Reuters US Domestic News Summary

The JUDGES Act, initially supported by many members of both parties, would have increased the number of trial court judges in 25 federal district courts in 13 states including California, Florida and Texas, in six waves every two years through 2035. American Airlines resumes flights after brief grounding ahead of busy Christmas travel American Airlines said on Tuesday its flights had resumed after a technical glitch forced the carrier to issue an hour-long ground stop, disrupting travel for thousands on Christmas Eve, one of the busiest periods of the year.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Starbucks strike to expand to over 300 US stores on Christmas Eve, union says

A strike at Starbucks will expand to over 300 U.S. stores on Tuesday, with more than 5,000 workers expected to walk off the job before the five-day work stoppage ends later on Christmas Eve, the workers' union said. Starbucks, which operates more than 10,000 company-operated stores across the United States, said 98% of its stores remained open, with around 170 stores closed on Tuesday.

Biden signs 50 bills into law, makes bald eagle the country's official bird

President Joe Biden signed 50 bills into law on Tuesday that include making the bald eagle the country's official bird and one that stops members of Congress from collecting their pensions if convicted of crimes. Biden also established the first federal anti-hazing standard to address violence and deaths occurring on higher education campuses around the country. He also signed a bill supported by reality-TV star and heiress Paris Hilton, which holds treatment centers and care facilities serving the youth accountable.

Trump says he'll seek the death penalty for 'rapists, murderers, and monsters'

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said on Tuesday he will direct his Justice Department to "vigorously pursue" the death penalty to protect Americans from "violent rapists, murderers, and monsters" when he takes power on Jan. 20. Trump's statement on his social media platform Truth Social was in response to President Joe Biden's announcement on Monday that he had commuted the sentences of 37 out of 40 federal inmates on death row, converting them to life in prison without parole.

Biden delivers on threat to veto bill to expand US judiciary

U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday vetoed legislation to add 66 new judges to understaffed federal courts nationally, a once widely bipartisan measure that would have been the first major expansion of the federal judiciary since 1990. The JUDGES Act, initially supported by many members of both parties, would have increased the number of trial court judges in 25 federal district courts in 13 states including California, Florida and Texas, in six waves every two years through 2035.

American Airlines resumes flights after brief grounding ahead of busy Christmas travel

American Airlines said on Tuesday its flights had resumed after a technical glitch forced the carrier to issue an hour-long ground stop, disrupting travel for thousands on Christmas Eve, one of the busiest periods of the year. The issue that briefly affected the carrier's ability to get its planes in the air involved network hardware and was caused by DXC Technology, an operating system vendor responsible for maintaining its flight operations, the airline said.

Big banks, business groups sue US Fed over annual stress tests

Major banks and business groups sued the Federal Reserve on Tuesday, alleging the U.S. central bank's annual "stress tests" of Wall Street firms violate the law. The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Columbus, Ohio, claims the Fed's practice of determining how big banks perform against hypothetical economic turmoil, and assigning capital requirements accordingly, do not follow proper administrative procedure. Plaintiffs included the Bank Policy Institute, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the American Bank Association.

Former US President Clinton discharged from hospital

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton was discharged from a Washington hospital on Tuesday after being treated for the flu, his deputy chief of staff said in a post on X. Clinton, 78, was hospitalized on Monday at Georgetown University Medical Center with a fever, his deputy chief of staff, Angel Urena, said.

Target's holiday advertising push will only take it so far, investors say

In the most competitive holiday season in years, major U.S. retailers Target and Walmart are spending more on ads to reach shoppers on short-video app TikTok and streaming platforms. But while recent U.S. credit- and debit-card data point to a small gain for Target, with its shoppers spending slightly more in early December than a year ago, there's little that the Minneapolis-based chain can do this year to reverse the trends that have put it at a disadvantage, investors told Reuters.

Toyota is donating $1 million to Trump's inauguration

Toyota Motor of North America is donating $1 million to President-elect Donald Trump's Jan. 20 inauguration, a company spokesman said on Tuesday, a day after Detroit's Ford Motor and General Motors, said they would give the same amount. Ford and GM are also contributing vehicles to the festivities, while Toyota is not planning to, the Japan-based company said.

Suspect in New York City subway fire killing charged with murder, arson

The man accused of killing a woman on a New York City subway train by setting her on fire was charged with murder and arson in an initial court appearance on Tuesday. Sebastian Zapeta, a 33-year-old man who police say lives at a homeless shelter in Brooklyn, was charged with three counts in a criminal complaint at the Brooklyn criminal court: first-degree murder, second-degree murder and first-degree arson.

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