Then came the cringeworthy first debate, where constant interruptions rendered the whole thing unwatchable. And, Trump even conducted a naturalization ceremony. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave a prerecorded speech during an official foreign trip. First lady Melania Trump gave a speech from the renovated Rose Garden. President Donald Trump accepted his party’s nomination from the White House Lawn.

The GOP had more live speakers giving speeches to a mostly empty room. need, like housing and education.Įven without the coronavirus pandemic, 2020 was going to be a big year because of the election.Īfter narrowing the field of several candidates, Joe Biden emerged as the Democratic Party’s candidate, confirmed during a virtual Democratic National Convention in August.Ī week later, a very different Republican National Convention took place. They said it is time for the country to address systemic problems in policing in America and spend more on what communities across the U.S. Supporters of the movement said it is not about eliminating or stripping agencies of money. Protesters pushed to “defund the police” over Floyd’s death and the death of other Black Americans, including Breonna Taylor, killed by law enforcement. and worldwide, demanding racial justice and calling for police reform. Video showed that Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd for at least eight minutes and 15 seconds, despite Floyd pleading, “I can’t breathe,” several times. On May 25, police arrested Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, after a convenience store employee called 911 and reported that Floyd had paid for cigarettes with a counterfeit $20 bill.įour officers were charged in Floyd’s death with the most serious against Derek Chauvin, who was caught on video pressing his knee to Floyd’s neck. The death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody sparked nationwide protests and calls for police reform. George Floyd’s death sparks protests and calls for police reform

and Germany’s BioNTech that’s now being dispensed to millions of health care workers and nursing home residents as the biggest vaccination drive in U.S. The vaccine is very similar to one from Pfizer Inc. recently added a second COVID-19 vaccine to its arsenal, developed by Moderna Inc. In March, students never returned to campus from spring break, as many switched to virtual learning. faces a resurgence of coronavirus cases that threaten the economy’s recovery from its springtime collapse.Īmericans who still had their jobs worked from home, while essential workers remained on-the-job, risking infection. The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose again earlier in December to 885,000, the highest weekly total since September, as the U.S. has surpassed more than 300,000 deaths from COVID-19. These are just some words associated with the biggest story that dominated the year.

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