Another year over, another catalog of the Presidential Events for the year. All the events listed were included in the fourteen Event articles of 2020. They are trimmed down, with only the most critical events. For those uninterested in parsing the minutia, the end of the article includes thirty bullet points, without links.
The following twenty-six sections are ordered alphabetically for convenience, instead of chronologically or by importance. The data in each section is mostly chronological, but sometimes events are moved to be next to related events.
Bizarre:
At a press conference after Ghislaine Maxell was arrested, the President said, “I wish her well.”
Black Lives Matter Protests:
Trump stood in the Rose Garden and threatened protesters with military force. Then he unleashed an unprovoked attack on protesters outside the White House with tear gas and police violence. The police began the assault just after 6:30 even though the curfew did not begin until 7pm. The violence enabled the President to parade through the cleared streets to a nearby church for a photo op. Despite an abundance of evidence that the violence was committed by police against protesters, the US Park Police blatantly lied.
Trump threatened Governors, saying they needed to “dominate” their citizens. In Portland, Oregon, federal agents in camouflage abducted protesters off the streets in unmarked vans. They used YouTube videos to identity and arrest protesters. Under the order of the President, the Department of Homeland Security unleashed violence against the city. While the coronavirus killed more than a hundred thousand citizens, the President attacked protesters as traitors.
Bill Barr later congratulated law enforcement for killing Michael Reinhoehl. In an interview and at a rally Trump endorsed the extrajudicial killing, saying, “... That's the way it has to be. There has to be retribution.”
China and Hong Kong:
After blustering about fighting China, the President the President was oddly silent about China's illegal, authoritarian absorption of Hong Kong.
The Coronavirus:
I considered separating the infection data from the political comments. But I realized it helped to see the President's words and actions in chronological order, to give them context. Some events have been moved to make the section more cohesive.
On February 24th, the President tweeted that “The Coronavirus is very much under control in the USA.” The next day the CDC said an outbreak in the US was inevitable. And Trump assigned Vice President Mike Pence to lead the response.
The President lied about the mortality rate of the coronavirus, how much the United States was testing, and claimed that the flu killed more people. The CDC, by March 6th, had tested fewer than 2,000 people, while South Korea, which had its first case of coronavirus on the same day as the United States, had tested 140,000. The President downplayed the threat of the coronavirus for political purposes, tweeting, “last year 37,000 Americans died from the common Flu … At this moment there are 546 confirmed cases of Coronavirus, with 22 deaths.”
At a Rose Garden press conference the President said, “I don’t take responsibility at all.” In response to the question, “How [is the coronavirus under control]? A thousand Americans are dying a day,” the President responded, “They are dying. That’s true. It is what it is,”
Intelligence officials warned Trump about the threat of coronavirus in early January, but publicly he downplayed the danger. With 400 infected people nation wide Trump said, “It’s gonna be a victory that, in my opinion, will happen much sooner than originally expected.” Economic advisor Peter Navarro wrote a memo in January about the coronavirus, that warned of 500,000 dead Americans, and a cost of $6 trillion. Though the January memo (and a second written in February) explicitly said, “Memorandum to President”, Trump claimed he had never seen them. Trump definitely received repeated briefings on the coronavirus in January.
The President publicly threatened to only help States whose governors agreed to help him politically. Trump explicitly told Pence, “Don't call the woman in Michigan. If they don't treat you right, I don't call.” When Cuomo asked for 30,000 ventilators, the President refused to send them, because he didn't believe New York needed them. The President dismissed New York's need for masks, accusing doctors and nurses of stealing them.
The White House failed their response to the pandemic. He had to pretend that a response that might result in 200,000 deaths, was “a very good job.”
On April 16th, the President declared victory over the coronavirus, saying, “Now that we have passed the peak in new cases, we are starting our life again,” as 2,000 Americans died daily.
The President threatened to withhold relief to states unless they rescinded sanctuary protections for immigrants, and accused China of creating the coronavirus at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo claimed without evidence, and against the analysis of the intelligence agencies, that the coronavirus was released from a Chinese laboratory. The President politicized the deaths by coronavirus, lying about whether they occur in Democrat leaning or Republican leaning states.
Though the number of deaths in the United States would eventually surpass 100,000 in the United States in May, the President claimed on May 2nd that 66,000 deaths was an achievement.
