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How to celebrate and observe MLK Jr. Day — today of all days

VIDEO OF THE DAY: New Trump scandal makes worldwide headlines
Brian Tyler Cohen swiftly dispels the laughably absurd narrative that the MAGA cult leader swooped in and saved TikTok, which might carry just a bit more weight if the whole reason the app was banned in the first place wasn't a result of the convicted felon Donald Trump himself. ByteDance performatively shut down the social media platform on Sunday — even though President Biden said he would not enforce the bipartisan ban, leaving the issue for Trump's incoming Justice Department to deal with — only to restore it less than a day later with a groveling pop-up message thanking, who else, Donald Trump. We are witnessing levels of gaslighting unseen in modern American history. Trump and his cronies are manufacturing problems, then "fixing" said issues and claiming disingenuous credit — and they're doing so out in the open. Why? Because they think we're stupid. Remember, we have always been at war with Eastasia.

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Biden issues preemptive pardons for Jan. 6 committee and witnesses, Anthony Fauci and Mark Milley
The MAGA cult leader has repeatedly made clear his grievance-fueled intentions to seek vengeance against his many political opponents, perceived and real. President Biden just put a huge wrinkle in those plans, preemptively pardoning former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley, Dr. Anthony Fauci, members and staff on the committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol — including former Republican Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger — and US Capitol and DC Metropolitan police officers who testified before that committee.

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Idaho GOP launches shocking attack on marriage equality
Human Rights Campaign: Republicans in the Idaho legislature have filed a new resolution calling on the Supreme Court to repeal the right to same-sex marriage across the country. Though largely symbolic, this brazen attack is just the latest threat to LGBTQ+ rights, and demonstrates the persistent danger our community faces. That’s why the Human Rights Campaign is gearing up to fight for equality at the federal level, in state legislatures and in courts across the nation — because we need to stay vigilant and we need ordinary people to stand up and take action. Will you make a donation to the Human Rights Campaign and help fuel the fight against hate and extremism? Donate to HRC today and receive a FREE hat!

Diplomats are resigning en masse before Trump takes over
Scores of State Department employees are planning to resign effective at noon Monday after Trump's inauguration, sources told the Washington Post on Sunday. The resigning diplomats reportedly include John Bass, the Trump-appointed undersecretary for management and acting undersecretary for political affairs, and Geoff Pyatt, the Barack Obama-appointed assistant secretary at the Bureau of Energy Resources. Both Bass and Pyatt worked at the State Department through the last Trump administration, with Bass serving as ambassador to Afghanistan and Pyatt serving as ambassador to Greece. Trump has repeatedly promised to upend the Biden administration’s energy policies and target the federal bureaucracy he frequently derides as the "deep state." The Trump transition team told Reuters last week that it was "entirely appropriate for the transition to seek officials who share President Trump’s vision for putting our nation and America’s working men and women first."

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As ceasefire takes hold, Hamas returns 3 Israeli hostages and Israel frees 90 Palestinian prisoners
After 15 months of collective grief and anxiety, three Israeli hostages left Hamas captivity and returned to Israel, and dozens of Palestinian prisoners walked free from Israeli jail, leaving both Israelis and Palestinians torn between celebration and trepidation as the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took hold Sunday. The skies above Gaza and Israel were silent for the first time in over a year, and Palestinians began returning to what was left of the homes they fled across the war-ravaged enclave, started to check on relatives left behind and, in many cases, to bury their dead. After months of tight Israeli restrictions, more than 600 trucks carrying humanitarian aid rolled into the devastated territory. The ceasefire that went into effect Sunday morning stirred modest hopes for ending the Israel-Hamas war.

Pope condemns Trump’s mass deportation plan: "It will be a disgrace"
Pope Francis did not mince words, flatly condemning President-elect Donald Trump's calls for mass deportations in the US. "If it is true, it will be a disgrace, because it makes the poor wretches who have nothing pay the unpaid bill," he said. "It won't do. This is not the way to solve things." Francis’s comments come as the MAGA cult leader is expected to begin gutting legal immigration paths and carrying out mass deportations within his first days in office.

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Melania Trump launches meme coin days after Donald's nets him billions
The grift is on, and the grift is good, apparently. Days after the MAGA cult leader dropped a crypto coin — $TRUMP, of course — that surged to more than $14 billion in supposed value on Friday, the former and soon-to-be new first lady followed suit with a coin of her own — $MELANIA, why not. Cryptocurrencies have made significant gains since Trump’s election victory in November as he and his first buddy Elon Musk have signaled plans to deregulate the sector, which will totally end well and definitely won't result in thousands of people losing their life savings chasing the latest get-rich-quick scheme to hit the market.

Trump hints at imminent decision on convicted Jan. 6 rioters
Oh, good. The MAGA cult leader told throngs of cult followers at a rally on the eve of his inauguration that he had good news for the hundreds of Jan. 6 rioters, whom he laughably referred to has "hostages." Donald explained, "Tomorrow, everybody in this very large arena will be very happy with my decision on the J6 hostages," eliciting loud cheers from the crowd. The Trump administration has already begun drafting pardons for those convicted for their roles in the unconscionable attack, according to CNN. Over 1,200 people have been convicted thus far, a majority of whom pleaded guilty. A few hundred are currently jailed for their actions, though perhaps for not much longer.

Look for Trump Bibles to make an appearance at inauguration, Lee Greenwood says
Of all the shocking things we should expect on this most abysmal of inaugurations, this is perhaps the least shocking. Pathetic and gravely abnormal, of course, but not even remotely shocking.

Steve Bannon claims MAGA populism will win — as Trump is surrounded by billionaires
It sure looks like the oligarchy is alive and well, as a whole bunch of back-slapping, billionaire tech bros are having their way with their faux-billionaire buddy Donald, but what do we know?

Trump vows MLK, JFK, RFK assassination secrets will be made public in "coming days"
The MAGA cult leader has literally promised hundreds of things that curiously never materialized, so take this latest proclamation with a very large grain of salt... But we here at Dose of Democracy would theoretically welcome the release of whatever government "secrets" might exist on the trio of political assassinations that upended the world in 1960s.