Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.
US Judge restricts Biden officials from contact with social media firms
A U.S.
federal judge on Tuesday restricted some agencies and officials of the administration of President Joe Biden from meeting and communicating with social media companies to moderate their content, according to a court filing. The injunction came in response to a lawsuit brought by Republican attorneys general in Louisiana and Missouri, who alleged that U.S.
government officials went too far in efforts to encourage social media companies to address posts they worried could contribute to vaccine hesitancy during the COVID-19 pandemic or upend elections.
US judges halt healthcare bans for transgender youth
In state after state, conservative lawmakers this year have banned medical procedures for transgender youth.
Now, a growing number of federal judges are blocking those laws from taking effect. U.S. district court judges have halted such laws in six states - Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee - finding that they infringe on the constitutional guarantee to equal protection under the 14th Amendment.
Federal agency powers in the crosshairs at the US Supreme Court
Even as it has ushered in sweeping changes to American law and society - on abortion, gun rights and affirmative action - the U.S.
Supreme Court has kept tabs on another issue of keen interest to its conservative majority: očkovanie keeping federal regulatory power in check. The issue will figure prominently during the court's next term, which begins in October, as the justices already have agreed to decide several cases that could curtail the authority of U.S.
agencies to issue regulations and enforce laws in areas ranging from finance to fisheries.
Three separate mass shootings kill 10 ahead of US July 4 holiday
Mass shootings in Philadelphia, Baltimore and Fort Worth, Texas, killed 10 people and wounded nearly 40 others ahead of the Fourth of July holiday, officials said, a grim reminder of the decades-long failure to curb gun violence in the United States.
In Fort Worth, three people were killed and eight wounded in a mass shooting following a local festival to mark the U.S. Independence Day holiday, police said on Tuesday.
Biden says gun violence 'tearing communities apart' after latest mass shootings
President Joe Biden on Tuesday said gun violence was tearing apart U.S.
communities after mass shootings in Philadelphia, Baltimore and Fort Worth claimed the lives of at least 10 people ahead of the Fourth of July holiday. Much more action is needed to "address the epidemic of gun violence that is tearing our communities apart," Biden said in a statement released by the White House.
He called on Republican lawmakers in the U.S. Congress to negotiate with his fellow Democrats on gun reforms.
White powder found at White House identified as cocaine -source
A white powder found inside the White House late on Sunday was identified by Washington's fire department and emergency services as cocaine, a source familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.
The source said the powder was found in the West Wing, but gave no further details.
Harvard 'legacy' policy challenged on heels of affirmative action ruling
Three civil rights groups filed a complaint against Harvard on Monday, claiming its preferential policy for undergraduate applicants with family ties to the elite school overwhelmingly benefits white students, days after the U.S.
Supreme Court struck down its race-conscious admissions policies. The groups filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education claiming that Harvard's preferences for "legacy" applicants violates a federal law banning race discrimination for programs that receive federal funds, as virtually all U.S.
colleges and universities do.
At least 3 dead, 8 wounded after mass shooting in Fort Worth, Texas
At least three people were killed and eight wounded in a mass shooting in Fort Worth, Texas, after a local festival, officials said on Tuesday, in the latest incident of gun violence around the Fourth of July holiday.
The shooting took place just before midnight on Monday in a parking lot, police confirmed on Tuesday.
Hot dog-eater Joey Chestnut wins July Fourth title with 62 franks
Reigning champion of the annual U.S.
Fourth of July hot dog eating contest Joey Chestnut defended his title on Tuesday, clinching his 16th career win by scarfing down 62 franks in 10 minutes. A thunderstorm delay at the scene of Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating contest at New York City's Coney Island did not seem to faze Chestnut, 39, who hails from Indiana.
Suspended Texas Attorney General Paxton won't testify at impeachment trial
Suspended Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will not testify in his upcoming impeachment trial in the state Senate, his lawyer said late on Monday, indicating Paxton would fight efforts that may aim to compel a testimony from him.
State legislators impeached Paxton on May 27 on charges including bribery and temporarily suspended him from office pending his trial in the Texas Senate. Paxton is a supporter of former U.S. President Donald Trump whose lawsuit challenging the 2020 election results was tossed out by the Supreme Court.
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