Timeline (A Different Path: A History of the Kerry Administration and Beyond)

2005

January 20: John Forbes Kerry is inaugurated President of the United States, and John Edwards is inaugurated Vice-President.

January 22: The new President passes an executive order funding stem cell research

January 25: The Iraqi elections are postponed for 'security reasons'.

February 1: John Kerry nominates his cabinet.

PRESIDENT JOHN KERRY VICE-PRESIDENT JOHN EDWARDS SECRETARY OF STATE RICHARD HOLBROOKE TREASURY SECRETARY DONALD KOHN DEFENSE SECRETARY LEON PANETTA ATTORNEY GENERAL ERIC HOLDER SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR LARRY ECHO HAWK SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE TOM VILSACK COMMERCE SECRETARY GARY LOCKE TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY RAY LAHOOD SECRETARY OF HOUSING & URBAN DEVELOPMENT SHAUN DONOVAN VETERANS AFFAIRS SECRETARY CHARLIE GONZALES SECRETARY OF HEALTH&HUMAN SERVICES JEANNE SHAHEEN SECRETARY OF LABOR BEN CAYETANO ENERGY SECRETARY TONY KNOWLES HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY DANIEL INOUYE CHIEF OF STAFF DAVID WADE VETERANS AFFAIRS SECRETARY ERIC SHINSEKI EPA ADMINISTRATOR CAROL BROWNER

All the nominees would be confirmed, despite controversy over the environmentalist Browner's nomination.

The Catholic Church meanwhile expressed disappointment with Kerry's position on abortion. One bishop called for the excommunication of John Kerry, who is himself a Catholic.

February 2: John Kerry calls on Congress to ratify the Kyoto Protocol.

February 3: Republican leaders refuse to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, with House Majority Whip Tom DeLay denying the existence of global warming and pointing to the fact that Congress-including Kerry-had previously unanimously rejected the Protocol.

February 14: Former Lebanese Prime Minister Hariri is killed in a bombing. Syria os blamed, sparking a wave of protests.

March 1: The Supreme Court makes a landmark decision ending the execution of minors.

March 4: A new Bin Laden tape, which was then authenticated by the government, was released, mocking the Americans as 'cowards' and saying they cannot provide security for Iraq, even if they wanted to.

March 10: President Kerry's approval rating is at 49%.

March 15: In a result welcomed by the President, Terry Schiavo is euthanized.

April 2: Pope John Paul II dies, and he is commemorated by, among others, President Kerry himself. Meanwhile, US soldiers fended off an assault on Abu Ghraib by the skin of their teeth.

April 6: President Kerry urges Congress to tackle immigration reform. However, the right-wing of the Republican Party vehemently opposes reforms, and with a Republican Congress, Kerry is finding it hard to woo the necessary Republicans to pass his bill, especially with 15 Republican votes needed in the Senate to avoid a filibuster.

April 23: YouTube is founded.

April 26: Syrian troops are forced out of Lebanon after protests, ending a presence they had had since 1976.

May 1: Iraqi elections were held, and were mostly successful. However, there was low turnout from the Sunni minority.

May 5: In British elections, the government of Tony Blair survives, but with a significantly reduced majority, due to Blair's unpopular decision to go to war in Iraq. He promised to serve a full term, but that might not be possible as his caucus continues to turn on him.

May 20: DNC Chairman and 2004 presidential candidate Howard Dean blamed Republicans for "killing immigration reform".

May 24: Immigration reform fails to overcome a filibuster.

May 26: Immigration reform fails to overcome another filibuster.

May 31: President Kerry lambasts Republican obstruction of his legislative agenda. Tom DeLay in turn blames Kerry for "an extreme liberal agenda and a lack of respect for Congress or the American people." May was reported to be the bloodiest month in Iraq since the US invasion in 2003.

June 26: Kerry approval rating falls to 47%, with 51% disapproving.