2018 in Review.

2018 was one of the most event filled years in human history. It had tragedies, history making occurrences, and new developments. In the beginning of the year, a massive cold wave took place in North America with record low temperatures in the East Coast and the Midwest. California started the retail sale of marijuana. By January, there were tensions among Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un about the nuclear button. Landslides existed in California. By January 11, 2018, Trump was caught calling majority black African-descent nations as being countries in derogatory, profane terms. His remarks were racist. On January 12, 2018, a Baltimore woman, who was a patient at the University of Maryland Medical Center, was taken outside and left by hospital employees in freezing temperatures wearing nothing but her hospital gown and socks. She is stranded until bystander Imanu Baraka called 911. Hawaii experienced a false alarm about a ballistic missile attack. In later January, the sexual abuser Larry Nassar (or former Olympic gymnastics team doctors) got 175 years in prison after testimony from almost 160 of his victims. Trump attended the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland in late January too. January 30 was when Trump gave his first State of the Union Address. By February, Trump accused the FBI of abusing its powers during the investigation of Russian meddling in the U.S. elections. February 4, 2018 was when the Philadelphia Eagles won their first Super Bowl in franchise history defeating the New England Patriots 41-33 in Super Bowl LII. The Winter Olympics took place in Pyeongchang, South Korea. America wins 9 gold medals, 8 silver medals, and 6 bronze medals. A mass shooting happened at Majory Stoneman Douglas High School in Park, Florida on February 14, 2018. 17 people were murdered. Many young victims of this tragedy grew the gun control movement even more. They prove that the youth can cause change in our generation. Later, students walk out of classes to protest gun violence nationwide. Special Counsel Robert Mueller indicted 13 Russians for interfering with the 2016 Presidential election by February. On February 18, in Stock Car racing, Austin Dillon won the 60th running of the Daytona 500. Darrell Wallace Jr. finished the 2nd highest finish for an African-American in the Daytona 500. Billy Graham passed away on February 21, 2018 at the age of 99 years old.

Teachers strike nationwide including from West Virginia. Trump’s former campaign manager Rick Gates admitted to charges of conspiracy and lying to investigators in a plea deal. Paul Manafort is indicted with five federal criminal charges including money laundering and foreign lobbying violations on February 24. During the next day,  in the wake of concerns about gun control, a number of major companies announce they are severing ties with the National Rifle Association (NRA) – including Alamo, Allied Van Lines, Avis, Budget, Delta, Enterprise, First National Bank of Omaha, Hertz, MetLife, National, SimpliSafe, Symantec, Teladoc, and United. March 1 was when Trump executed tariffs. Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine sued agricultural giant Monsanto accused the company of concealing dangers posed by a toxic chemical compound it manufactured nearly a half century ago. Gary Cohn resigned from the Trump team by March 6. On March 7, Stormey Daniels filed a lawsuit against Trump for the allegation of the nondisclosure contract she signed being invalid. Florida passed a law 67-50 votes to increase the age to buy a gun from 18 to 21 after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is fired by March of 2018. He criticized Trump on many issues. Mike Pompeo comes into the White House. Facebook is criticized for the Cambridge Analytica scandal (87 million people had their private information accessed by Cambridge Analytica). The opioid epidemic continues. Trump issued more tariffs on Chinese goods by March 22, 2018. At least 12 states are reported to be suing the Trump administration over inclusion of a citizenship question on the 2020 census on March 28. America expelled 60 Russian diplomats over the death of ex-spies and Russians expelled 60 U.S. diplomats in retaliation. China issued tariffs on U.S. products like cars and soybeans. By April 4, 2018, thousands of people gathered together to mark the 50th year anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King’s assassination. The Trump administration issued sanctions on 7 Russian oligarchs and 17 senior government officials for their activities. On April 9, 2018, the FBI raided the home, office, and hotel room of President Trump's long-time lawyer, Michael Cohen, pursuant to a federal search warrant. Trump issued strikes in Syria by April 13, 2018. R. Lee Emery, Barbara Bush, and Amsale Aberra passed away at April of 2018. By April 26, 2018, Bill Cosby was found guilty of three counts of aggravated indecent assault. CIA Director Mike Pompeo was confirmed by the Senate as Secretary of State on April 26. On May 1, 2018, a study conducted by health services company Cign revealed that American adults are experiencing a "loneliness epidemic" with nearly half of Americans reporting they sometimes or always feel alone (46 percent) or left out (47 percent). The national unemployment rate goes to 3.9 percent in May 4 which was the lowest rate since 2000. Trump ends the Temporary Protected Status for 57,000 Hondurans. The state of California becomes the world's fifth-largest economy, with the state's GDP surpassing that of the United Kingdom's. On May 8, the Senate Intelligence Committee releases an unclassified version of its investigation into Russian cyberattacks in 2016, concluding: "Russian-affiliated cyber actors were able to gain access to restricted elements of election infrastructure. [...] In a small number of states, these cyber actors were in a position to, at a minimum, alter or delete voter registration data; however, they did not appear to be in a position to manipulate individual votes or aggregate vote totals."


