Clintons [1 ed.] 9781680770025, 9781624039089

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AMERICA’S GREAT POLITICAL FAMILIES

THE CLINTONS

Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

PERDEW

CLINTONS BY LAURA PERDEW

Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

AMERICA’S GREAT POLITICAL FAMILIES

CLINTONS BY LAURA PERDEW

Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

CONTENT CONSULTANT

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NANCY BECK YOUNG DEPARTMENT CHAIR AND PROFESSOR DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY, UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

Essential Library

An Imprint of Abdo Publishing | abdopublishing.com

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abdopublishing.com Published by Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO, PO Box 398166, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55439. Copyright © 2016 by Abdo Consulting Group, Inc. International copyrights reserved in all countries. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. Essential Library™ is a trademark and logo of Abdo Publishing. Printed in the United States of America, North Mankato, Minnesota 102015 012016

Cover Photo: Charlie Neibergall/AP Images Interior Photos: Cynthia Johnson/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images, 5; Ron Frehm/AP Images, 8; CBS-TV/AP Images, 9; Steve Helber/AP Images, 11; Doug Mills/AP Images, 14, 55; Clinton Family Historical Collection/William J. Clinton Presidential Library, 17, 25; Sygma/Corbis, 20; AP Images, 29, 31, 101; Mike Stewart/Sygma/Corbis, 33; Susan Ragan/AP Images, 35; Joe Marquette/AP Images, 38, 57; Greg Gibson/AP Images, 39; J. Scott Applewhite/AP Images, 45, 77; Wilfredo Lee/AP Images, 49; Frank Wiese/AP Images, 52; APTV/AP Images, 59; Ed Betz/AP Images, 62; Susan Walsh/AP Images, 65; Kathy Willens/AP Images, 67; Henny Ray Abrams/AP Images, 70; Paul Sakuma/AP Images, 75; Charles Dharapak/AP Images, 80; Mark Wilson/ AP Images, 82; Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP Images, 85; Mark Lennihan/AP Images, 89; Brennan Linsley/AP Images, 91; Patsy Lynch/Rex Features/AP Images, 94; William Regan/AP Images, 97 Editor: Melissa York Series Designer: Becky Daum

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2015945392 Cataloging-in-Publication Data Perdew, Laura. The Clintons / Laura Perdew. p. cm. -- (America’s great political families) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-62403-908-9 1. Clinton, Bill, 1946- --Juvenile literature. 2. Clinton family--Juvenile literature. 3. Presidents--Family relationships--United States-Biography--Juvenile literature. 4. United States--Politics and government--Juvenile literature. I. Title. 973.929/092--dc23 [B] 2015945392

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CONTENTS CHAPTER 1

OPPORTUNITY, RESPONSIBILITY, COMMUNITY CLINTON FAMILY TREE

CHAPTER 7

BIG CHANGES 4 15

CHAPTER 2

ROOTS OF A POLITICAL LEGACY

16

CHAPTER 3

GOVERNOR CLINTON

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34

76

CHAPTER 9

THE CLINTON LEGACY

88

FUN FACTS

100

GLOSSARY 102 44

CHAPTER 6

THE FINAL TERM

SECRETARY CLINTON

TIMELINE 98

CHAPTER 5

THE MIDDLE YEARS

CHAPTER 8

24

CHAPTER 4

A ROUGH START

66

56

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

104

SOURCE NOTES

106

INDEX 110 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

112

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CHAPTER 1

OPPORTUNITY, RESPONSIBILITY,

COMMUNITY As the 1992 presidential election neared, Bill and Hillary Clinton knew it was time to make their decades-old dream a reality. They were ready to make a bid for the White House—together. While Bill was a charismatic,

engaging dreamer, Hillary was poised and pragmatic. They balanced each other perfectly. Putting scandals and difficulties in their marriage behind them, the Clintons emerged as a united front in 1992.

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A New Democrat Prior to 1991, the Clintons were well-known in Arkansas but not at the national level. Yet that was about to change. After his success as governor of Arkansas, Bill understood the Democratic Party needed to

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The Clinton family announced Bill’s candidacy together on October 3, 1991.

