The Clinton Presidency Third youngest president ever elected 1992 - 2000

Bill Clinton - Democrat Arkansas governor 1979-81, 1983-93 – second youngest Pushed for middle class tax cuts and a national health care system Strong alliance with his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton Campaign revealed numerous accusations of marital infidelity on the part of Bill Clinton

1992 Election Running mate, Senator Al Gore of Tennessee Three way race – Clinton (D), George H.W. Bush (R), H. Ross Perot (I) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTATor8M5c8 Clinton presented himself as protector of the middle class

Domestic Policy – Budget Deficit First surplus for government since 1920’s/50’s Presidency longest period of sustained economic growth in U.S. history

Domestic Policy – Health Care Costs rising, millions had no health insurance Hillary Clinton headed special task force proposing a government-sponsored program of health care (universal health care) Her proposal was defeated

The Presidency of Bill Clinton Clinton defined himself a “new Democrat” by embracing both liberal & conservative policies, he was considered moderate Clinton worked with Republicans to reform the welfare system REFORMING WELFARE Clinton and the congressional Republicans cooperated to reform the welfare system. In 1996, a bill was proposed to place limits on how long people could receive benefits. It also put an end to a 61-year federal guarantee of welfare, and instead gave states “block grants”—set amounts of federal money they could spend on welfare or for other social concerns. Although liberal Democrats feared the effects of eliminating the federal safety net for the poor, the president backed the bill. Over the next few years, states moved millions of people from welfare to jobs. Because of the strong economy, the transition was more successful than some had been predicting. The law put limits on how long people could receive benefits & allowed states to decide how welfare money would be spent

Dow Jones Industrial Average, 1901-2010 Clinton’s deficit reduction coincided with a boom in the technology industry as part of the Computer Revolution; This led to the longest sustained era of economic growth in U.S. history Dow Jones Industrial Average, 1901-2010

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell 1993 policy regarding gay military members Not allowed to be discharged for sexual orientation Clinton compromise, wanted to repeal military’s ban on gay personnel Policy failed to meet Clinton’s goals of decreasing discharges for homosexuality and reducing harassment

Foreign Policy Oslo Accords (1993) - Peace agreement between Israelis (Rabin) and Palestinians (Arafat) Somalia (1993) – American forces, distributing food, were killed, considered an unpopular intervention Haiti (1994) – American forces led a UN effort to remove military dictators

Foreign Policy Clinton signed the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) which reduced trade barriers among USA, Mexico, & Canada NAFTA and other changes in the way the US trades with the world will become controversial until today…this change is known as globalization

Pros/Cons of Globalization?

Scandals Whitewater - Kenneth Starr led investigation into a failed real estate investment of Clintons in 1970s – no formal charges on Clintons Paula Jones Sexual Harassment case – claimed to have taken place while Clinton was governor and she a state employee – case thrown out Monica Lewinsky case – Clinton accused of lying under oath about his relationship with Lewinsky while he was president and she a White House intern House approved 2 articles of impeachment Senate did not have 2/3 majority to remove Clinton from office

Conclusions The Clinton years during the 1990s represented new changes for the U.S. The Democratic Party took back the presidency by becoming more moderate The economic boom of the 1990s was based largely on technology innovation that would crash in early 2000 The emergence of terrorism, at home & abroad, presented new threats to American security

Post-presidency Autobiography – My Life, New York Times bestseller list Presidential library –2004, Little Rock, AR Humanitarian efforts in Africa and Asia, AIDS epidemic Clinton and former President Bush - humanitarian relief, victims of tsunami along coasts of Indian Ocean (2004) Clinton involved in relief efforts for victims of Hurricane Katrina (2004) and created the Haiti Fund to support Haitians after the earthquake (2010)