TODAY IN HISTORY TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS
Today is Wednesday, Nov. 25, the 330th day of 2020. There are 36 days left in the year.
ON THIS DATE IN HISTORY
On Nov. 25, 2002, President George W. Bush signed legislation creating the Department of Homeland Security, and appointed Tom Ridge to be its head.
1783 — The British evacuated New York during the Revolutionary War.
1915 — A new version of the Ku Klux Klan, targeting blacks, Jews, Catholics and immigrants, was founded by William Joseph Simmons.
1963 — The body of President John F. Kennedy was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery; his widow, Jacqueline, lighted an “eternal flame” at the gravesite.
1986 — The Iran-Contra affair erupted as President Ronald Reagan and Attorney General Edwin Meese revealed that profits from secret arms sales to Iran had been diverted to Nicaraguan rebels.
1999 — Elian Gonzalez, a five-year-old Cuban boy, was rescued by a pair of sport fishermen off the coast of Florida, setting off an international custody battle.
2001 — As the war in Afghanistan entered its eighth week, CIA officer Johnny “Mike” Spann was killed during a prison uprising in Mazar-e-Sharif, becoming America’s first combat casualty of the conflict.
2014 — Attorneys for Michael Brown’s family vowed to push for federal charges against the Ferguson, Missouri, police officer who killed the Black 18-year-old, a day after a grand jury declined to indict Darren Wilson.
Ten years ago — Incumbent Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki cemented his grip on power, bringing an end to nearly nine months of political deadlock after he was asked to form the next government.
Five years ago — Vice President Joe Biden attended an urgent summit of southeast European leaders in Zagreb, Croatia, focusing on tensions and security concerns over a surge of asylum-seekers and migrants crossing the region. One year ago — A federal judge said former White House counsel Donald McGahn would have to appear before Congress to testify in the impeachment investigation.
Actor Kathryn Crosby is 87. Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs is 80. Author, actor and economist Ben Stein is 76. Actor Tracey Walter is 73. Author Charlaine Harris is 69. Dance judge Bruno Tonioli (TV: “Dancing with the Stars”) is 65. Former NFL quarterback Bernie Kosar is 57. Rock musician Scott Mercado is 56. Rock singer-musician Tim Armstrong is 55. Actor Billy Burke is 54. Rock musician Rodney Sheppard (Sugar Ray) is 54. Rapper-producer Erick Sermon is 52. Actor Jill Hennessy is 51. Actor Christina Applegate is 49. Actor Eddie Steeples is 47. Actor Kristian Nairn is 45. Former NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb is 44. Actor Jill Flint is 43. Actor Jerry Ferrara is 41. Actor Joel Kinnaman is
41. Actor Valerie Azlynn is
40. Former first daughter Barbara Pierce Bush is 39. Former first daughter Jenna Bush Hager is 39. Actor Katie Cassidy is 34. Actor Stephanie Hsu is 30. Contemporary Christian singer Jamie Grace is 29.