The President refused to wear a mask as he toured a plant in Michigan making masks. He implied masks were dangerous by describing them as “a double-edged sword." The President framed the pandemic as part of a scam or culture war. He even dismissed his own CDC's recommendations about masks as political correctness. On July 10th, the President wore a mask in public for the first time. In September President attended an ABC town hall where he avoided questions, lied, and refused to support masks. The Vice President visited the Mayo Clinic without wearing a mask, ignoring hospital policy. None of this behavior is surprising. Trump has mocked health guidelines, recently claimed that the flu is more deadly than the coronavirus, and is generally the source of more misinformation on the topic than any other.
In August, the President still claimed the coronavirus was disappearing.
According to the New York Times, after daily cases peaked in April at 35,000, cases dropped to 20,000 in mid May, before beginning to rise again in late June. The day before Memorial Day, as Trump went golfing for the first time since March, the country neared 100,000 deaths from the coronavirus. On Memorial Day itself, the President of the United States again accused Joe Scarborough of murdering an intern, and lied about the coronavirus and mail in ballots.
The Administration forced the CDC to withhold a document about how to reopen safely. The President outrageously asked public health officials to slow testing of the coronavirus. He retweeted claims that the CDC and doctors were lying about the coronavirus. The CDC said the coronavirus could be transmitted indoors by those more than six feet apart. Unfortunately, they backtracked days later, probably under political pressure. Trump accused his FDA commissioner of acting in “another political hit job,” privately called Fauci “a disaster,” and labeled CNN as “dumb bastards.” The President blamed the World Health Organization for coronavirus deaths in the United States, threatened to withhold funding, backtracked, and then carried through with his plan. The White House prevented Fauci, Navarro, the FDA commissioner from testifying to the House about the dangers to children, ventilators, and the national response.
The White House wasted the month of April by not implementing the policies needed to end lockdown; a massive expansion of testing, contact tracing, and an investment in PPE.
As the United States recorded its highest single day total since April, Trump's administration ended its support for testing sites nationwide. Two days later the United States reached an all time high of 40,000 cases. On that day (6/26/20) Pence claimed ‘remarkable progress', while the President golfed.
July posted a new record of 52,000 daily cases. Daily cases peaked at 77,255. The United States recorded 4 million cases, and the daily death rate rose above 1,000 for the first time since early June.
The Tulsa Health Department Director reported a spike in coronavirus cases, and attributed it to the rally in June. A study at Stanford University said that eighteen Trump rallies caused 30,000 additional cases and 700 deaths.
The coronavirus passed 170,000 deaths in August, making it the third highest cause of death in the United States.
In September the United States passed 200,000 deaths from the coronavirus.
At least 100 police officers died from the coronavirus, more than from any other cause, and that number may, “surpass 9/11 as the single largest incident cause of death for law enforcement officers.” In Texas, 230 inmates died from the coronavirus, and nearly 80% of them hadn't been convicted.
Trump sat for more than a dozen interviews with Bob Woodward. In early February, and through March, Trump said, “This is deadly stuff,” that the coronavirus was five times more deadly than the flu, and that “I wanted to always play it down.” Woodward released tapes that included the President admitting it “goes through air,” as publicly he said, “within a couple days is going to be down close to zero.”
The President also said to Woodward, the virus is “so easily transmissible,” and “Nothing more could have been done.”
On October 2nd the President finally contracted the coronavirus. After his week in the hospital the President returned to the campaign trail, violating CDC guidelines. Why did the President host a fundraiser on Thursday when he knew he had been in contact with a close aide who had tested positive for the coronavirus? In addition to POTUS and FLOTUS, Senators Tillis and Lee, the Press Secretary, Chris Christie, Kellyanne Conway, pastors, and aides became ill, numbering more than twenty in total.
Days before the daily cases reached a new peak at 88,000 the White House Chief of Staff admitted, “We're not going to control the pandemic.”
On November 5th the United States recorded a new peak of 121,200 cases. Three days later it reached 126,000. On November 11th cases climbed to 130,989. On November 27th it peaked with 205,462 coronavirus infections. November saw daily deaths double from 800 to 1,600, with a high of 2,313. Hospitals surpassed their previous coronavirus patient records, with over 90,000, compared to 60,000 in April. As of November 250,000 people in the United States died from the coronavirus. That's more than from accidents or stroke. It's more than from Alzheimer's and diabetes combined.
