Chapter 24: The Clinton Presidency Notes

• Clinton barely won both elections receiving 43% of votes in the 1992 election and 49% in the 1996 election
• People at this time were not enthusiastic to vote in the 1992 election 45% of the population did not vote and in the 1996 election 50% of the population did not vote.
• In Clinton’s eight years as president he showed more interest in electoral victory than social change
  
• The FBI attack on the Waco building in Texas killing 86 men, women, and children, was approved by Clinton and Attorney General Janet Reno
• Clinton endorsed the “Crime Bill” of 1996 that extended the death penalty and provided 8 billion dollars for the building of new prisons.
• Clinton and Congress passed the “Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act” in 1996 this allowed the deportation of any immigrant ever convicted of a crime, no matter how long ago or how serious.
• In 1996 Clinton signed a law known as the welfare reform. The purpose of this law was to force poor families receiving cash benefits to go to work by giving them a 5-year limit on federal aid.
• The welfare cuts were to save 50 billion dollars over five years.
• In 1997 legislation was passed to remove welfare benefits from illegal and legal immigrants unless they became citizens.
• Clinton focused on lowering the nation debt of 4 trillion dollars that had been made under Reagan and Bush cutting down the budget of many programs but never cutting the budget of the military.
• During Clinton’s presidency the government continued to spend 250 billion dollars a year to maintain the “military machine.”
• Clinton’s foreign policy had very much the traditional bipartisan emphasis on maintaining friendly relations with whatever governments were in power and promoting profitable trade arrangements with them whatever their record in protecting human rights.
• After U.S. embassies were bombed in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998 the Clinton administration responded by bombing targets in Afghanistan and Sudan.
• In 1998 the nation learned that a young government worker named Monica Lewinsky had been making secret visits to the White House for “sexual liaisons” with the President.
• The House of Representatives voted to impeach Clinton on the terms of him lying about having “sexual relations” with Lewinsky and having obstructed justice by trying to conceal information about their relationship
• The Senate did not vote for the removal of Clinton
• In 1998 one of every three working people in the United States had jobs paying at or below the federal poverty level.
• During the Clinton administration the program providing housing units getting subsidies was ended.
• Despite Clintons Inauguration Day promise for a “new government” his presidency offered no bold programs to take care of these needs for a change in government.
• In March of 1999 NATO forced began bombing Yugoslavia with the hope to stop “ethnic cleansing” of Kosovo
• Due to changes in the tax structure by 1995 the richest 1% of the population had gained 1 trillion dollars.
• Clinton claimed he was moderating his policies to match public opinion, however surveys show people favored bold policies.