July
Trump nominates Brett Kavanaugh for supreme court justice
Donald Trump nominates circuit court judge Brett Kavanaugh to replace retiring supreme court justice Anthony Kennedy. The pick is opposed by Democrats but hailed in conservative circles as a centrist choice.
Confuses Queen Elizabeth II
HOW IS HE STRUGGLING TO WALK THE BIG FUCKING WEIRDO pic.twitter.com/dUpemhRpk4
— Nooruddean (@BeardedGenius) July 13, 2018
Putin’s friend in Helsinki
Trump meets the Russian president in Helsinki and publicly declares Russia innocent of election tampering: “I have great confidence in my intelligence people, but I will tell you that President Putin was extremely strong and powerful in his denial today.”
Child reunification deadline passes
Only 364 of the more than 2,500 children separated from their parents at the US-Mexico border had been reunited, days before a reunification deadline, officials disclosed in court documents.
Denies knowledge of Trump Tower meeting
Trump denies a Cohen allegation that he, Trump, knew in advance about and approved a June 2016 meeting between top Trump campaign officials and Russian operatives at Trump Tower.
August
Tells Sessions to stop Mueller
Trump tweets that the special counsel has created “a terrible situation” and “attorney general Jeff Sessions should stop this Rigged Witch Hunt right now, before it continues to stain our country any further. Bob Mueller is totally conflicted...”
Cancels military parade plan
Trump tweets that he will postpone his military parade, accusing “the local politicians who run Washington DC (poorly)” of inflating expenses.
Manafort convicted
Manafort is found guilty on eight fraud charges in a resounding victory for special counsel Robert Mueller and his team in the first trial arising from their investigation.
Cohen pleads guilty
On the same day as the Manafort conviction, Cohen pleads guilty to eight federal crimes and says Trump had directed him to make two hush money payments to women in violation of campaign finance laws.
September
Woodward book Fear
The journalist Bob Woodward publishes an exposé claiming that the military and Trump’s staff ignore presidential orders, that the defense secretary called Trump a “fifth- or sixth-grader” and the chief of staff called Trump an “unhinged” “idiot”. Trump calls the book “lies”.
Manafort plea deal
Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort agrees to cooperate with federal prosecutors, in a deal that will later fall apart when Manafort, prosecutors allege, continues to lie to them.
Ford testifies
Dr Christine Blasey Ford tells the Senate judiciary committee that Trump’s pick for supreme court justice, Brett Kavanaugh, assaulted her. Asked if she was sure her attacker was Kavanaugh, she replied: “100%.” Kavanaugh denies the allegations, and his confirmation to the supreme court goes ahead.
October
Khashoggi cover-up
Trump deems as “credible” a Saudi explanation that journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who had disappeared inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, died in a fistfight. Later Trump blames “rogue killers” and denies a US intelligence conclusion that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was directly involved in the killing.
Mocks Ford
At a Mississippi rally, Trump mocks Christine Blasey Ford, delivering a crude imitation of Ford from her testimony, in which she vividly described a violent sexual assault she alleged Brett Kavanaugh committed against her in the early 1980s.
Attacks media after bombings
At a rally, Trump blames media “hostility” after a wave of pipe bombs were sent to senior Democrats, prominent critics and the broadcaster CNN.
Pittsburgh synagogue shooting
After 11 worshippers are killed at a synagogue in Pittsburgh, experts warn that Trump had “dramatically elevated the level of rhetorical tension in ways that do not discourage people from acting out their terrifying views”.
‘Enemy of the people’
Despite the demonstrable dangers associated with his inflammatory rhetoric, Trump resumes calling the media the “enemy of the people” and blames “the Fake News Media” for the “great anger in our Country”.
There is great anger in our Country caused in part by inaccurate, and even fraudulent, reporting of the news. The Fake News Media, the true Enemy of the People, must stop the open & obvious hostility & report the news accurately & fairly. That will do much to put out the flame...
