On March 4, 2017, President Trump tweeted a series of explosive and completely false accusations that former President Barack Obama had wiretapped his phones at Trump Tower “just before the victory.” Trump claimed he had “just found out” about the wiretapping but provided …
Donald TrumpBarack ObamaJames ClapperJames Comeydisinformationobama-attacksauthoritarianismfalse-accusationsabuse-of-power
President Barack Obama commuted the sentence of Chelsea Manning, reducing her 35-year prison term to seven years served with a release date of May 17, 2017. The commutation came after Manning attempted suicide twice in 2016 while serving her sentence as a transgender woman in a men’s military …
Barack ObamaChelsea ManningDepartment of Justicewhistleblower-prosecutionclemencylgbtqtortureaccountability
On January 6, 2017, the U.S. Intelligence Community released a comprehensive assessment concluding that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally ordered an extensive influence campaign aimed at undermining the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA), titled …
Vladimir PutinCIAFBINSADonald Trump+2 moreRussia InterferenceIntelligence CommunityElection SecurityPutinForeign Interference+1 more
On the afternoon of October 8, 2016, Saudi-led coalition aircraft struck the Al Kubra funeral hall in Sanaa, Yemen, with two airstrikes approximately three to eight minutes apart, killing 155 people and wounding at least 525 others in one of the deadliest single attacks of the Yemen war. The funeral …
Saudi ArabiaMohammed bin SalmanRaytheonLockheed MartinHuman Rights Watch+1 moreraytheonyemen-warsaudi-arabiawar-crimescivilian-casualties+1 more
On March 16, 2016, President Barack Obama nominated Merrick B. Garland, the widely respected Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by Justice Antonin Scalia’s death one month earlier. Garland was considered a …
On February 13, 2016, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died of apparent natural causes at a luxury resort in West Texas, creating a vacancy on the Court with nearly 11 months remaining in President Obama’s term. Within hours of Scalia’s death being announced, Senate Majority Leader …
Governor Rick Snyder declares a state of emergency for Genesee County due to the ongoing health and safety crisis caused by lead in Flint’s drinking water—21 months after the initial water switch and three months after independent researchers forced the state to acknowledge the lead poisoning. …
Rick SnyderBarack ObamaEPAflint-water-crisisRick-Snydergovernment-accountabilityfederal-oversight
The NSA officially ended its bulk collection of Americans’ telephone metadata at 11:59 PM on November 29, 2015, as required by the USA Freedom Act passed by Congress in June 2015. The program, which had operated under Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act since 2006, systematically collected …
NSACongressBarack ObamaEdward SnowdenFISA Courtnsa-surveillancesurveillance-reformusa-freedom-actbulk-collectionprivacy-rights+1 more
A U.S. Air Force AC-130 gunship launches sustained airstrikes against a Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières) hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan, killing 42 people including 14 staff members, 24 patients, and 4 caretakers. The attacks continue for more than an hour despite frantic phone …
Barack ObamaDoctors Without BordersU.S. Air ForceAfghanistanwar-crimesdronesobamaafghanistancivilian-casualties+2 more
President Barack Obama signed the USA FREEDOM Act into law on June 2, 2015, representing the most significant reform of U.S. surveillance programs since the 1970s and a direct response to Edward Snowden’s revelations about NSA mass surveillance. The Act prohibited bulk collection of all …
Barack ObamaMitch McConnellRon WydenRand PaulNSAusa-freedom-actnsa-surveillancelegislative-reformpatriot-actedward-snowden+1 more
On March 26, 2015, Saudi Arabia launched military intervention in Yemen’s civil war, beginning an eight-year bombing campaign that would kill over 19,000 civilians and create what the UN characterized as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. The Saudi-led coalition initiated operations …
Saudi ArabiaMohammed bin SalmanRaytheonLockheed MartinBarack Obama+1 moreraytheonyemen-warsaudi-arabiawar-crimescivilian-casualties+1 more
The Federal Communications Commission approves landmark net neutrality protections by a 3-2 party-line vote, reclassifying broadband internet service as a “telecommunications service” under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934 to establish legally enforceable rules prohibiting …
Tom WheelerFederal Communications CommissionAjit PaiMichael O'RiellyMignon Clyburn+2 morenet-neutralityfcctelecommunicationstitle-iitom-wheeler+1 more
The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence releases a 525-page executive summary of its comprehensive investigation into the CIA’s detention and interrogation program, revealing that the program was far more brutal, widespread, and ineffective than the CIA disclosed. The report, based on a …
Dianne FeinsteinSenate Select Committee on IntelligenceCIAJohn BrennanBarack Obamatortureciawar-crimessenateaccountability+2 more
