US Domestic News Roundup: Manchin's $1.8 trillion spending offer no longer on table -Washington Post; U.S. FAA details 50 airports that will have 5G buffer zones and more

Hospitalizations have increased steadily since late December as Omicron quickly overtook Delta as the dominant coronavirus variant in the United States, although experts say Omicron will likely prove less deadly than prior iterations. Factbox-When and how will Americans get free COVID-19 tests promised by Biden? The U.S. government has signed the first contract involving 500 million rapid COVID-19 tests that President Joe Biden promised in December would be free to Americans who request them, an official said on Friday.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Manchin's $1.8 trillion spending offer no longer on table -Washington Post

U.S. Senator Joe Manchin's $1.8 trillion spending offer he proposed to the White House in late 2021 appears to be no longer on the table following a breakdown between the Democratic lawmaker from West Virginia and the White House, the Washington Post reported on Saturday. Manchin told reporters this week that he is no longer involved in discussions with the White House and has signaled privately that he is not interested in approving any legislation like President Joe Biden's Build Back Better Package, the newspaper said, citing three people with knowledge of the matter.

U.S. FAA details 50 airports that will have 5G buffer zones

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Friday disclosed a list of 50 U.S. airports that will have buffer zones when wireless carriers turn on new 5G C-band service on Jan. 19.

AT&T and Verizon Communications on Monday agreed to buffer zones around 50 airports to reduce the risk of disruption from potential interference to sensitive airplane instruments like altimeters. They also agreed to delay deployment for two weeks, averting an aviation safety standoff.

U.S. Supreme Court conservatives lean against Biden business vaccine policy

Conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices on Friday questioned the legality of President Joe Biden's pandemic-related vaccine-or-testing mandate for large businesses but appeared more receptive to his administration's vaccine requirement for healthcare facilities at a time of surging COVID-19 cases. The court's nine justices, who are all vaccinated, heard more than 3-1/2 hours of arguments in two cases that test presidential powers to combat a raging public health crisis that already has killed roughly 835,000 Americans.

Three Georgia men sentenced to life in prison for 'chilling' Arbery murder

A Georgia judge sentenced Travis McMichael and his father Gregory McMichael on Friday to life in prison without the possibility of parole for what he called the "chilling" 2020 murder of Ahmaud Arbery, a Black man running through their mostly white neighborhood in the southern U.S. state. Judge Timothy Walmsley also gave a life sentence to their neighbor William "Roddie" Bryan but ruled that he could seek parole after 30 years in prison, the minimum sentence allowed for murder under Georgia law.

U.S. Republican Senator Thune announces 2022 re-election bid

U.S. Republican Senator John Thune announced on Saturday that he planned to seek re-election in 2022, boosting chances this his party would retain the South Dakota seat in the fall. Thune, a member of the Senate Republican leadership, had been reportedly considering retirement after serving in the chamber since 2005.

Omicron surge pushes U.S. COVID hospitalizations toward record high

COVID-19 hospitalizations in the United States are poised to hit a new high as early as Friday, according to a Reuters tally, surpassing the record set in January of last year as the highly contagious Omicron variant fuels a surge in infections. Hospitalizations have increased steadily since late December as Omicron quickly overtook Delta as the dominant coronavirus variant in the United States, although experts say Omicron will likely prove less deadly than prior iterations.

Factbox-When and how will Americans get free COVID-19 tests promised by Biden?

The U.S. government has signed the first contract involving 500 million rapid COVID-19 tests that President Joe Biden promised in December would be free to Americans who request them, an official said on Friday. The following describes how the distribution of tests will work in the fight against the rapid spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant:

Flooding hits western U.S., winter storm in the east

Floods hit parts of the Northwestern United States on Friday after heavy rains, while a winter storm brought more than a half a foot (15 cm) in snow in the eastern parts of the country, closing schools, offices and busy roads. Flood and gale warnings are in place across many coastal areas in the Pacific Northwest, whilst winter storm warnings remained for eastern parts of Maine, according to the National Weather Service.

Biden calls Colorado's most destructive wildfire 'code red' climate warning

U.S. President Joe Biden, visiting the scene of Colorado's most destructive wildfire on record, said on Friday the rare winter blaze marked the latest "code red" reminder of an ominously changing climate he hopes to confront with his renewable energy agenda. "We can't ignore the reality that these fires are being supercharged" by global warming, Biden said after touring a neighborhood in the Denver-area town of Louisville reduced to ruins by last week's devastating Marshall Fire.

Biden, Obama laud former Senator Harry Reid at Nevada memorial service

U.S. political luminaries including President Joe Biden and former President Barack Obama celebrated the life of former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on Saturday, describing him as an unpretentious pragmatist who got things done. Reid died last month at age 82 after battling pancreatic cancer.

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