30 February 27 – • President Trump proposes an approximately 10% rise in military spending of $54 billion dollars diverted from numerous other budgets, including that of the State Department and the Environmental Protection Agency. Congress receives a letter criticizing this plan, signed by more than 120 retired U.S. admirals and generals, including former Army Chief of Staff George W. Casey Jr. February 28 – • It is revealed that the FBI had, prior to the 2016 presidential election, reached an agreement with Christopher Steele to pay for continued research related to the Donald Trump–Russia dossier, a deal which was broken off following the publication of the dossier by BuzzFeed. President Trump makes his first speech to Congress, addressing a wide range of matters in- cluding drug abuse, gang crime, immigration, terrorism, the Mexico–United States barrier, infrastructure, foreign trade and the stock market. MARCH 2017 March 1 – • The Senate confirms Ryan Zinke as United States Secretary of the Interior by a vote of 68-31. An existing Congressional inquiry expands its scope to include allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections. The Justice Department confirms that United States Attorney General Jeff Sessions twice met Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak during the 2016 election campaign in which he acted as an advisor to candidate Donald Trump. March 2 – • President Trump publicly expresses his confidence in Attorney General Jeff Sessions, then delivers a speech aboard aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, reiterating his commitment to military spending. • Sessions recuses himself from any inquiries involving allegations of Rus- sian interference in the 2016 American election. • The Senate confirms Ben Carson as United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development by a vote of 58-41, and Rick Perry as United States Secretary of Energy by a vote of 62-37. • The White House confirms that Jared Kushner met with Sergey Kislyak alongside Michael T. Flynn at New York City’s Trump Tower in December 2016. March 3 – • President Trump and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos visit Saint Andrew Catholic School in Orlando, Florida. President Trump attends an evening Republican fundraising event at the Four Seasons hotel in Palm Beach, Florida. Trump returns to his Florida Mar-a-Lago resort for the weekend. March 4 – • President Trump publicly accuses former President Barack Obama of intercepting communications at his offices in New York City’s Trump Tower in October 2016; Obama’s spokesman Kevin Lewis denies the claim. March 4 Trump rallies are held throughout the United States. March 5 – • James R. Clapper, former Director of National Intelligence, denies claims concerning the wiretapping of President Trump’s election campaign, and states that the agencies he supervised found “no evidence of collusion” between the Trump campaign and Russian officials. Congressman Devin Nunes, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, agrees to a demand from the White House for an investigation into alleged abuses of executive power by former President Barack Obama. President Trump returns from Florida to the White House in the evening. March 6 – • White House Deputy Director of Communications Sarah Huckabee Sanders suggests that President Trump does not accept FBI Director James Comey’s denial of the wiretapping of Trump Tower. Trump signs Executive Order 13780, seen as a revised version of Executive Order 13769, effective March 16th, removing Iraq from affected countries and clarifying that lawful perma- nent residents are excluded from the travel ban. March 7 – • The White House confirms that President Trump has not conferred with the FBI over allegations of wiretapping by the previous administration. Trump speaks on the telephone with Prime Minister Shinzō Abe to voice his support for Japan in reaction to new reports of North Korean missile tests. March 8 – • Formal drafting of the repeal of the Affordable Care Act begins. Federal judge Derrick Watson permits Doug Chin, Attorney General of Hawaii, to submit a newly revised lawsuit against President Trump’s newly revised travel ban, to be heard on March 15th. The United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform writes to the White House with con- cern that President Trump’s deletion of social media postings may constitute a violation of the Presidential Records Act. March 9 – • At a White House meeting with community bankers, President Trump pledges to remove certain regulations pertaining to the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The U.S. states of Washington, New York, Oregon and Massachusetts join Minnesota and Hawaii’s legal challenge to President Trump’s forthcoming travel ban. March 10 – • President Trump speaks by telephone with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, extending a personal invitation to the White House. President Trump and Jeff Sessions order the resignation of 46 U.S. attorneys remaining from the Obama administration. Former Trump campaign advisor Roger Stone acknowledges personal communication he had with Guccifer 2.0. March 11 – • A man named Jonathan Tran appears in court having been apprehended by the secret service after trespassing into the White House grounds shortly before midnight on March 10th, with President Trump on the premises. Trump spends the afternoon golfing in Virginia. March 12 – • Republican Senator John McCain calls on President Trump to provide evidence of wiretapping at Trump Tower or retract the allegation. March 13 – • An approaching winter storm causes the White House to delay the following day’s meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. It will be held Friday. • President Trump signs an executive order to reduce costs. 30