At the White House, a second coronavirus cluster infected Mark Meadows, Ben Carson, Lewandowski, and numerous aides. Over 130 Secret Service agents quarantined after they became infected or were close to infected persons.
December was the first month with 100,000 concurrent hospitalizations for the coronavirus. It was the first month with 3,000 deaths in a day. It was the month when the United States reached 300,000 dead.
Fortunately the FDA approved the first coronavirus vaccine, manufactured by Pfizer. The first doses were given on the 14th of December. The public learned that the White House purchased 100 million doses, but declined to purchase a second round of 100 million doses when offered by Pfizer.
The Coronavirus, Relief:
While the Democrats wrote and passed a fourth bill in the House, the Senate and the President said they had no plans to pursue any additional aid. Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell told the President that the next bill needed to be under $1 trillion. Trump said no relief bill should be considered until at least June at the earliest, and that states which made it easier to vote would see their funding cut. The Senate recessed for the 4th of July holiday without passing either bill. The Senate failed to pass a stimulus bill in August. The Democratic controlled House passed a bill two months ago, but the Senate didn't start negotiations until late July.
At the start of October Trump backed out of negotiations over coronavirus relief. He said negotiations would not resume until after the election. The next day he said he wanted a big deal.
Congress finalized a $900 billion coronavirus relief bill. The deal is tiny compared to the $4 trillion relief initially passed by the Democratic House in the summer. It's only half the size of the $1.8 trillion deal offered by the White House in late October, and dismissed by Nancy Pelosi, as insufficient. It includes an additional $300 weekly to unemployment benefits and a one time $600 check for all adults (compared to $600 and $1,200 in March).
Corruption:
Former White House chief strategist, Steve Bannon, was arrested for defrauding donors who sent money to a private organization to build a border wall.
Domestic Policies (Cuts to Social Programs and Executions):
Despite Trump's repeated promises during the 2016 campaign to bring back democracy, and legislate policies for the benefit of the working class, he has continually repudiated his own words. Trump proposed steps to cut Medicaid by changing it to block grants. Though Trump vowed he would not touch Social Security or Medicaid in the 2021 budget, his budget proposal included cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. The White House sought to kick 700,000 people off food stamps by tightening work requirements. The Department of Justice filed a brief in support of repealing the entire Affordable Care Act.
Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos, altered college sexual assault policies, reversing protections for accusers put in place by President Obama. The Supreme Court ruled that teachers at religious schools can be fired based on race, gender, sexual orientation, or personal beliefs.
The Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to resume federal executions, which had been suspended since 2003. After temporarily delaying the first federal execution in 17 years, the Supreme Court allowed it to proceed. In 2020, the Federal government, under Trump and Barr, executed ten men, and scheduled three more before Biden's inauguration.Trump was the first president since 1896 to order the execution of at least ten people in a single year.
The Economy:
The US deficit increased to $356 billion for the first quarter of 2020, and is expected to cross $1 trillion in 2020. Under Trump's leadership, a $1 trillion deficit is the new normal. The President lied about the state of the national deficit, claiming it was decreasing before the Coronavirus, when in fact it was increasing. The GDP contracted 32.9%, the worst since World War II.
The June economic report included 4.8 million new jobs, but a lingering 11% unemployment rate. July recorded the 17th week of 1 million unemployment requests. The federal Payroll Protection Program was revealed to include massive fraud.
At least five and a half million workers lost health insurance.
The Election and The Interference:
The President continued to attack the validity of a vote by mail. Twitter fact checked the President when he claimed mail in ballots would lead to a fraudulent election.
The Supreme Court ruled that 1 million Floridians couldn't vote until they paid fines and fees related to their imprisonment, and restricted the ability of citizens to vote during a pandemic, by allowing Alabama and Texas to implement onerous restrictions on voting by mail.
When Fox news asked the President if he would accept the results of an electoral loss, he refused to answer. He doubled down saying, “This [election] will be catastrophic for our nation.” The President repeatedly refused to commit to a transfer of power if he loses in November.
On November 6th and 7th most major sites called the 2020 United States Presidential Election for Joe Biden, with 306 electoral votes.
