Clinton Administration

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Headed by President of the United States Bill Clinton, the Clinton Administation was the executive branch of the federal government of the United States from 1993 to 2001.

Contents 1 First Term (1993-1997) 2 Second Term (1997-2001) 3 Legislation and Programs 3.1 Major legislation signed 3.2 Major legislation vetoed 3.3 Proposals not passed by Congress 3.4 Initiatives 4 Cabinet 5 Supreme Court appointments 6 Circuit appointments 7 District appointments 8 The Economy 8.1 Trade 9 Foreign policy 10 References

[edit] First Term (1993-1997)

Shortly after taking office, Clinton signed the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, which required large employers to allow their employees to take unpaid leave because of pregnancy or serious medical condition. While this action was popular, Clinton's attempt to fulfill another campaign promise of allowing openly gay men and lesbians serving in the armed forces was the subject of criticism. His handling of the issue garnered criticism from both the left (for being too tentative in promoting gay rights) and the right (for being too insensitive to military life). After much debate, the Congress - which has sole power under the U.S. Constitution to regulate the armed forces - implemented the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, stating that homosexual men and women may serve in the military as long as their sexuality is kept secret. By 1999, Clinton said what he would "like to do is focus on making the policy we announced back in 1993 work the way it's intended to, because it's out of whack now, and I don't think any serious person could say it's not."^[1] Some gay rights advocates criticized Clinton for not going far enough and accused him of making his campaign promise simply to get votes and contributions.^[2][3] These advocates felt Clinton should have integrated the military by executive order, noting that President Harry Truman ended segregation of the armed forces in that manner. Clinton's defenders argued that an executive order might have prompted the then-Democrat-controlled Senate to write the exclusion of gays into law, potentially making it even harder to integrate the military in the future.

Critics, however, said that the issue was one that should be experimented on in society as a whole, not in the military. The military's goal was not to be a "social Petri dish," but to defend the nation.^[4]

Clinton promoted another controversial issue during this period: one regarding free trade. In 1993, Clinton supported the North American Free Trade Agreement for ratification by the U.S. Senate. Despite being negotiated by his Republican predecessor, Clinton (along with most of his Democratic Leadership Committee allies) strongly supported free trade measures. Opposition came from both anti-trade Republicans, protectionist Democrats and supporters of Ross Perot. Ultimately, the treaty was ratified.

Clinton signed the Brady Bill, which imposed a five-day waiting period on handgun purchases. He also expanded the Earned Income Tax Credit, which benefits working class families with dependent children.

One of the most prominent items on Clinton's legislative agenda, however, was a health care reform plan, the result of a taskforce headed by Hillary Clinton, aimed at achieving universal coverage via a national healthcare plan. Though initially well-received in political circles, it was ultimately doomed by well-organized opposition from conservatives, the American Medical Association, and the health insurance industry. Despite his party holding a majority in the House and Senate, the effort to create a national healthcare system ultimately died under heavy public pressure. It was the first major legislative defeat of Clinton's administration.

Two months later, after two years of Democratic party control under Clinton's leadership, the mid-term elections in 1994 proved disastrous for the Democrats. This was the first time the democratic party had lost control of both houses of Congress in 40 years

In August of 1993, Clinton signed the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 which passed Congress without a single Republican vote. It raised taxes on the wealthiest 1.2% of taxpayers, while cutting taxes on 15 million low-income families and making tax cuts available to 90 percent of small businesses.^[5] Additionally, it mandated that the budget be balanced over a number of years, and the implementation of spending restraints.

[edit] Second Term (1997-2001)

In the 1996 presidential election a few months later, Clinton was re-elected, receiving 49.2% of the popular vote over Republican Bob Dole (40.7% of the popular vote) and Reform candidate Ross Perot (8.4% of the popular vote), becoming the first Democrat to win reelection to the presidency since Franklin Roosevelt. The Republicans lost a few seats in the House and gained a few in the Senate, but overall retained control of the Congress. Although he did not win a clear majority of the popular vote, Clinton received over 70% of the electoral college vote.

