James Mattis resigns as 26th United States Secretary of Defense. Deputy Secretary Patrick M. Shanahan becomes Acting Secretary of Defense.[2] Mattis' resignation had been announced December 2018, for the end of February 2019, before being pushed forward by President Trump.
Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin gives Congress a classified briefing about his decision to lift sanctions on companies linked to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska.[11]
Trump Administration calls on some FAA and IRS furloughed employees to return to work to provide air safety and to implement the upcoming tax filing season.[16]
Speaker Pelosi sends a letter to President Trump that suggests he either reschedule his 2019 State of the Union Address or submit a written State of the Union to Congress instead of a televised oral speech, citing fears of security concerns regarding unpaid Secret Service members as a consequence of the government shutdown.[18]
President Trump meets in the White House with rank and file House Democrats to discuss the shutdown.[19]
Day 26 of the partial government shutdown
Thursday, January 17
President Trump sends a letter to Speaker Pelosi, postponing her planned trips to Brussels, Egypt and Afghanistan, a move which is seen by both Democrats and Republicans as an indirect response to her letter requesting that the State of the Union Address be rescheduled.[20][21]
A report by BuzzFeed News journalists Jason Leopold and Anthony Cormier is released, alleging that President Trump directed his former attorney Michael Cohen to lie to Congress about their Moscow Tower Project. The report further alleges that Cohen did not reveal this to the Mueller investigation himself, but rather confirmed it when prompted with evidence such as text and e-mail exchanges between implicated parties.[22]
President Trump, alongside Vice President Mike Pence and Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan, visits The Pentagon to address the Missile Defense Review of 2019. In his speech, Trump calls for missile defense in space via a Space Force as well as reiterating North Korea's status as an "extraordinary threat".[23][24]
The special counsel's office issues a rare statement in response to the report by BuzzFeed News regarding Michael Cohen's Congressional testimony by clarifying that it is inaccurate in its assessment.[26]
Day 28 of the partial government shutdown
Saturday, January 19
President Trump again delivers remarks regarding the border and the ongoing shutdown, inviting Democrats to come to the negotiating table after listing topics of compromise such as DACA and temporary protected status in exchange for a border wall while bringing an end to the government shutdown.[27] However, Democrats seem reluctant to accept this proposition.[28]
Day 29 of the partial government shutdown
Sunday, January 20
President Trump completes his second year in office.
President Trump sends a letter to Speaker Pelosi stating that he intends to move forward with the planned date of January 29 for his State of the Union Address.[31] Pelosi blocks his attempt at an address until the government is reopened, making Trump the first President in U.S. history to be uninvited to a State of the Union Address.[32] President Trump responds to this by announcing, via Twitter, that he will not seek an alternative route for his 2019 State of the Union Address and will instead comply with Speaker Pelosi's condition of having the government reopened before going any further.[33][34]
Michael Cohen requests rescheduling his testimony before Congress, citing increased threats against him and his family by President Trump and his attorney, Rudy Giuliani. This request is denied by both the House Oversight Committee and House Intel Committee.[35]
Both Democratic and Republican bills to end the government shutdown fail in the Senate.[38]
Day 34 of the partial government shutdown
Friday, January 25
Roger Stone, a former adviser to President Trump, is indicted by the Mueller investigation and then arrested by the FBI at his Florida home on charges of obstruction, witness tampering and making false statements.[39] He is later released on a $250,000 bond and stripped of his passport.
The FAA delays flights at the LaGuardia Airport in New York City, and multiple other major airports, due to safety concerns from staffing shortages as a consequence of the ongoing shutdown.[40]
President Trump, from the Rose Garden, says he and Congressional leaders Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer have agreed upon a three-week stop-gap spending deal, which does not contain funding for a wall on the southern border, in order to temporarily end the government shutdown. In addition, he states that, if no deal for a border wall is reached within those three weeks, he will announce a national emergency on the southern border.[41]
Speaker Pelosi says President Trump's State of the Union Address will be rescheduled from January 29 to a later date.[42]
The partial government shutdown ends on its 35th day.
A fundraising effort by Trump's 2020 campaign in the days leading to the address and on the day of the address raised $2.4 million from 76,000 donors. His campaign displayed names of donors on a live streaming broadcast of the event on Donald Trump's Facebook page.[49]
President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un participate in a summit at the Metropole Hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam. However, the talks end early without any nuclear weapons deals or peace accords produced.[59][60]
A four-page summary of the Mueller Report was released to Congress and found that President Trump did not collude with the Russians to win the 2016 presidential election and, in the opinion of AG Barr, the issue of whether obstruction of justice was committed was found to be inconclusive.[69]
Congress fails to obtain the 2/3 vote needed to overturn President Trump veto in regard to the national emergency which was declared on February 15.[72]
President Trump participates in an interview with author Kate Andersen Brower, who was working on the book, "Team of Five: The President's Club in the Age of Trump" [citation needed]