On This Day: February 12

8 posts spanning 2017–2026

2017

• Day 24 Feb 12, 2017

2018

• Day 389 Feb 12, 2018

2019

• Day 754: Negotiators in the House and Senate reached an agreement to avoid another partial government shutdown; Trump is "not happy" with the tentative bipartisan deal; the White House, meanwhile, is working on a plan to redirect federal dollars to fund Trump's border wall without invoking a national emergency; and a former White House aide is suing Trump. Feb 12, 2019

2020

• Day 1119: Trump defended Roger Stone in a series of tweets while attacking the federal judge and prosecutors involved in the case; Trump withdrew his nomination for the Treasury Department’s terrorism and financial crimes undersecretary because of her office’s handling of the Roger Stone and Michael Flynn cases; and Trump suggested that the military will likely look at disciplinary action against Lt. Col. Alexander S. Vindman. Feb 12, 2020

2021

• Day 24: Trump's legal team concluded its defense, accusing House impeachment managers of "political vengeance" and calling Trump's second impeachment trial "a politically motivated witch hunt"; the CDC released updated guidance to help schools safely bring students back into classrooms during the pandemic; Trump was sicker with Covid-19 than publicly acknowledged and officials believed he would need to be put on a ventilator; the 2020 census data needed for legislative districts won't be ready until Sept. 30; and the Biden administration will phase in a new asylum process on Feb. 19 for tens of thousands of people seeking asylum at the southern U.S. border. Feb 12, 2021

2024

• Day 1119: Trump said he would "encourage" Russia to “do whatever the hell they want” to NATO countries that were "delinquent" in meeting the group’s guidelines for defense spending; more than a dozen Republicans ignored Trump and voted to forward on a bill to send $95 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan; despite Biden warning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that a military operation in Rafah “should not proceed” without a “credible and executable” plan to protect the more than 1 million people sheltering there, Israel launched a “wave" of airstrikes that killed dozens of people, including children; Biden – in private – has called Benjamin Netanyahu an “asshole,” saying the prime minister is impossible to deal with and the campaign in Gaza is “over the top"; and Trump asked the Supreme Court to block a lower court ruling that rejected his claim that he’s absolutely immune from criminal charges for attempting to overturn the 2020 election. Feb 12, 2024

2025

• Day 1485: Elon Musk, standing behind the Resolute Desk with Trump in the Oval Office, justified his aggressive push to downsize the federal government; Treasury Department admitted that the Department of Government Efficiency was "mistakenly" and "briefly" granted "read/write" access to a key federal payments database; Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to coordinate with Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to reduce staffing and limit hiring; the Trump administration fired USAID Inspector General Paul Martin one day after his office released a report warning that the agency’s funding freeze and staffing cuts had severely limited oversight of billions in humanitarian aid; eight inspectors general fired by the Trump administration last month sued the White House, arguing that their dismissals violated federal law; Trump and Putin agreed to start negotiations to end the war in Ukraine; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Ukraine joining NATO is not a “realistic outcome” and that European nations – not the U.S. – must take the lead in securing the country; the Senate confirmed Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence; House Republicans released a budget blueprint that proposes $4.5 trillion in tax cuts, at least $1.5 trillion in spending reductions, and a $4 trillion debt limit increase; and Trump, who promised to lower prices on “Day 1,” is now acknowledging that inflation relief will take longer than expected. Feb 12, 2025

2026

• Day 1850: The Senate failed to advance a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security through Sept. 30, leaving the agency headed for a partial shutdown when funding expires Friday night; the Trump administration said it will end “Operation Metro Surge” in Minnesota, drawing down thousands of federal immigration agents after a 2-month crackdown that produced mass protests, more than 4,000 arrests, and two fatal shootings of U.S. citizens in Minneapolis; the Justice Department tracked the search histories of lawmakers who reviewed the files from the Jeffrey Epstein investigation; the whistleblower complaint against Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard centers on an intelligence intercept that captured two foreign nationals discussing Jared Kushner; the House passed the SAVE America Act; a federal judge blocked the Pentagon from demoting Sen. Mark Kelly’s retired Navy rank and cutting his retirement pay over a video advising troops not to follow illegal orders; Trump rescinded the EPA’s 2009 “endangerment finding,” removing the legal basis the agency has used to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act for nearly two decades; and 62% of Americans say Trump’s “gone too far” by deploying federal immigration agents into major U.S. cities, and 61% say he’s gone too far using federal law enforcement at protests. Feb 12, 2026