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| THE BIG STORY
Democrats will force a referendum on Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, rejecting Republican attempts to protect her
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is a first-year Republican lawmaker from Georgia, and she has already become the center of a political fight.
Greene has expressed belief in the QAnon mass delusion, espoused wild conspiracy theories, and questioned whether the Parkland school shooting actually happened. On Thursday, the House will vote on whether to strip her from her committee roles.
The vote will put Republicans in an awkward position — they will have to choose whether to publicly denounce Greene or rally behind her. Democrats openly plan to paint the entire GOP with Greene’s extremist views if the party does not disavow her.
On the other hand, Greene has significant support, including from former president Donald Trump, and many rank-and-file Republicans do not want to alienate his base of voters.
Analysis: Our politics editor Matt Berman makes the point that Greene has virtually no legislative power and is not yet a household name — but the Democrats insisting to focus on her could make her a star.
“Amplification doesn’t just find new outrage; it also finds new fans,” Berman writes. “A similar logic helped make Donald Trump president.” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene in Congress on Sunday, Jan. 3. Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images HELP US PURSUE GOVERNMENT SECRETS
Our journalists filed 58 Freedom of Information Act lawsuits during Trump's presidency — more than any other media organization in the US. We have no plans to slow down, but pursuing that work is expensive and time consuming. STAYING ON TOP OF THIS
Canada just declared the Proud Boys “a terrorist entity”
The Proud Boys, a violent far-right group, saw its profile raised and its ranks grow significantly last year when Trump called on the group to “stand back and stand by” during a presidential debate.
Members of the Proud Boys played key roles in the Capitol insurrection last month, and at least two of them now face federal conspiracy charges.
On Wednesday, the Canadian government labeled the Proud Boys and two other extremist movements as “terrorist” organizations. Canada also added Atomwaffen Division, an American neo-Nazi group, and the Base, a white supremacist group, to its list of terrorist entities.
Public Safety Minister Bill Blair made the announcement, saying the threat of “ideologically motivated violent extremism has been identified as the most significant threat to domestic security in Canada.” SNAPSHOTS
The former police officer who fatally shot Andre Hill has been charged. Adam Coy, the former Columbus, Ohio, police officer who fatally shot Andre Hill, an unarmed Black man, has been charged with murder, prosecutors announced.
Mexican influencers are getting called out for promoting abuse. Has the country’s #MeToo movement finally turned a corner? Some of Mexico's most popular influencers are being accused of sexual assault — but many of the women who speak out are getting victim-blamed.
Twitter unblocked accounts that criticized India’s government. Now, its employees are being threatened with jail time unless it blocks them again. The social media company is refusing an order to take down accounts the government wants gone.
YouTuber David Dobrik said he’s lost $85,000 from investing in GameStop stock during the hype. “I fucking hate stocks,” the influencer said on his latest podcast. “I only like doing it because I like gambling.”
Here are the Golden Globe nominees for 2021. Chadwick Boseman was nominated for his role in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, along with Viola Davis. On the TV side, The Crown reigned supreme. Here’s the full list. VACCINE ROLLOUT LESSONS
Israel is now the first country where vaccinations are starting to curb the pandemic
Israel began its vaccine rollout six weeks ago. Now, public health experts are breathing a sigh of relief as they see the effects kicking in.
The data suggest that Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine is working almost as well in the real world as it did in clinical trials. But Israel’s rollout also revealed some of the challenges ahead. For example, the experts we interviewed had hoped that these positive results would show up more quickly.
Israel has been criticized by human rights organizations for not extending its vaccination program to the occupied Palestinian territories. And the rollout has been slower among Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel and ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities — groups that have been hit hardest by COVID-19.
This concerns health experts watching from the US. The pace is slower despite the fact that the Israeli government launched a big communications effort, involving religious and other community leaders, to try to address vaccine hesitancy among Arab and ultra-Orthodox communities. A health worker administers a dose of the Pfizer-BioNtech COVID-19 vaccine in Petah Tikva, Israel, on Feb. 1. Jack Guez / Getty Images DRIVING DRAMA
Sabrina Carpenter’s music video appears to shade Olivia Rodrigo after fans theorized the whole feud is a PR stunt
Somehow, the “Driver’s License” drama is still going. After the Olivia Rodrigo song took the world by storm, it sparked a Driver’s License Cinematic Universe, as fans raced to untangle the real-life drama behind it.
Sabrina Carpenter released a song about, ahem, getting into a relationship while an ex watches. This week, she followed up the song with a music video that, ahem, alludes to “Driver’s License.”
Now fans are starting to think the whole situation is a PR stunt. I hope you spend time treasuring the ways you've grown this year, Elamin 📝 This letter was edited and brought to you by Elamin Abdelmahmoud and BuzzFeed News. You can always reach us here.
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