Throughout 1998, there was a controversy over Clinton's relationship with a young White House intern, Monica Lewinsky. Clinton initially denied the affair while testifying in the Paula Jones sexual harassment lawsuit. The opposing lawyers asked the president about it during his deposition. He stated "I have never had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky. I've never had an affair with her." Four days later he also said, "There is not a sexual relationship, an improper sexual relationship, or any other kind of improper relationship."[2]

Clinton then appeared on national television on January 26 and stated: "Listen to me, I'm going to say this again. I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky." However, after it was revealed that investigators had obtained a semen-stained dress as well as testimony from Lewinsky, Clinton changed tactics and admitted that an improper relationship with Lewinsky had taken place: "Indeed I did have a relationship with Miss Lewinsky that was not appropriate. In fact, it was wrong. It constituted a critical lapse in judgment and a personal failure on my part for which I am solely and completely responsible."

Faced with overwhelming evidence, he apologized to the nation, agreed to pay a $25,000 court fine, settled his sexual harassment lawsuit with Paula Jones for $850,000 and was temporarily disbarred, for a period of five years, from practicing law in Arkansas and before the U.S. Supreme Court. He was not tried for perjury in a court. However, he did admit to "testifying falsely" in a carefully worded statement as part of a deal to avoid indictment for perjury.

In a lame duck session after the 1998 elections, the Republican-controlled House voted to impeach Clinton. The next year, the Senate voted to acquit Clinton, and he remained in office.

In the closing year of his Administration, Clinton attempted to address the Arab-Israeli conflict. After initial successes such as the Oslo accords of the early 90's, the situation had quietly deteriorated, breaking down completely with the start of the Second Intifada. Clinton brought Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat together at Camp David. However, these negotiations proved unsuccessful.

Clinton remained popular with the public throughout his two terms as President, ending his presidential career with a 65% approval rating, the highest end-of-term approval rating of any President since Eisenhower.^[6] In addition to his political skills, Clinton also benefited from a boom of the US economy. Under Clinton, the United States had a projected federal budget surplus for the first time since 1969.^[7]

[edit] Legislation and Programs

[edit] Major legislation signed 1993-02-05 - The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 1993-08-10 - Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 - Raised income tax rates; income tax, top rate: 39.6%; corporate tax: 35% 1993-09-21 - creation of the AmeriCorps volunteer program 1993-11-30 - Brady Bill 1994-09-13 - Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, part of an omnibus crime bill, the federal death penalty was expanded to some 60 different offenses (see Federal assault weapons ban) 1996-02-01 - Communications Decency Act 1996-02-08 - Telecom Reform Act: eliminated major ownership restrictions for radio and television groups. 1996-02-26 - Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, a welfare reform bill 1996-03-14 - authorized $100 million counter-terrorism agreement with Israel to track down and root out terrorists. 1996-04-09 - Line Item Veto Act 1996-04-24 - Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act 1996-08-20 - Minimum wage Increase Act 1996-09-21 - Defense of Marriage Act, allowed states to refuse recognition of certain same-sex marriages, and defined marriage as between a male and female for purposes of federal law 1997-08-05 - Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 1998-10-28 - Digital Millennium Copyright Act 1998-10-31 - Iraq Liberation Act

[edit] Major legislation vetoed national budget H.R. 1833, partial birth abortion ban Twice vetoed welfare reform before signing the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. Congress overrode the veto, however, to enact the bill into law. [edit] Proposals not passed by Congress Health care reform Campaign finance reform (1993) [edit] Initiatives Tried to get Ehud Barak of Israel and Yasser Arafat of the Palestinian National Authority, to agree to a final settlement agreement. Initiated the Don't ask, don't tell policy toward gays in the military, 1993. Reversed a ban on senior Sinn Féin politicians entering the U.S. Proposed a national challenge to end the racial divide in America, the One America Initiative. Extraordinary rendition got approval for the first time in the USA from the Clinton administration.

