US News Roundup: Trump visits medical center to start annual checkup; Buttigieg surges ahead of Democratic rivals in Iowa: poll

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Democratic presidential candidates court labor support in Nevada

Retired letter carrier Leslie Maxwell Burton has a message for Democratic presidential contenders campaigning in the early voting state of Nevada this weekend: She won't vote for anyone who tries to take away her hard-won union health plan. Labor's concerns about healthcare and other issues will be in the spotlight as most of the 18 candidates seeking the nomination attend the state party's annual fundraising reception in Las Vegas on Sunday and spend time courting union voters around Nevada.

Suspected gunman, 16, in California high school shooting dies in hospital

A teenage boy who killed two classmates and wounded three others at a southern California high school on his birthday before shooting himself in the head died on Friday of his wounds in hospital, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's office said. "Nathaniel Tennosuke Berhow, 16, a Junior at Saugus High School, was being treated for a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, when he succumbed to his injuries. His mother was present at the time of his passing," the sheriff's office said in a written statement.

Trump visits medical center to start annual checkup

U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday kicked off his annual physical exam with a visit to the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he underwent a quick exam and some laboratory tests, the White House said. "Anticipating a very busy 2020, the President is taking advantage of a free weekend here in Washington, D.C., to begin portions of his routine annual physical exam at Walter Reed," White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement.

In Trump-Nixon impeachment comparison, Pelosi raises specter of resignation

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is amplifying her unfavorable comparison of President Donald Trump to fellow Republican Richard Nixon, saying that disgraced president at least cared enough about the country to leave office before his impeachment. The top Democrat in Congress told reporters last week that Trump's pressure on Ukraine to investigate one of his potential opponents in the 2020 election "makes what Nixon did look almost small."

Thousands could be impacted by PG&E's upcoming potential power cuts

About 180,000 customers in California could find themselves in the dark as Pacific Gas & Electric warned that an upcoming "strong offshore wind event" could prompt the bankrupt power producer to yet again shut off power in some areas. "The forecast remains uncertain, but there is a possibility that the weather could prompt a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) for some customers in the Sierra Foothills, North Valley and North Bay", the company said on Sunday, adding that it was monitoring for adverse weather on Wednesday.

Buttigieg surges ahead of Democratic rivals in Iowa: poll

South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg holds a clear lead among Democratic presidential candidates in Iowa, the state that will hold the first nominating contest in February, a new Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom opinion poll showed on Saturday. Buttigieg's support climbed to 25%, a 16-point increase since the previous survey in September, CNN reported.

Pence aide said Trump's Ukraine phone call was 'unusual and inappropriate'

The phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart at the center of Congress' impeachment investigation was "inappropriate," an aide to Vice President Mike Pence told lawmakers, according to a transcript released on Saturday. Jennifer Williams, a foreign policy aide to Pence who was listening to the call on July 25, testified that Trump's insistence that Ukraine carry out politically sensitive investigations "struck me as unusual and inappropriate."

Louisiana's Democratic governor wins re-election in Republican-leaning state

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards, a conservative Democrat, won a second term in office on Saturday, defeating a Republican opponent who had closely aligned himself with U.S. President Donald Trump. The outcome is widely seen as the latest barometer on the value of Trump's endorsement for Republican candidates ahead the 2020 elections.

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