Bill Clinton

42nd President of the United States

### Siblings

Henry Leon Blythe (half-brother), Sharon Lee Blythe Pettijohn (half-sister), Roger Clinton Jr. (half-brother)

### Education

Georgetown University (BS)University College, Oxford (no degree)Yale University (JD)

### Hair Color

Fair

**Bill Clinton** is an American politician from Arkansas who served as the 42nd President of the United States (1993-2001). He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first baby-boomer generation President.

*The Presidency of Bill Clinton spanned the period in United States history that encompasses the events of the Modern Era and the rise of terrorism. President Bill Clinton represented the Democratic political party which influenced the domestic and foreign policies of his presidency.*

## Biography

During the administration of William Jefferson Clinton, the U.S. enjoyed more peace and economic well being than at any time in its history. He was the first Democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win a second term. He could point to the lowest unemployment rate in modern times, the lowest inflation in 30 years, the highest home ownership in the country’s history, dropping crime rates in many places, and reduced welfare rolls. He proposed the first balanced budget in decades and achieved a budget surplus. As part of a plan to celebrate the millennium in 2000, Clinton called for a great national initiative to end racial discrimination.

After the failure in his second year of a huge program of health care reform, Clinton shifted emphasis, declaring “the era of big government is over.” He sought legislation to upgrade education, to protect jobs of parents who must care for sick children, to restrict handgun sales, and to strengthen environmental rules.

President Clinton was born William Jefferson Blythe III on August 19, 1946, in Hope, Arkansas, three months after his father died in a traffic accident. When he was four years old, his mother wed Roger Clinton, of Hot Springs, Arkansas. In high school, he took the family name.

He excelled as a student and as a saxophone player and once considered becoming a professional musician. As a delegate to Boys Nation while in high school, he met President John Kennedy in the White House Rose Garden. The encounter led him to enter a life of public service.

Clinton graduated from Georgetown University and in 1968 won a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford University. He received a law degree from Yale University in 1973, and entered politics in Arkansas.

He was defeated in his campaign for Congress in Arkansas’s Third District in 1974. The next year he married Hillary Rodham, a graduate of Wellesley College and Yale Law School. In 1980, Chelsea, their only child, was born.

Clinton was elected Arkansas Attorney General in 1976, and won the governorship in 1978. After losing a bid for a second term, he regained the office four years later, and served until he defeated incumbent George Bush and third party candidate Ross Perot in the 1992 presidential race.

Clinton and his running mate, Tennessee’s Senator Albert Gore Jr., then 44, represented a new generation in American political leadership. For the first time in 12 years both the White House and Congress were held by the same party. But that political edge was brief; the Republicans won both houses of Congress in 1994.

In 1998, as a result of issues surrounding personal indiscretions with a young woman White House intern, Clinton was the second U.S. president to be impeached by the House of Representatives. He was tried in the Senate and found not guilty of the charges brought against him. He apologized to the nation for his actions and continued to have unprecedented popular approval ratings for his job as president.

In the world, he successfully dispatched peace keeping forces to war-torn Bosnia and bombed Iraq when Saddam Hussein stopped United Nations inspections for evidence of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons. He became a global proponent for an expanded NATO, more open international trade, and a worldwide campaign against drug trafficking. He drew huge crowds when he traveled through South America, Europe, Russia, Africa, and China, advocating U.S. style freedom.

## Personality

The character traits of President Bill Clinton can be described as Outgoing, Charming, Ambitious, Friendly, Fun, Witty, Charismatic, Easily bored, Spontaneous and Passionate. It has been speculated that the Myers-Briggs personality type for Bill Clinton is an ESFP (Extraversion, Sensing, Thinking, Judgment) with the temperament of an idealist. An outgoing, fun, unconventional and attentive character who excels in interpersonal interactions. Bill Clinton Personality type: Resourceful, enthusiastic, optimistic, gregarious and persuasive.

