As 2024 comes to a close and we await the inauguration of the 47th president of the United States, we can’t help but reflect back on the biggest political moments of the year.
From assassination attempts on President-elect Trump to political pardons, election shakeups to controversial nominees and more, here are the most defining political moments of 2024.
TRUMP FACES COURT LOSSES, ASSASSINATION ATTEMPTS
Trump had a busy year leading up to the presidential election:
E. Jean Carroll suit: In January 2024, a jury ordered Trump to pay E. Jean Carroll, a writer who sued Trump for sexual abuse and defamation over an incident in the 1980s, $83 million.
34 felony convictions: In May, Trump became the first former president to be convicted on felony charges when he was found guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to a porn actor during the 2016 campaign.
Trump denied the claims and called the proceedings “a rigged, disgraceful trial.”
As The Hill’s Ella Lee and Zach Schonfeld reported: “Trump’s conviction does not prevent him from running for the office of the presidency or returning to the White House should he win in November, but it hurls the country into uncharted waters as he has firmly secured his spot as the presumptive Republican nominee.”
Assassination attempts: Two assassination attempts were made against Trump in the second half of the year. In July, a gunman opened fire at a rally in Butler, Pa., killing one attendee, injuring two others and grazing Trump’s ear. The gunman was killed by a sniper moments after firing his shots.
This attempt put the Secret Service under a microscope, with many questioning just how rigid the agency’s security protocols were.
In September, authorities say a man staked out Trump’s West Palm Beach golf club, hiding in the bushes. He fled after Secret Service officers spotted his rifle poking through the trees and was later arrested in a neighboring county.
BIDEN STEPS ASIDE, HARRIS STEPS UP
President Biden started the year as the presumptive Democratic nominee for president, batting away concerns about his age and fitness for office as the oldest sitting president in U.S. history.
June debate: But the trajectory of the election was upended when Biden delivered a disastrous performance in his June debate with Trump, during which the president struggled to stay on topic, stuttered, mumbled and lost his train of thought. His team said he had a cold, and Biden claimed he “had a bad night.”
His performance horrified Democrats, many of whom called for him to step down as the Democratic nominee and find a replacement. Biden initially pushed back, insisting he was the only person who could beat Trump.
But in late July, he decided to drop out of the race and endorsed Vice President Harris as his replacement.
“My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden posted on the social platform X.
Harris jumped right into the fray. Her campaign sparked hope amongst Democrats and energized the party, putting concerns that the country was barreling toward a second Trump victory in the backseat.
She tapped Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) as her running mate, a move that was widely embraced. At the Democratic National Convention, Harris became the first Black woman and woman of South Asian descent to be nominated at the top of a party’s ticket.
Her campaign took the internet by storm over the summer, participating in the viral “brat” trend and leaning on memes and quirky clips of the vice president to boost their audience. Who could forget the coconut tree video?
Harris and Walz soundly lost the presidential election, dealing a blow to Democrats and forcing a reckoning within the party.
REPUBLICANS WIN BIG ON ELECTION DAY
2024 election: On Nov. 5, 2024, Trump beat Vice President Harris to become the country’s 47th president and theHouse and Senate both went red, giving Republicans a trifecta heading into the 119th Congress.
While the GOP was expected to win back control of the upper chamber and Trump’s victory wasn’t necessarily a shock given the tight polling leading into Election Day, the widespread red shift seen in the results was less anticipated. Democrats’ losses have raised difficult questions for the party and left many scrambling for answers — and pointing fingers — in the election’s aftermath.
BIDEN, TRUMP SPARK CONTROVERSIES IN TRANSITION
As the presidential transition approaches, both Biden and Trump have raised contention with some of their choices.
Cabinet nominees: Once Trump secured the presidency, he announced a slew of Cabinet nominees, many of whom were seen as controversial:
•Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for Department of Health and Human Services Secretary. Kennedy is an environmental lawyer and prominent vaccine skeptic.
•Former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (R-Hawaii) to head the CIA. Gabbard has no intelligence experience, and lawmakers have expressedconcerns about her ties to Russia.
•Pete Hegseth to lead the Department of Defense. Hegseth is a veteran and former Fox News host who lacks experience running a major organization like the Pentagon and faces allegations of sexual assault in his past.
• Former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) for attorney general. Gaetz, who was under a yearslong Ethics Committee investigation for allegations of sexual misconduct, faced an uphill battle from the beginning and eventually dropped out when it became clear he had no path to confirmation.
Pardons: Despite numerous pledges during his presidency not to pardon his son Hunter Biden for tax and weapons charges, the president ultimately reversed course.
On Dec. 1, 2024, the Biden signed a full and unconditional pardon for his son, claiming the charges against him were politically motivated, a move that was met with fierce backlash.
“No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son — and that is wrong,” Biden said in a statement.
Read the full pardon here.
Commutations: Biden also in December commuted the sentences of 37 inmates on federal death row, adjusting their sentences to execution to life without the possibility of parole and leaving three “hard cases.”
HOUSE RELEASES GAETZ ETHICS REPORT
As a result of the yearslong investigation into Gaetz and allegations he has faced ofsexual misconduct and illicit drug use, the House Ethics Committee released a bombshell of a report earlier this month.
The investigation found “substantial evidence” Gaetz “violated House Rules, state and federal laws, and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, acceptance of impermissible gifts, the provision of special favors and privileges, and obstruction of Congress.”