Following the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine, the European Union and United States imposed comprehensive sectoral sanctions targeting Russian financial, energy, and defense sectors. These sanctions represented a significant diplomatic and economic escalation, …
European UnionUnited StatesSberbankVEBGazprombank+3 moresanctionsmh17financial-restrictionsenergy-sectorinternational-diplomacy+2 more
Germany’s chief federal prosecutor Harald Range opened a formal criminal investigation into allegations that the U.S. National Security Agency tapped Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cellphone, marking the first time a major U.S. ally launched criminal proceedings against American intelligence …
President Obama delivered a major address at the Department of Justice outlining reforms to NSA surveillance programs in response to Edward Snowden’s revelations, but the proposed changes left core bulk collection authorities largely intact while adding modest procedural safeguards. The speech …
The Guardian newspaper reported, citing documents obtained from Edward Snowden, that the National Security Agency monitored the phone conversations of 35 world leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel. The leaked NSA memo, dated October 2006, revealed that senior U.S. government officials …
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff canceled a scheduled state visit to Washington in response to revelations that the NSA had intercepted her personal phone calls, text messages, and emails, as well as conducting extensive surveillance of Brazil’s state-owned oil company Petrobras. The …
The Obama administration prosecuted eight individuals under the Espionage Act for leaking to media, more than all previous administrations combined which had only three cases total since 1917. Those prosecuted included Thomas Drake (NSA) whose 10 felony charges were reduced to a misdemeanor after …
President Barack Obama nominates Tom Wheeler, a former top lobbyist for cable and wireless industries, to lead the Federal Communications Commission. Wheeler’s appointment exemplifies the revolving door between telecommunications regulators and industry, having served as CEO of the Cellular …
Tom WheelerBarack ObamaCellular Telecommunications & Internet Association (CTIA)National Cable Television Association (NCTA)Public Interest Groups+1 moreregulatory-capturefccrevolving-doortelecommunicationstom-wheeler+1 more
President Barack Obama nominates Tom Wheeler, a former top lobbyist for cable and wireless industries, to lead the Federal Communications Commission. Wheeler’s appointment exemplifies the revolving door between telecommunications regulators and industry, having served as CEO of the Cellular …
Tom WheelerBarack ObamaCellular Telecommunications & Internet Association (CTIA)National Cable Television Association (NCTA)Public Interest Groups+1 moreregulatory-capturefccrevolving-doortelecommunicationstom-wheeler+1 more
President Obama signed legislation that gutted key provisions of the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act, just one year after the law was passed with great fanfare to combat congressional insider trading. The amendment eliminated the requirement for creating a searchable, sortable …
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The Bureau of Investigative Journalism publishes comprehensive evidence that the CIA conducts “double-tap” drone strikes—following an initial strike with a second strike targeting rescuers, medical personnel, and civilians who rush to help victims. The investigation documents at least …
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The New York Times publishes an explosive investigation revealing that President Obama personally approves every name on a secret “kill list” for drone strikes during regular Tuesday National Security Council meetings dubbed “Terror Tuesdays.” The article exposes how the …
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The New York Times reveals that the Obama administration has adopted a secret policy counting “all military-age males in a strike zone as combatants…unless there is explicit intelligence posthumously proving them innocent.” This Orwellian methodology allows the administration to …
President Barack Obama signed the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act into law, addressing long-standing concerns about insider trading by members of Congress. The bipartisan legislation, passed with overwhelming support (96-3 in Senate, 417-2 in House), prohibits members of Congress …
A CIA drone strike in Yemen kills Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S. citizen and Islamic cleric, without charges, trial, or judicial process. Al-Awlaki becomes the first American citizen to be deliberately assassinated by his own government since the Civil War era. President Obama personally approved placing …
Anwar al-AwlakiBarack ObamaCIAJSOCJohn Brennandronesobamaassassinationtargeted-killingdue-process+2 more
U.S. Representative Anthony Weiner (D-NY) announced his resignation from Congress effective June 23, 2011, after admitting he sent sexually explicit photos and messages to at least six women over three years through Twitter, Facebook, email, and phone—and then lied about it to the public and media. …
Anthony WeinerHuma AbedinBarack ObamaNancy PelosiCongressional CorruptionSexual MisconductDemocratic PartyNew YorkCover-up+1 more