Two days after the election, as the states of Pennsylvania, Nevada, Georgia, and Arizona continued to count mail-in ballots the President tweeted, “STOP THE COUNT!” At a press conference the same day, the President said, “If you count the legal votes, I easily win.”
The next day he tweeted, “I WON THIS ELECTION, BY A LOT!” When the Press Secretary gave a press conference where she accused Democrats of rigging the election, major news sites cut away. On November 16th the President still claimed, “I WON THE ELECTION!” With this cacophony coming from the White House, 73% of Republican voters refused to accept the results.
Trump lost numerous court cases in an attempt to change the result.
On November 8th most elected Republicans refused to acknowledge Biden as the winner.
When Trump's head of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said, “The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history,” the President fired him.
At this point it seems likely Trump may be the first President to not concede since the tradition began over a hundred years ago.
Though the President continued to claim the election was marred by fraud, Barr said there was no evidence of election fraud.
Trump attacked Kemp and other disloyal Republicans on Twitter, and the targets are surprised and upset by the President's viciousness.
The Attorney General of Texas filed a suit to invalidate the votes of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Georgia. He was joined by the President, 17 states, and 66% of House Republicans. All nine justices of the Supreme Court dismissed the lawsuit.
On December 15th, the Electoral College confirmed Biden as the president-elect.
The Environment:
The Trump administration took its deregulatory zeal to the 50 year old National Environmental Policy Act, by allowing small federal infrastructure projects to avoid the mandatory environmental review. The goal was to allow oil companies to avoid the six year process. The White House also continued its deconstruction of the National Parks system. The President approved drilling in Utah's National Monuments, while destroying another National Monument in Arizona to build his border wall. The Supreme Court refused to halt the creation of Trump's border wall which conflicted with environmental laws.
Trump was the first President since 1963 to reduce a national monument, removing 85% of the Bears Ears from protected status. And he removed the Grey Wolf from the protection of the Endangered Species Act. As a gift for oil and gas companies, the President planned to sell leases for drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
Trump weakened a rule on toxic wastewater, allowing coal plants to release additional arsenic, mercury, and other heavy metals into rivers and lakes. The EPA suspended its enforcement of environmental laws, allowing for mass pollution with no punishment. The White House reduced fuel efficiency standards from 54 mpg to 40 mpg.
Immigration:
International law forbids sending asylum seekers back to their home country, so the Trump administration started sending Mexican asylum seekers to wait in Guatemala. The White House took 7.2 billion dollars to fund the wall in 2020, from counter-drug enforcement and Department of Defense construction projects. The travel ban was expanded to six additional nations with significant Muslim populations; Myanmar, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Sudan, and Tanzania. The White House planned to accept only 15,000 refugees next year, down from 110,000 during the Obama Presidency. The Supreme Court allowed the administration to expand those eligible for immediate deportation. The White House prohibited poorer immigrants from settling in the United States, because they might burden taxpayers.
ICE accessed the records of DACA applicants, even though Trump claimed they couldn't. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), forced migrant families to choose between indefinite detention or family separation. Chad Wolf detained unaccompanied migrant children in hotels, before expelling them. Former deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein advised that there was no age limit on child separations. After separating infants and children from their parents at the border, the White House can't find the parents of 545 migrant children. Lawyers claimed that ICE offices tortured the Cameroonian asylum seekers so they would sign deportation orders. A whistleblower claimed that an ICE facility performed an unusually high number of hysterectomies.
The White House's continuing attempt to exclude undocumented immigrants from the census count was blocked in September.
Trump's border wall cost billions more than initial estimates.
Inspectors General:
The President removed IG Christi Grimm, because she issued a report criticizing Trump's pathetic response to the coronavirus. Grimm was about to receive a whistleblower complaint from Rick Bright, who oversaw the funding of vaccines, tests, and treatments for the coronavirus. Bright alleged that he was fired after he criticized the White House's promotion of hydroxychloroquine. Trump removed State Department IG Steve Linick who was investigating Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for arms dealing and staff misuse.
Iran:
On January 3rd, the United States assassinated Iranian Major General Qassem Soleimani. His death was a violation of international law, akin to the assassination of a Cabinet official or a US Major General. The Department of Defense admitted that 109 soldiers of the United States suffered traumatic brain injuries as a result of the counter attack.
