In the mass consciousness, US President Bill Clinton is associated not with the foreign policy pursued by him or the reforms that he initiated, but with the scandal that arose in 1996 on the basis of a very banal adultery. The whole world with a wry smile discussed the features of the physiological structure of the chief state official of the superpower, and the "hero" himself had to respond with a guilty, ironic smile. Now that two decades have passed, it's time to take a closer look at the personality of the "Arkansas saxophonist," as the president was nicknamed for his fondness for playing this wind instrument.
Who is William Jefferson Blythe the Third
If you dig deeper, then 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 such a full name that a baby was born in 1946, on August 19, who became the 42nd President of the United States. And it’s not about some secret business, 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,acting as a sales manager for industrial equipment. So, he married four times, went through the whole war, both Egypt and Italy, and death lay in wait for him in peacetime and on his 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 only bought, ate, drove, and even went to the toilet only where there were “Blacks Only” signs, and Cassidy’s grocery store served everyone who came. Mother, Virginia, meanwhile studied in Shreveport (Louisiana). She remarried in 1950 and soon had a 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 already in the town of Hot Springs (Arkansas).
While studying at the high school, Bill Clinton was fond of jazz, gathered a jazz band, 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 John F. Kennedy, and even shook his hand.
His universities
Further education was somewhat haphazard, although the names of the universities that the young man changed speak of his desire to join the establishment: Oxford, Yale, Georgetown. Lack of money interfered, his stepfather took to drink, family incomes fell, and the young man could only rely on himself. He received an increased scholarship, as an excellent student, and worked simultaneously in three places. But youth is strong, and despiteon a hell of a load, 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 graduation he was offered a teaching position at the University of Fayetteville, but a long-standing meeting with Kennedy set him up for a political career, and the young man could not dream of anything else.
Road 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 a future victory. There were connections and acquaintances, the experience of political struggle, but it always tastes bitter. In 1976, the youngest Attorney General appeared in the state of Arkansas, then the Attorney General, and a little later, in 1978, the youngest governor. It was Bill Clinton, and he was then 32 years old.
Governor Clinton's success
He held this position for 11 years, and the board was generally successful. Revenues to the treasury increased, education became much more accessible. Bill Clinton's wife Hillary assisted her husband by vigorously dealing with family issues and children's rights. Both were important for the "first lady" of the state and for the governor, in 1980 they had a daughter, Chelsea.
Arkansas has taken the lead in per capita spending on education. The importance of quality education for Clinton has always been an axiom, this questionhe was actively involved in the post of governor of the state, and then, having achieved good results and becoming chairman of the Association of Governors (1986), he began to promote his ideas at the federal level.
At the same time, there were also failures, which include the loss of sympathy of a significant part of the voters. The South of America traditionally adheres to the Republican platform, and the position of the Democrats here is peculiar. The lack of support for liberal ideas is compensated by a pragmatic approach to solving many issues that are so characteristic of political opponents. This "hybrid" was called "southern democracy". But the maximum flexibility did not save Clinton from the conservative Arkansas residents, the workers and 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 rate was placed on the deterioration in the economy caused by the rule of the elder George W. Bush. Things were really not going well, unemployment rose, inflation, external debt and budget deficits increased. But the Republicans also had serious assets: a successful military operation in Kuwait, called "Desert Storm", and the ability to justify low macro 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, withwith the caveat that he didn't like the effect and immediately dropped the stupid thing.
In general, the success of the elections was a big question mark.
Help came from independent candidate Ross Perot, Bill Clinton and Al Gore managed to repeat the success of John F. Kennedy, who defeated the Republicans "in their field", in the Southern states.
After the inauguration, Bill Clinton, the President of the United States delivered a speech in which he outlined his position on the coming changes and the responsibility of politicians for their country. Among the priority issues were the fight against unemployment, the reform of the he althcare system and the reduction of the tax burden in relation to the middle class, the basis of society.