## Nicknames

* "Bill"
* "Slick-Willie"
* "Bubba"
* "The First Black President"
* "The Comeback Kid"
* "The Big Dog"

*Meaning: The nickname of President Bill Clinton provides an insight into how the man was viewed by the American public during his presidency. The meaning of the nickname "Big Dog" refers to his commanding stature and the power, authority and influence he welded in his role of President of the United States of America.*

## Inaugurations

### First Inauguration

The first inauguration of Bill Clinton as the 42nd president of the United States was held on Wednesday, January 20, 1993, at the West Front of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. This was the 52nd inauguration and marked the commencement of the first term of Bill Clinton as president and Al Gore as vice president. At 46 years, 154 days of age at the time of his first inauguration, Clinton was the third-youngest person to become president, and the first from the Baby Boomer generation.

### Second Inauguration

The second inauguration of Bill Clinton as president of the United States was held on Monday, January 20, 1997, at the West Front of the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. This was the 53rd inauguration and marked the commencement of the second and final term of Bill Clinton as president and Al Gore as vice president. This was the last presidential inauguration to take place in the 20th century, the last in the 2nd millennium, and the first to be streamed live on the internet.

## Famous Films

* **Jurassic Park**
* **Titanic**
* Pulp Fiction
* Star Wars: The Phantom Menace
* X-Men (2000)
* American Psycho
* Toy Story
* Jurassic Park: The Lost World
* The Matrix
* The Lion King (1994)
* The Shawshank Redemption
* The Green Mile
* Toy Story 2
* The Silence of the Lamb
* Blade (1998)
* Rush Hour
* Independence Day (1996)
* Men in Black
* A Nightmare before Christmas
* The Mask of Zorro
* The Prince of Egypt
* Forrest Gump
* Mission Impossible
* Friday
* The Mummy
* Batman Forever
* GoldenEye
* Pocahontas
* Hunchback of Notre Dame
* Hercules
* Mulan (1998)
* Tarzan
* Fantasia 2000
* The Emperor's New Groove
* A Bug's Life
* Casper
* Bad Boys
* The Mask
* Mars Attacks
* Batman & Robin
* G.I. Jane
* Spawn
* Armageddon
* Godzilla (1998)
* The Patriot

## Accomplishments and major events

*The major accomplishments and the famous, main events that occurred during the time that Bill Clinton was president included acts of terrorism at home with the 1993 World Trade Center Bombing, the 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing and the arrest of the Unabomber, American anarchist Ted Kaczynsk. The 1993 Battle of Mogadishu (Black Hawk Down) occurred in Somalia and the events of the Waco Siege shocked America. The Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was passed and NAFTA was signed. His presidency was marred by the Monica Lewinsky scandal, the subsequent Impeachment of Bill Clinton and the Senate trial that led to his acquittal.*

**The FMLA (1993)**

Summary: The Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was passed on February 05, 1993 requiring companies to provide employees with up to 12 weeks per year of unpaid leave for family and medical emergencies.

**The 1993 World Trade Center Bombing**

Summary: The 1993 World Trade Center Bombing happened on February 26, 1993 when people were killed and more than 1000 were injured after a bomb, planted under the 2 World Trade Center in New York City, exploded Ramzi Yousef led the bombers and organized the 1993 World Trade Center Bombing and had links to the terrorist organization Al-Qaeda. The Twin Towers survived the 1993 bombing but they were destroyed eight years later in the infamous 9/11 terrorist attacks.

**The Waco Siege (1993)**

Summary: The Waco Siege (February 28, 1993 to April 19,1993) involved a Texas religious cult of Branch Davidians led by David Koresh. The FBI launched an assault on the Mount Carmel Center ranch  on April 19, 1993 and 76 men, women and children inside the compound, including David Koresh, were killed  when the compound became engulfed in fire.