Mike Pompeo, pressured the UN Security Council to impose economic sanctions on Iran for violating the 2015 Iran Nuclear Deal. The UN rejected the United States attempt to snap back sanctions, calling it illegal, because the US had abandoned the 2015 nuclear deal.
In November, sources inside the White House claimed Trump was preparing to bomb Iran.
Israel:
The White House released its one sided peace plan for Israel and Palestine. It allowed Israel to claim all territory currently occupied by settlements, making the remaining Palestine look like Swiss cheese. Days later, Pompeo gave permission for Israel to annex the settlements in the West Bank. The United States blocked a Security Council vote condemning Jared Kushner's unjust Middle East peace plan. The United States threatened to approve Israel's annexation of most of the West Bank, as laid out in Jared Kushner's peace deal, if Palestine refused to negotiate. The Israeli ambassador to the US lobbied to immediately approve annexation.
The United States signed an agreement with Israel that allows taxpayer money to be spent in the illegal Israeli settlements.
Trump planned to sell $23 billion worth of F-35 Fighters, Reaper drones, bombs, and ammunition to the autocratic United Arab Emirates, in exchange for them recognizing Israel. The President signed a deal with Morocco that abandoned the people of West Sahara, a independent nation that UN recognized in 1991.
Joe Biden, President Elect:
As Joe Biden became the favorite to win the Democratic Primary, Republicans investigated Hunter Biden to undermine his father. As Ukraine finished an investigation into Hunter, declaring him innocent, Republicans revived a probe into the affair, demanding testimony about Biden and his son.
Biden announced his preferred staff. He named Louisiana congressman Cedric Richmond as a senior advisor to oversee the legislative agenda on climate change. Richmond received extensive donations from oil and gas industries.
Biden's choice for Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, supported the Iraq War, supported the Saudi invasion of Yemen, and made big money in private equity firms after working in the Obama Administration.
Picked to head the Office of Management and Budget, Tanden repeatedly pushed to cut Social Security.
Biden nominated General Lloyd Austin for defense secretary, but The Intercept reported that Austin sat on the board of Raytheon, a major weapons manufacturer.
He choose newer congresswoman Marcia Fudge for HUD, but awarded the more prestigious position of Agriculture for Tom Vilsack. Vilsack had served in the same position under Obama. Under Vilsack, the Department of Agriculture spent eight years abetting agribusiness and corporate interests, while refusing to help poorer, rural farmers.
Biden is also considering picking a Republican.
Finally, listen to Biden's meeting with civil rights leaders.
National Security:
The United States government reported that a massive cyberattack by a foreign country, posed a grave risk to federal and state governments, as well as critical infrastructure. The hack began in March, through SolarWinds. An analysis revealed that hackers gained access to email and data within the departments of defense, state, treasury, homeland security, commerce, along with the National Nuclear Security Administration.
The President downplayed the hack in a tweet. When Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo condemned Russia's attack, the President said, it could be anyone.
Trump threatened to veto a $741 billion National Defense Authorization Act. The military budget is a bloated expense, spent on weapons of war to maim citizens of distant countries. He wanted to veto it because; it didn't repeal an internet free speech law, required renaming military bases with named after Confederate generals, and it wasn't strong enough against China.
Pardons:
The President pardoned an incredible assortment of criminal allies. He pardoned four Blackwater contractors who murdered fourteen civilians in Baghdad. He forgave three former GOP representatives convicted of economic crimes. And he pardoned Papadopoulos and van der Zwann, both of whom were convicted during the Russia investigation. The next day Trump pardoned Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, and Charlie Kushner. The first two were convicted for seven and three years in prison for tax evasion, and lying for the president during the Russia investigation. The latter is Jared Kushner's father, who was convicted for tax evasion and witness tampering in 2004.
Will the Department of Justice uncover a pay to pardon scheme as further evidence of the President's corruption?
Presidential Finances:
The Supreme Court protected Trump's tax returns from public view.
The New York Times obtained more than two decades of Trump's returns. Trump paid no federal income tax for 11 of 18 years, and only $750 in 2017. He is under audit for a $72 million tax refund. The Trump organization wrote off $750,000 to a contractor; Ivanka Trump. Trump's businesses lost money and were buoyed by his time on the Apprentice. His businesses benefited from his Presidency. And most worrisome, he owes hundreds of millions of dollars in debt, due within the next year, and it isn't clear to who.