[edit] Cabinet

[edit] Supreme Court appointments

Clinton appointed the following justices to the Supreme Court:

• Ruth Bader Ginsburg - 1993, making Clinton the first Democratic president to appoint a female Supreme Court justice.
• Stephen Breyer - 1994

[edit] Circuit appointments

• Kermit Lipez - 1997, 1st Circuit
• Sandra Lea Lynch - 1995, 1st Circuit
• Chester J. Straub - 1998, 2nd Circuit
• Fred I. Parker - 1994, 2nd Circuit
• Thomas L. Ambro - 1999, 3rd Circuit
• Maryanne Trump Barry - 1999, 3rd Circuit
• James A. Beaty, Jr. - 1995, 4th Circuit
• J. Richard Leonard - 1995, 4th Circuit
• Roger L. Gregory - Recess appointment, 4th Circuit
• M. Blane Michael - 1993, 4th Circuit
• Fortunato Benavides - 1994, 5th Circuit
• Karen Nelson Moore - 1995, 6th Circuit
• Ronald Lee Gilman - 1997, 6th Circuit
• Diane Pamela Wood - 1995, 7th Circuit
• Michael Daly Hawkins - 1994, 9th Circuit
• Sidney Runyan Thomas - 1996, 9th Circuit
• M. Margaret McKeown - 1998, 9th Circuit
• William A. Fletcher - 1998, 9th Circuit
• Richard Paez - 2000, 9th Circuit
• Raymond C. Fisher - 1999, 9th Circuit
• Ronald M. Gould - 1999, 9th Circuit
• Marsha L. Berzon - 2000, 9th Circuit
• Richard Tallman - 2000, 9th Circuit
• Robert Harlan Henry - 1994, 10th Circuit

[edit] District appointments

• Barrington Daniels Parker, Jr. - 1994, Southern District of New York, 2nd Circuit
• Tucker L. Melancon - 1993, Western District of Louisiana, 5th Circuit
• Mary Ann Vial Lemmon - 1995, Eastern District of Louisiana, 5th Circuit
• Michael D. Schattman - 1995, Northern District of Texas, 5th Circuit
• Edmund A. Sargus, Jr. - 1995, Southern District of Ohio, 6th Circuit
• W. Craig Broadwater - 1995, Northern District of West Virginia
• Dean D. Pregerson - 1995, Central District of California, 9th Circuit
• Annabelle Rodriguez - 1995, District of Puerto Rico

[edit] The Economy

Clinton's presidency included the longest period of economic growth in America's history, credited in large part to budget reforms as well as the peace dividend following the demise of the Soviet Union. After numerous reports revealed that the federal budget deficit would be far greater than expected, Clinton quickly made cutting the deficit a high priority. Clinton submitted a budget that would cut the deficit by $500 billion over five years by reducing $255 billion of spending and raising taxes on the wealthiest 1.2% of Americans.^[8] It also imposed a new energy tax on all Americans and subjected about a quarter of those receiving Social Security payments to higher taxes on their benefits.^[9]

Republican Congressional leaders launched an aggressive opposition against the bill, claiming that the tax increase would only make matters worse. Republicans were united in this opposition, as it were, and every Republican in both houses of Congress voted against the proposal. In fact, it took Vice President Gore's tie-breaking vote in the Senate to pass the bill.^[10] After extensive lobbying by the Clinton Administration, the House narrowly voted in favor of the bill by a vote of 218 to 216.^[11] The budget package expanded the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) as relief to low-income families. It reduced the amount they paid in federal income and FICA taxes, providing $21 billion in relief for 15 million low-income families. Improved economic conditions and policies served to encourage investors in the bond market, leading to a decline in long-term interest rates. The bill contributed to dramatic decline of the budget deficit in the years following its enactment–in 1998, for the first time since 1969, the nation achieved a budget surplus.^[12] The surplus money was used to pay down the national debt, which had risen to $5.4 trillion by 1997. The economy continued to grow, and in February 2000 it broke the record for the longest uninterrupted economic expansion in U.S. history—lasting ten years. In the year 2000, the nation was on track to be debt free for the first time in history by 2008.

