2008
January
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Presidential primaries kick off: The Iowa caucuses kick off the presidential primary season on Jan. 3. Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Mike Huckabee are the winners in Iowa. A week later at the New Hampshire primaries, Democrat Hillary Clinton takes the top spot and for Republicans, John McCain is victorious.
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Bush gives his last State of the Union address: Some of the highlighted efforts mentioned the president's speech on Jan. 28 included the progress made in Iraq, but, he said, a tough battle still lies ahead; he admitted that the economy was "undergoing a period of uncertainty" and that there was a need for tax breaks, both short and long term; he mentioned working to make health care "more affordable and accessible for all Americans"; and he asked Congress to strengthen the No Child Left Behind law.
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Edwards and Giuliani drop out of race: Democratic candidate John Edwards and Republican Rudolph Giuliani, neither of whom won a primary race, dropped out of the 2008 race on Jan. 29 after the Florida primary.
February
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McCain dominates Super Tuesday; Democrats are split: On Super Tuesday (Feb. 5), when 24 primaries and caucuses were held, Arizona Sen. John McCain emerged as the lead Republican candidate. The Democrats, however, were split: Hillary Clinton took big states like California and Massachusetts, but Barack Obama took more states overall. Republican Mitt Romney suspended his campaign two days later. On Feb. 12, Barack Obama took the lead in primaries held in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia. McCain also won all three primaries, solidifying his front-runner status over Mike Huckabee.
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Tornadoes kill dozens in south: As many as 55 people are killed and hundreds are injured after storms and tornadoes cross Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi and Tennessee.
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Gunman kills five students at Illinois university: A former graduate student opened fire on a classroom at Northern Illinois University on Valentine's Day. He killed five students and wounded 15 others before killing himself. On Feb. 27, the president of the university asked lawmakers to help him raze the lecture hall where the students were killed and replace it with a new building and memorial.
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Kosovo declares indpendence: On Feb. 17, Kosovo's prime minister Hashim Thaci delcares indpendence from Serbia, only three months after negotiations end in a stalemate. Many countries, including the United States, said they planned to recognize the new country, while Serbia and Russia called the move a violation of international law.
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Castro steps down in Cuba: On Feb. 19, Fidel Castro stepped down after 49 years in power. Five days later, his brother Raul Castro took over as president. Those hoping for a new regime may have been disappointed when Raul Castro said there will be few changes to the way the country is governed. He also said Fidel would act as his adviser when making decisions.
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Pakistani president defeated in elections: On Feb. 18, Musharraf's party lost most of its seats in Parliamentary elections. The party led by former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated in December, won 80 of the 242 contested seats. Another party, led by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, took 66 seats and Musharraf's party won 40. His defeat was viewed as a protest for his actions in the fall and his relationship with President Bush.
March
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Colombian forces kill rebel leader Raśl Reyes in Ecuador: Colombian troops in Ecuadorean territory killed FARC's Raśl Reyes and 23 other rebels. Venezuela and Ecuador broke off all diplomatic ties to Colombia and retaliated by sending troops to the Colombian border.
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McCain secures nomination, Huckabee drops out of presidential race: Repulican presidential candidate John McCain has enough delegates to be his party's nominee after primiaries in Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont. Prior to these primaries, fellow candidate Mike Huckabee refused to drop out of the race, despite being a long-shot. On March 4 he conceeded the nomination to McCain.
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Spitzer resigns as New York governor: New York Governor Eliot Spitzer resigned March 12 after allegations he was a client of a high-priced international on-line prostitution ring.
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Obama gives speech on race: Presidential candidate Barack Obama gave a 40-minute speech denouncing racial comments made by his former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Jr. He also spoke about how complex an issue race in America can be and how he will work toward alleviating some of the tensions.
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Bush defends Iraq war on its fifth anniversary: President Bush defended the Iraq war on its fifth anniversary, claiming that "the successes we are seeing in Iraq are undeniable." But at the same time, war protesters took to the streets and insisted the conflict has been a disaster.
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Detroit mayor indicted: Kwame Kilpatrick, who was elected mayor of Detroit in 2005 at age 31, was indicted on eight felony charges, including perjury, obstruction of justice and misconduct in office. The charges relate to a past affair with his former cheif of staff, Christine Beatty.
April
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Petraeus delays troop withdrawls with support of Bush : Gen. David Petraeus advises against further drawdowns of American troops until at least 45 days after the one underway is completed in July, which means troop levels would be maintained at around 140,000.
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Olympic torch protests occur in San Francisco: Protestors came out in San Francisco April 9 as the torch made its only stop on U.S. soil. These protests followed similar ones days before in London and Paris.
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Pope makes first visit to U.S.: Pope Benedict XVI made his first visit to the U.S. April 15-20. The religious leader made stops in D.C. and New York, holding masses and visiting with victims of sexual assault in the Catholic church.
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Patrick claims first Indy win: Female racecar driver Danica Patrick became the first female to win an IndyCar race with her win at the Indy Japan 300 April 20.
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Clinton beats Obama in Pennsylvania: Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton beat rival Barack Obama in Pennsylvania's April 22 primary, continuing a long battle for the nomination.
May
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Thousands dead as quake collapses schools in China : On May 12, an earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale hit southwest China, killing thousands of people. Local schools were hit the hardest.