BP agreed to establish a $20 billion independent claims fund to compensate victims of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, administered by Kenneth Feinberg. By July 2011, the Gulf Coast Claims Facility had paid $3.7 billion to 198,475 claimants. The fund, while unprecedented in its scale, faced …
BP (British Petroleum)Barack ObamaTony HaywardKenneth FeinbergGulf Coast Claims Facility+3 morecompensation-fundcorporate-accountabilityenvironmental-justicebp-deepwater-horizonobama-administration+2 more
Under intense pressure from the Obama administration and Congress, BP agreed to establish a $20 billion independent claims fund to compensate victims of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The fund, administered by Kenneth Feinberg, represented an unprecedented corporate commitment to environmental …
BP (British Petroleum)Barack ObamaTony HaywardKenneth FeinbergGulf Coast Claims Facility+2 morecompensation-fundcorporate-accountabilityenvironmental-justicebp-deepwater-horizonobama-administration
Donald Trump launched his political career by promoting the racist “birther” conspiracy theory, publicly questioning whether Barack Obama—the nation’s first Black president—was born in the United States and therefore eligible to serve as president. In a March 23, 2011 appearance on …
Donald TrumpBarack ObamaRacismBirtherismDonald TrumpBarack ObamaConspiracy Theory
A CIA drone strike on a tribal jirga (council meeting) in Datta Khel, North Waziristan kills at least 42 people, the vast majority of them civilians including tribal elders gathered to resolve a local mining dispute. The massacre represents one of the deadliest single drone strikes of Obama’s …
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House passes Democracy Is Strengthened by Casting Light On Spending in Elections (DISCLOSE) Act requiring disclosure of corporate political spending, but Republican leadership blocks Senate consideration to protect dark money donors
Chuck SchumerChris Van HollenMitch McConnellBarack ObamaHouse of Representatives+1 morelegislative-responsecampaign-finance-reformcorporate-disclosurepolitical-obstructiontransparency+2 more
The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico marked the beginning of one of the worst environmental disasters in U.S. history. The explosion killed 11 workers and caused a massive oil spill that would leak approximately 134 million gallons of oil over 87 days. The disaster …
BP (British Petroleum)Transocean LtdHalliburtonMinerals Management ServiceBarack Obama+2 moreenvironmental-disastercorporate-negligenceoil-industryregulatory-capturegulf-coast
President Obama secretly authorizes the CIA to conduct “signature strikes”—drone attacks that target groups of people based on patterns of suspicious behavior rather than confirmed identification of specific individuals. This policy shift enables the CIA to strike gatherings of …
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President Obama directly criticizes Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision during State of the Union Address, with Justice Samuel Alito visibly shaking his head and mouthing ’not true’ in unprecedented breach of judicial protocol
Barack ObamaSamuel AlitoJohn RobertsRuth Bader GinsburgStephen Breyer+2 moreconstitutional-crisisseparation-of-powersjudicial-independencecampaign-financepresidential-criticism+2 more
The United States Senate passed the Franken Amendment by a 68-30 vote on October 6, 2009, prohibiting defense contractors receiving more than $1 million in Department of Defense funds from requiring employees to resolve sexual assault, battery, or harassment claims through mandatory arbitration. The …
Al FrankenJamie Leigh JonesKBRHalliburtonSenate+1 moreaccountability-crisiscorporate-impunitysexual-assaultmandatory-arbitrationprivate-military+1 more
The Obama White House secretly negotiated an $80 billion deal with pharmaceutical industry lobbyists, abandoning the president’s campaign promise to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices. White House officials Jim Messina and Rahm Emanuel met with PhRMA CEO Billy Tauzin, agreeing to maintain …
President Barack Obama authorizes the Department of Justice to release four previously classified memos from the Office of Legal Counsel written between 2002 and 2005 that authorized CIA torture techniques including waterboarding, stress positions, sleep deprivation, and confinement in coffin-sized …
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President Barack Obama dramatically expands the CIA’s drone strike program in his first year in office, authorizing more strikes than George W. Bush conducted during his entire presidency. The expansion transforms armed drones from a limited counterterrorism tool into a systematic …
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Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich and his chief of staff John Harris were arrested at the governor’s home on federal corruption charges, including conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and solicitation of bribery. The 76-page FBI affidavit revealed that Blagojevich was captured on …
Rod BlagojevichBarack ObamaPatrick FitzgeraldDonald TrumpGubernatorial CorruptionDemocratic PartyIllinoisBriberyWire Fraud+2 more