After Republicans won control of Congress in 1994, Clinton vehemently fought their proposed tax cuts, believing that they favored the wealthy and would weaken economic growth. In August 1997, however, Clinton and Congressional Republicans were finally able to reach a compromise on a bill that reduced capital gain and estate taxes and gave taxpayers a credit of $500 per child and tax credits for college tuition and expenses. The bill also called for a new individual retirement account (IRA) called the Roth IRA to allow people to invest taxed income for retirement without having to pay taxes upon withdrawal. Additionally, the law raised the national minimum for cigarette taxes. The next year, Congress approved Clinton’s proposal to make college more affordable by expanding the financial-aid program known as Pell grants and lowering interest rates on student loans.

Clinton also battled Congress nearly every session on the federal budget, in an attempt to secure spending on education, government entitlements, the environment, and AmeriCorps–the national service program that was passed by the Democratic Congress in the early days of the Clinton administration. The two sides, however, could not find a compromise and the budget battle came to a stalemate in 1995 over proposed cuts in Medicare, Medicaid, education, and the environment. After Clinton vetoed numerous Republican spending bills, Republicans in Congress twice refused to pass temporary spending authorizations, forcing the federal government to partially shut down because agencies had no budget on which to operate.^[13]

In April 1996 Clinton and Congress finally agreed on a budget that provided money for government agencies until the end of the fiscal year in October. The budget included some of the spending cuts that the Republicans supported (decreasing the cost of cultural, labor, and housing programs) but also preserved many programs that Clinton wanted, including educational and environmental ones.

The Clinton presidency left America with record economic growth and prosperity:

• Average economic growth of 4.0 percent per year, compared to average growth of 2.8 percent during the previous years. The economy grew for 116 consecutive months, the most in history.^[14]
• Creation of more than 22.5 million jobs—the most jobs ever created under a single administration, and more than were created in the previous 12 years. Of the total new jobs, 20.7 million, or 92 percent, were in the private sector.^[15]
• Economic gains spurred an increase in family incomes for all Americans. Since 1993, real median family income increased by $6,338, from $42,612 in 1993 to $48,950 in 1999 (in 1999 dollars).^[16]
• Overall unemployment dropped to the lowest level in more than 30 years, down from 6.9 percent in 1993 to just 4.0 percent in January 2001. The unemployment rate was below 5 percent for 40 consecutive months. Unemployment for African Americans fell from 14.2 percent in 1992 to 7.3 percent in 2000, the lowest rate on record. Unemployment for Hispanics fell from 11.8 percent in October 1992 to 5.0 percent in 2000, also the lowest rate on record.^[15]
• Inflation dropped to its lowest rate since the Kennedy Administration, averaging 2.5 percent, and fell from 4.7 percent during the previous administration.^[17]
• The homeownership rate reached 67.7 percent near the end of the Clinton administration, the highest rate on record. In contrast, the homeownership rate fell from 65.6 percent in the first quarter of 1981 to 63.7 percent in the first quarter of 1993.^[18]
• The poverty rate also declined from 15.1 percent in 1993 to 11.8 percent in 1999, the largest six-year drop in poverty in nearly 30 years. This left 7 million fewer people in poverty than there were in 1993.^[19]
• The surplus in fiscal year 2000 was $237 billion—the third consecutive surplus and the largest surplus ever.^[18]
• Clinton worked with the Republican-led Congress to enact welfare reform. As a result, welfare rolls dropped dramatically and were the lowest since 1969. Between January 1993 and September of 1999, the number of welfare recipients dropped by 7.5 million (a 53 percent decline) to 6.6 million. In comparison, between 1981-1992, the number of welfare recipients increased by 2.5 million (a 22 percent increase) to 13.6 million people.^[20]