While Gaetz has admitted to “embarrassing, though not criminal” past behavior, he denied any sexual contact with a minor.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Billionaire Elon Musk joined Trump’s team and will co-lead the impending Department of Government Efficiency. Since attaching himself to Trump, Musk appears to have garnered significant influence within the Republican party, prompting mockery from Democrats and criticism from some Republicans.
UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was killed in New City, sparking a cultural discussion about the state of health care in the United States. The suspect, 26-year-old Luigi Mangione, was arrested after a dayslong manhunt and has been heralded as a hero across swaths of the internet.
💡Perspectives:
•The 2024 High School Yearbook of American Politics (The New York Times)
• The President Who Wasn’t There (The Wall Street Journal)
• 2024 was a bad year for basic decency in America. You can thank Trump for that. (USA Today)
•2024 by the numbers: From victims of war to a warming planet (Politico)
Read more:
•5 wins for the climate in 2024
Welcome to Evening Report! I’m Emily Martin, catching you up from the afternoon and what’s coming next. Not on the list? Subscribe here.
PROGRAMMING NOTE:The Hill’s Evening Report will not publish tomorrow, New Year’s Day. We’ll be back in your inboxes Thursday.
CATCH UP QUICK
A major power outage has left nearly the entire island of Puerto Rico without electricity, with officials pointing to the failure of an underground power line. It’s expected to take days to fully restore power to the island.
Ford Motor Co.’s official X account was apparently hacked, with posts calling Israel a “terrorist state.”
President-elect Trump’s plan to enact heavy tariffs could have implications for some pharmaceutical drugs in the U.S.
Former President Carter is expected to lie in state at the Capitol next week.
As 2024 slams its gavel, all eyes are on 2025. What can we expect in the new year?
Speakership battle: The vote to determine who will lead the House takes place Jan. 3, 2025.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) is hoping to keep his job, but following infighting in the GOP and dissatisfaction with how Johnson handled the government funding fight earlier this month, he is on shaky ground.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) has said he will not vote for Johnson, and several Republicans have signaled that they are on the fence. Johnson, who needs 218 votes to keep his gavel assuming all members are present, cannot afford any further defections among the 219 House Republicans on top of Massie’s.
President-elect Trump has given his “Complete & Total endorsement” to Johnson, so it remains to be seen if the soon-to-be president’s influence is enough to keep the Speaker safe.
TRUMP’S INAUGURATION
Trump will be sworn into office Jan. 20, 2024, for his second term.
As is tradition, President Biden will attend the ceremony. Trump did not attend Biden’s inauguration in 2021 after failing to acknowledge he lost the 2020 election.
Trump has also invited several foreign leaders to his inauguration, even though historically they rarely attend due to security concerns. A few have expressed interest, such as Argentinian president Javier Milei and Hungary’s Viktor Orban.
Trump has vowed to sign several executive orders his first day to roll back many Biden administration policies, specifically regarding immigration and energy production. He’s also expected to issue a batch of pardons for people convicted of crimes related to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
CABINET CONFIRMATIONS
Trump has nominated a slew of controversial Cabinet nominees, so expect numerous uphill battles once the confirmation hearings start in earnest.
Specifically keep an eye on RFK Jr., Trump’s pick for Health and Human Services secretary; Pete Hegseth, picked to head the Pentagon; and former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (R-Hawaii.) for director of national intelligence.
DEMOCRATS REGROUP
As The Hill’s Niall Stanage reports, “Democrats are bracing for a new — and, for them, bleak — political era” following a resounding victory by Republicans in the 2024 election.
With Republicans holding the trifecta of power in Washington, Democrat will have to figure out how to stop Trump’s agenda, something they consider to be a threat to the country.
They also need to figure out how to regain the support of their base after Trump siphoned off some disillusioned Democratic voters in the election.
Some Democrats argue age is the issue and urge the party to look to the younger generation of lawmakers, while others believe focusing too heavily on social issues or not focusing enough on the working-class voting bloc are the root cause of their problems.
WHAT ELSE?
•People to watch on energy, environmental issues in 2025
•Political figures dominated courtroom coverage in 2024. Here’s where their cases stand.
•Medicare’s new drug price cap kicks in Jan. 1
• What’s changing for USPS in 2025?
💡Perspectives:
•What Judges Can Do for the Rule of Law Under Trump (The New York Times)
• Column: Politics past will haunt Washington in 2025. It won’t be pretty. (Los Angeles Times)
• TikTok is headed for a ban — but can Trump still save it? (Vox)
• 2025 promises to be tumultuous. Here’s our New Year’s resolution. (The Washington Post Editorial Board)
• A New Year Isn’t a Blank Slate (The Wall Street Journal)
How Much Do Democrats Need to Change? (The New Yorker)
Read more:
• Most in US expect political conflict, economic difficulty in 2025: Gallup
•China’s Xi cites global ‘uncertainties’ in speech ahead of Trump inauguration
Will California sell gas cars after 2035? Nobody knows for sure —“While the Biden administration approved California’s effort to ban new sales of gas-powered cars by 2035, the Golden State’s automotive future remains uncertain.” (The Hill)
Migrant crisis added to record-level US homelessness: HUD — “The number of immigrants who entered the country illegally and then struggled to find housing in sanctuary cities contributed to a record number of Americans who experienced homelessness in 2024, according to a new report.” (NewsNation)
NFL legend Gronkowski backs Musk on tax codes simplification — “Former NFL star Rob Gronkowski publicly backed tech billionaire Elon Musk over his idea to simplify the tax code. ‘Please do!!!!!!’ Gronkowski posted on the social platform X in response to Musk’s post. ‘Drastic simplification now!!!'” (The Hill)
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