Reuters US Domestic News Summary

A US federal judge has allowed Democratic-led states and voting rights groups to proceed with lawsuits challenging President Trump's executive order on mail-in voting ahead of November's elections.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

US judge allows challenges to Trump's mail-in voting order ahead of November elections

A federal judge in Boston on Thursday ruled that Democratic-led states and voting rights groups could proceed with lawsuits challenging U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order on mail-in voting ahead of November's elections.

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani could open the door to her blocking the order from being implemented ahead of midterm elections that are set to decide whether Republicans can retain control ​of Congress.

Exclusive-Meta lobbies Congress for protection from child-harm lawsuits

Meta Platforms has lobbied the U.S. Congress for legal immunity from child-harm claims tied to social media products such as Instagram, as it faces thousands of lawsuits from young users and their families, according to a source familiar with the matter and proposed legislative language reviewed by Reuters. If adopted by ​lawmakers and passed into law as part of the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) under consideration in the U.S. Senate, such a provision could undermine thousands of lawsuits against Meta and other online platforms over harms to children. Meta and ‌Google's YouTube face a combined $6 million in ​damages after they lost the first case at trial early this year.

Obama celebrates opening of his presidential museum with call to citizenship

Former U.S. President Barack Obama, celebrating a new museum and civic center dedicated to his eight years in the White House, called on Americans to resist the forces of political cynicism and division and instead embrace "our shared responsibilities as citizens." The 44th U.S. president, who left office nearly a decade ago, led a crowd of thousands on Thursday attending a music-filled grand opening of the Obama Presidential Center, a lakefront Chicago campus of granite, nature and art honoring and archiving his administration.

Exclusive-US diplomats depart Latin America-focused mission amid clashes with Trump ally

Several senior U.S. diplomats posted to the Organization of American States have quit or been fired amid clashes with a Trump-appointed ambassador, according to six sources familiar with the matter, changes that have cut the institutional expertise available to the historically important U.S. mission. Founded in 1948, the OAS is the Western Hemisphere's main multilateral forum and focuses on regional security, human rights, democracy and economic development. The Washington-based body has played a central role in settling contested elections in Latin America in ‌recent years and has often brought together U.S. allies in condemning human rights violations in authoritarian states like Cuba and Nicaragua.

Exclusive-White House delays release of US voting machine study as midterms near

White House officials have for months delayed the release of a U.S. government report that outlines what it describes as significant vulnerabilities in the nation's voting machines ahead of the November midterms, according to three sources familiar with the matter. The report, produced by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, concludes that voting machines could be further safeguarded by, for example, updating their software, the sources said. It does not say the vulnerabilities have led to votes flipping, but examines security gaps in how the machines are used during U.S. elections.

US extends flight limits at New York area airports

The Federal Aviation Administration on Thursday said it was extending flight limits at the three major New York City area airports, citing air traffic control to address congestion issues. The FAA said the limits will be extended at Newark Liberty International Airport through Summer 2027 and at New York's JFK and LaGuardia Airport through late October 2028. The FAA is also extending relief from minimum flight requirements at JFK, LaGuardia and Reagan Washington National Airport through late 2027.

Trump says 'we should stop' Utah mail-in voting

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that something should be done to stop mail-in voting in Utah ahead of the state's primaries next week. "It seems as though the Great State of Utah, which I won each time, and handily, is going to the All Mail In Ballot format of Colorado, and the rest, that always head LEFT, as soon as ‌the move is made," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Mangione, accused CEO killer, withdraws mental health defense plans for now

Luigi Mangione, the man accused of gunning down a health insurance executive on a Manhattan sidewalk, is for now withdrawing plans to argue at trial that he was undergoing an extreme mental health crisis at the time of the alleged killing, according to a Friday court filing. Mangione, 28, is accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a hotel in Midtown in December 2024. The brazen killing was widely condemned by public officials but became emblematic of Americans’ frustration with rising healthcare costs and health insurance industry practices.

US Supreme Court limits ban on gun ownership by marijuana users

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday limited the ‌application of a decades-old federal law that bars firearms possession by certain drug users, rejecting a position taken by President Donald Trump's administration that had threatened the gun rights of millions of Americans who use marijuana and own firearms. The justices, in a 9-0 ruling, upheld a lower court's decision to dismiss an illegal gun possession charge brought under the law at issue against Ali Hemani, an American-Pakistani dual citizen and Texas resident who told authorities he was a regular marijuana user.

