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Controversies that dogged US President Donald Trump's time in office
Trump, who became the 45th US President after winning the November 2016 elections, had a rather controversial time in office.
Donald Trump may or may not be impeached over last week’s violence at the US Capitol, but come January 20, 2021, he won’t be the President any more as on this day, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will be sworn-in as President and Vice President respectively.
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Trump, who became the 45th US President after winning the November 2016 elections, had a rather controversial time in office. Here are some major events that took place during his term in the White House and before the US Capitol riots:
1. Border wall: Stopping illegal immigration, including from Mexico, was one of Trump’s major poll planks. On January 25, 2017, just four days after taking oath, he signed Executive Order 13767, directing that a wall be built on the US-Mexico border. The construction began in 2019 but is yet to be completed.
2. Protests against ‘Muslim’ ban: Widespread protests broke out after Trump signed Executive Order 13769 on January 27, 2017. In reality a travel ban, it was called a ‘Muslim’ ban as it barred immigration to the US from countries with substantial Muslim population.
3. US withdraws from Paris climate accord: In accordance with his “America first” policy, Trump announced on June 1, 2017, that the US would be withdrawing from the 2015 Paris Agreement, popularly known as the Paris climate accord.
4. ‘March for our lives’ protests: Amid a spiral in gun violence, with many incidents taking place in schools and campuses, student-led ‘March for our lives’ protests, in support of gun control legislation, took place on March 24, 2018.
5. Withdrawal from Iran nuclear deal: On May 8, 2018, the US announced its withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCOPA), known in popular parlance as the “Iran nuclear deal.” It was signed on July 14, 2015 between Iran, the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), and Germany.
6. Trump meets Kim Jong-un: The two leaders met for the first time on June 12, 2018 in Singapore, in what was the maiden meeting between leaders of the US and North Korea. Trump and Kim met for a second time in Hanoi on February 27-28, 2019 and followed it up with a meeting on the heavily militarised border between South and North Korea on June 30, 2019.
7. Death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi: The ISIS chief detonated a suicide belt as the US Special Forces carried out a raid targeting him in Barisha, Syria, on October 26-27, 2019. “Baghdadi died whimpering and crying and screaming,” Trump would announce at a press conference.
8. First “impeachment” and acquittal: The US House of Representatives “impeached” Trump on December 18, 2019 after he was found “guilty” of actions which led to him being charged with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. However, on February 5, 2020, Trump was acquitted by the Senate.
9. Killing of Qasem Soleimani: A US drone strike killed top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani near Baghdad International Airport in Iraq on January 3, 2020. This led to a spike in tensions between the US and Iran, leading to events that many speculated would result in the “third world war.”
10. George Floyd murder and BLM protests: The killing at the hands of the Minneapolis Police of George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American, triggered massive outrage. It also reignited the ‘Black Lives Matter’ (BLM) protests, which swept across the US and later spread to other countries.