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reconnect with middle- and working-class voters. Likewise, Bill knew the party needed to win back Democrats who had voted for the incumbent Republican president, George H. W. Bush, and also for Ronald Reagan twice, in 1980 and 1984. Part of Bill’s vision was to minimize the entitlement model of public welfare that had emerged in the 1930s and been expanded in the 1960s. He believed in the government’s role in creating opportunity for all, but his vision also called for responsibility from all in order to create a stronger community and country. With this “new Democrat” philosophy, Bill believed he and Hillary could lead the country. When he announced on October 3, 1991, in Little Rock, Arkansas, that he would run for president, he told the crowd,

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Together I believe we can provide leadership that

“We need a new covenant to rebuild America. It’s just common sense. Government’s responsibility is to create more opportunity. The people’s responsibility is to make the most of it.”2

—Bill Clinton’s announcement speech, Little Rock, Arkansas, October 3, 1991

will restore the American dream—that will fight for the forgotten middle class—that will provide more opportunity, insist on more responsibility, and create a greater sense of community for this great country.1

Bill’s new Democrat approach was centrist. It lessened the divide between Democrats and Republicans and called for moderation in

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government, but it also emphasized common values of hard work and responsibility. This was an entirely new way of thinking in politics, and people embraced it. Throughout the campaign, the Clintons also broke new ground as they sought the presidency as a partnership. In fact, Bill openly remarked that if he were elected, the two of them would continue to do things together, and the nation would, in fact, get “two for the price of one.”3 In their partnership, Bill was brilliant but undisciplined. Hillary was the counterbalance, channeling his energy and passion into refined political messages and effective maneuvers. To this end, Hillary became the

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WHO’S RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT?

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As Bill’s 1992 presidential campaign gained

for, but more important how she would

momentum, many critics began wondering

influence Bill in the White House. Addressing

about Hillary’s role. Her presence at various

concerns voiced by the media, Bill said, “If I get

campaign events was commanding, and her

elected president, it will be an unprecedented

passion and intelligence evident. Yet Hillary

partnership . . . we’ll do things together like we

also offended many conservatives as she took

always have.” And despite the critics, a March

center stage and made several misguided

1992 survey revealed 55 percent of those

statements. In fact, one columnist from the

surveyed believed Hillary was an asset to Bill’s

New York Times referred to her as “the Hillary

campaign.4

problem.” For many, it was a time to determine exactly who Hillary was and what she stood

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campaign’s master strategist. Critics, however, were appalled by this modern feminist partnership and turned off by the use of “we” whenever Hillary or Bill referred to what they aspired to bring to the White House. Nonetheless, by mid-January 1992, Bill had pulled ahead of his Democratic competitors for the party’s nomination for president. During the primaries, he campaigned at truck stops, in diners, and in union halls. And using his charm and his ability to look people in the eye and make them feel heard, Bill generated a buzz among people everywhere.

Scandal Just as the Clintons gained momentum in the race, a woman named Gennifer Flowers stepped forward, claiming she’d had a 12-year extramarital affair with Bill. Flowers gave the Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

media taped conversations between Bill and herself. The buzz about the Clintons turned to skepticism. When confronted by the press, The couple knew how to maximize each other’s strengths and minimize their weaknesses.

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Hillary defended Bill and their marriage on television, saving his campaign.

Bill was evasive, and people questioned whether he was the right man to become their president. Political commentators speculated that his bid for the White House was over. But then Hillary stepped up and confronted the issue head-on, as she had Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

done before and would continue to do in the future. Hillary defined their marriage as a

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strong one, yet also acknowledged there had been problems. More important, Hillary asked people to respect their privacy, claiming what was going on in the Clintons’ marriage was relevant only to the Clintons. The couple also appeared together on the news show 60 Minutes on January 26, 1992. Sitting next to her husband, Hillary

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bravely and strategically defended Bill on national television. She said, “I’m sitting here because I love him and I respect him, and I honor what he’s been through, and what we’ve been through together,

SECOND CHANCES

people then heck, don’t vote for him!”5

Previous to and even during the 1992

Her speech saved their dream, at

presidential election, Bill made quite a few

least temporarily.

mistakes in his personal life. Yet ironically, every time his campaign staff believed his bid for the White House was over, he came back. One of his most profound statements

