The opening ceremonies of the 1980 Winter Olympics Games are held in Lake Placid, New York.
The inauguration of Ronald Reagan as the 40th president of the United States occurs in Washington, D.C.
The Senate passes a bill that virtually eliminated the practice of busing to achieve racial integration.
President Ronald Reagan wins reelection over Democratic challenger Walter F. Mondale.
Martin Luther King Day is officially observed for the first time as a federal holiday in the United States.
The United States House of Representatives rejects the request of President Reagan for $36.25 million to fund the Nicaraguan Contras.
The Berlin Wall, after thirty-eight years of restricting traffic between the East and West German sides of the city, begins to crumble.
Bank of Credit and Commerce International is indicted in New York for the largest bank fraud in history.
The World Trade Center is bombed by Islamic terrorists when a van parked below the North Tower of the structure explodes. Six people are killed and over one thousand are injured.
President Bill Clinton signs the Assault Weapons Ban, which bars the use of these weapons for ten years.
The Monica Lewinsky scandal begins when U.S. President Bill Clinton denies his relationship with the White House intern in a televised interview.
Hillary Rodham Clinton wins a seat for the United States Senate from New York. It is the first time a former First Lady wins public office.
Islamic fundamentalist terrorists hijack four U.S. airliners and crash them into the Pentagon and the World Trade Center in New York City. Killing thousands.