William Jefferson (Bill) Clinton(eng. William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton; born August 19, 1946, Hope, Arkansas) - 42nd President of the United States (1993-2001) from the Democratic Party. Before his election to the presidency of the United States, Clinton was elected governor of Arkansas five times.

Bill Clinton 42nd President of the United States January 20, 1993 - January 20, 2001
Vice President: Al Gore
Predecessor: George H. W. Bush
Succeeded by: George W. Bush
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42nd Governor of Arkansas
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January 11, 1983 - December 12, 1992
Lieutenant Governor: Winston Bryant
Jim Tucker
Predecessor: Frank White
Succeeded by: James Guy Tucker
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40th Governor of Arkansas
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January 9, 1979 - January 19, 1981
Lieutenant Governor: Joe Purcell
Predecessor: Joe Purcell, et. O.
Succeeded by: Frank White
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50th Attorney General of Arkansas
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January 3, 1977 - January 9, 1979
Governor: David Pryor
Predecessor: Ulysses Webb
Succeeded by: Robert Kenny

Religion: Baptist
Birth: August 19, 1946
Hope, Arkansas, USA
Birth name: William Jefferson Blythe III
Father: William Jefferson Blythe Jr.
Mother: Virginia Dell Cassidy
Spouse: Hillary Rodham Clinton
Children: daughter: Chelsea Clinton
Party: Democratic Party
Education: Georgetown University,
Oxford University,
Yale university

William Jefferson Blythe III (aka - Bill Clinton) was born on August 19, 1946 in Hope, Arkansas. His father, William Jefferson Blythe Jr. (1918-1946), was a traveling equipment salesman. Mother, Virginia Dell Cassidy (1923-1994), after school went to study as a nurse anesthetist in Shreveport, Louisiana, where she met her future husband, William. In 1943 they got married, after which William, who by that time had been drafted into the army, was sent to Egypt: the Second World War was underway. World War. Completed his service in Italy in December 1945.

Returning to his homeland, William decided to move with his wife to Chicago. On May 17, 1946, while driving from Chicago to Hope, William died in a car accident. Virginia was his fourth wife, and Bill was his third child. The father still had two children from his first two marriages, who lived in the families of their mothers: son - Henry Leon, born in 1938. and daughter Sharon Lee born 1941. After the birth of the child, Bill's mother returned to Shreveport to continue her education, and for the first years, little Bill was raised by his grandparents, Eldridge and Edith Cassidy.

They ran a grocery store. It is noteworthy that, contrary to the custom common in the USA in those years, they even served the so-called. the “colored” population of the city, causing discontent among other citizens. So Clinton received his first “lessons” in tolerance as a child. When Bill was 4 years old, his mother remarried car dealer Roger Clinton. In 1953, the family moved to the city of Hot Springs, located in the same state of Arkansas, and in 1956 Bill had a brother, Roger. Bill took his stepfather's last name at age 15. At school, Clinton was one of the best students and, in addition, led a jazz band in which he played the saxophone. In July 1963, Bill, as part of a delegation from a national youth organization, took part in a meeting with John Kennedy.

After leaving school, he studied at Georgetown University in Washington, and after that he graduated from University College (Oxford), as well as Yale University. Despite the fact that Bill’s family belonged to the middle class by American standards, there was no money for his son’s education in prestigious university his parents didn't have one. His stepfather suffered from alcoholism, and Bill was forced to take care of himself. He received an increased scholarship and earned his living by his own labor. At Yale University, from which he graduated in 1973, he met Hillary Rodham, whom he married on October 11, 1975. After graduation, Bill taught briefly at the University of Arkansas School of Law at Fayetteville. His wife Hillary Clinton soon followed the example of her husband and began teaching at the same university.

Governor of Arkansas
In 1974, at the age of 28, Bill ran for Congress in his home state of Arkansas, but lost. In 1976, he was elected Secretary of Justice and Attorney General of Arkansas, and in 1978 he won the gubernatorial election and became the youngest state governor in the history of the country (at 32 years old). By focusing on promoting entrepreneurship and boosting education, Clinton, during his 11 years as governor, significantly increased the income of a state considered one of the most backward in the United States; and his wife Hillary was already showing herself in public life- She worked on children's and family rights in Arkansas.
In 1980, their daughter Chelsea was born. Governor Clinton considered one of his most important tasks to be the availability of quality education for all residents of the state, regardless of income and skin color, and Clinton successfully completed this task. In 1986-1987, as chairman of the Governors Association, he promoted his educational ideas already at state level. Since Clinton's administration, Arkansas has been one of the leaders in per capita funding for educational programs.

In the late 1980s, despite gaining a majority in Congress in 1986, the US Democratic Party lost an important part of its electorate - middle class and white workers. Governor of Arkansas Bill Clinton was one of the leaders of the “southern Democrats” (Democrats are not popular in the southern states), who prioritized not only liberalization, which was decisive in the rise of Arkansas, but also the pragmatism characteristic of Republicans. One of the leading tasks of the “southern democrats” was the return of their original electorate. However, Clinton can be called a conservative Democrat, primarily due to the historical conservatism of Arkansas, he always had to look for mutual language with the Republicans.

Presidential elections
October 3, 1991 Bill Clinton announced his candidacy for the presidency of the United States. During the election campaign, the emphasis was on the difficult economic state in which the country found itself following 12 years of Republican rule, and in particular George W. Bush. Huge national debt, budget deficits, rising unemployment and high inflation allowed Bill Clinton to campaign with the slogan “It's the economy, stupid”, ultimately addressed to the incumbent President Bush.

However, due to the victorious war in the Persian Gulf (Operation Desert Storm) and due to the fact that the state of affairs in the economy was not as hopeless as Bill Clinton and his associates tried to prove during the election campaign, a decisive advantage, according to numerous polls public opinion, the Democratic candidate did not. And here independent candidate Ross Perot, by the way, also a Texan, came to the aid of the Democrats (it is in his intervention that political scientists see the main reason for Bush’s defeat). As a result, Bill Clinton confidently won, paired with Al Gore, who was running for the post of vice president. It is noteworthy that Clinton managed to emerge victorious even in those states that have always been Republican strongholds. This hasn't happened since John Kennedy.