Additional reporting by the NYT on the President's taxes revealed that Ivanka took $750,000 in consulting fees from the Trump Organization, while an employee of the same, to reduce the company's tax burden. Though the President only paid $750 to the United States in taxes, he paid almost $200,000 to China. It appears that the President had $270 million in debt forgiven since 2010.
Russia Investigation:
After conviction, prosecutors recommended Roger Stone serve 8 years in prison for obstruction of justice, lying to Congress, and witness tampering in connection with the Russia investigation. The President tweeted that the sentence was disgraceful. Higher ups in the DOJ downgraded their recommended sentence. Four members of the prosecution team withdrew in protest. The President ranted against the prosecutors and the judge overseeing the case. Trump continued his rampage by demanding Roger Stone receive a new trial. Stone was only sentenced to 40 months in prison.
Roger Stone was ordered to report to jail on July 14th for his three year term. The President responded by retweeting a call for Stone to be pardoned. One of the prosecutors of Stone testified about improper politicization by the Justice Department. Trump commuted Roger Stone's sentence.
The Justice Department dropped all charges against former National Security Advisor, Michael Flynn, who earlier plead guilty to lying about his conversations with the Russian Ambassador.
The Senate released its final report on the Russia investigation. Even more clearly than the Muller report, the Senate report laid out Russia's attempts to assist President Trump and the enthusiasm of Trump allies to accept. Most egregiously, Trump's campaign manager, Paul Manafort passed along information to Konstantin Kilimnik. While this was already cataloged in Mueller's report, the Senate said that Kilimnik was a Russian agent, connected to the country's intelligence agencies, and that Manafort's work with him “represented a grave counterintelligence threat.” The Senate also said that Manafort might have personally assisted the hacks which targeted the DNC. The report also concluded that the President lied. Trump told Mueller he did not remember discussing Wikileaks with Roger Stone, but Stone and Trump did discuss it with other allies multiple times.
Deputy Attorney General, Rod Rosenstein, who oversaw the Mueller investigation, secretly restricted him. Mueller was only allowed to conduct a criminal investigation, and not a counterintelligence investigation.
At Julian Assange's extradition trial in London, his lawyers claimed that two associates of Trump said the President would pardon Assange if he divulged information related to the 2016 election.
A federal prosecutor picked by Barr to discover wrong around the Russia investigation concluded his search with no evidence.
Trump pardoned Michael Flynn, with more to follow.
Sexual Assault:
Another woman accused Donald Trump of sexual assault, making the total more than twenty.
Staff:
John Ratcliffe, the Texas congressman who was rejected for the position of Director of National Intelligence in August of 2019 (because he was too partisan and unqualified), was confirmed for the DNI post on a party line vote.
Trump placed a top donor in charge of the United States Postal Service, which he hopes to undermine.
Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf has been in the position, unconfirmed, for 472 days. Acting positions were supposed allow short term appointments, but the Senate Republican has allowed the President to abuse this power. Unconfirmed positions allow for abuse with a lack of transparency and accountability. It allowed Chad Wolf to deploy border agents, acting with near immunity, against American civilians.
In November, the President fired his fourth Defense Secretary, Mark Esper. He also installed partisan hacks at the Pentagon after he had lost the election.
The Supreme Court:
As the September ended Trump nominated Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court.
The Republicans voted on and seated Amy Barret as a Supreme Court Justice days before Election day.
Troop Deployment:
The President withdrew soldiers from Afghanistan and Iraq, reducing the United States' 7,500 footprint to 5,000. When Obama left office between 13,000 to 15,000 soldiers remained in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Trump also withdrew the remaining 700 United States forces from Somalia.
Ukraine Scandal and Impeachment:
Unredacted documents, released to the public in January showed that the order to withhold aid came from the President, that it was tied to Ukraine investigating the Bidens, and that Pentagon officials were worried it was illegal.
The President's lawyer made the outrageous claim that, “If a president does something which he believes will help him get elected in the public interest, that cannot be the kind of quid pro quo that results in impeachment.”
Impeachment concluded with acquittal.