[edit] Trade

Clinton made it one of his goals as president to pass trade legislation that lowered the barriers to trade with other nations. He broke with many of his supporters, including labor unions, and those in his own party to support free-trade legislation.^[21] Opponents argued that lowering tariffs and relaxing rules on imports would cost American jobs because people would buy cheaper products from other countries. Clinton countered that free trade would help America because it would allow the U.S. to boost its exports and grow the economy. Clinton also believed that free trade could help move foreign nations to economic and political reform.

Clinton’s first trade proposal was the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which would gradually reduce tariffs and create a free-trading bloc of North American countries–the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Opponents of NAFTA, led by Ross Perot, claimed it would force American companies to move their workforces to Mexico, where they could produce goods with cheaper labor and ship them back to the United States at lower prices. Clinton, however, argued that NAFTA would increase U.S. exports and create new jobs. He convinced many Democrats to join most Republicans in supporting trade agreement and in 1993 the Congress passed the treaty.^[22]

Clinton also held meetings with leaders of Pacific Rim nations to discuss lowering trade barriers. In November 1993 he hosted a meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in Seattle, Washington, which was attended by the leaders of 12 Pacific Rim nations. In 1994, Clinton arranged an agreement in Indonesia with Pacific Rim nations to gradually remove trade barriers and open their markets.

Officials in the Clinton administration also participated in the final round of trade negotiations sponsored by the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), an international trade organization. The negotiations had been ongoing since 1986. In a rare move, Clinton convened Congress to ratify the trade agreement in the winter of 1994, during which the treaty was approved. As part of the GATT agreement, a new international trade body, the World Trade Organization (WTO), replaced GATT in 1995. The new WTO had stronger authority to enforce trade agreements and covered a wider range of trade than did GATT.

Clinton faced his first defeat on trade legislation during his second term. In November 1997, the Republican-controlled Congress delayed voting on a bill to restore a presidential trade authority that had expired in 1994. The bill would have given the president the authority to negotiate trade agreements which the Congress was not authorized to modify–known as "fast-track negotiating" because it streamlines the treaty process. Clinton was unable to generate sufficient support for the legislation, even among the Democratic Party.

Clinton faced yet another trade setback in December 1999, when the WTO met in Seattle for a new round of trade negotiations. Clinton hoped that new agreements on issues such as agriculture and intellectual property could be proposed at the meeting, but the talks fell through. Anti-WTO protesters in the streets of Seattle disrupted the meetings^[23] and the international delegates attending the meetings were unable to compromise mainly because delegates from smaller, poorer countries resisted Clinton’s efforts to discuss labor and environmental standards.^[24]

That same year, Clinton signed a landmark trade agreement with the People's Republic of China. The agreement–the result of more than a decade of negotiations–would lower many trade barriers between the two countries, making it easier to export U.S. products such as automobiles, banking services, and motion pictures. However, the agreement could only take effect if China was accepted into the WTO and was granted permanent “normal trade relations” status by the U.S. Congress. Under the pact, the United States would support China’s membership in the WTO. Many Democrats as well as Republicans were reluctant to grant permanent status to China because they were concerned about human rights in the country and the impact of Chinese imports on U.S. industries and jobs. Congress, however, voted in 2000 to grant permanent normal trade relations with China.

The Clinton administration negotiated a total of about 300 trade agreements with other countries.^[25] Clinton’s last treasury secretary, Lawrence Summers, stated that the lowered tariffs that resulted from Clinton's trade policies, which reduced prices to consumers and kept inflation low, were technically “the largest tax cut in the history of the world.”^[26]

[edit] Foreign policy

Main article: Foreign policy of the Clinton Administration

[edit] References