US Domestic News Roundup: In Iowa, school shooting prompts Republican prayers, while Trump campaigns by proxy; New York City sues bus companies for transporting migrants from Texas; Analysis-Trump's rivals give him a pass on Jan. 6 attacks as hunt for Iowa votes heats up and more

Black Americans, including Plaines, a 66-year-old grandmother in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, would be disproportionately hit by this and many other cuts lawmakers are pushing as Congress faces a government shutdown deadline this month. Analysis-Trump's rivals give him a pass on Jan. 6 attacks as hunt for Iowa votes heats up Donald Trump's Republican rivals are scrambling for every vote they can get in Iowa, where the first Republican presidential nominating contest is now just days away.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

New York City union sues to block city congestion pricing plan

A New York City teachers union filed a lawsuit against state and federal agencies on Thursday seeking to block a congestion pricing plan in the city from taking effect this year, arguing it will divert traffic and boost pollution in some areas. Among the defendants in the lawsuit are the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and U.S. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).

Factbox-US elections 2024: Seven House of Representatives races to watch

Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives will be defending a narrow 220-213 majority in the Nov. 5 elections, but they will face their first electoral test on Feb. 13 when the seat formerly occupied by Republican George Santos is up for grabs. Below are some of the races to watch as the Republican and Democratic parties battle for control of the chamber through 2024.

Teamsters chief, Trump meet as union weighs 2024 presidential race

Donald Trump met with the head of the Teamsters on Wednesday and made plans to meet with rank-and-file members later this month as he seeks the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, the former president and the union said in statements. Sean O'Brien, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and Trump had "an in-depth and productive discussion on worker issues most important to the Teamsters Union," the labor group, which represents 1.3 million workers from truckers and police to nurses and film crews, said in a post on the X social media platform.

Biden marks Jan. 6 with election-year warning on democratic threats

President Joe Biden on Friday will mark three years since the Jan. 6 attacks on the U.S Capitol with a warning to voters that Republican Donald Trump is a threat to the country's standing as a free democracy. Trump, who was president from 2017 to 2021 and is again seeking the Republican nomination for president, contested his defeat in the 2020 election, prompting thousands of his supporters to attack the U.S Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in a failed bid to stop formal certification of the result.

Voters aiming to ban Trump from Colorado ballot urge US Supreme Court ruling

Colorado voters seeking to bar Donald Trump from their state's ballot urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to decide whether his role leading up to the Capitol attack disqualifies him from again holding the presidency, as a lower court found. The court filing, submitted by Republican and unaffiliated voters in Colorado, came the day after Trump asked the justices to reverse a politically explosive Dec. 19 ruling by Colorado's top court that Trump's role ahead of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol disqualified him from the Republican primary ballot there.

Black Americans would feel the sting of Republican budget cut proposals

When Charla Plaines saw the toll lead paint took on her granddaughter, she was able to get the hazardous substance scrubbed from her home thanks to a federally funded program that Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives want to cut. Black Americans, including Plaines, a 66-year-old grandmother in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, would be disproportionately hit by this and many other cuts lawmakers are pushing as Congress faces a government shutdown deadline this month.

Analysis-Trump's rivals give him a pass on Jan. 6 attacks as hunt for Iowa votes heats up

Donald Trump's Republican rivals are scrambling for every vote they can get in Iowa, where the first Republican presidential nominating contest is now just days away. But when it comes to his actions involving the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, they are largely giving him a pass. They are not alone. At campaign events and town halls in Iowa, where voters will make their decision on Jan. 15, the attack rarely comes up. The candidates don’t mention it and neither do the voters, even as the country prepares to mark the third anniversary on Saturday.

Las Vegas judge attacked by felon during sentencing

A Nevada man convicted of attempted assault vaulted over a judge's bench in a Las Vegas courtroom and attacked her as she was about to sentence him to prison, in chaotic scenes captured on courtroom video. The violence unfolded in Clark County District Court on Wednesday after Judge Mary Kay Holthus denied probation to Redden, 30, in a felony assault case and was preparing to hand down a prison sentence.

New York City sues bus companies for transporting migrants from Texas

New York City on Thursday filed a lawsuit accusing 17 bus companies of illegally transporting more than 33,000 migrants to the city from Texas as part of a campaign by the state's Republican governor to expel people who cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally. The city is seeking $708 million, which it says is the cost is has incurred to provide shelter and services to the migrants over the last two years, in the lawsuit filed in New York state court in Manhattan.

In Iowa, school shooting prompts Republican prayers, while Trump campaigns by proxy

A school shooting in Iowa, where Republican nominating contests begin next week for the U.S. presidential election, prompted prayers from among those wanting to be the party's candidate, but elicited no substantial policy proposals among the top contenders. The incident saw a sixth-grade student killed and five people wounded after a 17-year-old opened fire on the first day of classes following the winter break, law enforcement officials said.

(With inputs from agencies.)