#46 Joe Biden- Restoration
Joe Biden devoted his life to public service, spending thirty-six years as a U.S. senator from Delaware, eight years as vice president, and four years as the 46th president of the United States. A life-long Democrat, he embodied the values of family, service, decency, and hard work throughout his long career.
2021;
- Riot at the Capitol over voting.
- Joe Biden becomes the 46th President of the United States
- Biden signs multiple executive orders bringing the U.S. back into the World Health Organization and Paris Climate Accord, as well as allowing transgender in the military.
- Impeachment trial begins for Trump, he is acquitted shortly after.
- A third Covid vaccine is rolled out.
- President Biden leaves on his first trip to Europe, which includes a meeting of the G7 and a NATO summit.
- Joe Biden signs a bill creating a federal holiday for Juneteenth, June 19th, to commemorate the end of slavery in the United States.
- President Biden gives an update on the drawdown of US troops from Afghanistan, due to be completed in September.
- As the United States draws down the US troop presence in Afghanistan, the Taliban seize Kabul and take over the Afghan government.
- Thirteen US military service members and dozens of Afghan civilians are killed at the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, after a suicide bomber sets off explosives in a crowd of people. The ISIS-K terrorist group claims responsibility.
- The last US troops leave Afghanistan after a 20-year war.
- President Biden gives a speech about a new variant of the coronavirus known as the Omicron variant and the federal government’s plan to send millions of at-home tests to Americans.
2022;
- After President Vladimir Putin of Russia sends troops into two separatist-held regions of Ukraine, President Biden announces US sanctions against Russia. The sanctions target Russian finances and banking. Russia invades Ukraine.
- President Biden announces that the United States will ban imports of natural gas and oil from Russia in an attempt to put pressure on President Putin to stop the war in Ukraine.
- President Biden travels to Europe in support of Ukraine. He attends an EU Summit meeting and a NATO meeting and gives a speech in Poland.
- President Biden signs the Emmett Till Antilynching Act, making lynching a federal crime.
- In Uvalde, Texas, a gunman open fires at an elementary school, killing 19 children and 2 teachers. It is the deadliest school shooting in almost a decade.
- In Dobbs v Jackson, the US Supreme Court rules that the Constitution does not provide the right to an abortion. The decision overrules both Roe v. Wade (1973) and Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992).
- President Biden signs the Safer Communities Act, which addresses issues related to gun safety, school safety, and mental health to try to reduce gun violence. This bill is the first major federal gun control law in decades.
- Inflation continues to rise, with the Consumer Price Index climbing 9.1 percent from a year earlier in June 2022.
- The United States launches a drone strike in Afghanistan that kills Al Qaeda leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri.
- Attorney General Merrick Garland announces that the Justice Department will appoint a special counsel to investigate former President Trump in the January 6 attack and the handling of sensitive government documents.
- Biden signs the Respect for Marriage Act into law. The bill provides federal protections for same-sex and interracial marriages.
- President Biden signs the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act of 2022, election reforms designed to prevent another January 6 attack. Along with other provisions, it outlines processes for how to handle disputes over counting electoral votes and the role of the vice president.
2023;
- After classified government documents are found in Biden’s home, Attorney General Merrick Garland appoints Robert Hur as a special counsel to investigate the matter.
- President Biden announces that the United States will send 31 battle tanks to Ukraine to help them defeat the Russian invasion.
- President Biden orders military aircraft to shoot down a high-altitude balloon from China that has flown over the country.
- After a secret journey, President Biden arrives in Kyiv, Ukraine, to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky. It is the first time a modern-day president ventured into a war zone that was not held by American forces.
- The US Supreme Court rules that colleges and universities cannot used race-based affirmative action in admissions.
- President and First Lady Biden travel to Maui, Hawaii, to tour the devestation from a wildfire on the island. A few hundred people died after the fires spread through the town of Lahaina.
- President Biden visits members of the United Auto Workers union who are striking to show his support for organized labor. It is the first time a modern president has joined a picket line.
- Far-right Republicans oust Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif) because of ideological differences. It is the first time in US history that members of the House remove the Speaker of the House in the middle of his term.
- Hamas, a militant Palestinian organization that runs the government in the Gaza Strip, launches a surprise attack into Israeli territory and settlements near the Gaza border, killing more than 1,200 people and seizing some 250 hostages. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel declares war against Hamas.
- Representative Mike Johnson of Lousiana is elected Speaker of the House.
- President Biden signs an executive order on artificial intelligence that attempts to protect Americans from the risks of AI.
- President Biden celebrates his 81st birthday, making him the oldest US president in American history.
2024;
- After drone attacks in Jordan kill three US soldiers, the United States carries out aerial strikes in Syria, Yemen, and Iraq against Iran-backed militias.
- Special counsel from the Department of Justice releases a report and declines to prosecute President Biden for mishandling classified documents after his vice presidency, but the report personally attacks the President, calling him “an elderly man with poor memory.”
- President Joe Biden signs a $95.3 billion package of aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan, after months of debate in Congress led to a delay in approving the package.
- President Biden issues an executive order limiting asylum seekers at the US border. The order blocks migrants from crossing into the United States seeking asylum if the number of asylum seekers is more than 2,500 per day.
- President Biden’s son Hunter is found guilty on three counts of lying on a federal application for a firearm.
- At a rally in Pennsylvania, a gunman attempts to assassinate former President Donald Trump. He is grazed on his ear, but survives with no serious injuries. A spectator at the rally is killed, and two people are seriously injured.
- In a letter posted on social media, President Biden announces that he will not seek reelection and will withdraw from the 2024 presidential campaign. He endorses Vice President Kamala Harris.
- President Biden speaks at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois. Two days later on August 21, Vice President Kamala Harris accepts the Democratic nomination for president.
- Former President Donald Trump wins the 2024 presidential election, defeating Vice President Kamala Harris. Republicans also gained control of the US House and Senate.
- President Biden becomes the first sitting US president to visit the Amazon rainforest in Brazil.
- President Biden pardons his son, Hunter Biden, from federal convictions related to tax evasion and illegally purchasing a gun.
- The government of Bashar al-Assad of Syria falls as rebel groups take over the government. Assad flees to Russia, ending the Syrian civil war that began in 2011.
- On his last day in office, President Joe Biden issues preemptive pardons to Dr. Anthony Fauci, General Mark Milley, and members of the January 6 congressional committee to protect them from possible prosecution by the incoming Trump administration.