US Domestic News: Trump Conviction Sparks Controversy

A recent historic guilty verdict against Donald Trump has led to various reactions across the United States. Trump supporters protested by displaying inverted American flags, while Trump plans to appeal the conviction. The event has sparked calls for violence among his supporters and criticism from political figures like President Joe Biden.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Trump supporters turn US flags upside down to protest guilty verdict

Upside-down American flags emerged outside homes and on social media on Friday in support of Donald Trump after a New York jury returned a historic guilty verdict against the former Republican president. Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and country music singer Jason Aldean were among the prominent Americans to display the inverted flag, a symbol of distress or protest in America for over 200 years.

Texas top court won't guarantee right to abortion in complicated pregnancies

Texas' highest court on Friday refused to ensure that doctors in the U.S. state are not prosecuted for abortions they believe are necessary in medically complicated pregnancies, rejecting a lawsuit by 22 patients and physicians. The Texas Supreme Court's decision follows an earlier ruling from the court denying a woman's request for an emergency abortion of a non-viable pregnancy. In both cases, plaintiffs said the medical exception to the state's near-total abortion ban was unclear, and left doctors unwilling to perform medically necessary abortions in the face of severe penalties including potentially life in prison.

Biden calls criticism of Trump jury verdict 'dangerous, irresponsible'

President Joe Biden said on Friday that it was dangerous for people to question the integrity of the guilty verdict in Donald Trump's hush money jury trial. In his first public comments since a New York jury on Thursday found Trump guilty on 34 counts over a payment to silence a porn star ahead of the 2016 election, Biden, a Democrat, struck out hard at Trump and other Republicans who have criticized the verdict.

Agency approves plan to hike US stamp prices to 73 cents

A request by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to raise prices of first-class mail stamps to 73 cents from 68 cents effective July 14 has been approved, regulators said Friday. The plan, announced in April and approved by the Postal Regulatory Commission, will raise overall mailing services product prices by 7.8%. USPS said this month it is also seeking an average 25% price hike for high-volume shippers to enter packages for regional delivery through its Parcel Select service.

Trump supporters call for riots and violent retribution after verdict

Supporters of former President Donald Trump, enraged by his conviction on 34 felony counts by a New York jury, flooded pro-Trump websites with calls for riots, revolution and violent retribution. After Trump became the first U.S. president to be convicted of a crime, his supporters responded with dozens of violent online posts, according to a Reuters review of comments on three Trump-aligned websites: the former president's own Truth Social platform, Patriots.Win and the Gateway Pundit.

Senator Joe Manchin leaves Democrats, says US 'politics are broken'

Retiring U.S. Senator Joe Manchin, a frequent thorn in the side of the Democratic Party, on Friday left the Democrats, decrying "partisan extremism" as he followed in the footsteps of fellow former party maverick Senator Kyrsten Sinema. Like Sinema, Manchin registered as an independent. The 76-year-old West Virginia lawmaker's move will have no practical effect as he, like his Arizona colleague, will continue to caucus with Democrats, who hold a slim 51-49 majority in the Senate. Republicans, however, are seen as all but certain to win his seat in the Nov. 5 election.

Trump says he will appeal historic conviction

Donald Trump said on Friday he would appeal the guilty verdict that made him the first U.S. president convicted of a crime, though he will have to wait until after his sentencing on July 11 before taking that step. In rambling remarks at the Trump Tower lobby in Manhattan where he announced his first presidential run in 2015, Trump repeated his complaints that the trial was a "rigged" attempt to hobble his comeback White House bid and warned that it showed no American was safe from politically motivated prosecution.

Pro-Palestinian protesters occupy parts of Brooklyn Museum

Pro-Palestinian protesters took over parts of the Brooklyn Museum on Friday, hanging a banner above the main entrance, occupying much of the lobby and scuffling with police, witnesses said. Some arrests were made but a New York Police Department spokesperson said it would be hours before officials had an accurate count. The art museum in the New York City borough of Brooklyn said it closed an hour early due to the disruption.

An angry Trump vows to keep fighting after guilty verdict

Donald Trump stared down a bank of cameras inside Trump Tower on Friday and delivered a message fitting for both his legal and political battles: He is ready to fight. A day after a New York jury found him guilty of 34 counts related to falsifying documents to hide hush money payments to a porn star, the Republican presidential candidate rattled off a list of adversaries and grievances in angry, rambling remarks.

Analysis-After Trump's conviction, the jury is still out on political damage

Donald Trump made history on Thursday as the first former U.S. president convicted of a crime. But his ultimate judgment won't come until November when he faces America's voters, who have decidedly mixed feelings about voting for a felon. Prior to the trial, surveys conducted by Reuters/Ipsos and other outlets showed that some Republican and independent voters would consider refusing to vote for Trump, a Republican, if he were convicted of a felony.