First term
Inauguration took place on January 20, 1993 William Jefferson Clinton. In his inaugural speech, Clinton managed to convey to the audience his main idea - the need for change and the historical significance of the generational change in the leadership of the country and the coming to power of young people who are aware of their “new responsibility.” And his campaign promises remain in the minds of voters: to help reduce unemployment, implement health care reforms in the interests of the poor, cut taxes on the middle class while increasing taxes on wealthy Americans, and reduce military spending. Clinton's lack of experience in big politics played a negative role at the initial stage of his first term: the long, chaotic formation of the team.

The previous Democratic president, Jimmy Carter, had surrendered power to Reagan in 1981, and the Democrats did not have an experienced team to take over. executive power(for example, Clinton proposes Zoya Beard, who is under criminal prosecution for tax evasion, for the post of Attorney General), inability to calculate the consequences of her initiatives at the political level, that is, interaction with Congress, Republican Party. Clinton's lobbying for openly gay men to serve in the army failed. In the end, after opposition from the Department of Defense and widespread public debate, the compromise was very different from Clinton's ideas.

Clinton family in the White House
In foreign policy A serious setback was the failure of the US-initiated and UN-sponsored peacekeeping operation in Somalia.

The apotheosis of the first failures was health care reform - this was one of the most important tasks that Clinton set for himself as President of the United States. By appointing his wife Hillary, also without federal experience, to head the task force on health care reform, and without calculating the political consequences (Clinton sought health insurance for all US citizens and proposed that part of the costs be borne by employers and manufacturers in the medical sector) Bill faced opposition from medical manufacturers and a lack of support in Congress, which was open to amendments but not to widespread reform. And after the defeat of the Democrats in the congressional elections in 1994, the implementation of the reform became impossible and was curtailed. The Clinton government supported a worldwide birth control project that was blocked by the Vatican at the UN. But still, the US economy grew at an impressive pace, the high-tech sector expanded greatly, and unemployment was minimal. Clinton improved relations with many previously hostile countries, and the world was in relative order. In 1995 Bill Clinton gave a lecture in Moscow at Moscow State University. Lomonosov and became an honorary professor at this university. The 1996 elections were boring and routine - no one doubted the winner.

Second term

Chart of the US budget deficit (1971-2001), showing that the US budget was in surplus during Bill Clinton's second term.
Clinton's second term was successful in terms of economic development. In 1998, unemployment was 4.5%, and in 2000 - 4.0% of the working population. Inflation remained low - 1.6% (at the end of 1998). However, an intimate relationship with Monica Lewinsky in 1996 became the reason for accusing the president of perjury under oath and the beginning of Clinton's impeachment proceedings (Clinton-Lewinsky Sex Scandal). The scandal erupted in 1998, when details of the relationship between Clinton and Lewinsky were leaked to the press. This story did not significantly lower the rating of the very popular Bill Clinton, but after Al Gore's disappointing defeat by Republican George W. Bush in the 2000 presidential election, it turned out that the Clinton-Lewinsky sex scandal tarnished the reputation of the US Democratic Party much more significantly.

Results of the presidency
The US sharply reduced its external debt, unemployment became insignificant. America has become a leader in high technology (before Clinton, Japan was a leader in information technology). His administration also lobbied for a test ban. nuclear weapons worldwide. The disappearance of resistance from the USSR made it easier for the US leadership led by Clinton to expand its influence and made it possible to achieve hitherto unimaginable results: the fourth expansion of NATO and the separation of Kosovo and Metohija from Yugoslavia after the NATO War against Yugoslavia in 1999. During the Clinton presidency, the United States significantly reduced the amount of military intervention in other countries compared to the times of Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. Americans pinned their hopes on Democratic President Clinton as a reformer of the conservative US society; some citizens hoped that Clinton would reduce the influence of religious denominations and resume research in the field of genetics, frozen by the Republicans.

After the presidency
IN last years Bill Clinton conducts active public work, is a member of various public political and charitable organizations, in particular the Trilateral Commission. After his wife Hillary Clinton lost in the primaries in 2008, he actively supported Barack Obama. After the devastating earthquake in Haiti on January 12, 2010, Clinton visited the Republic of Haiti several times to provide assistance to the victims. On February 3, 2010, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon asked Clinton to take charge of coordinating international assistance to the Haitians.
February 11, 2010 Bill Clinton was urgently hospitalized in a New York hospital with a complaint of pain in the heart. A 63-year-old politician underwent stenting surgery.
Clinton was actively involved in Barack Obama's campaign during the 2012 presidential election.

In the public consciousness, US President Bill Clinton is not associated with his foreign policy or the reforms that he initiated, and with the scandal that arose in 1996 based on very banal adultery. The whole world discussed with a wry smile the peculiarities of the physiological structure of the chief government official of a superpower, and the “hero” himself could only answer with a guilty, ironic smile. Now that two decades have passed, it is time to give a more objective assessment of the personality of the “Arkansas saxophonist,” as the president was nicknamed for his passion for playing it.

Who is William Jefferson Blythe III

If you dig deeper, he is not Bill at all, but William. Plus Jefferson. And not just Jefferson, but the Third. And the last name is different, Blythe. It was under this full name that the baby who became the 42nd President of the United States was born in 1946, on August 19. And it’s not about some secret affairs, he didn’t change the city, didn’t change his name, but it turned out that Bill’s own father, his full namesake, only the Second, died in a car accident shortly before the birth of his son, performing the duties of a sales manager for an industrial equipment. So, he married four times, went through the whole war, both Egypt and Italy, and death awaited him in Peaceful time and on their native land.

Grandfather, grandmother, mother, brother and stepfather

The boy was raised by his grandfather and grandmother, wonderful people, supporters of equality and opponents of racial segregation. At that time in the South, blacks shopped, ate, traveled, and even went to the restroom only where there were signs that said “Blacks Only,” and Cassidy’s Grocery served all who came. Mother, Virginia, meanwhile studied in Shreveport (Louisiana). She remarried in 1950 and soon had her second son, Roger. At the age of fifteen, Bill, appreciating the role of his stepfather in his life, took his last name. The family then lived in the town of Hot Springs (Arkansas).