**Jurassic Park (1993)**

Summary: *Jurassic Park* is a 1993 American science fiction action film directed by Steven Spielberg, produced by Kathleen Kennedy and Gerald R. Molen, and starring Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, and Richard Attenborough. It is the first installment in the *Jurassic Park* franchise, and the first film in the original *Jurassic Park* trilogy, and is based on Michael Crichton's 1990 novel of the same name, with a screenplay by Crichton and David Koepp. The film is set on the fictional island of Isla Nublar, off Central America's Pacific Coast near Costa Rica, where a wealthy businessman, John Hammond (Attenborough), and a team of genetic scientists have created a wildlife park of de-extinct dinosaurs. When industrial sabotage leads to a catastrophic shutdown of the park's power facilities and security precautions, a small group of visitors, including Hammond's grandchildren, struggle to survive and escape the now perilous island.

*Jurassic Park* premiered on June 9, 1993, at the Uptown Theater in Washington, D.C., and was released on June 11 in the United States. It was a blockbuster hit and went on to gross over $914 million worldwide in its original theatrical run, surpassing Spielberg's own *E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial* to become the highest-grossing film of all time until the release of *Titanic* in 1997. The film was also a critical success, with praise directed at its special effects, sound design, action sequences, John Williams's score, and Spielberg's direction. The film won over 20 awards, including three Academy Awards for technical achievements in visual effects and sound design. Following its 20th anniversary re-release in 2013, *Jurassic Park* became the oldest film in history to surpass $1 billion in ticket sales and the 17th overall.

*Jurassic Park'*s pioneering use of computer-generated imagery is considered to have paved the way for the special effects practices of modern cinema. In 2018, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". The film spawned a multimedia franchise that includes five sequels – *The Lost World: Jurassic Park* (1997), *Jurassic Park III* (2001), *Jurassic World* (2015), *Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom* (2018), and *Jurassic World Dominion* (2022) — a television series, video games, theme park attractions, comic books, and various merchandise.

**The Battle of Mogadishu (Black Hawk Down)**

Summary: The Battle of Mogadishu was fought on 3 - 4 October, 1993 between forces of Somali warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid and US troops in Mogadishu, the capital city of Somalia. The Battle of Mogadishu resulted in two Black Hawk helicopters being taken down and the deaths of 18 US soldiers.

**NAFTA (1993)**

Summary: North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was signed on December 8, 1993  eliminating nearly every barrier to trade and investment on products and services passing between the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

**The Oklahoma City Bombing (1995)**

Summary: The Oklahoma City Bombing was perpetrated on April 19, 1995 at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. Two Americans, Timothy McVeigh and his co-conspirator Terry Nichols were responsible for the bombing which resulted in the deaths of 168 innocent people and injuries to nearly 700 together with widespread destruction in Oklahoma City.

**The Unabomber, Ted Kaczynsk (1996)**

Summary: The American Unabomber, Ted Kaczynsk was identified as the perpetrator of a reign of terror involving lethal mail bombs on universities and airlines, that lasted for nearly 18 years, between 1978 to 1995.

**The Emergence of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda (1996)**

Summary:  In September 1996 a radical fundamentalist movement in Afghanistan called the Taliban took control large parts of Afghanistan  with Kandahar as the capital. In 1996 the Taliban became closely allied to another terrorist group called Al Qaeda who they established training camps in Afghanistan in preparation for future bombing campaigns against the United States and the west.

**Titanic (1997)**

Summary: Titanic is a 1997 American romantic disaster film directed, written, produced, and co-edited by James Cameron. Incorporating both historical and fictionalized aspects, it is based on accounts of the sinking of RMS *Titanic* in 1912. Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio star as members of different social classes who fall in love during the ship's maiden voyage.

