US Historical Events Parallel Timeline Date: September 19, 2014

2002  February 8, 2002 – The Winter Olympic Games are opened by President George W. Bush in Salt Lake City, Utah.  November 8, The United Nations passes Resolution It forces Saddam Hussein and Iraq to disarm or face serious consequences.

2003  February 1, A tragedy at NASA occurs when the Space Shuttle Columbia explodes upon reentry over Texas. All seven astronauts inside are killed.  December 13, Saddam Hussein, former leader of Iraq, is captured in a small bunker.

2004  July 4, The groundbreaking ceremony for the Freedom Tower at Ground Zero occurs in New York City.  November 2, President George W. Bush wins reelection over Democratic Senator John Kerry from Massachusetts.

2005  July 26, In the first Space Shuttle flight since the tragedy of 2003, Discovery goes into orbit on a mission that returns to earth safely on August 9.  August 29, Hurricane Katrina strikes the Gulf Coast, inundating the city of New Orleans. Over one thousand three hundred people perish from Alabama to Louisiana in one of the worst natural disasters to strike the United States.New Orleans

2006  September 25, In New Orleans, the Louisiana Superdome reopens after repairs caused by Hurricane Katrina damage.New Orleans  October 17, The population of the United States reaches the milestone of three hundred million.

2007  January 4, The first female speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Representative Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco, California, is sworn into office.  June 2, A terror plot to blow up JFK International Airport in New York City is thwarted when four terrorists are arrested and charged with its plan.  July 4, The fifty star flag of the United States of America becomes the longest flying flag in history after flying over forty-seven years.

2008  August 17, Michael Phelps wins his 8th Gold Medal of the Beijing Summer Olympic Games.  August 29, John McCain chooses Sarah Palin, as his running mate, making the contest between Barack Obama and himself, the first time a presidential election included both an African-American candidate and a woman amongst the Presidential and Vice Presidential nominees.  November 4, Barack Obama wins a landslide in the election for the 44th President of the USA over John McCain, making him the first African-American president in the history of the United States of America.

2009  June 1, The H1N1 virus, named the Swine Flu, is deemed a global pandemic by the World Health Organization.  October 31, The economic recession continues to deepen as jobless claims climb above 10.0%, reaching 10.2% with October's monthly figures.

2010  March 25, The U.S. House of Representatives finalizes the Health Care legislation approved by the Senate, extending health benefits and insurance to most Americans.  April 20, A British Petroleum (BP) deep water oil rig explodes in the Gulf of Mexico, causing the largest oil spill in the history of the United States.

2011  April 30, Osama Bin Laden is killed after ten years of pursuit by United States during a raid on his hideout location in Pakistan.  July 21, The final shuttle flight lands at the Kennedy Space Center, signifying the end of the NASA shuttle space program.

2012  May 2, At a New York auction house, the highest payment for a work of art, the Scream by Edwin March, is paid, costing $120 million dollars.  October 29, Hurricane Sandy creates significant damage to coastal towns to the estimated cost of $65.6 billion.  November 6, President Barack Obama wins a significant victory for his second term in office against Republican challenger and businessman Mitt Romney.

2013  April 15, Two bombs explode near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three and injuring hundreds in a terrorism attack coordinated by two brothers associated with radical Islam.

2014  Feb – Jay Leno hosts his last The Tonight Show  A Malaysian airplane goes missing.