12 Months, 12 Outrageous Moments: Donald Trump’s Year in Office
A controversy for every month! US President Donald Trump has had a busy year.
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US President Donald Trump has completed a year in office. It would be tedious to list every single controversy controversy or outrage that happened in that time, so here’s a few:
January: Declares Inauguration Day as "National Day of Patriotic Devotion"
US President Donald Trump declared his inauguration day as the "National Day of Patriotic Devotion". He said the new national pride “stirred the American soul and inspired the American heart”.
Ironically, Trump also signed an order for authorising the deportation of 11 million immigrants, stating that the move was “critically” important to national security and public safety.
February: Withdrew Protection For Transgender Students
The Donald Trump administration formally struck down guidelines on transgender bathroom protections in public schools, put in place by the former President Barack Obama.
According to the guidelines, transgender students must be allowed to use bathrooms and locker rooms of the gender the child chooses to identify with.
March: Trump Found Liable For Defrauding Students
A federal judge held Trump liable to pay a $25 million settlement to the students who signed up and paid for Trump University real estate seminars. The judge called for Trump to reimburse the students who claimed they were “defrauded”. Trump however, claimed “no wrongdoing”.
April: Launches Airstrike on Syria, Doesn't Remember It
The US military’s cruise missile strikes, ordered by Trump against a Syrian airbase controlled by President Bashar al-Assad's forces, left nine people dead, including four children. However, Trump soon forgot which country was attacked by America’s missiles but remembered the details of cake he was eating at that time.
May: Sacks James Comey, Who First Thought It Was A 'Joke'
President Donald Trump abruptly fired FBI Director James Comey saying it was necessary to restore “public trust and confidence” in the nation’s top law enforcement agency following several tumultuous months.
Comey only learned that he was fired when he was addressing media persons in Los Angeles and TV screens behind him started flashing the news. He also reportedly believed that the news about his firing was a “joke”.
June: Takes 'Historic' Decision, Pulls Out of Paris Climate Accord
President Trump decided to pull out of the landmark Paris climate accord, an announcement that was made with great fanfare in the White House Rose Garden. The country “backed off” from a coalition it made just 18 months ago.
Nearly 200 countries joined the climate deal forged under the leadership of former president Barack Obama. The US now stands with only Syria and Nicaragua as countries that are not part of the accord.
July: 'Beats' CNN, Gets Fitting Reply
Maintaining his stand that most news organisations – especially CNN, and New York Times – were torch bearers of fake News, Trump tweeted a GIF of him wrestling with CNN. At the time of writing this article, this GIF had more than 37.9 million views.
In what was called a “fitting” reply, CNN released its own video. "It is a sad day when the President of the United States encourages violence against reporters," CNN said in a statement.
August: Refuses to Condemn White Supremacism
President Trump blamed “both sides” for the deadly violence in Charlottesville, where white nationalists and counter-protesters clashed over the removal of Confederate monuments across the Southern states.
September: Threatens North Korea
Donald Trump threatened to “totally destroy” North Korea, in his very first address to the United Nations general assembly.
October: Throws Paper Towels At Puerto Rico Crowd
US President Donald Trump, visiting victims of Hurricane in Puerto Rico, tossed rolls of paper towel at the crowd. He also tossed cans of chicken as an act of charity. Holding up a can of chicken, Trump said:
US President Donald Trump said it was “wonderful” to meet with the victims of the Las Vegas shooting. In a tweet, following his meeting with some of those injured after a heavily armed gunman opened fire on a crowd at Route 91 Harvest Festival where nearly 60 people were killed and more than 500 were hurt, Trump said:
November: Endorses Man Who Abused Teenage Girls
“Get out and vote for Roy Moore,” said Trump, campaigning for the Republican candidate in Alabama, who was pitted against Doug Jones. Only, Moore was accused of sexually assaulting and “behaving inappropriately” with several women when they were teenagers.
December: Affirms He Has Zero Knowledge About Climate Change
Donald Trump once dismissed global warming as a “hoax” created by the Chinese to adversely affect American jobs. But on a holiday in Florida, the president found himself wondering about the “good old global warming”, a concept he doesn’t appear to have an understanding of (Hint: Extreme weather is a symptom of global warming and climate change).
(With inputs from Reuters, AP, Washington Post, New York Times and CNN)
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