Politicians who, through craven ambition, have created conditions where people believe that they are justified in committing acts of violence against our democracy have no place in public life.

Because what has happened today, and in the weeks since the election, Trump has invited, incited and encouraged incendiary rhetoric and actions, violence and insurrection. Today, at the rally, Trump said again that his election was stolen and that his”very special” supporters should “do something about it.” The VP Mike Pence, had to defy Trump by refusing to overturn the election results stating that would be unconstitutional. This is an unacceptable precedent to be set in our country with Trump supporters smuggling firearms into DC and threatening to kill people if Congress refused to make Trump president. As of this moment, the Capitol was breached and one woman has been shot and killed. Two incendiary devices have been discovered. Rioters threw chemical irritants on and at the police. Even George W Bush spoke out strongly against what he called this “insurrection.” He rebuked Senator Cruz et al for their reckless and irresponsible behavior. This is NOT the way to run a democracy. It is not a lesson we want to pass on to our children - that one can lie and bully his way into the presidency. It is alarming, it is dangerous, and it is a disgrace. Does anyone want to go through this again in 4 years?

Our democracy is at stake. Please act immediately. You have no more serious duty to uphold.

Rather then accept results of a legal election, he kept pushing conspiracy theories, that were unfounded after 60 court cases. The data that was used was flawed and rather then accept the results of our representative democracy, he helped to fuel the attack on our democracy. This is a very sad day in america. Doug failed to serve the oath that he has sworn to. We need him to accept the fact that he has failed us. Demand him to step down.

In California cases of COVID are rising at a rapid and dangerous pace. However, the California Department of Public Health has not published(nor made available to local health departments ) a roadmap to vaccinate outpatient healthcare workers who are not affiliated with a hospital. The vaccine rollout has been slow and unfortunately has left out a very large number of front line workers. These healthcare workers include primary care and specialty physicians, nurses, non-physician mental health providers, dentists-and their staff. Outpatient healthcare providers are often the first to assess and treat patients with COVID-19. They have been working to prevent hospital emergency rooms from becoming overwhelmed during the pandemic. Yet independent offices are being ignored and left to fend for themselves. Outpatient providers who have contacted the California Department of Public Health regarding this issue were told to contact their county, who in turn advised them to contact the state Health Department. Local hospitals when contacted have advised physicians to contact their county and that they can only vaccinate their own staff. Other states have created DOH vaccination sites where any Tier 1A healthcare worker can schedule themselves to be vaccinated without a prior invitation. All California Tier 1A healthcare workers must be vaccinated immediately, regardless of inpatient or outpatient work settings and REGARDLESS of hospital affiliation. We are all exposed to COVID-19 daily and each of our contributions are equally important in combatting the pandemic.

We must uphold our national laws.

Medical institutions across the country have successfully made plans to vaccinate and keep their medical students in the clinical environment. UVA has vaccinated clinical medical students and is now moving on to vaccinate their 1st and 2nd year preclinical students. VCU still doesn’t have an answer for when our clinical students may be vaccinated and there is no explanation for why this is not possible. The return to the clinical environment is contingent on becoming vaccinated, however, it seems that this is not currently a priority. The clinical education of medical students nationwide has already been disrupted due to removal from clinical activities during the summer. Currently it is unprecedented for an academic institution such as VCU to remove students for another 60-90 days. Decreased clinical time will impede education and set students back in their readiness for residency compared to peers at other institutions. While we are medical students now we will be the residents tasked with treating these patients in less than 1-2 years. These changes also ignore the value that medical students bring to patient care teams. Finally, this is a case where medical students are overlooked and undervalued. It is hoped that awareness of this situation will help administrations maintain transparency and prepare for situations like this to prevent such events from recurring. Local news coverage: https://www.nbc12.com/2021/01/05/medical-students-write-letter-vcu-health-regarding-vaccine-plan/ https://www.virginiamercury.com/2021/01/06/some-local-medical-providers-struggle-to-access-vaccine-as-doses-go-to-health-systems-stay-at-home-workers/

Our democracy is at stake, and these baseless claims are leading us down a path from which we cannot return.

Distilleries are suffering like other small businesses during the pandemic but they stepped up in response to a need by producing and sometimes donating hand sanitizer. The unexpected fee punishes their good deed and puts them in deeper financial risk.

McConnell has quashed virtually every piece of legislation passed in the House of Representatives over the past 12+ years. He is a cancer on the USA legislative branch of government. He must be neutralized.

We need to be present to plan for a safe-reopening of our schools. We need to provide vital training, medical care and support for our students and staff at the school sites. We cannot be removed from the care of our patients to assist in a business endeavor that is discouraged by the scientific community and the Los Angeles Department of Public Health. We have an obligation to our patients and this Sideletter violates this obligation, forces us to go against our duties as credentialed school nurses and as licensed registered nurses.

It is time that Congress act to help struggling Americans by putting money into their pockets so that they can weather the storm of this pandemic. It is not enough that the COVID relief bill before Congress only offers a one time direct payment of $600.00. This is an insult to many struggling Americans who are going hungry and can't pay the bills. As many politicians continue to argue over the debt and the deficit had no issue with passing $700 billion for defense. They passed a $2 trillion dollar tax bill that 83% of the benefits went to the rich and corporations. It is time for these politicians to act.