*Titanic* was released on December 19, 1997. It was praised for its visual effects, performances (particularly those of DiCaprio, Winslet, and Stuart), production values, direction, score, cinematography, story and emotional depth. Among other awards, it was nominated for 14 Academy Awards and won 11, including Best Picture and Best Director, tying *Ben-Hur* (1959) for the most Academy Awards won by a film. With an initial worldwide gross of over $1.84 billion, *Titanic* was the first film to reach the billion-dollar mark. It was the highest-grossing film of all time until Cameron's next film, *Avatar* (2009), surpassed it in 2010. A number of re-releases have pushed the film's worldwide total to $2.257 billion, making it the second film to gross more than $2 billion worldwide after *Avatar*. In 2017, the Library of Congress selected it for preservation in the United States National Film Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

**The Impeachment of Bill Clinton (1998)**

Summary: The Impeachment of Bill Clinton followed the events surrounding the Monica Lewinsky scandal, commenced on December 19, 1998. Bill Clinton was impeached on two charges: perjury and obstruction of justice. The Senate trial resulted in the acquitted of President Bill Clinton who, despite the scandal, retained his popularity as he completed the remainder of his term in office.

## Post Presidency

Bill Clinton has continued to be active in public life since leaving office in 2001, giving speeches, fundraising, and founding charitable organizations, and has spoken in prime time at every Democratic National Convention.

### Activities until 2008 campaign

In 2002, Clinton warned that pre-emptive military action against Iraq would have unwelcome consequences, and later claimed to have opposed the Iraq War from the start (though some dispute this). In 2005, Clinton criticized the Bush administration for its handling of emissions control, while speaking at the United Nations Climate Change conference in Montreal.

The William J. Clinton Presidential Center and Park in Little Rock, Arkansas, was dedicated in 2004. Clinton released a best-selling autobiography, *My Life*, in 2004. In 2007, he released *Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World*, which also became a *New York Times* Best Seller and garnered positive reviews.

In the aftermath of the 2004 Asian tsunami, U.N. secretary-general Kofi Annan appointed Clinton to head a relief effort. After Hurricane Katrina, Clinton joined with fellow former president George H. W. Bush to establish the Bush-Clinton Tsunami Fund in January 2005, and the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund in October of that year. As part of the tsunami effort, these two ex-presidents appeared in a Super Bowl XXXIX pre-game show, and traveled to the affected areas. They also spoke together at the funeral of Boris Yeltsin in April 2007.

Based on his philanthropic worldview, Clinton created the William J. Clinton Foundation to address issues of global importance. This foundation includes the Clinton Foundation HIV and AIDS Initiative (CHAI), which strives to combat that disease, and has worked with the Australian government toward that end. The Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), begun by the Clinton Foundation in 2005, attempts to address world problems such as global public health, poverty alleviation and religious and ethnic conflict. In 2005, Clinton announced through his foundation an agreement with manufacturers to stop selling sugary drinks in schools. Clinton's foundation joined with the Large Cities Climate Leadership Group in 2006 to improve cooperation among those cities, and he met with foreign leaders to promote this initiative. The foundation has received donations from many governments all over the world, including Asia and the Middle East. In 2008, Foundation director Inder Singh announced deals to reduce the price of anti-malaria drugs by 30 percent in developing nations. Clinton also spoke in favor of California Proposition 87 on alternative energy, which was voted down.

### 2008 presidential election

During the 2008 Democratic presidential primary campaign, Clinton vigorously advocated on behalf of his wife, Hillary. Through speaking engagements and fundraisers, he was able to raise $10 million toward her campaign. Some worried that as an ex-president, he was too active on the trail, too negative to Clinton rival Barack Obama, and alienating his supporters at home and abroad. Many were especially critical of him following his remarks in the South Carolina primary, which Obama won. Later in the 2008 primaries, there was some infighting between Bill and Hillary's staffs, especially in Pennsylvania. Considering Bill's remarks, many thought he could not rally Hillary supporters behind Obama after Obama won the primary. Such remarks led to apprehension that the party would be split to the detriment of Obama's election. Fears were allayed August 27, 2008, when Clinton enthusiastically endorsed Obama at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, saying all his experience as president assures him that Obama is "ready to lead". After Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign was over, Bill Clinton continued to raise funds to help pay off her campaign debt.

