Jared Wiener

White House counsel Stuart Delery, President Joe Biden's top lawyer, plans to leave his post next month, the White House said on Thursday, adding no replacement had yet been named. Delery, who has been in the job since July 2022, advised the president on advancing his legislative agenda and defending against Republican-led congressional investigations. Biden in a statement called Delery a “trusted adviser and a constant source of innovative legal thinking.”

Maui's emergency management chief on Wednesday defended his agency's decision against sounding sirens during last week's deadly wildfire amid questions about whether doing so might have saved lives. Herman Andaya, administrator of the Maui County Emergency Management Agency, said sirens in Hawaii are used to alert people to tsunamis. Using it during the fire might have led people to evacuate toward the danger, he told reporters.

Rating agency Fitch on Tuesday downgraded the U.S. government's top credit rating, a move that drew an angry response from the White House and surprised investors, coming despite the resolution of the debt ceiling crisis two months ago. Traders' immediate response was to embark on a safe-haven push out of stocks and into government bonds and the dollar. Fitch downgraded the United States to AA+ from AAA, citing fiscal deterioration over the next three years and repeated down-the-wire debt ceiling negotiations that threaten the government’s ability to pay its bills.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he had heard that Special Counsel Jack Smith would announce an indictment against him at 5 p.m. (2100 GMT), according to a post on Trump's Truth Social app. Trump already faces criminal charges in two other cases as he campaigns to regain the presidency next year. He is the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, according to public opinion polls, despite his legal woes.

The Acting Governor of New Jersey is now Senate President Steve Scutari. Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver is currently in the hospital and Gov. Murphy is out of state.

Sheila Oliver, New Jersey’s first Black Lieutenant Governor has died a day after being taken to the hospital. Her family announced her passing in a statement.

Read the full indictment here:

President Biden announced in a statement that Dr. Rochelle Walensky will step down as head of the CDC. "Dr. Walensky leaves CDC a stronger institution, better positioned to confront health threats and protect Americans. We have all benefited from her service and dedication to public health, and I wish her the best in her next chapter."

Shooting at medical office leaves one dead, four wounded. More on @abcnews

If you've noticed things look a little different around here, you're not imagining it. Here's a brief rundown of some of our latest updates: