Reuters US Domestic News Summary
Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.
Florida sets one-day record with over 15,000 new COVID cases, more than most countries
Florida reported a record increase of more than 15,000 new cases of COVID-19 in 24 hours on Sunday, as the Trump administration renewed its push for schools to reopen and anti-mask protests were planned in Michigan and Missouri. If Florida were a country, it would rank fourth in the world for the most new cases in a day behind the United States, Brazil and India, according to a Reuters analysis.
China trades sanctions with U.S. in row over Uighur Muslims
China announced "corresponding sanctions" against the United States on Monday after Washington penalised senior Chinese officials over the treatment of minority Uighur Muslims in the western region of Xinjiang. China's move comes as relations between the world's two biggest economic powerhouses have slumped over disagreements on issues including the coronavirus pandemic, trade, Huawei and a sweeping national security law imposed on Hong Kong.
Stubborn fire aboard U.S. Navy warship in San Diego injures 21 people
Flames raged for hours on Sunday aboard a U.S. warship docked at Naval Base San Diego, sending 21 people to the hospital with minor injuries and prompting a relocation of two other Navy vessels moored nearby, military and local fire officials said. The San Diego Fire-Rescue Department reported an explosion in conjunction with the blaze, which broke out at about 8:30 a.m. local time (1530 GMT) aboard the USS Bonhomme Richard, an amphibious assault vessel in port for routine maintenance.
Dozens of U.S. universities support challenge to Trump's order on foreign students: court document
About 60 U.S. universities on Sunday filed a brief supporting a lawsuit by two others, seeking to block a Trump administration rule barring foreign students from remaining in the country if educational institutions don't hold in-person classes this fall. The lawsuit was filed by Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on Wednesday in a federal court in Boston.
U.S. Congress needs compromise to extend COVID-19 unemployment payments, Pelosi says
Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Sunday she believes U.S. lawmakers can find a compromise on extending jobless benefits and unemployment insurance for Americans struggling amid coronavirus pandemic shutdowns. "We have to find a compromise because we must extend it," Pelosi said on CNN's "State of the Union."
U.S. weighs limited options to deal with China over Hong Kong: WSJ
The United States is weighing restricted options to deal with China over its recent moves in Hong Kong, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, as tensions between Washington and Beijing heat up. Steps against Hong Kong's financial system risk hurting U.S., Western and Hong Kong companies and consumers, according to the report https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-weighs-limited-options-to-punish-china-over-hong-kong-11594576800?mod=searchresults&page=1&pos=10, citing U.S. officials and analysts.
U.S. set to carry out first federal execution of prisoner in 17 years
The first execution of a federal prisoner in more than 17 years was due to take place later on Monday, the culmination of an effort by the Trump administration to revive the U.S. government's use of a punishment long mired in legal challenges. Unless a federal court orders a delay, the U.S. Department of Justice plans to execute Daniel Lewis Lee using lethal injections of pentobarbital, a powerful barbiturate, for his role in the murders of three members of an Arkansas family, including an 8-year-old child, in 1996.
New U.S. health crisis looms as patients without COVID-19 delay care
A Texas man who waited until his brain tumor was softball-sized; a baby who suffered an ear infection for six days; a heart patient who died: The resurgence of COVID-19 is creating another health crisis as hospitals fill and patients are fearful or unable to get non-emergency care. With U.S. coronavirus infections reaching new heights, doctors and hospitals say they are also seeing sharp declines in patients seeking routine medical care and screenings - and a rise in those who have delayed care for so long they are far sicker than they otherwise would be.
Amid pandemic, wealthy U.S. families approved for government loans
Private investment firms that manage the fortunes of wealthy individuals and their kin were approved for millions of dollars in taxpayer-funded relief loans designed to help small businesses weather the coronavirus lockdown, according to a review of recently released government data. The companies - often referred to as "family offices" - approved for the forgivable loans from the Small Business Administration (SBA) included those that oversee money for the family that co-owns the National Basketball Association's Sacramento Kings; the former manager of a multi-billion dollar hedge fund firm; and a serial Las Vegas entrepreneur.
Apple to spend more than $400 million of $2.5 billion California housing fund this year
Apple Inc on Monday said it has allocated more than $400 million of $2.5 billion it pledged last year to stem California's housing crisis. The iPhone maker in November committed the funding to address what Chief Executive Tim Cook called a housing "affordability crisis that is existential" for many residents of the company's home state.
