III. Clinton Years (1993-2001)

A. Election of 1992

1. democratic party united behind Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton and fellow baby-boomer, Al Gore

2. despite raising taxes, President Bush is unable isto stop the recession but ran for a second term

3. Texas billionaire Ross Perot ran under the Independence Party

4. the economy proved to be the major issue and Governor Clinton won a close election (43% popular vote) and democrats control both houses of Congress

B. Politics1. Appointments

a. cabinet positions were filled with many minorities and women including the first female Secretary of State (Madeleine Albright) and Attorney General

b. added two justices to the Supreme Courtincluding the second female

2. Contract with America (1994)

a. Republicans gained control of both houses for the 1st time since 1954 during this “midterm” election by attacking Clinton’s liberal failures

b. led by Newt Gingrich (Speaker of the House) Republican Congress shut down government twice over budget issues

c. gradually, the American public grew tired of Republican conservatism and sided with Clinton

d. in the Election of 1996, Clinton became the firstDemocrat to win re-election since FDR after running “towards the middle”

C. Social Issues1. Health Care Reform

a. presented health care reform to Congress b. committee was run by his wife, and called

for guaranteed health insurance

c. critics called it costly, complex and stated that it would limit people’s choice of

doctorsd. not passed by Congress and considered a

huge defeat

2. Gun Control

a. due to the recent outburst of violence many called for increased gun control

b. named after President Reagan’s Press Secretary(“Brady Bill”) the law called for a 5 day waiting

period for purchasing a weaponc. also passed ban on assault weapons

3. Family Medical Leave Act ( FMLA ) provided workers with 12 weeks of unpaid medical leave to care for a newborn or family member

4. Clinton called for accepting homosexuals in the armed forces but finally had to settle for a

“don’t ask don’t tell” policy that unofficially accepted gays and lesbians.

D. Economic 1. a fiscal conservative, Clinton fiscal government

2. increased revenues by increasing the income tax on the wealthy and created a new excise tax on gas

3. Budget Deficita. increase in military spending and a decrease in revenue during the 1980s, caused the national

deficit to increase b. in 1998 the US had a surplus for the first time

since 1969

4. attempted to increase interdependence with North American Free Trade Agreement ( NAFTA) which called for a phasing out of tariffs between the US, Mexico and Canada

5. helped by the growth of computer related industries “e” commerce) nation entered its longest period of sustained growth

E. Foreign Policy

1. brought peace to the Middle East with treaties between Israel and the Palestinians

2. Chinaa. highly desirable market due to its large

population (1.3 billion)

b. criticized by President Clinton for their human rights violations during the 1990s but granted favored-nation status which has led to a massive

trade imbalance (US imports exceed exports)

3. Somalia

a. Bush administration began humanitarian airlift of food and supplies

b. local warlords began stealing shipment

c. President Bush sent in troops to control the situation

d. President Clinton removes troops due to lack of progress and safety concerns for US soldiers

4. forced Iraq to allow UN inspectors to investigate nuclear and biological weapons

5. Bosnia

a. in 1991, Bosnia and Herzogevenia declared their independence from Yugoslaviab. violence broke out and millions became

refugees

c. led by Slobodan Milosevic, Bosnian Serbs carried out ethnic cleansing killing thousands of innocent civilians

d. Clinton sends in troops to stop this violation of human rights

F. Impeachment

1. an independent prosecutor hired to investigate the Clinton’s involvement in an illegal real estate scheme uncovered a sexual relationship between

President Clinton and a White House intern

2. Clinton lied under oath about the affair3. House of Representatives impeached the

president (obstruction of justice and perjury)

4. Senate did not get 2/3 votes needed(like Andrew Johnson ) so Clinton remained an extremely popular president due to the strength of the American economy