Reuters US Domestic News Summary
Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.
SpaceX's Starship explodes in flight test, forcing airlines to divert
A SpaceX Starship rocket broke up in space minutes after launching from Texas on Thursday, forcing airline flights over the Gulf of Mexico to alter course to avoid falling debris and setting back Elon Musk's flagship rocket program. SpaceX mission control lost contact with the newly upgraded Starship, carrying its first test payload of mock satellites but no crew, eight minutes after liftoff from its South Texas rocket facilities at 5:38 p.m. EST (2238 GMT).
Immigrant US farmworkers prepare for Trump mass deportation plan
Immigrant farmworkers are preparing for incoming U.S. president Donald Trump's promise of mass deportations, including by assigning guardians for their children if they are detained, according to groups providing them legal support. Rising demand for such legal services reflects anxiety that Trump will follow through on a campaign vow to deport millions of undocumented immigrants once he is sworn in to office Jan. 20, something that could have an outsized impact on the country's agricultural sector, which heavily relies on their labor.
Displaced Los Angeles homeowners face price gouging after wildfires
Jay Gilberg bought a five-bedroom, 4,800-square-foot (446-sq-meter) home in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Pacific Palisades in June to merge two households, bringing his two daughters, his girlfriend, and her teenager together under one roof in what he described as "a very happy home." Six months later, that home is gone, one of an estimated 5,000 damaged or destroyed in the Palisades Fire. As he and his real estate agent began searching for a temporary home large enough to accommodate a family of five, they encountered another shock -- a sudden spike in rental prices.
Trump's immigration crackdown in focus at Homeland secretary confirmation hearing
President-elect Donald Trump's planned immigration crackdown will be in the spotlight during a U.S. Senate confirmation hearing on Friday for his Homeland Security secretary pick, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, a Republican who mirrors his hardline views. Noem would take the helm of the 260,000-employee U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with little national security experience.
Nvidia CEO says not attending Trump's inauguration
Nvidia's chief executive Jensen Huang said on Friday he will not be attending U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration, but will instead be "on the road" celebrating the Lunar New Year with employees and their families. Asked by reporters outside Nvidia's new year party in Taipei whether he had talked with the incoming Trump administration about the new artificial intelligence export control rules the outgoing Biden administration unveiled this week, Huang said, "not yet."
Biden commutes more sentences, this time for 2,500 non-violent drug offenders
President Joe Biden, who leaves office next week, announced on Friday that he was commuting the sentences of nearly 2,500 people convicted of non-violent drug offenses, saying he has now issued more individual pardons and commutations than any predecessor. Those benefiting from Friday's action "are serving disproportionately long sentences compared to the sentences they would receive today under current law, policy, and practice," Biden said in a statement.
Futures inch up with all eyes on Trump presidency
U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Friday, with the S&P 500 and the Dow looking set to log their biggest weekly advances since November, while investors awaited a wave of policy changes under the incoming Trump administration. At 7:21 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 164 points, or 0.38%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 21.5 points, or 0.36% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 93.25 points, or 0.44%.
Analysis-Once an interloper, Trump returns to White House more powerful than before
The day before he left the White House in 2021, Donald Trump vowed to remain a force in U.S. politics. "The movement we started is only just beginning," he said in a farewell video. What might have seemed then to be wishful thinking now sounds like a prophecy.
Los Angeles evacuees told to stay away from home at least another week
Los Angeles officials told most evacuees from the wildfires on Thursday to stay away from their homes at least another week as emergency responders remove toxic waste from incinerated neighborhoods and cut off electricity and gas lines posing a hazard amid the ruins. Landslides further endangered the devastated hillsides, where leveled structures no longer hold earth in place and water from fire hoses and broken pipes has saturated the ground, adding more stress and heartache to people suffering the worst natural disaster in Los Angeles history.
Small caps lose Trump bump as rising rates sap strength
As investors seek assets that will shine under a Donald Trump presidency, one corner of the U.S. stock market expected to benefit from the Republican's policies has been stumbling. Shares of smaller U.S. companies have been under pressure, with the small-cap Russell 2000 last week marking a 10% correction from its November highs. The S&P 500, the benchmark for large-cap companies, declined less than 3% in that time.
