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The United States on January 28, 1989

Who held every office, how Congress and the Court were made up, and what happened within a week. Diff this day against today →

President

Bush

George Herbert Walker Bush R · since Jan 20, 1989

Senate

55 D · 45 R

100 senators · 101st Congress

House

261 D · 174 R

435 representatives

Supreme Court

7 R · 2 D

9 justices by appointing party

Union

50 states

26 amendments in force

Unemployment

5.3%

Dec 1988 · $1 then ≈ $2.80 today

Public debt

$2.60T

as of Sep 30, 1988

1989-01-28/executiveThe administration

President George Herbert Walker Bush R

since Jan 20, 1989

Vice President James Danforth Quayle R

Ambassador to the United Nations Vernon A. Walters R

since May 22, 1985

Director of Central Intelligence William H. Webster R

since May 26, 1987

Secretary of Commerce William Verity R

since Oct 19, 1987

Attorney General Dick Thornburgh R

since Aug 15, 1988

Secretary of the Treasury Nicholas F. Brady R

since Sep 15, 1988

Secretary of Education Lauro Cavazos D

since Sep 20, 1988

Secretary of Housing and Urban Development J. Michael Dorsey R (acting)

since Jan 20, 1989

White House Chief of Staff John H. Sununu R

since Jan 20, 1989

Secretary of Labor Elizabeth Dole R

since Jan 25, 1989

Secretary of State James Baker R

since Jan 25, 1989

Director of the Office of Management and Budget Richard Darman R

since Jan 25, 1989

1989-01-28/congress101st Congress

Senate · 55 D · 45 R

House · 261 D · 174 R

1989-01-28/supreme-courtThe bench

William Joseph Brennan, Jr. R

Associate Justice · appointed by Dwight D. Eisenhower · since Mar 21, 1957

Byron Raymond White D

Associate Justice · appointed by John F. Kennedy · since Apr 12, 1962

Thurgood Marshall D

Associate Justice · appointed by Lyndon B. Johnson · since Aug 30, 1967

Harry Andrew Blackmun R

Associate Justice · appointed by Richard M. Nixon · since May 14, 1970

John Paul Stevens R

Associate Justice · appointed by Gerald Ford · since Dec 17, 1975

Sandra Day O'Connor R

Associate Justice · appointed by Ronald Reagan · since Sep 22, 1981

William Hubbs Rehnquist R

Chief Justice · appointed by Ronald Reagan · since Sep 25, 1986

Antonin Scalia R

Associate Justice · appointed by Ronald Reagan · since Sep 25, 1986

Anthony McLeod Kennedy R

Associate Justice · appointed by Ronald Reagan · since Feb 11, 1988

1989-01-28/weekWithin a week · Jan 21, 1989 – Feb 4, 1989

Ruling Florida v. Riley

Jan 23, 1989 · 488 U.S. 445

Ruling City of Richmond v. J. A. Croson Company

Jan 23, 1989 · 488 U.S. 469

Ruling Argentine Republic v. Amerada Hess Shipping Corp.

Jan 23, 1989 · 488 U.S. 428

Ruling United States v. Broce

Jan 23, 1989 · 488 U.S. 563

Ruling Oring v. State Bar of California

Jan 23, 1989 · 488 U.S. 590

Each office is shown as it stood at the end of the day. Cabinet records come from Wikidata and have gaps for some historical offices.