Today in History: Tonya Harding pleads guilty
Today is Sunday, March 16, the 75th day of 2025. There are 290 days left in the year.
Today in history:
On March 16, 1994, figure skater Tonya Harding pleaded guilty in Portland, Oregon, to conspiracy to hinder prosecution for covering up an attack on rival Nancy Kerrigan, avoiding jail but drawing a $100,000 fine and three years of probation.
Also on this date:
In 1802, President Thomas Jefferson signed a measure authorizing the establishment of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York.
In 1935, Adolf Hitler broke the military terms set by the Treaty of Versailles by ordering the rearming of Germany and resuming military conscription.
In 1968, during the Vietnam War, U.S. Army soldiers hunting for Viet Cong fighters and sympathizers killed as many as 500 unarmed villagers in two hamlets of Son My village, in what became known as the My Lai massacre.
In 1968, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy of New York announced his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination.
In 1972, in a nationally broadcast address, President Richard Nixon called for a moratorium on court-ordered school busing to achieve racial desegregation.
In 1984, William Buckley, the CIA station chief in Beirut, was kidnapped by Hezbollah militants; he would be tortured by his captors and killed in 1985.
In 1985, Associated Press correspondent Terry Anderson was kidnapped in Beirut by Hezbollah militants; he would spend nearly seven years in captivity before being freed in December 1991.
In 2016, President Barack Obama nominated Merrick Garland to take the seat of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, who had died the previous month. Republicans who controlled the Senate would stick to their pledge to leave the seat empty until after the presidential election; they confirmed Trump nominee Neil Gorsuch in April 2017.
In 2020, global stocks plunged amid coronavirus concerns, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 2,997 points (12.9%), the largest point drop and second-largest single-day percentage decline in history.
Today's Birthdays: Business executive Sanford Weill is 92. Actor Erik Estrada is 76. Football Hall of Famer Joe DeLamielleure is 74. Actor Isabelle Huppert is 72. Rock musician Nancy Wilson (Heart) is 71. Golf Hall of Famer Hollis Stacy is 71. Football Hall of Famer Ozzie Newsome is 69. Rapper-actor Flavor Flav is 66. Folk musician Patty Griffin is 61. Actor Lauren Graham is 58. Actor Judah Friedlander is 56. Actor Alan Tudyk is 54. Actor Alexandra Daddario is 39. R&B singer Jhené Aiko is 37. Rock musician Wolfgang Van Halen is 34. NBA center Joel Embiid is 31. MLB first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is 26.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
San Francisco Chronicle
32 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
‘Abuse of power' or necessary protection? Swift fallout over National Guard troops in L.A.
State and national leaders responded swiftly after President Donald Trump ordered 2,000 National Guard soldiers to Los Angeles in an effort to quell protests of immigration raids. Soldiers arrived early Sunday and were reported to be gathering at the Edward Roybal federal building near the Metropolitan Detention Center, several Los Angeles news outlets reported. Trump had thanked them for their efforts Saturday night via a Truth Social post before they arrived. 'Great job by the National Guard in Los Angeles after two days of violence, clashes and unrest,' he wrote at 11:41 p.m. Saturday, adding that it was a 'job well done.' Less than an hour later, just after midnight, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass asserted that the National Guard had not yet been deployed in the city. She also thanked the Los Angeles Police Department and local law enforcement for their efforts on X. California Gov. Gavin Newsom also pointed out Trump's discrepancy Sunday morning. The White House announced Trump's plan to quell the widespread protests, which erupted in response to a series of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests, with 2,000 National Guard troops Saturday, citing that protest activity or violence that interfered with the work of immigration officials served as 'a form of rebellion' against the government. 'This federalization is benign done under 10 U.S.C. § 12406, which means the Guard troops will still be subject to the prohibitions in the Posse Comitatus Act,' Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Ca. wrote on X Saturday as part of a post condemning Trump's actions. The Posse Comitatus Act prevents federal troops from interfering with civilian law enforcement activities. The American Civil Liberties Union issued a statement Saturday about the situation. Penned by Hina Shamsi, director of the ACLU's National Security Project, described the deployment of the National Guard as 'an abuse of power' that is 'recklessly undermining our foundational democratic principle that the military should not police civilians.' Others have deemed the decision as a brave response to chaos. 'President Trump is stepping up to provide safety while L.A. leaders hide from reality,' Rep. Vince Fong, R-Bakersfield, wrote X Sunday morning. On the official X account for the House Committee on the Judiciary, Republicans shared a news clip of a man circling a burning car on a bike in Los Angeles while waving a Mexican flag with the caption 'Democrat-run Los Angeles.' Several other state and national political leaders, however, said sending in the National Guard was overreach. 'That move is purposely inflammatory and will only escalate tensions,' Newsom wrote on X, noting that local law enforcement had a handle on the situation. 'This is the wrong mission and will erode public trust.' Democratic Rep. Sara Jacobs of San Diego, where an ICE raid at a local Italian restaurant led to several arrests and sparked community outrage last week, similarly deemed Trump's intervention an 'unnecessary escalation' on X. She warned that the move 'raises the potential for people to get hurt and erodes public trust.' Protests erupted in Los Angeles after a series of ICE arrests in the area Friday and Saturday. The Department of Homeland Security said Saturday that 118 immigrants were arrested in Los Angeles in the past week, though it was not specified how many were in the country illegally. The city of Paramount, where the Los Angeles Times reported that a protester and Border Patrol agent were injured Saturday, has become a major hub for protests. Many news outlets in Los Angeles have reported tense confrontations between both sides, with law enforcement deploying rubber bullets, flash-bang grenades and tear gas against protesters, and demonstrators hurling rocks, fireworks and bottles in return. Dozens of protesters, including David Huerta, president of Service Employees International Union California, have been arrested by federal agents and Los Angeles police. 'The Trump administration has repeatedly broken the law while deporting American citizens, including children, without the due process protections guaranteed by the Constitution,' wrote Jeffries, D-N.Y. 'Across the country, the American people are exercising their First Amendment right to lawfully and peacefully demonstrate against these actions. Observing law enforcement activity is not a crime and the administration's deployment of the National Guard in response is inflammatory and provocative.' The National Guard is typically tasked with responding to domestic emergencies, including civil unrest, and can be summoned by any state governor or the president. Usually, presidents activate troops at the request of state leaders. The decision is rarely made by a president independently. 'Calling in the National Guard when the Governor has not requested assistance is an intentional move by the Trump Administration to unnecessarily escalate the situation in Los Angeles County,' Rep. Nanette D. Barragán, D-Carson (Los Angeles County), wrote Saturday on X. 'This is an abuse of power and what dictators do. It's unnecessary and not needed.'
