On September 23, 1952, in what became known as the “Checkers” speech, Sen. Richard M. Nixon, R-Calif., salvaged his vice-presidential nomination by appearing live on television to refute allegations of improper campaign fundraising.

Ten years ago

Hurricane Rita, down to Category 3, steamed toward refinery towns along the Texas-Louisiana coast, creating havoc even before it arrived; levee breaks caused new flooding in New Orleans, and 23 people were killed when a bus carrying nursing-home evacuees caught fire in Texas.

Five years ago

The U.S. delegation walked out of a U.N. speech by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad after he said some in the world had speculated that the U.S. staged the September 11, 2001 attacks in an attempt to assure Israel’s survival. Congressional Republicans unveiled their “Pledge to America,” a strongly worded manifesto promising to return government to the people. Teresa Lewis, 41, was executed by the state of Virginia for arranging the killings of her husband and stepson to collect on a $250,000 insurance policy.

One year ago

In the first international test for his climate-change strategy, President Barack Obama pressed world leaders at the United Nations to follow the United States’ lead on the issue. The U.S. struck the al-Qaida-linked Khorasan group with Tomahawk missiles and other ordnance near Aleppo in northwestern Syria based on fears it was planning terrorist attacks on the U.S. and Europe.

— By The Associated Press