Pentagon tells US lawmakers it needs $80 billion for Iran war and other bills, WSJ reports

The U.S. Department of Defense needs $80 billion to cover costs from the Iran war as well as other non-war-related bills, Deputy Defense Secretary Stephen Feinberg told lawmakers in phone calls this week, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. A full U.S. supplemental request, which will include money for the Pentagon as well as non-defense priorities such as farm and disaster relief, could be sent to lawmakers in the coming days, the newspaper added.

Golf-Tough start for Scheffler in bid for career Slam, play suspended due to darkness at US Open

Scottie Scheffler endured a shaky start in his bid for a career Grand Slam in first-round U.S. Open action on Thursday at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, as Americans Sam Stevens and Max McGreevy shared the clubhouse lead with amateur Ryder Cowan, all carding a two-under par 68 before play was suspended due to darkness. Scheffler, a two-time Masters winner, is making his first attempt at completing the career Grand Slam of golf's four majors after winning last year's PGA Championship and British Open but trailed the top of the leaderboard with a two-over par 72 after the first round.

Trump administration asks appeals court to let Kennedy pick vaccine panel members

The Trump administration is urging a U.S. appeals court to overturn a ruling that blocked Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s appointees from serving on a key vaccine advisory panel, ⁠saying the committee is unable to make ​annual recommendations on flu shots after a judge wrongly disabled it. The U.S. Department of Justice made that argument in a brief filed late on Wednesday before the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in its appeal ⁠of Boston-based U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy's March 16 ruling, which also blocked the panel from reducing the number of routinely recommended childhood vaccinations.

Sports cannot become a luxury, says Mamdani, outlining plans to air World Cup throughout New York

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani plans to put World Cup matches on hundreds of kiosks across the five boroughs, as the city's leader who ran on a platform of affordability says he wants to make sports more accessible to average fans. A selection of matches will air on the 55-inch LinkNYC digital screens that are scattered on street corners throughout the city and usually display ads or public service announcements.

Fed's Cook spent $1.2 million on legal services fighting firing by Trump

Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, who is fighting an effort by U.S. President Donald Trump to fire her over mortgage fraud allegations she says are untrue, disclosed on Thursday extensive payments associated with her legal case as well as payments made ⁠on her behalf for security work. Cook reported almost $1.2 million in legal services payments as her case has made its way up to the Supreme Court, in a filing made public by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics.

Republicans blast Trump's Iran agreement as details emerge

U.S. President Donald Trump's interim deal to end the Iran war met scorching public criticism from some of his fellow Republicans as copies of the signed agreement circulated on Capitol Hill on Thursday. One Republican senator called the framework pact announced this week the "worst foreign policy blunder in decades," another said some reported provisions seemed "ill-advised," and some pro-Republican commentators also broke with Trump over the agreement.

President of Wisconsin's largest mosque released from ICE detention

Islamic Society of Milwaukee President Salah Sarsour, a Palestinian American detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in March, was released from detention on Thursday after an order by a federal judge. "Mr. Sarsour has raised a 'substantial' ​First Amendment (free speech) retaliation claim, which could render his detention unlawful," U.S. District Court Judge James Patrick Hanlon said in the ruling on Thursday. The judge was appointed by President Donald Trump during his first term.

Texas's Camp Mystic had no evacuation plans on night of deadly floods, report finds

Camp Mystic, the Christian summer camp for girls in Texas where 28 people were killed in a 2025 flash flood, did not have written emergency evacuation plans and poorly trained its staff, according to a report released by the Texas Legislature on Thursday. With the proper plans and counselor training required by state law, there would have been time to evacuate the cabins and for campers to head ⁠to high ground safely on foot, the report concluded.

Euphoric Knicks fans flood New York for NBA championship ticker-tape parade

Delirious New York Knicks fans flooded the streets of Lower Manhattan on Thursday for a ticker-tape parade celebrating the newly crowned NBA champions, capping a dream season more than five decades after the team last won a title. The stretch of Broadway known as the "Canyon of Heroes" was a sea of orange and blue, as throngs of people gathered in the pre-dawn hours — with some camping out overnight — to secure a spot behind police barricades for what Mayor Zohran Mamdani said could be the largest parade in the city's history.