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 29, 2018
Deploys troops to border
Days before the midterm elections, Trump deploys more than 5,200 troops to the border with Mexico in what a rights organization described as an abuse of the military and what Senator Claire McCaskill later called “made-for-TV bullshit”.
November
Blue wave sweeps midterms
Democrats win at least 39 seats in the House of Representatives, seizing control of the body; flip multiple state legislatures; swipe governorships; and avoid losses in the Senate in an election that saw historic voter turnout. “Tremendous success tonight,” Trump tweeted. “Thank you all!”
Hostile press conference
In a news conference after the election, Trump threatens a “warlike” response if Democrats investigate him and yelled down multiple journalists. The White House suspends CNN’s Jim Acosta’s credentials, but is later forced to reinstate them.
Trades in Sessions for Whitaker
A day after the election, Trump fires the attorney general, Jeff Sessions, and installs Matt Whitaker, who had come to Trump’s attention through fawning appearances on cable television, as acting attorney general.
Calls for ‘new election’
Trump challenges multiple election results on Twitter, including in Arizona – “Electoral corruption – Call for a new Election?”; in Florida – “An honest vote count is no longer possible-ballots massively infected”; and in Georgia – “It is time to move on!”
Submits answers to Mueller
Trump submits written replies to the special counsel’s office, in a move that is followed in short order by a flood of new moves in the special counsel investigation.
New Cohen guilty plea
Cohen pleads guilty to a new set of charges including lying to Congress about Trump Organization plans to build a tower in Moscow. Those plans were still active in the summer of 2016, after Trump clinched the Republican presidential nomination, Cohen revealed.
Skips first world war events
Trump travels to Paris to mark the centenary of the end of first world war but he skips a ceremony at Aisne-Marne American Cemetery and Memorial near Paris “due to scheduling and logistical difficulties caused by the weather”. The next day he misses a procession of world leaders to mark the occasion.
Teargas attack on migrants
Trump defends the use of teargas against migrants, including many young children, at the southern border after some migrants attempted to cross the border. “They had to be used because they were being rushed by some very tough people,” Trump said.
‘Dangerously wrong’ on California fires
Trump blames poor “forest management” in his first comments on the deadliest wildfires in California history. Local elected officials and agencies fighting the fires call the comment “inane”, “uninformed” and “dangerously wrong”.
Manafort plea deal crumbles
Prosecutors and lawyers for Paul Manafort announce that an agreement between the sides has crumbled. Prosecutors accuse Manafort of continued lying which he denies.
December
Mueller describes Flynn cooperation
In a heavily redacted court filing, Mueller shields the details of former national security adviser Michael Flynn’s cooperation because they include “sensitive information about ongoing investigations”. He recommends no prison time for Flynn.
Trump ‘directed’ Cohen – prosecutors
Federal prosecutors in New York say Trump directed Cohen to make hush payments that resulted in felony campaign finance convictions for Cohen. Trump denies any criminality.
Cohen sentenced to three years
A federal judge sentences Michael Cohen to three years in prison and three years of supervised release for campaign finance violations, bank fraud, tax evasion and lying to Congress. Cohen says Trump directed him to violate campaign finance laws.
Inaugural committee under investigation
Prosecutors in New York are investigating donations to Trump’s inaugural committee, which totaled $107m, and investigating how that money was spent, the Wall Street Journal is first to report.
Precipitous troop drawdowns, Mattis resignation
Without warning or much of an explanation, Trump announces the withdrawal of the US military and state department employees from Syria, asserting on Twitter that “we have defeated ISIS”. Two days later Trump announces US forces in Afghanistan will be halved. The defense secretary, Jim Mattis, resigns in protest.
Government shutdown
Goaded by Rush Limbaugh and Ann Coulter, Trump makes a last-minute declaration he won’t sign Republican legislation to keep the government open and demands $5bn for a border wall. The lame-duck House Republican majority passes a bill that dies in the Senate. Trump blames Democrats for the shutdown.
