Journal Journal: Bill Clinton's achievements
Here is a well put together list (from Amazon.com) of some of Clinton's achievements in office. Pretty impressive, I say, but I'm not quite sure I'm ready to read his new 900 page book. Excerpt: ("Early on the morning of August 19, 1946, I was born under a clear sky after a violent summer storm to a widowed mother...") Ah geez.
1976: Clinton wins his first political race to become Attorney General of Arkansas.
1978: Elected Governor of Arkansas, making him the youngest state governor in the U.S. at that time. He is defeated after just one term.
1982: Elected governor again, where he remained for five more consecutive terms.
1992: Clinton wins the presidential election after defeating George H.W. Bush and Ross Perot, running on a platform that stressed domestic issues, notably a sagging economy.
"No wonder Americans hate politics when, year in and year out, they hear politicians make promises that won't come true because they don't even mean them--campaign fantasies that win elections but don't get nations moving again." --Candidate Clinton, Detroit Economic Club, August 21, 1992
1993: The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is ratified, allowing freer trade between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
"Being president is a job for just one person. And for the next four years that person is Hillary." --Dan Rather, Cleveland Plain Dealer, January 15, 1993
"Thomas Jefferson believed that to preserve the very foundations of our nation, we would need dramatic change from time to time. Well, my fellow citizens, this is our time. Let us embrace it." --President Bill Clinton Inaugural Address, January 21, 1993
1994: The midterm elections give the Republicans control of both the Senate and the House for the first time in 40 years, causing a fierce fight over the budget and resulting in a series of brief governmental shutdowns.
"Clinton means what he says when he says it, but tomorrow he will mean what he says when he says the opposite. He is the existential President, living with absolute sincerity in the passing moment." --Michael Kelly, The New York Times Magazine, July 31, 1994
1995: Clinton organizes the Dayton Peace Accords in Ohio, bringing a temporary cease-fire to the Balkan States.
"For the quickest descent into the ethical quagmire, the Clinton administration has set a new indoor record." --Howard Kurtz column, The Washington Post, March 26, 1995
1996: Clinton is elected to a second term after defeating Bob Dole and Ralph Nader.
"America demands and deserves big things from us--and nothing big ever came from being small. Let us remember the timeless wisdom of Cardinal Bernardin, when facing the end of his own life. He said: 'It is wrong to waste the precious gift of time, on acrimony and division.'" --Second Inaugural Address of President Bill Clinton, January 20, 1997
1998: On December 19, Clinton is impeached by the House of Representatives on the grounds of perjury, abuse of powers, and obstruction of justice regarding matters related to his affair with White House aide Monica Lewinsky.
Number of U.S. households that chose watching professional wrestling over the president's televised apology in August: 6,379,000. --Harper's Index, November 1998
1999: In February, in a Senate vote basically along party lines, Clinton is spared impeachment.
In conjunction with a Republican-controlled Congress, Clinton balances the U.S. federal budget for the first time since 1969.
"Whether you like him or not like him, this is one of the great, get up, political fighters of all time." --Dan Rather to Geraldo Rivera on CNBC's Rivera Live, July 8, 1999
"The light may be fading on the 20th century, but the sun is still rising on America." --President Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan International Trade facility, December 31, 1999
2000: After protracted political wrangling by Clinton, China is accepted into the World Trade Organization, opening that vast market to goods from the U.S. and around the world.
2001: The William J. Clinton Presidential Foundation is created to help people around the world meet the challenges of global interdependence.
"I am confident that we have the knowledge and the means to make the 21st century the most peaceful, prosperous, interesting time in all human history. The question is whether we have the wisdom and the will." --President Bill Clinton, from the Dimbleby Memorial Lecture given by the former U.S. President at the Institute of Education in London, December 18, 2001
1976: Clinton wins his first political race to become Attorney General of Arkansas.
1978: Elected Governor of Arkansas, making him the youngest state governor in the U.S. at that time. He is defeated after just one term.
1982: Elected governor again, where he remained for five more consecutive terms.
1992: Clinton wins the presidential election after defeating George H.W. Bush and Ross Perot, running on a platform that stressed domestic issues, notably a sagging economy.
"No wonder Americans hate politics when, year in and year out, they hear politicians make promises that won't come true because they don't even mean them--campaign fantasies that win elections but don't get nations moving again." --Candidate Clinton, Detroit Economic Club, August 21, 1992
1993: The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is ratified, allowing freer trade between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
"Being president is a job for just one person. And for the next four years that person is Hillary." --Dan Rather, Cleveland Plain Dealer, January 15, 1993
"Thomas Jefferson believed that to preserve the very foundations of our nation, we would need dramatic change from time to time. Well, my fellow citizens, this is our time. Let us embrace it." --President Bill Clinton Inaugural Address, January 21, 1993
1994: The midterm elections give the Republicans control of both the Senate and the House for the first time in 40 years, causing a fierce fight over the budget and resulting in a series of brief governmental shutdowns.
"Clinton means what he says when he says it, but tomorrow he will mean what he says when he says the opposite. He is the existential President, living with absolute sincerity in the passing moment." --Michael Kelly, The New York Times Magazine, July 31, 1994
1995: Clinton organizes the Dayton Peace Accords in Ohio, bringing a temporary cease-fire to the Balkan States.
"For the quickest descent into the ethical quagmire, the Clinton administration has set a new indoor record." --Howard Kurtz column, The Washington Post, March 26, 1995
1996: Clinton is elected to a second term after defeating Bob Dole and Ralph Nader.
"America demands and deserves big things from us--and nothing big ever came from being small. Let us remember the timeless wisdom of Cardinal Bernardin, when facing the end of his own life. He said: 'It is wrong to waste the precious gift of time, on acrimony and division.'" --Second Inaugural Address of President Bill Clinton, January 20, 1997
1998: On December 19, Clinton is impeached by the House of Representatives on the grounds of perjury, abuse of powers, and obstruction of justice regarding matters related to his affair with White House aide Monica Lewinsky.
Number of U.S. households that chose watching professional wrestling over the president's televised apology in August: 6,379,000. --Harper's Index, November 1998
1999: In February, in a Senate vote basically along party lines, Clinton is spared impeachment.
In conjunction with a Republican-controlled Congress, Clinton balances the U.S. federal budget for the first time since 1969.
"Whether you like him or not like him, this is one of the great, get up, political fighters of all time." --Dan Rather to Geraldo Rivera on CNBC's Rivera Live, July 8, 1999
"The light may be fading on the 20th century, but the sun is still rising on America." --President Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan International Trade facility, December 31, 1999
2000: After protracted political wrangling by Clinton, China is accepted into the World Trade Organization, opening that vast market to goods from the U.S. and around the world.
2001: The William J. Clinton Presidential Foundation is created to help people around the world meet the challenges of global interdependence.
"I am confident that we have the knowledge and the means to make the 21st century the most peaceful, prosperous, interesting time in all human history. The question is whether we have the wisdom and the will." --President Bill Clinton, from the Dimbleby Memorial Lecture given by the former U.S. President at the Institute of Education in London, December 18, 2001
