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After a stongly controversial and close presidential election race with Al Gore, George W. Bush accepts presidency.
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George W. Bush is inaugarated as the 43rd president of the United States.
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Two hijacked jetliners ram twin towers of World Trade Center in worst terrorist attack against U.S.; a third hijacked plane flies into the Pentagon, and a fourth crashes in rural Pennsylvania. More than 3,000 people die in the attacks
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U.S. and Britain launch air attacks against targets in Afghanistan after Taliban government fails to hand over Saudi terrorist Osama bin Laden, the suspected mastermind behind the Sept. 11 attacks The hunt for bin Laden and other members of al-Qaeda terrorist organization begins.
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President Bush signs legislation creating a new cabinet department of Homeland Security.
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Space shuttle Columbia explodes upon reentry into Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven astronauts on board.
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War waged by the U.S. and Britain against Iraq begins.
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Incumbant George W. Bush beats John Kerry in presdiential election.
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Hurricane Katrina wreaks catastrophic damage on Mississippi and Louisiana; 80% of New Orleans is flooded.
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President Bush acknowledged secret CIA prisons around the world outside of US legal jurisdiction.
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The United States Economic recession begins.
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California Democrat Nancy Pelosi becomes the first woman Speaker of the House of Representatives.
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Attorney General Alberto Gonzales admits that the Justice Department made mistakes and exercised poor judgment in firing nine federal prosecutors in late 2006.
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Male student kills two in a Virginia Tech dorm. Two hours later, he kills 30 more in a classroom building before committing suicide. The shooting rampage is the most deadly in U.S. history. Fifteen others are wounded.
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The minimum wage in the U.S. increases to $5.85, up from $5.15. It's the first increase in 10 years. The wage will increase 70 cents each year through 2009, when it reaches $7.25 an hour.
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An eight-lane interstate bridge in Minneapolis, Minnesota, that is packed with cars breaks into sections and falls into the river, killing 13 people.
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After months of unraveling, the economy finally comes crashing down in 2008, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbling 4.4% in one day, Lehman Brothers filing for bankruptcy, and Bush putting mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac under government conservatorship.
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Barack Obama becomes the first African-American to be elected President, with 52.8% of the vote. In Congress, Democrats retain majorities in both the House and the Senate, with 57 Senators and 178 Representatives.
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After confirming 20 cases of swine flu in the United States, including eight in New York City, the U.S. declares the outbreak a public health emergency.
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An explosion and fire on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico sends millions of gallons of oil into the sea. The spill kills 11 and is the largest off-shore spill in U.S. history as well as one of the largest spills in world history.
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The United States Senate votes 63 to 37 to confirm President Obama's most recent nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court, Elena Kagan, as the newest Justice. Kagan is only the fourth woman to ever hold this position, and she'll be the third female member of the current bench, joining Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor. Kagan is the former dean of Harvard Law School; she'll be the only member of the current Supreme Court to have no previous experience as a judge.
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Arizona Representative Gabrielle Giffords is among 17 shot by a gunman who opened fire on the congresswoman's constituent meeting outside a local grocery store. The gunman, who police identify as Jared Lee Loughner, is apprehended.
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Hurricane Sandy causes at least 132 deaths and an estimated 82 billion in damages, making it the second costliest hurricane in the U.S., behind Katrina. New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut are hardest hit.
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President Obama is re-elected, narrowly defeating Republican nominee Mitt Romney.
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Edward Snowden, a former CIA employee, comes forward and admits that he is the source of the recent NSA leaks.
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Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing that lost contact with air traffic control on 8 March 2014 at 01:20 MYT, less than an hour after takeoff. At 07:24, Malaysia Airlines (MAS) reported the flight missing.The aircraft, a Boeing 777-200ER, was carrying 12 Malaysian crew members and 227 passengers from 14 nations.There has been no confirmation of any flight debris and no crash has been found.