While studying at high school, Bill Clinton was fond of jazz, formed a jazz band, and George Gershwin became his favorite composer. He studied well, and therefore in the summer of 1963 he took part in a meeting of the best representatives of youth with US President J.F. Kennedy, and even shook his hand.

Its universities

Further education was somewhat unsystematic, although the names of the universities that the young man changed indicate his desire to join the establishment: Oxford, Yale, Georgetown. The lack of money hindered him, his stepfather took to drinking, the family’s income fell, and the young man could only rely on himself. He received an increased scholarship as an excellent student, and worked in three places at the same time. But youth is strong, and despite the hellish workload, Bill Clinton found time for his personal life. At Yale, he met Hillary Rodham, and after two years of dating, the young people got married (1975).

The graduate’s career was going well; immediately after studying, he was offered a teaching position at the University of Fayetteville, but an old meeting with Kennedy set him up for a political career, and the young man could no longer dream of anything else.

Path to governorship

At the age of 28 (1974), Bill Clinton ran for congressman from Arkansas, failed, but did not lose heart. Even defeat can be used to achieve future victory. There were connections and acquaintances, experience of political struggle, but it always tastes bitter. In 1976, the youngest Minister of Justice appeared, then the Prosecutor General, and a little later, in 1978, the youngest governor. It was Bill Clinton, and he was then 32 years old.

Governor Clinton's Achievements

He held this position for 11 years, and the reign was generally successful. Revenues to the treasury increased, education became much more accessible. Bill Clinton's wife Hillary helped her husband by actively working on family issues and children's rights. Both were important for both the “first lady” of the state and the governor; in 1980, their daughter Chelsea was born.

Arkansas has taken a leading position in the amount of funds per capita allocated to education. The importance of quality education has always been an axiom for Clinton; he was actively involved in this issue as governor of the state, and then, having achieved good results and becoming chairman of the Governors Association (1986), he began to promote his ideas at the federal level.

At the same time, there were failures, which included the loss of sympathy of a significant part of voters. The American South traditionally adheres to the Republican platform, and the position of the Democrats here is unique. Insufficient support for liberal ideas is compensated by a pragmatic approach to resolving many issues that are so characteristic of political opponents. This “hybrid” was called “southern democracy.” But even maximum flexibility did not save Clinton from the conservatism of Arkansas residents; workers and representatives of the middle class did not want to vote for the Democratic Party. There was a lot of work to be done.

To the White House!

In 1991, Clinton decided to run for President of the United States. The bet was made on the deterioration in the economy caused by the rule of the elder George Bush. Things were indeed not going well, unemployment increased, inflation levels, external debt and budget deficit increased. But the Republicans also had serious assets: a successful military operation in Kuwait, called “Desert Storm,” and the ability to justify low macroeconomic indicators by various objective circumstances.

In addition, competitors learned that in his younger years Bill happened to “score a joint.” The applicant himself did not deny this fact, explaining his experiments with marijuana with youthful curiosity, however, with the caveat that he did not like the effect and immediately abandoned this stupid business.

In general, the success of the elections was under big sign question.

Help came from Ross Perot, an independent candidate, Bill Clinton and Al Gore managed to repeat the success of the Republican victory “on their field,” in the Southern states.

After the inauguration, Bill Clinton, the President of the United States, gave a speech in which he outlined his position on the upcoming changes and the responsibility of politicians for their country. Among the priority issues were the fight against unemployment, the reform of the health care system and the reduction of tax oppression in relation to the middle class, the basis of society.

Failures

When forming the team, both the lack of experience and all the personal shortcomings that Bill Clinton suffered from appeared. His administration experienced several serious setbacks, including the collapse of the previously advertised health insurance reform. It was handled by Hillary, Bill Clinton's wife, who did not have the necessary qualifications in this area. The attempt to attract military service homosexuals who do not hide their gay orientation. Pentagon officials opposed such liberalization of statutory relations. Zoe Beard, Clinton's protégé for the post of Attorney General, turned out to be a criminal herself, a habitual tax evader.

Foreign Affairs

Bill Clinton was dictated by the heady feeling of US dominance in the entire global space that gripped the leadership of this country after the collapse of the communist system. Despite the almost complete absence of serious confrontation from the former “evil empire”, american army, acting under a UN mandate, managed to be defeated during the conflict with Somali rebels. The Vatican opposed the birth control project advocated by the United States.

At the same time, there were also successes. Fewer and fewer countries doubted the dominant role of the United States, especially after the demonstrative “flogging” of Yugoslavia and the creation of an independent Kosovo state. NATO moved happily eastward, accompanied by lukewarm protests from Yeltsin's Russia, and sometimes without them. At the same time, the number of military conflicts in which the American army took part has decreased.

The goal is to grow America's power

Despite the fairly active expansion of US influence, B.N. Yeltsin repeatedly listed his “friends” - Helmut Koll and, of course, Bill Clinton. Photos and videos in which the President of the Russian Federation either conducts an orchestra, or dances a twist, or makes his American colleague laugh, were regularly published by all news channels during that extraordinary time. The power of the United States was strengthened at the lowest cost; in the 90s, the military budget was reduced, which freed up funds for social programs. decreased, actively produced Scientific research, in the field of information technology, Japan was pushed into second place in the world, and hostile countries were either defeated or began to adhere to friendly policies. Old conflicts subsided, new ones were not expected.

Towards new elections

Bill Clinton's policies were liked by the Americans and were carried out in the national interests of the only superpower at that time. Russia and China could not be taken into account, Europe obediently moved in the fairway set by the White House, and there was no need to think about other countries at all.

From the very beginning, the 1996 elections were never in doubt as to who the winner would be. Bill Clinton, whose biography itself embodied the Great American dream, impressed voters, as did his general image. However, something happened that shook this stable and almost ideal situation.

