The Top 10 Political Stories of the 2010s
This article is Part 1 of GovSight’s “Top 10 of the 2010s” series. Follow GovSight’s Twitter and Medium accounts to keep up with future installments.
The 2010s will be remembered for marking a shift in both political and social discourse. Bandages were removed from century-old wounds, sparking long-awaited changes in policy and the rejection of norms impacting marginalized groups. Conversations surrounding race were pushed to the forefront after a string of fatal shootings shifted focus to police brutality and its intersections with color. Social media changed the way elections were held, with President Obama priding himself on being an early adopter, while President Trump leveraged platforms as a beacon call for his legion of followers. Finally, as the decade neared its end, the divisiveness that’s always existed in the U.S., merely lurking beneath the waters, came to a boiling point. As we look back at this volatile decade, certain stories stick out as truly shaping the world we live in today. Here is my non-definitive, ever-evolving list of the top 10 defining stories of the 2010s.
The Passage of the Dodd-Frank Act
The U.S. economy is experiencing an unprecedented level of growth — for the first time in history, the country started and ended a decade without entering a recession. But, at the start of the decade, the U.S. economy was still struggling to adjust to a post-recession world. Banks were still under intense scrutiny, public trust was low and entire sectors of the economy were flailing. The Dodd-Frank Act was President Obama’s fix, doubling as his first major policy push as president. It looked to tackle the specific problems that incited the recession: over lending by banks, exploitative targeting of consumers and a lack of accountability among financial institutions. Though there’s debate regarding its impacts, and some politicians have fought to undo the “restrictive legislation,” the bill laid the footprint for the economic success the U.S. is currently relishing in.
The Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting
School shootings haunted the country long before 2012, the year America was shaken by reports of an attack at a Connecticut elementary school. But, it’s the details of the Sandy Hook massacre that separated it from other attacks. A 20-year old gunman entered the school and killed 20 children, most under the age of seven, and 6 adult staff members. The grief that consumed the nation in the months following the shooting pushed the topic of gun control to the forefront of American conversation. While any attack deserves condemnation, the idea of a gunman entering an elementary school, a perceived sacred space assumed to be off limits, was too much for the nation to bear. President Obama called the attack “the worst day of his presidency.” Though no specific gun control legislation came out of the attack, it will forever go down as one of the most impactful events in American history.
The 2012 Election of Barack Obama
Barack Obama became the first black president in 2008. In 2012, he again made history by continuing his reign and rejecting notions that his first term was merely the result of virtue votes. Over his last four years as president, Obama worked to maintain the economic expansion he oversaw at the start of his term, supported landmark legislation legalizing gay marriage, watched the main provisions of his Affordable Care Act go into effect and created a path to citizenship for young undocumented citizens, despite facing incredible opposition from a GOP lead Congress.
The Death of Trayvon Martin
In February 2012, 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was fatally shot by George Zimmerman, who claimed Martin looked suspicious, and despite alerting police, confronted the teenager himself. Martin, unarmed with only a bag of skittles and can of Arizona in tow, was dead minutes later. The incident would become a lightning rod, sparking mass protests regarding racial injustice and profiling. Controversial “Stand Your Ground” laws would also come under fire after Zimmerman was acquited of murder. Years later, the same topics still inspire intense debate, Trayvon’s mother Sybrina Fulton is running for public office and Zimmerman, who’d been muddled in various controversies following the shooting, has launched a defamation lawsuit against Martin’s family.
The Ferguson Protests
While the death of Trayvon Martin brought the topic of racial injustice to public discourse, it was the death of Michael Brown and later protest in Ferguson, Missouri that broadened the conversation to include systemic racism and police brutality. Eighteen-year-old Brown was killed by Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson, who’d go on to be acquitted of murder charges. Off the heels of Zimmerman’s acquittal, the death of another unarmed Black man added fire to a pot just waiting to blow. While protests and demonstrations occurred throughout the nation, the lighthouse was in Ferguson, which saw its own gatherings occasionally turn violent. On the anniversary of Brown’s death, a state of emergency was declared in the region after several clashes with police. Regardless of political view, the demonstrations achieved their goal of changing the national dialogue, bringing attention to an issue that was growing uncomfortably common and encouraging unity in the form of mass protest and demonstration in a divisive America.
The Supreme Court’s Landmark Gay Marriage Ruling
In the 2015 decision of Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court ruled marriage is a fundamental right ordained by the Constitution, providing a landmark win to equal rights activists and legalizing gay marriage in the 13 states that still outlawed it. The ruling was close, with all of the court’s conservative members voting against the decision while its liberal members voted in favor. Justice Anthony Kennedy, the court’s deciding vote, had previously supported landmark LGBTQ rulings; one of which struck down legislation denying benefits to married gay couples and another that overturned legislation that criminalized gay sex. His gay marriage ruling would see him continue that trend before his Supreme Court retirement in 2018.
The Election of Donald Trump
His victory was either a predictable win or unfathomable shock. The candidate best known as being a business mogul turned reality star; that had been disregarded since the start of his campaign; that seemed too brash even for an American audience, was now the President. Though three million more people voted for Democratic candidate Hilary Clinton than Trump, the business mogul was able to garner more votes in the right places and win the electoral college. When Clinton conceded, the foundation of American politics was rocked and several questions were raised. How could a man with zero political experience beat a woman with decades worth? How did nearly every national poll get this wrong? How legitimate was this win? Was there Russian interference? Trump’s campaign and win will ultimately be remembered for shaking the core of American politics and introducing a new style of campaigning that wasn’t fact focused, amplified falsehoods and encouraged maliciousness. It’ll also be remembered for raising questions of foreign election interference and highlighting America’s vulnerability to cyber attacks.
The Fall of Harvey Weinstein
The MeToo movement existed long before Harvey Weinstein was accused of sexual assault in 2017, but the horrid accusations against the famed movie producer by over eighty women, both prominent and unknown, catapulted the movement into a worldwide phenomenon. It inspired scores of women to share their own stories and laid the foundation for other powerful people to be held accountable for their actions. Countless politicians, celebrities and executives found themselves out of work and socially scorned for allegations of misconduct. More importantly, the sheath of fear and condemnation that long kept women silent was slowly removed. America, though still flawed, was becoming more accepting of these stories and encouraging of people. It also defiantly said that no matter how powerful a person is, they must suffer the consequences of their actions.
The Record-Breaking Government shutdown
At 34 days long, the government shutdown of January 2019 was the longest in American history, surpassing the previous record holder by nearly two weeks. Furthermore, it painted a picture of just how polarized the two main political parties were, and how much they were willing to sacrifice for the sake of politics. At the center of this impasse, President Trump’s highly touted border wall. What happens when a president adamant about fulfilling a core campaign promise battles a party that is relentlessly against said promise? For starters, 800,000 federal workers go unpaid for months with some forced to work for free and the legal protections of nearly 700,000 young undocumented citizens become a bargaining tool in a larger funding dispute. Trump would eventually relent, opting to secure the majority of his wall funding via executive powers to end the historic shutdown.
President Trump’s Impeachment
President Trump is the third president in American history to be impeached. The House formally charged the president with obstruction of Congress and abuse of power, levying two of three articles of impeachment against the chief executive. Specifically, the president is accused of using his office to get the Ukranian government to launch an investigation into political rival Joe Biden and his son Hunter. Though President Trump is unlikely to be convicted and removed from office in his upcoming Senate trial, the rare impeachment mark will forever be a stain on his legacy.
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