Two weeks later, a letter surfaced that suggested Bill had taken steps to dodge

during the New Hampshire primary in 1992

being drafted into the military to avoid

came during a speech at the Elks Lodge

fighting in Vietnam. When questioned

in Dover, New Hampshire. He said to the

about his actions, Bill was deceptive

crowd, “I’ll never forget who gave me a second chance and I’ll be there for you till

about the timeline of events in 1969.

the last dog dies.”6 And that resilience,

Once again, Bill’s character came under

that ability to take a second chance when

attack, and some Americans believed

offered, is at the core of Bill’s character. Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

and you know if that’s not enough for

Despite his failings, Bill never gave up on himself, his ideology, or the people he cared about. He always believed he had

they couldn’t trust anything he said. Many on Bill’s campaign team

a chance to redeem himself and make

thought it was over. But Bill himself

everything better.

didn’t flinch. Instead, he campaigned

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20 hours a day across New Hampshire. He asked people for a second chance, and he promised to do right by the American people if elected. In the end, Bill didn’t win the New Hampshire primary, but he finished a strong second, earning himself the nickname the Comeback Kid. Motivated by his success, Bill continued campaigning. He won primaries by wider margins. Then, in California in early June 1992, Bill exceeded the number of delegates necessary for the Democratic nomination. Bill and Hillary had cleared the first hurdle on their way to the White House.

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The National Election For the national election, Bill went up against the incumbent Republican president, George H. W. Bush, and a popular independent

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From left, George Bush, Ross Perot, and Bill Clinton faced off in the second presidential debate.

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candidate, Ross Perot. While Bush had great success with foreign affairs during

POLITICAL CLIMATE George H. W. Bush was the incumbent

coalition of forces to victory in the First

president in 1992, seeking reelection for

Gulf War, his reelection campaign lacked

a second term. He had a brilliant foreign

the passion Bill brought to his own

affairs policy, and due to his leadership

campaign. Voters were still angry about

during the attack on Iraq’s Saddam Hussein in 1990 and the minimal loss of life, his

tax hikes and Bush’s inaction during

approval rating soared to 91 percent.7

an economic recession in 1991. Perot

Yet Bush wasn’t as skilled at explaining

drew support from both Democrats and

economic policy to the American people. In 1991, an economic recession harmed the United States, but Bush seemed indifferent. It seemed to many that Bush cared more about what happened overseas

Republicans, yet his commitment to running for president was inconsistent. As Bill campaigned, he touted his new

than at home. Bill, on the other hand,

Democratic politics and new ideas. He

seemed to care deeply about issues facing

gradually gained ground over Bush and

the American people, and his campaign Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

his term, leading a United Nations

focused on how to help families with

Perot. The pivotal moment, however, came

issues such as education, health care,

during the second presidential debate in

and employment.

Richmond, Virginia, in October. A woman in the audience asked the candidates, “How has the national debt personally

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affected each of your lives? And if it hasn’t, how can you honestly find a cure for the economic problems of the common people if you have no experience in what’s ailing them?”8 Bush looked confused and stated he didn’t understand the question. Bill, however, took several steps toward the woman, until they were face to face. He

CHELSEA CLINTON When Bill won the 1992 election, his daughter, Chelsea, was 12 years old.

looked her in the eye, and said, “Tell

Despite the campaign and her parents’

me how it’s affected you.”9 He went on

place in the political spotlight, Chelsea was

to describe what he’d seen happen to

very much a normal preteen. She did well in school (and had even skipped a grade),

people in his state, people he knew by

played volleyball, took ballet, and spent

name. It wasn’t so much what he said

time at the mall. And as most kids her age

but his body language and the sincere empathy he showed that cinched victory in the debate for Bill.

do, she butted heads with her parents over things such as getting her ears pierced and how much television she could watch. The Clintons were dedicated to spending

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time together as a family, and Bill drove

On November 3, 1992, Bill earned more than twice the number of Electoral College votes Bush did and was elected

Chelsea to school every day he was in town. Even Chelsea’s grandparents lived nearby in Arkansas.

the forty-second president of the United

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States. Because of the Perot candidacy, though, Bill won less than half of the popular vote, 43 percent to 37 percent for Bush and 19 percent for Perot.10 The Clintons were on their way to the White House.