Hamilton Spectator
35 minutes ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Mike Johnson downplays Musk's influence and says Republicans will pass Trump's tax and budget bill
With an uncharacteristically feistiness, Speaker Mike Johnson took clear sides Sunday in President Donald Trump's breakup with mega-billionaire Elon Musk. The Republican House leader and staunch Trump ally said Musk's criticism of the GOP's massive tax and budget policy bill will not derail the measure, and he downplayed Musk's influence over the GOP-controlled Congress. 'I didn't go out to craft a piece of legislation to please the richest man in the world,' Johnson said on ABC's 'This Week.' 'What we're trying to do is help hardworking Americans who are trying to provide for their families and make ends meet,' Johnson insisted. Johnson said he has exchanged text messages with Musk since the former chief of Trump's Department of Government Efficiency came out against the GOP bill. Musk called it an 'abomination' that would add to U.S. debts and threaten economic stability. He urged voters to flood Capitol Hill with calls to vote against the measure, which is pending in the Senate after clearing the House. His criticism sparked an angry social media back-and-forth with Trump, who told reporters over the weekend that he has no desire to repair his relationship with Musk. The speaker was dismissive of Musk's threats to finance opponents — even Democrats — of Republican members who back Trump's bill. 'We've got almost no calls to the offices, any Republican member of Congress,' Johnson said. 'And I think that indicates that people are taking a wait and see attitude. Some who may be convinced by some of his arguments, but the rest understand: this is a very exciting piece of legislation.' Johnson argued that Musk still believes 'that our policies are better for human flourishing. They're better for the US economy. They're better for everything that he's involved in with his innovation and job creation and entrepreneurship.' The speaker and other Republicans, including Trump's White House budget chief, continued their push back Sunday against forecasts that their tax and budget plans will add to annual deficits and thus balloon a national debt already climbing toward $40 trillion. Johnson insisted that Musk has bad information, and the speaker disputed the forecasts of the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office that scores budget legislation. The bill would extend the 2017 Trump tax cuts, cut spending and reduce some other levies but also leave some 10.9 million more people without health insurance and spike deficits by $2.4 trillion over the decade , according to the CBO's analysis. The speaker countered with arguments Republicans have made for decades : That lower taxes and spending cuts would spur economic growth that ensure deficits fall. Annual deficits and the overall debt actually climbed during the administrations of Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush, and during Trump's first presidency , even after sweeping tax cuts. Russell Vought, who leads the White House Office of Budget and Management, said on Fox News Sunday that CBO analysts base their models of 'artificial baselines.' Because the 2017 tax law set the lower rates to expire, CBO's cost estimates, Vought argued, presuming a return to the higher rates before that law went into effect. Vought acknowledged CBO's charge from Congress is to analyze legislation and current law as it is written. But he said the office could issue additional analyses, implying it would be friendlier to GOP goals. Asked whether the White House would ask for alternative estimates, Vought again put the burden on CBO, repeating that congressional rules allow the office to publish more analysis. Other Republicans, meanwhile, approached the Trump-Musk battle cautiously. 'As a former professional fighter, I learned a long time ago, don't get between two fighters,' said Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin on CNN's 'State of the Union.' He even compared the two billionaire businessmen to a married couple. 'President Trump is a friend of mine but I don't need to get, I can have friends that have disagreements,' Mullin said. 'My wife and I dearly love each other and every now and then, well actually quite often, sometimes she disagrees with me, but that doesn't mean that we can't stay focused on what's best for our family. Right now, there may be a disagreement but we're laser focused on what is best for the American people.' —- Associated Press journalist Gary Fields contributed from Washington. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Washington Post
an hour ago
- Washington Post
Mike Johnson downplays Musk's influence and says Republicans will pass Trump's tax and budget bill
With an uncharacteristically feistiness, Speaker Mike Johnson took clear sides Sunday in President Donald Trump's breakup with mega-billionaire Elon Musk. The Republican House leader and staunch Trump ally said Musk's criticism of the GOP's massive tax and budget policy bill will not derail the measure, and he downplayed Musk's influence over the GOP-controlled Congress.