### After the 2008 election

In 2009, Clinton travelled to North Korea on behalf of two American journalists imprisoned there. Euna Lee and Laura Ling had been imprisoned for illegally entering the country from China. Jimmy Carter had made a similar visit in 1994. After Clinton met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, Kim issued a pardon.

Since then, Clinton has been assigned many other diplomatic missions. He was named United Nations Special Envoy to Haiti in 2009 following a series of hurricanes which caused $1 billion in damages. Clinton organized a conference with the Inter-American Development Bank, where a new industrial park was discussed in an effort to "build back better". In response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake, U.S. president Barack Obama announced that Clinton and George W. Bush would coordinate efforts to raise funds for Haiti's recovery. Funds began pouring into Haiti, which led to funding becoming available for Caracol Industrial Park in a part of the country unaffected by the earthquake. While Hillary Clinton was in South Korea, she and Cheryl Mills worked to convince SAE-A, a large apparel subcontractor, to invest in Haiti despite the company's deep concerns about plans to raise the minimum wage. In the summer of 2010, the South Korean company signed a contract at the U.S. State Department, ensuring that the new industrial park would have a key tenant. In 2010, Clinton announced support of, and delivered the keynote address for, the inauguration of NTR, Ireland's first environmental foundation. At the 2012 Democratic National Convention, Clinton gave a widely praised speech nominating Barack Obama.

### 2016 presidential election and after

During the 2016 presidential election, Clinton again encouraged voters to support Hillary, and made appearances speaking on the campaign trail. In a series of tweets, then-President-elect Donald Trump criticized his ability to get people out to vote. Clinton served as a member of the electoral college for the state of New York. He voted for the Democratic ticket consisting of his wife Hillary and her running-mate Tim Kaine.

On September 7, 2017, Clinton partnered with former presidents Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama to work with One America Appeal to help the victims of Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma in the Gulf Coast and Texas communities.

In 2020, Clinton again served as a member of the United States Electoral College from New York, casting his vote for the successful Democratic ticket of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

### Post-presidential health concerns

In September 2004, Clinton underwent quadruple bypass surgery. In March 2005, he again underwent surgery, this time for a partially collapsed lung. On February 11, 2010, he was rushed to New York-Presbyterian/Columbia Hospital in Manhattan after complaining of chest pains, and he had two coronary stents implanted in his heart. After this procedure, Clinton adopted a plant-based whole foods (vegan) diet, which had been recommended by doctors Dean Ornish and Caldwell Esselstyn. However, he has since incorporated fish and lean proteins at the suggestion of Mark Hyman, a proponent of the pseudoscientific ethos of functional medicine. As a result, he is no longer a strict vegan. In October 2021, Clinton was treated for sepsis at the University of California, Irvine Medical Center. In December 2022, Clinton tested positive for COVID-19.