Incident with Monica

A young, energetic and not very beautiful intern created problems for which representatives of the Democratic Party and Bill Clinton himself were not prepared. The scandal broke out suddenly, and the public reaction to it was even more unexpected. The reason for initiating the procedure for removing the president from power was not even adultery, but the fact that the first person of the state lied during court hearings, denying his unworthy behavior. The story surfaced during the proceedings following the statement of a certain Paula Jones, who accused the president of harassing her (sexually, of course).

It later turned out that Monica Lewinsky and Bill Clinton had an intimate relationship starting in 1995 for two years. The relationship was of a sophisticated erotic nature. The intern presented as evidence personal items on which she retained “traces of passion,” including her own underwear, for which she received the nickname “dirty.” The details were savored for a long time, but she romantic story is still of some interest today.

It also became public knowledge that Monica Lewinsky and Bill Clinton from time to time gave each other souvenirs, however, inexpensive ones.

Consequences of the scandal

Clinton denied it for a long time, but under pressure from irrefutable facts, including even DNA tests, he finally “split.” He then publicly apologized to his wife and the entire American people. A successful arrangement saved him from impeachment political forces, there weren't enough votes for him.

Lewinsky subsequently overcame the consequences of psychological stress for a long time, and even apologized “for this whole story,” which did not prevent her, along with knitting, from writing and publishing an autobiographical book. Well, it's business and nothing personal.

If for Clinton the attempt to remove himself from power ended quite happily, apart from unpleasant but tolerable events, the Democratic Party suffered more significant losses. The sex scandal had a devastating effect on her reputation, and there was no hope that the next one would emerge from her ranks. And so it happened, Bush Jr., a Republican, won the next election.

Life outside the White House

Hillary Clinton behaved with dignity throughout the trial, supporting her husband. To her credit, it should be noted that she saw in him, first of all, a person responsible for the fate of the country, putting state interests above personal emotions, which probably overwhelmed the soul of the deceived wife.

Clinton's presidency ended in 2001, but his life continues, and it is full of events, pleasant and not so pleasant. It is unknown how much his support influenced Obama's victory, but it was there. The ex-president helped Haitians affected by the earthquake.

In 2010, he was operated on with a heart stent. A little later, Bill married off his daughter Chelsea.

A monument was erected to him in Kosovo. The honor is dubious, but still not everyone will experience this in their lifetime...

Bill Clinton full name William Jefferson Clinton, English William Jefferson Clinton; August 19, 1946, Hope, Arkansas - 42nd President of the United States (1993-2001) from the Democratic Party. Before his election to the presidency of the United States, Clinton was twice elected governor of Arkansas.

William Jefferson Blythe III was born on August 19, 1946 in Hope, Arkansas. His father, William Jefferson Blythe Jr. (1918-1946), was a traveling equipment salesman.

Mother, Virginia Dell Cassidy (1923-1994) after school went to study as a nurse anesthesiologist in Shreveport, Louisiana, where she met William. And in 1943 they got married, after which William was drafted into the army and sent to Egypt for the Second World War.

He finished his service in Italy in December 1945. When he returned, he and Virginia briefly moved to Chicago and were planning to buy a house in Hope, near her parents, but on May 17, 1946, while returning from Chicago to Hope, William died in a car accident. Virginia was his fourth wife and Bill was his third child.

The father still had two more children from his first two marriages, who lived in their mothers’ families: a son, Henry Leon, born in 1938. and daughter Sharon Lee born 1941 After the birth of the child, Bill's mother returned to Shreveport to study, and the first years of raising the child fell on his grandparents, Eldridge and Edith Cassidy.

They had their own grocery store, where, contrary to the customs of segregation, they served, and sometimes on credit, all residents of the city, regardless of skin color. Grandparents instilled such an attitude towards people and their grandson - tolerance, equality, political correctness - Bill became acquainted with all these concepts when he was still a small child.

When Bill was 4 years old, his mother married car dealer Roger Clinton. In 1953, the family moved to the city of Hot Springs, in Arkansas, and in 1956, Bill had a brother, Roger Clinton. Bill took his stepfather's last name when he was 15 years old.

At school, Clinton was one of the best students and the leader of a jazz band, where he played the saxophone. In July 1963, Bill, as part of a delegation from a national youth organization, participated in a meeting with John Kennedy, where he received the president’s handshake, after which he decided to devote his life to public activity and politics.

After graduating from school, he studied alternately at Georgetown University in Washington, Oxford, and Yale. Despite the fact that Bill’s family belonged to the middle class by American standards, his parents did not have money to study at a prestigious university, and by that time his stepfather was already seriously suffering from alcoholism, and Bill managed on his own.

He received an increased scholarship and worked three jobs at the same time. At Yale University, from which he graduated in 1973, he met Hillary Rodham, whom he married on October 11, 1975.

After graduation, Bill taught briefly at the University of Arkansas School of Law at Fayetteville. His wife Hillary Clinton soon after him also took up teaching at the same university.

In 1974, Bill, at the age of 28, ran for congressman from Arkansas, one of Clinton's poorest home states, but lost.

His participation in this company and the serious support of his wife Hillary helped him acquire the necessary connections and friends in the political circles of the Democratic Party of Arkansas, and in 1976 he was elected to the post of Secretary of Justice and Attorney General of Arkansas, and in 1978 he won the gubernatorial election and became the youngest governor of the state in the history of the country (at 32 years old).

By focusing on promoting entrepreneurship and improving education, Clinton, during his 11 years as governor, significantly increased the income of a state considered one of the most backward in the United States; and his wife Hillary was already showing herself in public life - she was involved in protecting the rights of children and families in Arkansas.

In 1980, their daughter Chelsea was born. Governor Clinton considered one of his most important tasks to be the availability of quality education for all residents of the state, regardless of income and skin color, and Clinton successfully completed this task. IN

In 1986-87, as chairman of the Association of Governors, he promoted his educational ideas at the state level. Since Clinton's administration, Arkansas has been one of the leaders in per capita funding for education programs.

