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Senate passes resolutions congratulating Lakers, Dodgers on winning respective titles

The United States Senate passed a pair of resolutions on Thursday officially congratulating both the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Dodgers for winning their respective league titles in recent weeks.

The resolutions — which were introduced by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Sen. and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) — are a simple, symbolic gesture from the federal government, something frequently done after championships across the sports world.

“My heartfelt congratulations to the Los Angeles Lakers for winning the 2020 NBA Championship,” Harris said in a statement about the Lakers, who beat the Miami Heat last month to win their 17th title. “In a season like no other, the unmatched determination and passion that these exceptional players demonstrated have made the City of Los Angeles and State of California so proud.”

“Congratulations to the Los Angeles Dodgers on winning their seventh World Series title,” Feinstein said in a statement about the Dodgers, who topped the Tampa Bay Rays to win the World Series. “The resilience of this team under unprecedented circumstances was inspiring and showed what can be done when a group coalesces around one goal.

“Following the Lakers’ recent NBA Championship, this is another great achievement for Los Angeles and California. Great job to the entire Dodgers team and operation!”

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This time, however, many didn’t take too kindly to the resolutions.

Fans slam Feinstein for announcement amid pandemic

There were more than 10.5 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States as of Thursday night, according to The New York Times, and more than 242,000 deaths attributed to it. The country reported more than 142,800 cases on Wednesday alone, an all-time record, and is averaging more than 128,000 new cases a day over the past week, an all-time high.

Because of the recent coronavirus spike — it’s now the worst it has ever been in the United States — many on social media were quick to point out that the resolutions felt like a waste of time.

Now, it likely took very little time to pass both resolutions. Doing so isn’t why there hasn’t been any recent movement to help during the pandemic as it surges throughout the nation, either. There are plenty of other factors at play.

However, it’s easy to understand why — after seeing a resolution passed congratulating the Lakers and Dodgers on titles during a pandemic — people are a bit frustrated by the news.

The Los Angeles Lakers after winning the 2020 NBA Finals
With the coronavirus pandemic raging out of control, many didn't understand why the Senate was congratulating the Lakers and Dodgers at all. (Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)

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