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Embargo on Soviet Union
Jimmy Carter announces the embargo on sale of grain and high technology to the Soviet Union due to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. -
Miracle on Ice
The United States upset the Soviet Union in the semifinals hockey game in the 1980 Winter Olympics. They go on to win against Finland. -
Operation Eagle Claw
The attempt to rescue the American hostages held captive in the U.S. Embassy in Iran fails with eight Americans killed and five wounded -
Mt. St. Helens
The Mt. St. Helens volcano in Washington State, erupt. It kills fifty-seven people and the area suffers losses near $3 billion. The blasts power was five hundred times greater than the Hiroshima atomic bomb. -
Ronald Reagan Wins Election
Ronald Reagan, the former Republican governor of California, beats President Jimmy Carter in a landslide victory. -
Inauguration of Reagan & Release of Hostages
The inauguration of Ronald Reagan occurs in Washington, D.C. It was followed by the release of the fifty-two Americans still held hostage in Tehran Iran. -
Attempted Assassination of Reagan
President Ronald Reagan withstands an assassination attempt, shot in the chest while walking to his limousine in Washington, D.C. -
Tax Legislation
Tax cut legislation proposed by President Ronald Reagan, the largest in history, is passed by both houses of the U.S. Congress. It would reduce taxes by $750 billion over the next five years. -
Star Wars
The initial proposal to develop technology to intercept incoming missiles, the Strategic Defense Initiative Program, or Star Wars, is made by President Ronald Reagan. -
Reagan Wins Reelection
President Ronald Reagan wins reelection over Democratic challenger Walter F. Mondale. -
US & Soviet Union Meet
Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev meet in Switzerland. It is the first meeting between the US and Soviet Union in six years. -
The Challenger
The Challenger Space Shuttle explodes after lift off at Cape Canaveral, Florida, killing seven people. -
Black Monday
The stock market crash known as Black Monday occurs on the New York Stock Exchange, recording a record 22.6% drop in one day. Stock markets around the world would mirror the crash with drops of their own. -
George H. W. Bush is Elected
Vice President under Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, claims victory in the presidential election over Democratic challenger Michael S. Dukakis. -
Exxon Valdez Spill
The Exxon Valdez crashes into Bligh Reef in Alaska's Prince William Sound, causing the largest oil spill in American history -
Berlin Wall Comes Down
The wall begins to crumble when German citizens are allowed to travel freely between East and West Germany for the first time. One day later, the influx of crowds around and onto the wall begin to dismantle it -
Cold War Ends
The Central Committee of the Soviet Communist Party gives up its monopoly of power. The ending of the Cold War was completed, in many ways, by the strong policies of U.S. President Ronald Reagan toward the Soviet block. -
Hubble Telescope
The Hubble Telescope is placed into orbit by the United States Space Shuttle Discovery. -
No More Chemical Weapons
George H.W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev sign a treaty to eliminate chemical weapon production and begin the destruction of each nation's current inventory. -
Gulf War
Iraq invades its neighbor, Kuwait, setting into motion the beginning of U.S. involvement in the Gulf War. -
Bill Clinton is Elected
Democratic candidate Bill Clinton defeats incumbent President George H.W. Bush -
World Trade Center Bombed
The World Trade Center is bombed by Islamic terrorists when a van parked below the North Tower of the structure explodes. Six people are killed and over one thousand are injured. -
NAFTA
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) goes into effect, creating a free trade zone between Canada, the United States, and Mexico. -
Oklahoma City Bombing
Anarchists Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols explode a bomb outside the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing one hundred and sixty-eight people in a domestic terrorism attack. -
Clinton Wins Reelection
President Bill Clinton defeats Republican Presidential candidate Bob Dole -
Monica Lewinsky Scandal
The Monica Lewinsky scandal begins when U.S. President Bill Clinton denies his relationship with the White House intern in a televised interview. This denial, and other denials to a grand jury investigation, would lead to the impeachment of the president. -
Clinton is Acquitted
President Bill Clinton is acquitted by the U.S. Senate in the Monica Lewinsky scandal. -
George W. Bush is Elected (barely)
George W. Bush, son of the former President, and Vice President Al Gore hold a virtual dead-heat for the presidency, with a disputed vote in Florida holding off the naming of the winner of the Presidential Election until the Supreme Court of the United States voted in favor of Bush on December 12. -
9/11
Islamic fundamentalist terrorists hijack four U.S. airliners and crash them into the Pentagon and the World Trade Center in New York City killing 3,000 people. -
Invasion of Afghanistan
In response to the tragedy of September 11, the United States military, with participation from its ally the United Kingdom, commence the first attack in the War on Terrorism on the Taliban and Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan. By November 12, the Taliban government leaves the capital, Kabul. -
War in Iraq
The War in Iraq begins with the bombing of Baghdad. -
Saddam Hussein is Captured
Saddam Hussein, former leader of Iraq, is captured in a small bunker in Tikrit by the U.S. 4th Infantry Division. -
George W. Bush Wins Reelection
President George W. Bush wins reelection over Democratic Senator John Kerry from Massachusetts. -
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina strikes the Gulf Coast. Over one thousand three hundred people perish from Alabama to Louisiana in one of the worst natural disasters to strike the United States. -
Troop Surge
President George W. Bush announces a troop surge of 21,500 for the war in Iraq. This controversial policy begins to show positive signs once fully implemented during the summer. -
Obama is Elected
Barack Obama, Democratic Senator from Illinois, wins the election for the 44th President of the USA over John McCain, making him the first African-American president in the history of the United States of America.