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California Supreme Court rules in favor of gay marriage: The California Supreme Court, with a 4-3 vote May 14, said same-sex couples have the right to marry, beginning in June 2008. The state became the second, behind Massachusetts, to legalize gay marriage.
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Kennedy undergoes treatment for tumor: Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) is diagnosed with brain cancer May 20.
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Tornadoes hit the Midwest and South: Tornadoes hit Missouri, Oklahoma and Georgia in May, killing 20 and injuring hundreds. Thousands were without power in Racine, Missouri.
June
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Obama secures Democratic nomination: Barack Obama clinched the Democratic presidential nomination June 3, seizing a place in American history on the final day of a grueling five-month primary that forced him to battle rival Hillary Clinton to the very end. Clinton said she'd be willing to consider second-billing on his ticket if it were offered.
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Major flooding hits Midwest: Flooding across many Midwest states, including Missouri, Iowa, Indiana and Wisconsin have killed 10 people and forced thousands out of their homes.
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Four boyscounts die in Iowa tornado: A tornado going through Iowa on June 11, killed two 13-year-old scouts and two 14-year-old scouts, said Lloyd Roitstein, an executive with the Mid America Council of the Boy Scouts of America. Dozens more were injured. Ninety-three scouts were the camp when the tornado stormed through, leveling the shelter where they huddled as the storm approached. The scouts, ages 13 to 18, and 25 staff members were attending a weeklong leadership training camp at Little Sioux Scout Ranch in Western Iowa.
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California's lift on gay marriage ban begins: A month after the state's Supreme Court decided same-sex couples have the right to marry, California began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples on June 16.
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Supreme Court delivers ruling on gun ban: In a 5-4 ruling June 26, the Supreme Court supports an individual's right to own a gun, but warns the ruling "is not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose."
July
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Williams, Nadal win Wimbledon : Serena Williams edged out her sister Venus for the women's Wimbledon title, while Rafael Nadal beat rival Roger Federer for the men's title.
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'Dark Knight' breaks record: The latest installment in director Christopher Nolan's Batman series, "The Dark Knight," debuted August 18. It made a record-breaking $158.4-million during its opening weekend at the box office.
August
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Biden picked as VP candidate: Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama announced August 23 he had chosen his vice presdiential running-mate: Joe Biden. .
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Democratic National Convention elects Obama: Barack Obama was formally announced as the Democratic presidential nominee during the party's convention,which began in Denver, Colo. August 25.
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McCain chooses outsider: Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain surprised many with his choice of Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential running mate. The female governor of Alaska was not on many people's radar, as focus was largely given to men like Mitt Romney or Tim Pawlenty.
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Beijing Olympics open with pomp, circumstance: The opening ceremony of the Beijing olympics proved to be a true spectacle. China spent more money on the Aug. 8 event than any country has spent on any other Olympics' opening ceremony.
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Phelps swims his way to a record: U.S. Olympic swimmer Michel Phelps broke Mark Spitz' record of seven gold medals in one olympics when he received his eighth medal Aug. 17.
September
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Hurricane Gustav hits New Orleans: After surviving Hurricane Katrina in 2005, New Orleans prepares for Hurricane Gustav, which was on track to hit the still recovering city. However, Gustav came in at a category 2 in rural Louisiana, south of New Orleans on Sept. 1.
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Republican National Convention elects McCain : John McCain was formally announced as the Republican party's presidential nominee at the party's convention, which started in Minneapolis/St.Paul Minnesota Sept. 1. The event was not without a hitch, however, as it coincided with Hurricane Gustav's impending arrival in Louisiana and news that Bristol Palin, the daughter of McCain-running-mate Sarah Palin, is pregnant.
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Economy takes turn for the worse : September was not kind to the economy, as the month began with mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac being seized by the government. Then came Merril Lynch being sold to Bank of America, JP Morgan buying Washington Mutual, Citigroup purchasing Wachovia, and a failed Wall Street bailout attempt. The $700 billion bailout was rejected by the House of Representatives Sept. 29.
October
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Senate passes bailout plan: On Oct. 1 the Senate proposed and approved its own $700 billion bailout plan, two days after the House of Representatives was unable to agree on a plan of its own. The Senate's plan was signed by the House Oct.3, immediately after which President Bush signed it into law.
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Candidates participate in debates: On Oct. 2 vice-presidential nominees Joe Biden and Sarah Palin debated. Presidential hopefules John McCain and Barack Obama held two debates this month as well, on Oct. 7 and Oct. 15.
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Powell endorses Obama: Former Republican Secretary of State Colin Powell appeared on NBC's "Meet the Press" Oct. 19 to endorse Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.
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Senator found guilty of felony charges: A jury convicts Republican Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska with seven felony counts Oct. 27 for lying on financial forms and not disclosing gift money.
November
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Obama elected president: Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama becomes the U.S. 44th president-elect, winning with 338 electoral votes to McCain's 161.
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California outlaws gay marriage: California voters voted in favor of Proposition 8, which outlaws gay marriage in the state.
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World leaders meet to dicuss financial crisis:President Bush met with world leaders during the Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. on Nov, 15.
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Congress rejects auto bailout: Congress rejects a plea from Ford, Chrysler and GM for a bailout due to lack of a clear plan from the auto companies.
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