Tell Biden to legalize marijuana before Trump gets into office!

Saturday Dose of Democracy:

President-elect lashes out after judge orders unconditional discharge at formal sentencing hearing
Donald Trump has spent most of his 78 years on earth bending and breaking laws at will, with little to no consequence. And while the unconditional discharge at Friday's sentencing hearing amounts to little more than a performative slap on the wrist, the official narrative changed, if ever so slightly. The MAGA cult leader, now officially a convicted felon, will never be able to erase that stain from his record. And he knows it. Cue the world's tiniest violin.

Take Action: Support the Michael J. Fox Foundation’s mission to cure Parkinson’s disease!

Trump laughably calls on Newsom to resign; Republicans blame DEI for inability to contain wildfires
The newly convicted felon and we-still-can't-believe-we're-typing-this-soon-to-be president has laughably called on Gavin Newsom, California governor and potential 2028 rival, to resign as wildfires supercharged by climate change tear through the Los Angeles area — a once-in-a-generation disaster that’s unleashed a gusher of political attacks and misinformation in its wake, mostly from Donald himself. Trump predictably blamed Newsom for the fires, which have resulted in at least five deaths and the displacement of more than 100,000 people. Meanwhile, the president-elect’s insufferable, racist son Donald Trump Jr. claimed that the effort to contain the fires is being hampered by, you guessed it, DEI — part of a broader push to blame so-called liberal policies for the false perception of chaos and lawlessness in blue states like California.

Take Action: Tell the Senate: Don't let Trump bypass Cabinet confirmation hearings!

Michael J. Fox leads the charge against Parkinson's disease
Michael J. Fox Foundation: With nearly 90,000 new diagnoses in the United States each year, Parkinson’s disease is the fastest growing and second-most-common neurodegenerative disease in America. Tackling this silent menace is going to require a united effort from the public and from our representatives in Congress, so Michael J. Fox is mobilizing a national movement to help policymakers understand what matters to people with Parkinson’s and share our stories to expand our understanding of this vicious disease.Will you add your nameto stand with Michael J. Fox and the one million Americans living with Parkinson’s disease and be ready when it’s time to reach out to your elected officials?

Meta terminates its DEI programs days before Trump inauguration
Mark Zuckerberg's feckless capitulation to Donald Trump would appear complete, having personally donated $1 million to the MAGA cult leader's inauguration fund, scrapped fact-checking on Facebook altogether, and now shamefully terminating the social media behemoth's diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. Mustn't anger Dear Leader! Would hate to be left out in the cold while the rest of the billionaire tech bro cabal gets their schmooze on with Don and Elon.

Take Action: Stop Dr. Oz from dismantling Medicare!

Biden extends temporary protections for more than 800,000 immigrants
The Biden administration on Friday extended temporary humanitarian protections for about 230,000 Salvadorans and 600,000 Venezuelans living in the US, in an effort to shield those groups from an incoming Trump administration that has promised to deport them en masse. The decision in the dying days of Joe Biden’s presidency came after immigrant advocates and lawmakers urged the Department of Homeland Security to extend temporary protected status (TPS), designed to protect immigrants from being deported to countries that are engulfed in disaster or conflict. Well done, Mr. President. Let's make these last nine days count, Joe.

DOGE agents dispatched across the country, report says
Donald won't be sworn in for another nine days, but DOGE co-nincompoops Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy have apparently dispatched intrepid, waste-hunting surrogates across the country to sort out which vital programs our various federal agencies obviously need to shed. Elon previously vowed that the ridiculously named Department of Government Efficiency, which definitely is not an actual federal agency, would soon identify $2 TRILLION in savings but has unsurprisingly already begun walking that astronomical figure back because, well, cutting that kind of funding from the federal government would be catastrophic to the economy, and Republican lawmakers probably don't want to face the very intense voter backlash sure to follow.

Take Action: Don't privatize the Postal Service!

Job growth skyrocketed in December, boosting one of the strongest labor markets in US history
You wouldn't know it from the apocalyptic tale-spinning Donald Trump and his MAGA minions have incessantly engaged in for months on end, but President Biden will leave office having shepherded one of the strongest labor markets in US history. The American economy closed out 2024 with another month of massive job growth, adding 256,000 positions in December. The unemployment rate dipped to 4.1% from 4.2%, wrapping up a year that marked a return to pre-pandemic norms, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Friday. What lies ahead, of course, remains to be seen. With promises to deport millions of people and deplete the American workforce, as well as vows to wage a full-scale tariff war with trade partners, the MAGA cult leader is set to hurl the country into uncharted territory that could have massive economic repercussions both at home and abroad. Time will surely tell.

American abortion patients put in extreme danger by Trump and his cronies
National Network of Abortion Funds: Abortion rights are under attack by right-wing extremists across the country, and it's about to get a hundred times worse under President Trump and Republican control of the government. That's why Dose of Democracy is working overtime to help raise money for the National Network of Abortion Funds and make sure they have the resources they need to provide care to as many patients as possible before it's too late. Will you make a donation to help those on the front lines of the war for reproductive rights?