Reuters US Domestic News Summary
Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.
Hollywood directors ratify labor pact as writers keep picketing
Film and television directors voted overwhelmingly to ratify a new three-year labor contract with major Hollywood studios on Friday, averting a second work stoppage that would have added to upheaval caused by an ongoing writers' strike. The Directors Guild of America (DGA) said 87% of those voting supported the deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), a group that represents Walt Disney Co, Netflix Inc and other major studios.
Remains found in California mountains where actor Julian Sands went missing
Hikers have found human remains in Southern California's Mount Baldy wilderness, the mountainous area where British-born film actor Julian Sands went missing in January, local authorities said late on Saturday. The hikers contacted Fontana Station officials at about 10 a.m. on Saturday to report the discovery of the body, which was taken to the coroner's office for identification, the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department said in a statement.
US activists rally one year after Supreme Court allowed abortion bans
Abortion rights supporters and opponents held dueling rallies around the U.S. on Saturday, the first anniversary of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that had legalized the procedure nationwide. In Washington, speakers from national abortion rights groups, including Women's March and NARAL Pro-Choice America, assembled in Columbus Circle to celebrate the defeat of some abortion opponents in the 2022 midterm races and to rally voters ahead of next year's congressional and presidential elections.
New York, Washington flights delayed by weather and failing equipment
Thunderstorms and failing equipment at an FAA facility created significant delays for air travelers across the U.S. East Coast on Sunday evening as Washington and New York were forced to briefly halt most incoming flights. As the evening progressed, flights resumed from the Washington area after repairs to communications were completed, the Federal Aviation Administration said.
Trump says 'vital' federal role remains for regulating abortion
Former President Donald Trump said the federal government has a role in regulating late term abortions, but declined to provide specifics on what that role was in a speech to a conservative audience on Saturday night. Trump has been relatively quiet on the issue of abortion throughout his campaign for a second term, putting him at odds with other Republican presidential hopefuls including his current biggest threat to the party nomination, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who enacted a six week ban on abortions in his state.
Conservative former judge calls Trump support 'colossal political miscalculation'
Conservative former U.S. appeals court judge J. Michael Luttig in an opinion piece on Sunday said Republicans are making a serious error with "spineless support" for Donald Trump's new bid for the White House. Lutting wrote in the New York Times that the Republican Party is in part to blame for the former president's federal indictment earlier this month accusing Trump of mishandling classified documents. There are few signs that Trump will face political consequences internally, which undermines rule of law and threatens the future of the party, Luttig said.
US retailers targeted with bomb threats, seeking bitcoin and gift cards -WSJ
Law-enforcement officials and retailers are investigating a recent wave of bomb threats across the United States, targeting grocery operators and other stores, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. Retail companies including Kroger, Walmart and Amazon's Whole Foods Market, among others, have received bomb threats at their stores in recent months, the report said, adding that some callers demanded gift cards, bitcoin or money and threatened to detonate bombs if payments were not made.
How Christian groups helped parents pull books from some Pennsylvania school libraries
On May 12, the library coordinator for Pennsylvania's Central Bucks School District sent an email to colleagues that some conservative parents and Christian advocacy groups had long prayed to see. The email instructed school library staff to remove all copies of two books within 24 hours: "Gender Queer," a graphic memoir by Maia Kobabe that includes cartoons of sexual encounters; and "This Book is Gay" by Juno Dawson, a guidebook with illustrations intended for LGBT students who feel overlooked by standard sex education curriculums.
US special counsel seeks delay to start of Trump documents trial until Dec
U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith on Friday asked a federal judge to delay the start of former President Donald Trump's trial on charges of willful retention of classified government records and obstruction of justice until Dec. 11, a court filing showed. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon set an initial trial date of Aug. 14.
U.S. attorney general denies allegations that Hunter Biden tax probe was stymied
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland on Friday denied allegations by an Internal Revenue Service whistleblower, who said the high-ranking federal prosecutor tasked with investigating President Joe Biden's son Hunter was hindered by the Justice Department from pursuing more aggressive criminal tax charges. Speaking publicly for the first time since Hunter Biden was criminally charged on Tuesday with two misdemeanor counts of willfully failing to pay income taxes, Garland told reporters at a press conference that U.S. Attorney David Weiss, the top federal prosecutor in Delaware, "was given complete authority" to make charging decisions on his own.