Failures
When the team was formed, both the lack of experience and all the personality flaws that Bill Clinton suffered from were manifested. The domestic policy of his administration suffered several serious setbacks, including the collapse of the well-publicized he alth insurance reform. Hillary, the wife of Bill Clinton, who did not have the necessary qualifications in this area, was engaged in it. The attempt to recruit homosexuals who do not hide their non-traditional orientation into military service also ended in failure. Pentagon officials opposed such a liberalization of statutory relations. Zoya Beard, Clinton's protégé as Attorney General, turned out to be a criminal, a hard-core tax evader herself.
Foreign affairs
Bill Clinton's foreign policy was dictated by a heady sense of US dominance over the entire glob althe space that engulfed the leadership of this country after the collapse of the communist system. Despite the almost complete absence of serious opposition from the former "evil empire", the US army, acting under a UN mandate, managed to be defeated during the conflict with the Somali rebels. The Vatican opposed the birth control project advocated by the US.
At the same time, good luck also happened. 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 safely eastward, with or without the lukewarm protests of Yeltsin's Russia. At the same time, the number of military conflicts in which the American army took part has decreased.
The goal is to increase the power of America
Despite the rather 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 a lot, were regularly published by all news channels at that extraordinary time. The power of the United States was strengthened at the lowest cost, in the 90s the military budget was cut, which freed up funds for social programs. Unemployment fell, scientific research was active, Japan was relegated to second place in the field of information technology in the world, and hostilecountries were either defeated or began to adhere to a friendly policy. Old conflicts subsided, new ones were not expected.
To new elections
The policy of Bill Clinton was liked by the Americans and was 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, one could not think about other countries at all.
The 1996 elections from the very beginning did not raise any doubts about who would be the winner. Bill Clinton, whose biography itself embodied the Great American Dream, appealed to voters, as did his general image. However, something happened that shook such a stable and almost ideal situation.
Monica Incident
A young, energetic and not very beautiful intern created problems that the representatives of the Democratic Party and Bill Clinton himself were not ready for. The scandal flared up suddenly, and all the more unexpected was the public reaction to it. 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 the court hearings, denying his unworthy behavior. The story surfaced during the proceedings on the application of a certain Paula Jones, who accused the president of harassing her while still governor (of course, sexually).
Later it turned out that Monica Lewinsky and Bill Clinton had been in an intimate relationship since 1995 for twoof the year. The relationship was subtly erotic in nature. The intern presented personal items as evidence, 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, and the romantic story itself is of some interest even now.
It was also public knowledge that Monica Lewinsky and Bill Clinton gave each other souvenirs from time to time, however, inexpensive ones.
Consequences of the scandal
Clinton denied for a long time, but under the pressure of irrefutable facts, including even DNA examinations, in the end, he “split”. He then publicly apologized to his wife and to the entire American people. He was saved from impeachment by a successful alignment of political forces, there were not enough votes for him.
Lewinsky subsequently overcame the consequences of psychological stress for a long time, and even apologized “for the whole story”, which did not prevent her, along with knitting, from writing and publishing an autobiographical book. Well, this is business and nothing personal.
If Clinton's attempt to remove himself from power ended quite well, except for unpleasant, but tolerable events, the Democrats suffered more tangible losses. The sex scandal had a devastating effect on her reputation, and there was no reason to hope that the next American president would come out of her ranks. And so it happened, Bush Jr., a Republican, won the next election.
Life outside the White House
Hillary Clinton behaved with dignity all the time while the trial was going on, 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 a deceived wife.
Clinton's presidency ended in 2001, but his life goes on, and it is full of events, pleasant and not very. It is not known how much his support influenced Obama's victory, but it was. The ex-president helped Haitians affected by the earthquake.
In 2010, he was operated on with a heart stent. A little later, Bill married Chelsea's daughter.
In Kosovo, a monument was erected to him. The honor is dubious, but still not everyone will experience this in their lifetime…