Trump disgracefully withdrew from the Iranian nuclear agreement. Former U.S. President Barack Obama said that the move was a serious mistake. The California Energy Commission introduces its 2019 Building Energy Efficiency Standards, requiring all new homes to be fitted with solar power from 2020. It is the first state in the US to enact such a law. Korean Americans are freed from North Korea by May 10, 2018. The Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling, upheld a law preventing employees from filing class action lawsuits against their employers over pay and hour disputes. Harvey Weinstein is charged with rape and other sexual crimes in New York City by late May of 2018. The #MeToo movement definitely grows and develops into more power. California promotes net neutrality. Trump is at the G7 Summit in Canada to want to include Russia in it. Trump met with Kim Jong-un at Singapore from June 2018.  June 8, 2018 was when Anthony Bourdain died. He was a celebrity chef, author, and television personality. A judged ordered Paul Manafort jailed for alleged witness tampering and cancels his bail. 70 former U.S. Attorneys deliver a letter to Jeff Sessions, urging that he end his “dangerous, expensive, zero tolerance” migrant policy, which separates children at the border, calling it “inconsistent with the values of the institution in which we served on June 18. America withdrew from the United Nations Human Rights Council. On June 27, 2018, in a landmark 5-4 decision that overturns Abood v. Detroit Board of Education (1977), the Supreme Court rules in Janus v. AFSCME that it is a violation of the First Amendment for public-sector unions to compel non-members to pay fair-share representation fees. Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy retired by June too. Five people are killed in a mass shooting in the newsroom of Capital newspaper in Annapolis, Maryland. By June of 2018, many people were involved in demonstrations nationwide in all 50 states against family separations carried out by the United States. Also, immigrants suffer horrible conditions at detention centers. Scott Pruitt resigned as the Administration of the EPA effective July 6 because of his abhorrent scandals. Andrew Wheeler replaced him. Brett Kavanaugh is nominated by Trump to replace Justice Kennedy. Kavanaugh is accused of sexually assaulting Dr. Ford and he is a far right person. He is later confirmed by the Senate. Trump attended the NATO Summit in Brussels by July 11.


Special counsel Mueller charged 12 Russian intelligence officers with hacking during the 2016 election on July 13. By July 16, President Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin for private talks in the Finnish capital Helsinki. In a press conference afterwards, Trump praises Russia and Putin, drawing sharp criticism from both Republicans and Democrats alike. Senator John McCain describes it as "one of the most disgraceful performances by an American president in memory." Trump wanted limits for habitat protections for endangered species. The New York Times reports that President Trump's former lawyer Cohen secretly recorded his client discussing payments to Karen McDougal, a former Playboy model who says she had an affair with Trump. By July, wildfires consume California destroying homes and cause many deaths. Trump wants Mueller to end the investigation by August of 2018. Apple, Inc. becomes the first public company to achieve a market capitalization of $1 trillion, as its share price exceeds a new record high above $207. By August 5, President Trump admits that his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., attended a meeting at Trump Tower during the 2016 election campaign "to get information on an opponent," but insists it was "totally legal and done all the time in politics - and it went nowhere. I did not know about it!" Monsanto is ordered to pay millions of dollars because of the health hazards of the Roundup weed killer (to Dewayne Johnson). Counter protesters in D.C. limit the Unite the Right Rally 2 rally at Lafayette Square near the White House. Jason Kessler organized the evil rally. Former CIA Director John O. Brennan, an outspoken critic of Trump, has his security clearance revoked by the President on August 15, 2018. The move is criticized as political retribution for Brennan's comments. Aretha Franklin passed away at August 16, 2018. She was a great singer and songwriter. Her funeral was in Detroit, Michigan. Arizona Senator John McCain passed away at August 25, 2018.