Republican Senator Alexander Lamar, who voted not guilty, admitted that Democrats proved their case that President Trump withheld aid to pressure Ukraine. Republican Mitt Romney was the first (and only) Senator in the history of the United States to vote to remove a President of their own party.
Trump personally fired Gordon Sondland and reassigned Lt. Col Alexander Vindman, both of whom testified against him in the House. Later, Lt Col Alexander Vindman, who testified against the President, retired because of a “campaign of bullying, intimidation, and retaliation,” encouraged by Trump.
The President fired another Inspector General, Michael Atkinson. Atkinson claimed his firing was in retaliation for informing the House.
Weapons of War:
The White House reversed Obama's policy which prohibited the use of anti-personnel landmines. Landmines killed 130,000 civilians over the last 20 years, and were banned by the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty, which 160 countries signed (not the United States).
The US military conducted a simulated nuclear exchange with Russia, under the dangerous idea that it's possible to engage in a safe, limited nuclear war. The President pulled out of his third arms treaty with Russia, And spent half of the world's $73 billion investment on nuclear weapons.
In the midst of the coronavirus, the United States launched more airstrikes against Somalia in four months than it did through all of 2008 to 2016.
Trump courted weapon manufacturers with his appointees and policies.
White Supremacy:
The President probitited the Army from stripping military bases of their Confederate names.
The President retweeted a video from a Florida retirement community, in which a man with Trump flags chanted “white power.” Trump thanked the people for their support.
A 17 year old, encouraged by the inflammatory rhetoric of the President, traveled from Illinois to Kenosha, Wisconsin, and shot three protesters, leaving two dead. Trump initially refusing to condemn the shooting, and later claimed the shooter killed the two people in self defense.
Miles Taylor, claimed that Trump wanted to trade Puerto Rico for Greenland, because the Puerto Ricans were dirty and poor.
Excessive force by federal agents, police, and right-wing militias led to violence. The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security repeatedly said that white supremacists are the greatest terrorist threat.
Six men were charged by the FBI with the conspiracy to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. After the news broke, the President attacked Whitmer for doing “a terrible job.”
In Minnesota Trump demonized the Somali immigrants who live there.
According to the FBI, hate crime murders were the highest ever in 2019, and hate crimes rose by 55% between 2017 and 2019. Right-wing, white supremacists targeted African Americans, Hispanics, Asians, Jews, and LGBT individuals.
A Top Thirty (Not In Any Particular Order):
Trump:
Accused Obama of pretending to kill Osama Bin Laden, and then murdering the Seal Team Six.
Attacked peaceful protesters with police brutality.
Endorsed extrajudicial murder by police and soldiers.
Didn't protest against China's annexation of Hong Kong, or the genocide of its Uyghur population.
Lied about the dangers of the Coronavirus.
Hampered efforts to slow the spread, by mocking masks and interfering with the CDC and FDA.
Started a culture war over a disease which killed 330,000 Americans in less than a year.
Currently attempting to repeal the Affordable Care Act, and withdraw healthcare from millions of Americans.
Restarted federal executions, killing ten.
Discredited vote by mail.
Refused to accept the results of the election, and spread conspiracy theories about how Democrats stole it.
Deconstructed the National Park and National Forest system, reducing the land size, and increasing logging and drilling.
Expanded the Muslim ban to six more countries.
Reduced the number of refugees, while expanding detentions and deportations.
Removed Inspectors General who were investigating his corruption.
Assassinated Iran's Qassem Soleimani.
Endorsed Israel's illegal settlements in the West Bank.
Recalled soldiers from the Middle East.
Placed Amy Coney Barrett on the Supreme Court.
Instituted the practice of placing Acting Secretaries in positions.
Accused over another sexual assault.
Impeached and acquitted.
Suffered a massive foreign cyber-security hack on multiple agencies, but downplayed it.
Pardoned war criminals, conspirators, and white collar criminals.
Paid no taxes of the last decade, and owes huge debts.
Was the target of Russian support in the 2016 election, according to a report released by Republicans in the Senate.
Inflamed white violence and white supremacy.
Denounced ethnic minorities, like American Somalis.
Biden:
Won the 2020 election.
Picked war hawks, insiders with conflicts, and corporate hacks as some of his cabinet members. Also the first Native American Cabinet member.
Recent:
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Relevant:
The Presidential Events: November 2020
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