US Domestic News Roundup: Trump ally Barrack to testify in own defense at 'foreign agent' trial; U.S. appeals court temporarily blocks Biden's student loan forgiveness plan and more

Later, prosecutor Sam Nitze said he expected to take substantial time to cross-examine the current witness, former Barrack lawyer Brady Cassis, meaning Barrack would not take the stand Friday. U.S. appeals court temporarily blocks Biden's student loan forgiveness plan A U.S. appeals court on Friday temporarily blocked President Joe Biden's plan to cancel billions of dollars in college student debt, one day after a judge dismissed a Republican-led lawsuit by six states challenging the loan-forgiveness program.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Trump ally Barrack to testify in own defense at 'foreign agent' trial

Tom Barrack, a onetime fundraiser for former U.S. President Donald Trump, is expected to take the witness stand in his own defense next week in his trial on charges of being an illegal foreign agent for the United Arab Emirates. Barrack's lawyer Randall Jackson said in open court on Friday that Barrack would the stand Friday afternoon. Later, prosecutor Sam Nitze said he expected to take substantial time to cross-examine the current witness, former Barrack lawyer Brady Cassis, meaning Barrack would not take the stand Friday.

U.S. appeals court temporarily blocks Biden's student loan forgiveness plan

A U.S. appeals court on Friday temporarily blocked President Joe Biden's plan to cancel billions of dollars in college student debt, one day after a judge dismissed a Republican-led lawsuit by six states challenging the loan-forgiveness program. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted an emergency stay barring the discharge of any student debt under the program until the court rules on the states' request for a longer-term injunction while Thursday's decision against them is appealed.

Sandy Hook families seek steep punitive damages after $1 billion Alex Jones verdict

Families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook mass shooting on Friday asked a Connecticut judge to order Alex Jones to pay hefty punitive damages on top of nearly $1 billion a jury said the conspiracy theorist owes them for falsely claiming the massacre was a hoax. The families said in the filing that the "historic" scale of Jones' wrongdoing in the case, his "utter lack of repentance" and clear intention to continue spreading lies about them deserve the highest punishment in the court's power.

Trump ex-adviser Bannon sentenced to four months for contempt of Congress

Steve Bannon, a one-time adviser to former President Donald Trump, was sentenced by a judge on Friday to four months in prison for refusing to cooperate with lawmakers investigating last year's U.S. Capitol attack. Bannon was found guilty in July on two counts of contempt of Congress for failing to provide documents or testimony to the House of Representatives committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 attack. Prosecutors had sought a six-month sentence, while Bannon's attorneys had asked for probation.

Trump summoned to testify to Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot panel

Former President Donald Trump was ordered on Friday to testify under oath and provide documents to the House of Representatives committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters. The committee said it had sent a subpoena to Trump requiring documents to be submitted to the panel by Nov. 4 and for him to appear for deposition testimony beginning on or about Nov. 14.

ABCs not LGBTs: Battles over race, gender inflame Texas school board vote

At traffic-choked intersections in this Texas town, a blunt campaign slogan stands out from clusters of candidate signs: “Teach ABCs + 123s, Not CRTs & LGBTs." Blood-sport politics have come to school board elections in Round Rock, a rapidly growing and diversifying suburb of Austin. Parents are forming political action committees, canvassing door-to-door and sparring on social media. National interest groups, political parties and unions are weighing in on what have historically been nonpartisan contests.

Teen suspect in Michigan school shooting to plead guilty, prosecutor says

A Michigan teenager accused of killing four students and injuring seven other people in the deadliest school shooting of 2021 will plead guilty to murder charges in a court appearance on Monday, a local prosecutor said on Friday. Ethan Crumbley, 16, is accused of opening fire in Oxford High School outside Detroit with a gun that his father purchased as a Christmas gift just days before the Nov. 30 shooting.

U.S. budget deficit halves to $1.375 trln despite $430 billion in student loan costs

The U.S. government on Friday reported that its fiscal 2022 budget deficit plunged by half from a year earlier to $1.375 trillion, due to fading COVID-19 relief spending and record revenues fueled by a hot economy, but student loan forgiveness costs limited the reduction. The U.S. Treasury said the $1.400 trillion reduction in the deficit was still the largest-ever single-year improvement in the U.S. fiscal position as receipts hit a record $4.896 trillion, up $850 billion, or 21% from fiscal 2021.

Republican National Committee sues Google over email spam filters

The Republican National Committee (RNC) filed a lawsuit against Google on Friday, for allegedly sending its emails to users' spam folders. The U.S. political committee accuses the tech giant of "discriminating" against it by "throttling its email messages because of the RNC’s political affiliation and views," according to a lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of California.

Florida man's voter fraud charges dismissed in blow to DeSantis

One of the 20 people arrested for voting illegally as part of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' effort to crack down on voter fraud had his charges dismissed on Friday. A Miami state judge threw out the case against Robert Lee Wood, ruling that the statewide prosecutor, who is overseeing all 20 cases, had no jurisdiction because the alleged crime did not occur in at least two judicial circuits.

(With inputs from agencies.)