In the late 1980s, despite gaining a majority in Congress in 1986, the US Democratic Party lost an important part of its electorate - the middle class and white workers. Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton was one of the leaders of the “southern Democrats” (Democrats are not popular in the southern states), who prioritized not only liberalization, which was decisive in the rise of Arkansas, but also the pragmatism characteristic of Republicans.

One of the leading tasks of the “southern democrats” was the return of their original electorate. However, Clinton can be called a conservative Democrat, primarily due to the historical conservatism of Arkansas, he always had to find a common language with the Republicans.

On October 3, 1991, Bill Clinton announced his candidacy for the presidency of the United States. During the election campaign, the emphasis was on the poor economic state of the country after 12 years of Republican rule, and in particular George H. W. Bush.

A huge national debt, budget deficit, growing unemployment and high inflation allowed Bill Clinton to campaign under the slogan “It's the economy, stupid”, ultimately addressed to the incumbent President Bush.

Insofar as Bush victoriously won the war with Iraq for the liberation of Kuwait (“Desert Storm”), supported by almost the entire world community, and things in the economy were still not as bad as members of Bill Clinton’s election team tried to make it out to be, with a decisive superiority in the polls Bill had not.

And here the Democrats were helped by independent candidate Ross Perot, by the way, also a Texan (it is he who is blamed by political scientists for Bush’s defeat). As a result, Bill Clinton confidently won, paired with Al Gore, who was running for vice president, and Clinton managed to gain the upper hand in traditionally Republican states, something like this had not happened since the days of John Kennedy.

On January 20, 1993, William Jefferson Clinton was inaugurated. In his inaugural speech, Clinton managed to convey to the audience his main idea - the need for change and the historical significance of the generational change in the leadership of the country and the coming to power of young people who are aware of their “new responsibility.”

And his campaign promises remain in the minds of voters - to help reduce unemployment, implement health care reforms in the interests of the poor, cut taxes on the middle class while increasing taxes on wealthy Americans, and reduce military spending.

Bill's lack of experience in big politics played a negative role at the initial stage of his first term: the long, chaotic formation of the team.

The previous Democratic President Jimmy Carter surrendered power to Reagan in 1981, and the Democrats did not have an experienced team for the executive branch (for example, Clinton proposed Zoe Beard, who is under criminal prosecution for tax evasion, for the post of Attorney General), the inability to calculate the consequences of their initiatives at the political level, that is, interaction with Congress and the Republican Party.

Clinton's lobbying for openly gay men to serve in the army failed. In the end, after opposition from the Department of Defense and wider public discourse, the compromise was very different from Clinton's ideas.

In foreign policy, a serious setback was the failure of the peacekeeping operation in Somalia initiated by the United States and carried out under the auspices of the UN.
The apotheosis of the first failures was health care reform - this was one of the most important tasks that Clinton set for himself as President of the United States.

By appointing his wife Hillary, also without federal experience, to head the task force on health care reform, and without calculating the political consequences (Clinton sought health insurance for all US citizens and proposed that part of the costs be borne by employers and manufacturers in the medical sector) Bill faced opposition from medical manufacturers and a lack of support in Congress, which was open to amendments but not to widespread reform.

And after the defeat of the Democrats in the congressional elections in 1994, the implementation of the reform became impossible and was curtailed. The Clinton government supported a worldwide birth control project that was blocked by the Vatican at the UN.

But still, the US economy grew at an impressive pace, the high-tech sector expanded greatly, and unemployment was minimal. Bill improved relations with many previously hostile countries, and the world was in relative order. The 1996 elections were boring and routine - no one doubted the winner.

An intimate relationship with Monica Lewinsky in 1996 became the reason for accusing the president of perjury under oath and the beginning of Clinton's impeachment proceedings (Clinton-Lewinsky sex scandal). The scandal erupted in 1998, when details of the relationship between Clinton and Lewinsky were leaked to the press.

This story slightly lowered the ratings of the very popular Bill Clinton, but after Al Gore's disappointing defeat by conservative George W. Bush in the 2000 presidential election, it turned out that the Clinton-Lewinsky sex scandal tarnished the reputation of the US Democratic Party much more significantly.

The US sharply reduced its external debt, unemployment became insignificant. America has become a leader in high technology (before Clinton, Japan was a leader in IT). His administration also lobbied for a ban on nuclear weapons testing worldwide.

The disappearance of resistance from the USSR made it easier for the US leadership led by Clinton to expand its influence and made it possible to achieve hitherto unimaginable results: the fourth expansion of NATO and the separation of Kosovo and Metohija from Yugoslavia after the NATO War against Yugoslavia in 1999.

Thus, Clinton continued the expansion of American dominance in the world. However, during the Clinton presidency, the United States significantly reduced the amount of military intervention in other countries compared to the times of Reagan and George Herbert Walker Bush.

Americans pinned their hopes on Democratic President Clinton as a reformer of the conservative US society; citizens hoped that Clinton would reduce the influence of religious denominations and resume research in the field of genetics, frozen by the Republicans.

If there really was a breakthrough in science, then the position of religion, on the contrary, has greatly strengthened, and all sorts of destructive sects have become more active. In May 2009, Clinton himself received the post of UN special envoy for Haiti.

In recent years, Bill Clinton has been active in public work and is a member of various public political and charitable organizations, in particular the Trilateral Commission. After his wife Hillary Clinton lost in the primaries in 2008, he actively supported Barack Obama.

Spouse Hillary Rodham Clinton is the 67th US Secretary of State (since January 2009).

Awards

Interesting Facts

• William (Bill) Clinton's IQ is 137
• In the capital of Kosovo, Pristina, on the central boulevard named after Bill Clinton, a 3.5-meter monument was erected to him. Clinton himself personally participated in the grand opening of the monument on November 1, 2009.

