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full-bleed photograph — a defining 21st-century moment

American History · 2000 — Present

Major Events of the 21st Century

A living timeline of America in the new millennium. From the dot-com era and 9/11 through financial crisis, pandemic and political upheaval — the events that have shaped the United States, year by year. Click any event for the full story, or browse the year-by-year almanac. Click any event to read its full story.

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The New Millennium Crisis & Change A Divided Age

The New Millennium2000 – 2008

2000AOL Purchases Time Warner 2000USS Cole Attacked 2000Hillary Clinton Elected to the Senate 2000George W. Bush Elected President 2001Large Tax Cut Passed 20019/11 — Attack on New York and Washington 2001U.S. and Great Britain Attack Afghanistan 2001Anthrax Attacks the U.S. 2001Enron Bankruptcy 2002Congress Authorizes Force Against Iraq 2002United Airlines Files for Bankruptcy 2003Shuttle Columbia Explodes on Reentry 2003U.S. Invades Iraq 2003Blackout in the Northeast 2004Abu Ghraib Prison Abuse 2004The 9/11 Commission 2004President Bush Reelected 2005First Hispanic Mayor of Los Angeles 2005Hurricane Katrina Devastates the Gulf Coast 2006Hamdan v. Rumsfeld 2006Tesla Roadster Introduced 2007The iPhone Introduced 2007Virginia Tech Shooting 2008Barack Obama Becomes Democratic Candidate 2008Lehman Brothers Declares Bankruptcy 2008Barack Obama Wins the Presidency

Crisis & Change2009 – 2016

2009Barack Obama Inaugurated President 2009General Motors Declares Bankruptcy 2009President Obama Announces Troop Surge 2010Affordable Care Act Passed 2010Elena Kagan, Fourth Female Justice 2010U.S. Combat Mission Ends in Iraq 2011Osama Bin Laden Killed by U.S. Forces 2012Hurricane Sandy 2012Obama Reelected 2012Sandy Hook School Shooting 2013Boston Marathon Bombing 2014Janet Yellen to Head the Federal Reserve 2015Charleston Church Shooting 2015Supreme Court — Same-Sex Marriage 2016Donald Trump Elected President

A Divided Age2017 – 2024

2017FBI Director Fired 2017Equifax Data Breach 2018Trump Leaves Iran Nuclear Accord 2018Contentious G7 Meeting 2018U.S.–North Korea Summit 201812 Russian GRU Officers Indicted 2018Trump and Putin Meet in Helsinki 2018Cohen and Manafort Found Guilty 2018Only 30,000 Refugees to Be Admitted 2018Trump Addresses the UN 2018Brett Kavanaugh Confirmed to the Supreme Court 2018Massacre at Synagogue in Pittsburgh 2018Midterm Elections 2018Mattis Resigns After Syria Announcement 2019Nancy Pelosi Becomes Speaker 2019Government Shutdown Ends After 35 Days 2019Mueller Report Released on Trump and Russia 2019House Votes to Impeach President Trump 2020COVID-19 Spreads Around the World 2020Biden Becomes Presumptive Democratic Nominee 2020SpaceX Launches Astronauts to the Space Station 2020Joe Biden Elected President 2021Insurrection in Washington — The Capitol Attacked 2021Second Impeachment Trial of Donald Trump 20212020 Census Data Released 2021Taliban Victorious in Afghanistan; U.S. Evacuates 122,000 2022Supreme Court Rules on Vaccine Mandates 2022January 6th Committee Holds Public Hearings 2022Supreme Court Overturns Roe v. Wade 2022Four Major Bills Passed by Congress 2022Committee Concludes Trump Should Be Prosecuted 2023The Trump Indictments 2023The Speaker of the House Removed 2024Trump Found Guilty 202425 Days From Debate to Biden Withdrawing

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