20111776 Club

Midnight passes, and gay service members no longer have to hide

A 17-year ban on open service ends after a 60-day countdown set by Obama, Panetta, and Mullen.

For 17 years, a service member could be discharged simply for saying who they were. At 12:01 a.m. on September 20, 2011, "don't ask, don't tell" formally ceased enforcement, and gay and lesbian personnel could serve without concealing their sexual orientation. The change followed a law Congress passed in December 2010 and a certification process that closed with this exact hour. What had been grounds for dismissal the night before no longer was by morning…

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Supreme Court rules 5-4: every state must license and recognize same-sex marriage

Kennedy's majority finds the Fourteenth Amendment settles the question; the ruling consolidates six cases from four states and reaches all 50 states and U.S. territories.

2024

Biden's debate voice fails him; the 81-year-old leaves his economic record undefended on national television

Speaking in a halting, hoarse voice and repeatedly mixing "billion" with "million," the president leaves Democrats across the country asking what they saw tonight.

2007

Apple's iPhone goes on sale; thousands who camped for days outside stores are first in line

Jobs unveiled the 3.5-inch touchscreen device in January as "an iPod, a phone, and an internet communicator" in one, and today the wait ends at Apple and AT&T stores nationwide.

2019

Trump steps across the DMZ line; no sitting president has stood on North Korean soil before today

Kim tells him "I never expected to meet you at this place," and the two go on to talk privately for 53 minutes inside Freedom House, South Korea's Moon kept out at Pyongyang's request.

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Midnight passes, and gay service members no longer have to hide

This story is held for members.

Bush tells Congress: this is a war on terror, and it starts with al Qaeda

A van bomb tears into the US embassy annex at Aukar, killing 23

Arthur takes the oath before dawn, in his own parlor

Scientists regroup as a national body: the American Association for the Advancement of Science forms in Philadelphia

Supreme Court rules 5-4: every state must license and recognize same-sex marriage

Biden's debate voice fails him; the 81-year-old leaves his economic record undefended on national television

Apple's iPhone goes on sale; thousands who camped for days outside stores are first in line

Trump steps across the DMZ line; no sitting president has stood on North Korean soil before today

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