US weekly jobless claims stay elevated amid seasonal volatility, but labor market stable

The number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, but remained at slightly higher levels, suggesting some moderation in the pace of job growth in June. Economists largely shrugged off the report from the Labor Department on Thursday, with some pointing out that the recent elevation in claims ⁠was likely ​due to seasonal distortions related to the end of the school year. They viewed the labor market as remaining stable enough for the Federal Reserve to focus on stamping out inflation, stoked by the Iran war.

Trump administration may alter slavery exhibit at Philadelphia site, court says

A federal appeals court on Thursday overturned a judge's ruling that prevented President Donald Trump's administration from replacing a slavery exhibit in Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia. The ruling by the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a judge's injunction won by the city in February after the National Park Service removed an exhibit describing the ownership of enslaved people by George Washington, the first U.S. president.

Senator urges FAA to reject White House pressure to approve Trump arch

The top Democrat on the Senate aviation subcommittee urged the Federal Aviation Administration to reject White House pressure to approve President Donald Trump's proposed 259-foot (79-meter) tall Independence Arch, saying it could pose risks to commercial flights. "The FAA must commit to upholding the highest safety standards and be firm in rejecting any improper or irresponsible pressure from President Trump to prioritize the construction of his gaudy, vanity arch over the safety of the American people," Senator Tammy Duckworth wrote FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford in a letter on Thursday.

Biggest ever US clean energy project is complete after nearly two decades

The biggest ever U.S. clean energy infrastructure project, an $11 billion wind farm and transmission line in New Mexico, is fully operational after nearly two decades of permitting and construction, owner Pattern Energy Group said on Thursday. SunZia is a 3,650-megawatt wind farm ⁠and 550-mile (885-km) transmission line that will carry power from central New Mexico to south-central Arizona. About two-thirds of the electricity will then be sent west to customers in California.

Lastest Fed financial disclosures an exercise in contrasts

The latest round of Federal Reserve financial disclosures is coming with an unusually wide range of granularity. Take the filing made public Thursday dealing with Fed Governor Lisa Cook. In the document, the official reported over a million dollars in expenditures associated with her still unresolved fight to stop President Donald Trump from firing her.

US military says three killed in its strike on vessel in Eastern Pacific

The U.S. military said on Thursday its strike on a vessel in the Eastern Pacific killed three males, marking the ⁠latest such attack that human rights groups call extrajudicial killings and Washington casts as targeting of "narco-terrorists." Here are some details:

Dali chief engineer reaches deferred prosecution deal over 2024 Key bridge collapse

The chief engineer of the cargo ship Dali that ⁠destroyed Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge in a March 2024 collision that killed six construction workers reached a deferred prosecution agreement, the government said on Thursday. The Justice Department said Karthikeyan Deenadayalan admitted to failing to report a hazardous condition to the U.S. Coast Guard, including that he was aware the 984-foot ship used an unsafe fuel supply pump. Last month, a federal grand jury indicted two foreign operators and a shoreside superintendent in the incident.

The paint is already peeling in Trump's renovated Washington Reflecting Pool

The paint on Washington's newly renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on Thursday was peeling away from the bottom and into the algae-tinted water, less than two weeks after President Donald Trump announced the job's completion. The historic pool was drained and refinished in a $14.7 million no-bid contract this year as part of Trump's sweeping plans to remake the U.S.'s capital city, which includes tearing down the East Wing of the White House to make space for a new ballroom and building a massive arch near Arlington National Cemetery, which honors the nation's war dead and other prominent Americans.

US ICE says detainees at 'Alligator Alcatraz' detention center are relocated

Detainees at Florida's "Alligator Alcatraz" ‌migrant detention center have been relocated to other facilities, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency said on Thursday, citing the arrival of the hurricane ‌season. Here are some details:

US court rules Ohio can restrict children's use of social media

Ohio can implement a law requiring social media companies, including Meta Platforms' Instagram, to obtain parental consent before allowing children under 16 to use their platforms, a U.S. appeals court ruled on Thursday. A 2-1 panel of the Cincinnati-based 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a lower-court ruling that had put the law ​on hold at the request of the tech industry trade group NetChoice. The panel found the law did not violate free speech protections under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.