## Facts and trivia

* Bill Clinton is the first baby boomer U.S. President.
* While he was born William Jefferson Blythe III, his father died three months before his birth, and his mother, Virginia, remarried four years later to Roger Clinton, a name he kept. Although he immediately assumed use of his stepfather's surname, it was not until Clinton turned 15 that he formally adopted the surname Clinton as a gesture toward him.
* His parents had married on September 4, 1943, but this union later proved to be bigamous, as Blythe was still married to his third wife.
* Virginia Clinton traveled to New Orleans to study nursing soon after Bill was born, leaving him in Hope with her parents Eldridge and Edith Cassidy, who owned and ran a small grocery store. At a time when the southern United States was racially segregated, Clinton's grandparents sold goods on credit to people of all races.
* Clinton grew up in Hot Springs, Arkansas, where his stepfather co-owned an automobile dealership with his brother and Earl T. Ricks.
* Clinton has described his stepfather as a gambler and an alcoholic who regularly abused his mother and half-brother, Roger Clinton Jr. He threatened his stepfather with violence multiple times to protect them.
* In Hot Springs, Clinton attended St. John's Catholic Elementary School, Ramble Elementary School, and Hot Springs High School, where he was an active student leader, avid reader, and musician. Clinton was in the chorus and played the tenor saxophone, winning first chair in the state band's saxophone section. He briefly considered dedicating his lift to music, but settled on a life in public service instead.
* Clinton began an interest in law at Hot Springs High, when he took up the challenge to argue the defense of the ancient Roman senator Catiline in a mock trial in his Latin class. After a vigorous defense that made use of his "budding rhetorical and political skills", he told the Latin teacher Elizabeth Buck it "made him realize that someday he would study law".
* Clinton has identified two influential moments in his life, both occurring in 1963, that contributed to his decision to become a public figure. One was his visit as a Boys Nation senator to the White House to meet President John F. Kennedy. The other was watching Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech on TV, which impressed him so much that he later memorized it.
* Clinton attended Georgetown University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree. He received a Rhodes Scholarship to study at University College, Oxford, and he later graduated from Yale Law School.
* On October 11, 1975, in Fayetteville, Arkansas, he married Hillary Rodham, whom he met while studying at Yale University. They had Chelsea Clinton, their only child, on February 27, 1980. He is the maternal grandfather to Chelsea's three children.
* After graduating from law school, Clinton returned to Arkansas where he became a law professor at the University of Arkansas. He later won an election as state attorney general (1977-79), followed by two non-consecutive terms as Arkansas governor (1979-1981) and (1983-1992). As governor, Clinton overhauled the state's education system and served as chairman of the National Governors Association.
* A member of the Democratic Party, Clinton became known as a New Democrat, as many of his policies reflected a centrist "Third Way" political philosophy.
* Clinton was elected president in the 1992 presidential election, defeating incumbent Republican president George H. W. Bush and independent businessman Ross Perot. At 46 years old, he became the third-youngest president of the United States.
* As president, Clinton was a beneficiary of the longest period of peace in American history.
* The Republican Party won unified control of Congress for the first time in 40 years in the 1994 elections, but Clinton was still comfortably re-elected in 1996, becoming the first Democrat since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win a second full term.
* Starting in the mid-1990s, Clinton began an ideological evolution as he became much more conservative in his domestic policy, advocating for and signing the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act, the State Children's Health Insurance Program and financial deregulation measures.
* Clinton's second term would be dominated by the Monica Lewinsky scandal which began in 1996, when he began a sexual relationship with 22-year-old White House intern Monica Lewinsky. In January 1998, news of the affair made tabloid headlines. The scandal escalated throughout the year, culminating on December 19 when Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives, becoming the second U.S. president to be impeached after Andrew Johnson.
* The two impeachment articles that the House passed were centered around Clinton using the powers of the presidency to obstruct the investigation and that he lied under oath. In 1999 Clinton's impeachment trial begin in the Senate. Clinton was acquitted on both charges as the Senate failed to cast 67 votes against him, the conviction threshold.
* Clinton left office in 2001 with the joint-highest approval rating of any U.S. president in the modern era, alongside Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan. His presidency has been ranked among the upper tier in historical rankings of U.S. presidents. However, his personal conduct and allegations of sexual assault against him have made him the subject of substantial scrutiny.
* Since leaving office, he has been involved in public speaking and humanitarian work. He created the Clinton Foundation to address international causes such as the prevention of HIV/AIDS and global warming.
* In 2009, he was named the United Nations Special Envoy to Haiti. After the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Clinton and George W. Bush formed the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund.
* Clinton's wife, Hilary, served as the 67th United States secretary of state from 2009 to 2013 under President Barack Obama. She previously served as a United States senator representing New York from 2001 to 2009. She was the Democratic party's nominee for president in the 2016 presidential election, becoming the first woman to win a presidential nomination by a major U.S. political party; Clinton won the popular vote, but lost the Electoral College vote, thereby losing the election to Donald Trump.
* Clinton has remained active in Democratic Party politics, campaigning for his wife's 2008 and 2016 presidential campaigns.