Michael Cohen pled guilty to many charges like:  five counts of tax evasion, one count of making false statements to a financial institution, one count of willfully causing an unlawful corporate contribution, and one count of making an excessive campaign contribution at the request of a candidate or campaign. Paul Manafort is convicted of many charges of tax and bank fraud. Hurricane Florence damaged North Carolina and other places in September of 2018. Bill Cosby is sentenced to a 3-10 year jail sentences for drugging and molesting a woman in 2004. On October 2, 2018, Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, triggering a diplomatic crisis between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia. Saudi’s leader and his agents were involved in the murder. The Senate confirmed Brett Kavanaugh on October 6, 2018, 50-48 amidst multiple women accusing him of sexual assault. U.S. ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley resigned on October 9, 2018. President Trump announces that the US will "terminate" the Treaty over alleged Russian violations. In later October 2018, many bombs or explosive devices were found at the home of George Soros and in other places. Some were sent to former US President Barack Obama and ex-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The latter devices are intercepted by technicians who screen mail sent to former US officials. The Time Warner building in New York (home to news broadcaster CNN) is also evacuated, after a package containing an explosive and suspicious powder is found addressed to former CIA Director John Brennan. Additional suspicious packages, addressed to Democratic Representative Maxine Waters and former Attorney General Eric Holder, are investigated by law enforcement. Later, more suspicious packages were attempted to be sent to Robert De Niro, Cory Booker, and James Clapper. These are critics of Donald Trump. The suspect is a 56 year old man named Cesar Sayoc Jr. He’s from Florida.


A mass shooting happened at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Eleven people died. A 46-year old anti-Semite was arrested. It is no secret that an increase of hate crimes existed since the election of 2016. 800 soldiers are deployed to the Mexico-United States border as a part of Operation Faithful Patriot, reinforcing the border against incoming Central American migrant caravans on October 29. November 6 saw the midterm election making history with Democrats winning tons of seats to control the House and Republicans maintain the Senate. Over 100 women won new seats in that historic election. Democrats gain 7 new seats in gubernatorial selections. Michigan was the 10th state to legalize recreational usage of marijuana. Attorney General Jeff Sessions resigned at Trump’s request at November 7, 2018. On November 8, The White House shares apparently doctored footage posted by InfoWars, showing Jim Acosta making contact with a Trump aide, in a bid to justify its suspension of the CNN reporter's press pass. Wildfires continue in California by this time and Trump mocked this tragedy in offensive words. President Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen pled guilty to lying to Congress in relation to the Russia inquiry by November 29. November 30, 2018 was when former President George H. W. Bush died at the age of 94 in Houston, Texas. Anchorage experienced a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. The Balangiga bells, which had been taken by the United States Army from Balangiga, Eastern Samar in 1901 as war trophies during the Philippine–American War, are returned back to the Philippines after 117 years of U.S. possession. Michael Cohen is given a 36 month jail term. In a rare rebuke to the White House, the Senate votes 56-41 to end US military assistance to Saudi Arabia's intervention in Yemen over alleged war crimes. The Senate passed a separate resolution that holds Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman personally responsible for the death of Saudi dissident Jamal Kashoggi. The Trump Foundation ended after allegation of financial corruption. December 12 was the date when Evelyn Berezin passed away. She was a computer designer best known for designing the first computer-driven word processor. December 17, 2018 was when Penny Marshall passed away. She was an actress, director, and producer. Jim Mattis or the Defense Secretary resigned by December 20 because of Trump wanting to withdrawal remaining American troops from Syria. The Dow Jones closes at 22,445.37 after its worst week since 2008 on December 21. There is the partial shutdown of the government as Congress couldn’t agree on a budget deal (when Trump wants his wall on the U.S./Mexico border). U.S. envoy Brett McGurk also resigned over Trump decision to pull troops from Syria. The end of 2018 certainly was one for the history books and we must move forward to promote the same credo of liberty, justice, and equality 100 percent.




By Timothy