Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Selig is currently chief counsel for the Securities and Exchange Commission's crypto task force and an adviser to Trump's Republican SEC chair Paul Atkins. Exclusive-Trump approval falls to lowest of his term over prices and Epstein files, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds President Donald Trump's approval rating fell to 38%, the lowest since his return to power, with Americans unhappy about his handling of the high cost of living and the investigation into the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Kennedy ally Calley Means joins Trump administration permanently as food, nutrition adviser

Calley Means, a close aide to U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is taking a permanent post in the Trump administration, the Department of Health and Human Services said on Tuesday. Means, 40, served as an adviser in the Trump White House from March to October this year as a special government employee and has been particularly active in the Kennedy-led "Make America Healthy Again" movement.

Trump says his administration has started interviews for next Fed chair

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he was speaking with various people about the Federal Reserve chairman's job and had some unexpected candidates on the list of those who might replace Jerome Powell. "We have some surprising names and we have some standard names that everybody's talking about," Trump said when asked about the Fed search during an Oval Office appearance with visiting Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

US Congress approves release of Epstein files, putting matter before Trump

The Republican-controlled U.S. Congress voted almost unanimously on Tuesday to force the release of Justice Department files on the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, an outcome President Donald Trump had fought for months before ending his opposition. Two days after Trump's abrupt about-face, the House of Representatives passed the measure with a vote of 427-1, sending a resolution requiring the release of all unclassified records on Epstein to the Republican-majority Senate, which swiftly approved it. The bill could now go to Trump for his signature as soon as Wednesday.

US Senate sets December hearing for Trump's proposed NASA chief Isaacman

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee said on Tuesday it will hold a hearing on the nomination of Jared Isaacman to be administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration on December 3.

Trump administration announces steps in dismantling Education Department

U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is taking steps to dismantle the Department of Education, the White House said on Tuesday, as it moves to shrink the federal government's role in schooling in favor of more control by the states. As part of the effort, the department announced new partnerships with the four other federal departments - Labor, State, Interior, Health and Human Services - to share or transfer some of the functions it currently performs.

Loose wire led to power outage before March 2024 Baltimore ship crash, NTSB says

The NTSB said on Tuesday a loose wire caused a power failure on the 984-foot cargo ship Dali, leading to its March 2024 collision with Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge that killed six construction workers and destroyed the span. The investigation found a single loose wire in the electrical system caused a breaker to unexpectedly open, launching a sequence of events that led to two vessel blackouts and a loss of propulsion and steering.

Trump warns against AI 'overregulation,' says US needs to have one federal standard

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday the U.S. must have one federal standard for regulating artificial intelligence, saying the technology risked being over-regulated if each American state came up with its own standard. "Overregulation by the States is threatening to undermine this Growth Engine," Trump said on social media.

US data center demand raising power risks this winter, regulator says

Rising power demand driven by data centers is shrinking U.S. electricity supplies and increasing the risk of energy shortages if extreme winter weather strikes this year, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation said on Tuesday. The swift proliferation of data centers in the U.S., along with the electrification of buildings and transportation, is driving up electricity use across the country faster than new power supplies are added to the grid. That dwindling supply can raise the possibility of power shortfalls in extremely cold weather, when energy-intensive heating systems increase overall demand.

Spirit Airlines unions agree to pay cuts for flight attendants, pilots

The unions representing Spirit Airlines pilots and flight attendants said on Tuesday that they have reached an agreement with the company for pay and benefits cuts as the carrier tries to rein in costs as part of its ongoing Chapter 11 restructuring process. The amended collective bargaining agreements, which are subject to member and court approval, include snapbacks timed for when the ultra-low-cost-carrier expects to be profitable again. Spirit filed for bankruptcy for the second time in a year in August; it said it expects to report losses until 2027.

Larry Summers resigns from OpenAI board after Epstein emails

Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers has resigned from the OpenAI board, he said on Wednesday, several days after Congress released documents that showed Summers shared a close relationship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Summers, also a former president of Harvard University, said on Monday he would step back from all public commitments, adding that the move was to allow him "to rebuild trust and repair relationships with the people closest to me."

US charges ex-investment banker, 7 others in global insider-trading scheme

U.S. prosecutors on Tuesday unveiled charges against eight men accused of belonging to a global network that made tens of millions of dollars trading on inside information about the finances and merger plans of numerous companies for years. Federal prosecutors in Boston said the insider trading scheme ran from 2016 to 2024 and was led by Samy Khouadja, a former Merrill Lynch banker in France; Eamma Safi, who co-owned a French restaurant with Khouadja; and Singapore citizen Zhi Ge.

US unemployment rolls swelled between mid-September and mid-October

The number of Americans on jobless benefits surged between mid-September and mid-October, government data showed on Tuesday, suggesting an elevated unemployment rate in October as an uncertain economic environment discourages hiring. The Labor Department only published the so-called continuing claims data for the weeks ending October 11 and 18. The government would have surveyed businesses and households for October's employment report during the week ending October 18.

Senate to grill Trump's pick for CFTC head on crypto regulation

U.S. senators are set on Wednesday to press Michael Selig, President Donald Trump's nominee to lead the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, about his plans to overhaul cryptocurrency regulations and election betting, among other hot-button issues. Selig is currently chief counsel for the Securities and Exchange Commission's crypto task force and an adviser to Trump's Republican SEC chair Paul Atkins.

Exclusive-Trump approval falls to lowest of his term over prices and Epstein files, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds

President Donald Trump's approval rating fell to 38%, the lowest since his return to power, with Americans unhappy about his handling of the high cost of living and the investigation into the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found. The four-day poll, which concluded on Monday, comes as Trump's grip on his Republican Party shows signs of weakening.

US Thanksgiving dinner cost drops for third year, Farm Bureau says

The cost of a Thanksgiving dinner for 10 will be lower for a third straight year thanks to steep discounting in turkey prices, but about half the items that grace a typical U.S. holiday table are pricier than last year, a survey out on Wednesday shows. The American Farm Bureau Federation's annual supermarket survey of a Thanksgiving dinner estimated the cost of a holiday meal for 10 this year would be $55.18, down 5% from 2024 and the lowest since 2021.

Wall Street regulator drops emphasis on crypto sector exams for 2026

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday dropped its emphasis on the oversight of companies offering crypto asset-related services as part of its priorities for examining Wall Street firms for the current fiscal year, according to an annual statement published by the agency. The SEC's Division of Examinations, which scrutinizes the legal compliance of investment advisers, broker-dealers, clearing agencies, stock exchanges and others, said it would focus on fiduciary duty, standards of conduct, and asset custody as well as new requirements for customer data privacy, among other subjects.

Court blocks new Texas congressional map drawn by Republicans

A federal court on Tuesday blocked Texas from using a new congressional map intended to flip several Democratic-held U.S. House of Representatives seats to Republicans in the 2026 midterm elections, faulting Governor Greg Abbott for directing the legislature to draw it based on race. The 2-1 ruling by a three-judge panel dealt a major blow to Texas Republicans who had been urged by President Donald Trump to redraw the boundaries of state congressional districts to maximize the number of Republicans who could be elected and protect his party's narrow U.S. House majority.

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