Books

• Bill Clinton My life.
• Order White Lion I degree on chain (Czech Republic, 1998)
• Grand Companion of the Order of Lagohu (Papua New Guinea, 2006)
• Order of Good Hope, 1st class (South Africa)

Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton is the forty-second President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. His full name is William Jefferson Clinton.
Biography of Bill Clinton - early years.
Bill Clinton was born on August 19, 1946 in Hope, Arkansas, USA. The father of the future president, William Jefferson Blythe Jr., worked as a traveling salesman selling equipment. His mother is Virginia Dell Cassidy, a nurse and anesthesiologist. His parents got married in 1943; after the wedding, his father was drafted into the army and served in Egypt during the Second World War. When he returned home, he and his wife moved to Chicago. The couple wanted to buy a house in Hope, but on May 17, 1946, on the way from Chicago to Hope, William died in a car accident. Bill Clinton had not yet been born at that time. Bill Clinton has a half-sister and a half-brother on his father's side from his first and second marriages. Virginia, after the birth of her son Bill, returned to Shreveport to continue her studies. In the first years of his life, Bill was raised by his grandparents, Eldridge and Edith Cassidy. When Bill was four years old, his mother got married and new family Bill moved to Hot Springs, Arkansas. Bill Roger Clinton's stepfather was involved in the car trade. In 1956, Bill Clinton's brother was born into the family. At the age of 15, Bill decided to change his father’s surname – “Blythe” to the surname of his stepfather Clinton, due to the soundlessness of his surname: translated from English, Blythe means decline, degradation.
Bill Clinton was an excellent student at school and led the school jazz band, which is where his love for the saxophone came from. At the age of 17, Bill represented the youth delegation at a meeting of national youth organizations with John F. Kennedy, where he was awarded a handshake by the president himself. It was turning point in Clinton's biography. From that time on, he decided to engage in social activities and politics.
Bill Clinton alternately studied at Georgetown University in Washington, Oxford, and Yale. There was no money in the family for education; by that time, his stepfather was addicted to alcohol, and Bill got out on his own - he worked three jobs, did well in school and received an increased scholarship. At age 29, Bill Clinton married Hillary Clinton.
In 1974, Bill Clinton decided to run for the US Congress from Arkansas. But despite losing the election, Bill Clinton acquired the necessary connections in the political sphere from the Democratic Party. And already in 1976, Bill Clinton was elected to the post of Secretary of Justice and Attorney General of the State of Arkansas, and in 1978, Bill Clinton became the Governor of Arkansas, one of the poorest states in the United States. Bill Clinton became the youngest governor in US history. Bill Clinton served as governor for eleven years. During this time, he did a lot for the state: the level of state income increased, the issue of access to education was resolved, regardless of race and income level of the population.
In 1980, Bill Clinton had a daughter, Chelsea.
Biography of Bill Clinton - his mature years.
Having gained experience as governor of Arkansas, in 1991 Bill Clinton decided to run for President of the United States of America. Bill Klinon represented the Democratic Party. In his election campaign, he focused on the poor economic state of the country: budget deficit, inflation, resulting unemployment and national debt, which led to Republican rule, including criticizing the work of President George W. Bush. As a result, Bill Clinton took the lead and defeated his opponent, Albert Gore, who participated in the election. Clinton outperformed his opponent in states where Republicans have traditionally held the upper hand. There has not been such a furor since John Kennedy. And so, on January 20, 1993, Bill Clinton's biography was replenished with an important event - his inauguration. During his inauguration, Bill Clinton announced the directions of his future work: reducing unemployment, reforming health care, reducing taxes on the middle class and increasing taxes on the rich. But the governor’s existing experience was not enough for big politics, and in the first term of the presidency this had Negative consequences. It took a long time for the presidential apparatus to be formed. So Zoe Beard, who was under investigation for tax evasion, was offered the position of prosecutor general. An unpleasant moment also occurred when Clinton lobbied for homosexuals to serve in the army. In military and foreign policy, the peacekeeping operation in Somalia under UN cover was a failure. And the pinnacle of failure in his political career was health care reform. His wife, Hillary, who had no experience in the political sphere, was appointed to the post of head of the reform committee. Clinton wanted to shift the cost of health insurance for all citizens to employers and drug manufacturers. As a result, the manufacturers, of course, were not happy with this, and as a result, a conflict arose with Congress.
And to top it off, Bill Clinton's biography is famous for a sex scandal involving an intimate relationship with 25-year-old secretary Monica Lewinsky. In connection with this, in 1996, Bill Clinton was accused of perjury under oath, which served as the beginning of the president's impeachment. This scandal lowered the president's ratings. During the reign of Bill Clinton, the country emerged from unemployment, the external debt decreased, the United States took a leading place in the world in terms of high technology development, and expanded its foreign policy influence (NATO expansion).
After his presidency, Bill Clinton has been engaged in public political work and is actively involved in charity work. So Bill Clinton is a member of the Trilateral Commission. In 2008, Bill Clinton came out in support of Barack Obama.
Bill Clinton's biography is full of events related to awards. So in 1998 in the Czech Republic he was awarded the Order of the White Lion, 1st class, on a chain. In 2006, in Papua New Guinea, he was awarded the Order of Lagohu, in South Africa, the Order of Good Hope, 1st class.

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© Biography of Bill Clinton. Biography of US President Bill Clinton. Biography of the 42nd President of the United States

Bill Clinton is an outstanding American politician, the 42nd President of the United States. Bill Clinton ran as a representative of the Democratic Party and was able to win the presidential race twice. Bill Clinton's presidency: 1993-2001.

William Jefferson Blythe III, who would later become Bill Clinton, was born in August 1946 in Arkansas, in one of the clinics in the city of Hope. The boy's father, traveling salesman William Jefferson Blythe Jr., died tragically in a traffic accident in May 1946.

Raising her son fell entirely on the shoulders of the early widowed Virginia Dell Cassidy. The young mother was forced to leave Bill in the care of her parents and returned to Louisiana. In Shreveport, where she had recently met her husband, Virginia continued her studies to become a nurse anesthetist.

Eldridge and Edith Cassidy - Bill Clinton's grandparents - were small entrepreneurs and ran a small grocery store. The townspeople did not like the Cassidys because they also served the “colored” population. This was probably the first lesson of tolerance and democracy for the little grandson, who later chose the party of this particular political direction.

When my son was 4 years old, my mother got married for the second time. Bill's stepfather, Roger Clinton, was an automobile dealer. In 1953, the family moved to the town of Hot Springs. And 3 years later, Bill had a brother, Roger Clinton. Bill received the same surname when he turned 15.

