Family member Sierra Whitesides

Events in 2001 and 20-2

Events in US in the birth year of Sierra Whitesides

• In final days of presidency, Bill Clinton issues controversial pardons, including one for Marc Rich, billionaire fugitive financier (Jan. 20).
• George W. Bush is sworn in as 43rd president (Jan. 20).
• U.S. submarine Greeneville sinks Japanese fishing boat, killing 9 (Feb. 9).
• FBI agent Robert Hanssen is charged with spying for Russia for 15 years (Feb. 20).
• Race riots in Cincinnati continue for several days following a shooting of an unarmed black man by a white police officer (April 7 et seq.).
• Four are declared guilty in 1998 terrorist bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania (May 29). Background: U.S. Embassy Bombings.
• Balance of the Senate shifts after Jim Jeffords of Vermont changes his party affiliation from Republican to Independent. The move strips Republicans of control of the Senate and gives Democrats the narrowest of majorities (50-49-1) (June 5).
• Bush signs new tax-cut law, the largest in 20 years (June 7). Background: Economic Downturn and a Tax Cut.
• Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh executed (June 11).
• Budget surplus dwindles. The Congressional Budget Office attributes this rapid change in the nation's fortunes to the slowing economy and the Bush tax cut (Aug. 22). Background: Economic Downturn and a Tax Cut.
• Terrorists attack United States. Hijackers ram jetliners into twin towers of New York City's World Trade Center and the Pentagon. A fourth hijacked plane crashes 80 mi outside of Pittsburgh (Sept. 11). Toll of dead and injured in thousands. Within days, Islamic militant Osama bin Laden and the al-Qaeda terrorist network are identified as the parties behind the attacks.
• Anthrax scare rivets nation, as anthrax-laced letters are sent to various media and government officials. Several postal workers die after handling the letters (throughout October).

Birthday Sierra Whitesides (20-2) in history

• Day 20-2 year 1792: President George Washington signed the Post Office Act, establishing a permanent Post Office Department.
• Day 20-2 year 1809: The Supreme Court ruled that the power of the federal government of the United States would be greater than that of any state.
• Day 20-2 year 1895: Frederick Douglass, abolitionist, author, and orator, died.
• Day 20-2 year 1962: John Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth.
• Day 20-2 year 1998: Tara Lipinski won the Olympic figure skating gold medal.
• Day 20-2 year 2003: A fire in a nightclub in Warwick, R.I., killed 100 and injured over 150.