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Bill and Hillary celebrate the morning after the election.

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CLINTON FAMILY TREE William Jefferson Blythe 1918–1946

Virginia Dell Cassidy 1923–1994

Hugh Ellsworth Roger Clinton Sr. Rodham 1908–1967 1911–1993

Roger Clinton Jr. 1956–

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William Jefferson Clinton 1946–

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Chelsea Victoria Clinton 1980–

Dorothy Emma Howell 1919–2011

Hugh Tony Rodham 1954– Hillary Diane Rodham 1950– Rodham 1947–

Marc Mezvinsky 1977–

Charlotte Clinton Mezvinsky 2014– 15

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CHAPTER 2

ROOTS OF A POLITICAL

LEGACY

William Jefferson Clinton’s journey to the White House began in a town called Hope in Arkansas. He was born to Virginia Blythe on August 19, 1946, three months after his father died in a car accident. Six years later, Virginia remarried, and Roger Clinton became Bill’s stepfather.

Secrets By all appearances, Bill was a happy kid who participated in many Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

different activities and had lots of friends. Yet at home, things were turbulent. Roger and Virginia Clinton had frequent fights and screaming matches. In addition, Roger was an alcoholic, which fed his rage and outbursts. As Roger’s drinking worsened, he turned to physically abusing

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Bill Clinton at age five or six

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Virginia, including numerous incidents that involved the police. Bill and his younger half brother, Roger, witnessed all of it. When speaking of this time in his life, Bill stated it was “full of uncertainty and anger and a dread of ever-looming violence.”1 Even Bill’s friends didn’t know what was going on in the Clinton home. Bill took on the extraordinary burden of not only keeping his family’s troubles secret but also bringing stability to the family. At home, Bill became his little brother’s guardian and role model, and he took care of both Roger and their mother. Outside the home, Bill

BEHIND THE SCENES

STRONG INFLUENCES

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Both Bill and Hillary were passionate about

Up north, Hillary’s mother and her Methodist

fighting for social equity, a value instilled

youth minister, Don Jones, influenced her

in them as children. Bill’s influence was his

religious, racial, and humanitarian values.

grandfather. As a child, Bill spent many hours

Among other activities, Jones took his teenaged

in his grandfather’s store. And even though

youth group into the inner city of Chicago to

Arkansas at the time was a state deeply

meet black and Hispanic youth with drastically

affected by racism, Bill’s grandfather treated

different life experiences. The youth group also

everyone as equals. Young Bill embraced

went to see Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. when he

his grandfather’s values and was the only

spoke in Chicago. Through these experiences,

white boy who played with the black kids in

the young Hillary learned about faith in action,

the neighborhood.

and her perspectives and values were shaped.

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started going to church. He was involved in many things, and with everything he did he tried to be the best he could be. By high school, he had won numerous honors, including first chair in the Arkansas State Band as a saxophone player and semifinalist in the National Merit scholar program. By age 16, Bill had already decided he wanted to dedicate himself to public life as an elected official. Bill’s next steps toward that goal were attending Georgetown University in Washington, DC (1964–1968), Oxford University in England (1968–1970), and then Yale Law School in New Haven, Connecticut (1970–1973).

SOCIAL CLIMATE The time of Hillary and Bill’s youth was a period of social unrest in the United States. Issues of civil rights and women’s rights were at the forefront of social movements.

Young Hillary

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While Bill was growing up in Arkansas,

More and more people, mostly young people, were challenging the status quo and entrenched values in the United States,

Hillary Rodham’s formative years

which historically had privileged white men

were spent in a middle-class

in education, employment, politics, and just

suburb of Chicago, Illinois. Born on

about every field of public life. The country was also embroiled in the increasingly

October 26, 1947, Hillary was the oldest

unpopular war in Vietnam, and more and

of three children. And while the Rodham

more people questioned the American role

household did not experience the same

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there and began protesting the war as well.