During his school years, Bill Clinton was a model student. In addition to excellent academic performance, he led the school jazz band, in which he himself performed, playing the saxophone. On top of all this, Clinton was an activist and student speaker.

In the summer of 1963, an event occurred that greatly influenced Clinton’s future: he was entrusted with leading a youth delegation that took part in a meeting with the president. This visit to The White house, when the US President himself shook hands with a young blond guy from a simple family, it turned out to be the point from which the countdown began political career Bill Clinton. As Clinton himself later admitted, it was then that he first thought about politics.

The ambitious guy stubbornly moved towards his goal. Although his family belonged to the middle class, due to his stepfather’s problems with alcohol, Bill could not count on help with his studies. He entered the prestigious Georgetown University in Washington and was forced to study in order to receive an increased scholarship. This allowed him to study at Oxford for 2 years, starting in 1968. Clinton later attended Yale Law School. After graduation, the young man returned to Arkansas. This is where it started political biography Bill Clinton.

Policy

Bill Clinton decided to turn his impeccable and brilliant biography of a simple and honest guy from the people, who earned his own education and achieved notable heights, into a launching pad for a future political career.

After a short period teaching activities At the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, 28-year-old Clinton took his first step into politics. He tried to win a congressional seat in Arkansas' 3rd District as a Democratic candidate. The young, eloquent and outwardly attractive politician (Clinton's height is 188 cm) immediately received quite strong support from voters.

And although the young Democrat lost, his Republican rival was only a few percentage points ahead of him. This became the reason for the close attention of the Arkansas political establishment, which turned to the young and promising “prodigy.”

Two years later, in 1976, Bill Clinton won the election for Attorney General in his state. Another 2 years later, the 32-year-old politician took the post of governor of Arkansas, becoming the youngest to hold this position in US history.

When Clinton took office, the only state ranked below Arkansas in income statistics was Mississippi. It cannot be said that after 11 years of the reign of the young governor, Arkansas suddenly became a leader - the rate of income growth was measured at a modest figure of 4.1%. But entrepreneurs noticed a “warming” climate, which contributed to the development of business in the state and the influx of investment, as well as a decrease in unemployment.

Another notable achievement of Governor Bill Clinton is educational programs. The politician was able to “break through” stubborn resistance and carried out an extensive reform program, thanks to which today Arkansas is the state in which the largest funds are allocated per capita for education.

In October 1991, Bill Clinton announced his candidacy for the presidency. At that time, he already had a reputation as the most prominent “new democrat”. On the way to his goal, the young politician “bet” on the middle layer, which in the 80s the Republicans managed to lure into the ranks of their voters. Clinton promised this large segment of society tax cuts and economic pragmatism.

Clinton's campaign rhetoric and promises fell on fertile ground. During the period of flared up " cold war"and the economy was put in second place after politics. Therefore, people's real earnings began to decline, and the number of jobs began to decline sharply.

And although his rival George Bush, who had a “fresh” victory in the Persian Gulf, seemed invincible, the young democrat managed to get ahead. But this victory was not stunning: Bill Clinton received 43% of the vote, ahead of his opponent by only 5%. And if you consider that the non-partisan candidate Ross Perot managed to “pull back” the votes of a fifth of the voters, it becomes clear that Clinton’s victory was largely due to a happy coincidence of circumstances.

The inauguration of the new president took place in January 1993. If you don't take into account short period Jimmy Carter's reign, the protracted pause of the Democrats' "excommunication from power" amounted to almost a quarter of a century. Clinton put an end to the long neoconservative era of Reagan-Bush.

A liberal renewal of the country was expected from the new, 42nd democratic president. William Jefferson Clinton in his speech conveyed the main idea to the audience: he announced the coming to power of new young politicians who would replace the old generation and focus on the economy, putting it in first place.

However, Americans soon noted Bill Clinton's lack of experience in big politics. During the first stage of his presidency, he spent a long and chaotic time forming his team, causing sharp criticism from Republicans. For example, he proposed Zoya Beard, who is under criminal liability for tax evasion, for the position of Prosecutor General. For a long time, Clinton was unable to establish constructive interaction with the Republican Party and Congress.

Bill Clinton's lobbying for openly gay men to serve in the military ended in failure. The President had to accept a compromise proposed by the Department of Defense, which had significant differences from Clinton's version.

The initiative initiated by America also turned out to be a failure. peacekeeping operation in Somalia, conducted under the auspices of the UN.

Among the most unpleasant “mistakes” of Bill Clinton during his first presidency is health care reform. It was this that the presidential candidate called a priority task and appointed his wife Hillary as head of the reform committee.

He wanted to ensure that all American citizens had health insurance. To do this, a significant part of the costs had to fall on the shoulders of employers and medical manufacturers. Clinton did not calculate the opposition that both the first and second had to him.

As a result, the intended large-scale reforms were narrowed down to minor legislative amendments that Congress agreed to.

And after the defeat of the Democratic Party in the next congressional elections in 1994, support for many of Bill Clinton’s initiatives turned out to be even more elusive.

However, the activities of the 42nd President of the United States were crowned with many achievements in domestic politics. The American economy was growing at a remarkable pace. Unemployment was decreasing.

In foreign policy, Clinton managed to reduce the degree of tension with many countries with which the United States had previously been openly at odds. In Moscow American President gave a lecture to MSU students and received the title of honorary professor at the country's main university.

However, we must not forget that Bill Clinton’s successes in foreign policy are more likely due to the president’s luck, because his period of rule fell during the presidency, which, two years before Clinton’s appointment, announced a policy of disarmament of the USSR and a course of friendship with the United States.

Also, as noted by Strobe Talbot, First Deputy Secretary of State of the United States, Boris Yeltsin agreed with all the US demands at the negotiations, which the Secretary of State associated with the Soviet leader’s penchant for alcoholism, which is why Yeltsin paid more attention to the buffet table at the negotiations than to the content of the meetings.

