December 18

DOT fines Southwest Airlines record $140 million after 2022 holiday meltdown

The Department of Transportation issues a record $140 million civil penalty against Southwest Airlines for stranding approximately 2 million passengers during the airline's December 2022 holiday meltdown, when the carrier cancelled nearly 17,000 flights. The settlement also requires Southwest to pay $600 million in cash and flight vouchers to affected passengers, the largest consumer refund ever in aviation history. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg calls it a signal to the industry that leaving passengers stranded without compensation is not acceptable. The action reflects Biden's aggressive consumer protection posture toward the airline industry.

Biden DOJ and FTC release new merger guidelines most aggressive anti-consolidation since 1968

The Biden Justice Department and FTC jointly release updated Merger Guidelines, the first comprehensive overhaul since 2010. The guidelines abandon the consumer welfare standard that had governed antitrust enforcement for 40 years in favor of a broader structural approach that also considers effects on workers, suppliers, and competitive markets. The new guidelines lower the concentration thresholds that trigger scrutiny, expand scrutiny to vertical and conglomerate mergers, and introduce novel theories of harm including harm to workers and "ecosystem" competition. FTC Chair Lina Khan calls them "a new era of antitrust enforcement." Courts cite the guidelines favorably in over a dozen antitrust cases within a year.

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U.S. launches Operation Prosperity Guardian in Red Sea

The U.S. Department of Defense announces Operation Prosperity Guardian, a multinational security initiative to counter Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. The operation involves 10 countries including the United States, United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles, and Spain. The initiative is established in response to escalating Houthi drone and missile attacks on merchant vessels since the October 2023 outbreak of war in Gaza. The operation aims to ensure freedom of navigation for all countries and bolster regional security. Several major shipping companies immediately begin rerouting vessels away from the Red Sea due to security concerns.

Abbott signs Texas SB 4, making illegal border crossing a state crime

Governor Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 4 into law after the Texas Legislature passed it during the fourth special session of 2023, making Texas the first state since Arizona to criminalize illegal border entry as a state offense. SB4 created three new state criminal offenses: illegal entry from a foreign nation (Class B misdemeanor), illegal reentry after removal (second-degree felony), and refusal to comply with a state magistrate return order. The law authorized Texas and local police to arrest anyone they suspected of crossing the border between ports of entry, and gave state magistrate judges -- not federal immigration courts -- authority to order deportation back to Mexico. The Biden administration immediately signaled it would challenge the law as unconstitutional.

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Judge Steve Jones denies Meadows' bid to move his Georgia RICO case to federal court

U.S. District Judge Steve Jones ruled that Mark Meadows, Trump's former White House chief of staff, could not transfer his Georgia RICO prosecution to federal court. Jones found that Meadows's alleged acts were not taken under color of federal office, rejecting the argument that a chief of staff's election-related activities qualify as official federal duties. The ruling kept all defendants in Fulton County state court.

New York Times investigation reveals thousands of hidden civilian deaths from U.S. airstrikes

The New York Times published the Civilian Casualty Files on December 18, 2021, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation by Azmat Khan based on over 5,400 pages of Pentagon documents obtained through FOIA litigation. The investigation found that the actual rate of civilian deaths from U.S. airstrikes in Iraq was 31 times higher than officially reported: one civilian killed per five strikes versus the Pentagon claimed rate of one per 157. Children were killed or injured in 62 percent of strikes investigated on the ground.

A Ramsey County court dismisses Minnesota congressional election contests

Republican candidates and individual voters filed or pursued Jensen v. Simon in Minnesota after the 2020 election. The case sought to overturn results in Minnesota congressional districts based on fraud allegations. The primary court document records that the Ramsey County court dismissed the contests.

Dec. 18 Oval Office meeting with Powell, Flynn, and others

Dec. 18 Oval Office meeting with Powell, Flynn, and others..

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Supreme Court avoids ruling on Trump census exclusion plan

The Supreme Court rules in Trump v. New York on December 18, 2020, dismissing a challenge to President Donald Trump's plan to exclude undocumented immigrants from congressional apportionment because the case is not yet ripe. The Court does not decide whether the plan is lawful. The ruling temporarily leaves the policy unresolved, but the Biden administration later reverses course after taking office. The census dispute shows how immigration status, race, and political representation can intersect in fights over who counts for democratic power.

Trump convenes Oval Office meeting to plan seizing voting machines and naming Powell special counsel

On December 18, 2020, Michael Flynn, Sidney Powell, Rudy Giuliani, and Patrick Byrne urged Trump in the Oval Office to appoint Powell as a special counsel with authority to seize voting machines and use the military to rerun elections in contested states. White House advisors Pat Cipollone, Eric Herschmann, and Derek Lyons forcefully argued against the proposals. The meeting lasted multiple hours and ended without Trump signing any of the proposed executive orders.

Trump holds chaotic White House meeting with Powell and Flynn about seizing voting machines

On Dec. 18, 2020, President Trump holds an unplanned Oval Office meeting with outside advisers including Sidney Powell, Michael Flynn, and others. Powell urges Trump to seize voting machines and declare martial law. White House lawyers push back against the proposals. The meeting occurs hours before Trump tweets "Be there, will be wild!" about January 6.

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House impeaches Trump on abuse of power and obstruction charges over Ukraine aid withholding

The House of Representatives votes 230-197 to impeach President Trump on Article I (abuse of power) and 229-198 on Article II (obstruction of Congress) relating to Trump's withholding of congressionally-approved military aid to Ukraine in exchange for a public announcement of investigations into Joe Biden. All Republicans vote against both articles. The Senate acquits Trump on February 5, 2020, on a 48-52 vote, with Sen. Mitt Romney becoming the first senator to vote to convict a president of his own party in a presidential impeachment trial.

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House impeaches Trump on abuse of power and obstruction of Congress

The House of Representatives voted on December 18, 2019 to impeach President Trump on two articles: abuse of power, for conditioning official acts on Ukraine investigations of political rivals, and obstruction of Congress, for directing blanket noncompliance with the impeachment inquiry. The votes were 230-197 on the first article and 229-198 on the second, largely along party lines. The Senate acquitted Trump on both articles on February 5, 2020, with only Senator Mitt Romney voting to convict on the abuse of power count.

PATH Act imposes an ITIN expiration schedule, threatening millions of tax filers

Congress enacted the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act on December 18, 2015, embedding a rolling expiration schedule into the ITIN program for the first time. ITINs issued before 2013 were assigned expiration dates based on their middle digits, and any ITIN unused for three consecutive tax years would automatically expire — requiring holders to file Form W-7 with original identity documents to renew. Advocacy groups warned that the renewal burden fell disproportionately on elderly, rural, and low-literacy immigrant filers, and that expired ITINs could trigger refund delays, loss of child tax credits, and account closures at banks requiring active tax identification numbers.

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Obama creates policing task force after Ferguson and Garner protests

President Barack Obama signs an executive order on December 18, 2014, creating the Task Force on 21st Century Policing. The order follows national protests after police killings and non-indictments in Ferguson and New York. The task force is charged with recommending ways to build trust, improve accountability, and reduce crime while protecting civil rights. Its 2015 report addresses use of force, data collection, community policing, and officer training. The federal government responds to racial justice protests by creating a national policing reform agenda.