapons to Israel, seeking to rebuke the Democrat for delaying bomb shipments as he urges Israel to do more to protect civilians during its war with Hamas. The Israel Security Assistance Support Act was approved 224 to 187, largely along party lines. Sixteen Democrats joined most Republicans in voting yes, and three Republicans joined most Democrats in opposing the measure.

Trump's lawyer accuses Michael Cohen of lying at hush money trial

Donald Trump's lawyer on Thursday accused star witness Michael Cohen of lying at the former U.S. president's trial about a phone conversation he claimed to have had with Trump about a hush money payment to a porn star shortly before the 2016 presidential election. Trump's lawyer Todd Blanche said the phone conversation was about harassment from a prank caller and not, as Cohen had asserted in previous testimony, about a $130,000 payment that bought the silence of porn star Stormy Daniels at the center of the month-long trial.

Dow tops 40,000, Biden trolls Trump in split-screen video

The Dow topped 40,000 for the first time on Thursday in an all-time high, giving U.S. President Joe Biden an opening to prove his Republican election rival's 2020 predictions wrong. The state of the U.S. economy looms as one of the larger factors weighing on the Democratic president's bid for reelection. Persistently high prices have hindered Biden's efforts to win credit from voters for his handling of the economy, although inflation in recent months has been easing.

Properly cooked hamburgers pose no bird flu risk, US study finds

No bird flu virus was found after cooking ground beef to medium to well done, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a briefing on Thursday after conducting a study as it addresses concerns over an outbreak of the disease in dairy cattle. The findings, in which scientists injected high levels of an H5N1 bird flu virus surrogate into ground beef, indicate that properly cooking hamburgers to a temperature of about 145 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit (63 to 71 degrees Celsius) keeps them safe for consumers.

Texas governor pardons man convicted of murdering Black Lives Matter protester

Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Thursday granted a full pardon to a former U.S. Army sergeant and Uber driver who was convicted of murder and sentenced to 25 years in prison for fatally shooting a Black Lives Matter protester in 2020. Abbott, a Republican, in his pardon proclamation cited the state's "Stand Your Ground" self-defense law, one of the strongest such measures in the U.S.

US unveils proposal to ease restrictions on marijuana

The U.S. Justice Department on Thursday unveiled a historic proposal to ease restrictions on marijuana, a rule that if enacted would also enable more research on its medicinal benefits. The proposal, first announced in April, would reclassify cannabis from a so-called schedule one drug to a schedule three. Schedule one drugs, such as heroin, are considered highly addictive with no medical benefits, while schedule three drugs are considered to have a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence.

Oil, gas groups sue to block US rule raising drilling fees on public lands

Fossil fuel groups have sued the U.S. Bureau of Land Management seeking to block a rule that will raise fees for oil and gas development on federal lands as a part of the U.S. government's broader effort to boost returns and address environmental harms stemming from drilling on public lands. The Western Energy Alliance, a trade group representing oil and gas companies that drill on federal lands in the western U.S., and several other industry groups sued the agency, which comes under the Interior Department, in Wyoming federal court on Wednesday. They argued the rule will deter future oil and gas development, violating the government's obligation to promote such development.

Garland swings back at House Republicans over attacks on US Justice Dept

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland on Thursday criticized what he called "unfounded attacks" on the Justice Department by congressional Republicans as he rejected their request for audio recordings of a special counsel interview with President Joe Biden. In a letter to the chairmen of the House of Representatives Judiciary and Oversight committees, the Justice Department said the Biden administration was asserting executive privilege, a legal doctrine that shields certain executive branch records from disclosure, over the audio recordings of Biden's interview with Special Counsel Robert Hur over his retention of classified records.

US to speed up immigration cases of recent border crossers in new program

The Biden administration will speed up the immigration court cases of some single adults caught illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border under a new program announced on Thursday, part of a broader effort to reduce illegal immigration in the run-up to Nov. 5 elections, senior administration officials said. Single adults with court dates heading to five cities - Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City - could be placed in a "recent arrivals docket," senior administration officials said on a call with reporters. U.S. immigration judges will aim to resolve their claims for asylum in 180 days instead of a process that can now take years because of major backlogs, the officials said.

Biden signs sweeping aviation safety, reform bill into law

President Joe Biden on Thursday signed sweeping aviation legislation to boost U.S. air traffic controller staffing, increase funding to avert runway close-call incidents and speed refunds for canceled flights. The $105 billion, five-year measure prohibits airlines from charging fees for families to sit together, requires airplanes to be equipped with 25-hour cockpit recording devices bill and raises maximum civil penalties for airline consumer violations from $25,000 per violation to $75,000.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)