The next ones in 1996 were calm and even routine: Clinton had a dull competitor, Robert Dole. 49% versus 41 is a good result, although not triumphant.

Bill Clinton's second term was more successful due to his increased experience. The US economy continued to grow. America's foreign debt has decreased significantly. The country has become a leader in the field of information technology (previously Japan was the leader). The collapse of the USSR relieved the United States of tension in this political area, allowing it to direct its forces and resources to the economy.

The fourth stage of NATO expansion took place after the war in Yugoslavia.

After completing his double presidential term, Bill Clinton retreated into the background, actively supporting his own wife, who also began to aspire to the presidency. But in 2008, when she was defeated in the primaries, losing, the couple came out in support of this candidate.

During the 2012 presidential election, Bill and Hillary Clinton also adopted Active participation in the presidential election, re-endorsing Barack Obama.

In addition, in January 2012, Bill Clinton, at the request of Secretary General The UN has undertaken to coordinate international assistance to the people of Haiti affected by the devastating earthquake.

In 2016, Bill Clinton, now together with Obama, again actively supported his wife Hillary, who also spoke on behalf of the Democratic Party, for the presidency of the United States. The aggressive campaign, in which Hillary acted as an opponent, united the spouses.

The elections took place on November 8, 2016. Hillary Clinton, losing almost a hundred electoral votes to Donald Trump. But the paradox of this situation is that if the votes were counted directly based on the popular vote, then Hillary Clinton would have left her competitor far behind. The woman received 65.84 million votes, and Trump only 62.98 million. The gap was almost 3 million votes.

American opinion leaders were called one of the most difficult and controversial, since both candidates did not enjoy much public support and more than once found themselves embroiled in economic or political, as well as ethical scandals. Voting in these presidential elections was not for a candidate, but against his opponent.

Personal life

WITH future wife Hillary Rodham met Bill Clinton while studying at Yale University. They married in the fall of 1975. For some time, the young couple taught together at the University of Fayetteville.

In February 1980, Hillary Clinton gave birth to her husband's only daughter. Today, the Clintons are enjoying the two grandchildren Chelsea gave them. Granddaughter Charlotte was born in 2014, and grandson Aidan in the summer of 2016.

Politicians are sometimes accused of being a bit old-fashioned. So in 2004, information appeared that during his presidency, Bill Clinton himself sent only two emails, and one of them was just a test message containing only the word “text”. At the same time, the archive contains 40 million emails, written by members of the presidential staff.

In February of the same year, Bill Clinton's illness became known. He was urgently hospitalized in a New York clinic after complaining of heart pain. Clinton, 63, had stent surgery.

After the operation, Bill Clinton began to adhere to a vegan diet, as well as to promote veganism at all political levels available. Subsequently, Clinton told the press that he believed that it was veganism that saved his life.

Scandals

Bill Clinton's life is filled with numerous scandals, both real and imagined. political opponents for the sake of cherished votes. During Bill Clinton's first election race, as usual, a lot of dirty laundry from the past of the Clintons was brought to light. For example, the Democratic candidate was accused of strange behavior that saved him from being drafted during the Vietnam War.

The press discovered that Bill student years smoked marijuana, to which Clinton joked that he “didn’t inhale.” The candidate's extramarital sex life also raised many questions: the press brought to light an accusation of sexual harassment that was brought to court. There were accusations of real estate fraud in which Hilary Clinton's wife was allegedly involved. And although almost all of the accusations were not convincingly confirmed, they “bite off” several percent of the Democrat’s victory.

But the scandal that broke out in 1998 almost cost Bill Clinton his presidency. Information about the president's intimate relationship with a White House intern was leaked to the press. The young woman shared revelations about an intimate relationship with the head of state, revealing piquant details of what happened in the famous Oval Office.

This scandalous relationship has become a top topic not only in America, but throughout the world. Bill Clinton's already unenviable position was made worse by perjury under oath. Miraculously, the president managed to avoid impeachment, largely thanks to his wife Hillary, who managed to gather her will into a fist and curb her feelings. She demonstrated an iron character and enviable self-control by forgiving her husband. The Clinton-Lewinsky scandal has finally died down. But the reputation of the Democratic Party was greatly tarnished.

In addition to the sensational story with Monica Lewinsky, Clinton is credited with a long-standing relationship with a black girl from Arkansas who was involved in prostitution. This story surfaced in 2016, right in the midst of the Clinton-Trump election race. A certain black youth named Danny Lee Williams called himself the son of Bill Clinton.

Possibly similar in appearance young man With former president- just an accident, and his “kinship” with a famous politician is a dirty election trick.

Bill Clinton now

In recent years, the ex-president of the United States continues to be active in public work. Bill Clinton is a member of many not only political but also charitable organizations.

In the press, Bill Clinton's name increasingly appears in connection with old scandals or sudden revelations, rather than with his charitable activities.

In 2017, Bill Clinton was accused of rape and even murder, and his wife was accused of covering up these crimes. But this scandal did not develop: neither a criminal case against the Clintons nor a libel case was opened against the accusing party.

In 2018, the ex-president himself admitted that he helped Shimon Peres in the fight against Netanyahu, thereby interfering in the Israeli elections in 1996.

Awards

• 1998 - Order of Good Hope, 1st class (South Africa)
• 1998 - Order of the White Lion, 1st class on a chain (Czech Republic)
• 1999 - Order of the Turkish Republic
• 1999 - Ellis Island Medal of Honor
• 2001 - Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Civilian Service
• 2005 - Grammy Award for Best Spoken Album - “My Life”
• 2006 - Philadelphia Medal of Freedom with George W. Bush
• 2006 - Order of Logohu Grand Companion (Papua New Guinea)
• 2006 - Order of the Cross of the Land of Mary, 1st class (Estonia)
• 2008 - “TED Prize” for creating a network of clinics in Rwanda
• 2010 - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals named Clinton Person of the Year.
• 2011 - National Order of Honor and Merit, Knight Grand Cross in gold (Haiti)
• 2013 - Presidential Medal with Distinction (Israel)
• 2013 - Order of Victory named after St. George (Georgia)
• 2013 - Presidential Medal of Freedom