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“She was very organized and articulate and goal-oriented. She knew what she wanted to accomplish and how to go about doing it.”2

—A Wellesley political science professor on Hillary Rodham

violence as the Clinton home, Hillary’s father, Hugh, ruled with an iron fist. He expected nothing less than perfection from his children. At the same time, Hugh instilled in Hillary the belief that her opportunities should not be limited simply because she was female. Likewise, Hillary’s mother, Dorothy, encouraged

her to stand up for herself and follow her dreams. Dorothy also became a buffer between Hugh and their children. This often led to confrontations, with Hugh becoming verbally abusive and disrespectful. But Dorothy was determined to keep the family intact. This principle of keeping the family together later became a defining one for Hillary as well.

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Hillary was an active and accomplished student. She was involved in Girl Scouts, sports, the debate team, student politics, the yearbook, and the school newspaper. Hillary

Hillary was known for her intelligence and political activism when she was a college student.

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was also a dedicated member of her Methodist Church, and from this was born her lifelong interest in being a moral leader and helping others. By the end of high school, Hillary was named “most likely to succeed.”3 From there, she attended Wellesley College, beginning in 1965, where she became involved in campus politics, committed to the civil rights movement and racial equality. Her work, her will, and her determination led to graduating senior Hillary Rodham being chosen to speak at Wellesley’s 1969 commencement. It was the first time a student speaker had ever done so. In her speech, Hillary noted that to effect change, with respect to racial

LIFE MAGAZINE

injustice, politics needed to change and

Following Hillary’s electric speech at the

people needed to take action. In her

Wellesley graduation, she was featured in a

words, “The challenge now is to practice politics as the art of making what appears to be impossible, possible.”4

June 20, 1969, Life magazine article titled “The Class of ’69.” The article featured some of the best and brightest college graduates of 1969 from around the country.

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Hillary spoke of the role and necessity of

For Hillary, with her goal of making a difference in the world and breaking traditional barriers, the next logical step was law school. In 1969, she entered

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social protest at the time, and how “every protest, every dissent, is unabashedly an attempt to forge an identity in this particular age.”5 Hillary became a symbol of her rebellious generation and a role model for women.

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THE BLACK TABLE When Bill was at Yale in the 1970s, civil rights and equality were hot-button issues. As such, black students at Yale congregated together in the cafeteria. And while other

Yale Law as one of only 27 women in a class of 235 students.6

Bill’s and Hillary’s Lives Intersect

students respected that separation, Bill

Immediately after arriving at Yale, Hillary

did not and instead plunked himself down

submersed herself in campus life.

at what was known as the black table.

Quickly she became known for being both

He ignored the stares. In his typical style, he told stories, got people to talk about

studious and solemn. To some, Hillary

themselves, and connected with everyone

was also intimidating. Yet she garnered

at the table. One of his black classmates

attention across the campus. Hillary

remarked, “Bill Clinton dissolved the unspoken taboo and became a regular

Rodham became the associate editor of

and welcome member of the table.”7 That

the Yale Review of Law and Social Action, a

classmate, Bill Coleman, eventually became

short-lived student-edited publication that

one of Bill’s roommates.

began in 1970 and ceased publication

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in 1973. She chaired meetings on community issues, acting as a moderator. She also interned at the Children’s Defense Fund, a private, nonprofit foundation begun in 1973 to lobby on behalf of children, promoting policies and programs that assist those in poverty, improving access to health care and quality education, and

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more. In 1992, Garry Wills, a writer for the New York Review of Books and a leading public intellectual, called Hillary “one of the more important scholar activists of the last two decades.”8 Bill, on the other hand, was not at Yale to study. He was there to surround himself with the best and brightest of his generation, in an atmosphere that allowed for independent thinking and intellectual exploration. Yale was just the place for Bill to follow his political passions. Instead of going to classes, Bill helped organize a US Senate campaign for Democrat Reverend Joe Duffey, an election Duffey subsequently lost. Despite being absent from the classroom until November, Bill passed his exams. Inevitably, Bill and Hillary each took notice of the other. Bill later said of Hillary, “She conveyed a sense of strength and self-possession I had rarely seen in anyone, man or woman.”9 But for a while, neither approached the other. Then one day in 1971, in the reading room at the library, Bill kept staring at Hillary. Eventually Hillary got up and walked down the long room. She stepped right up to Bill, held out her

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hand, and said, “If you’re gonna keep staring at me and I’m gonna keep looking back at you we better get to know each other.”10

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CHAPTER 3

GOVERNOR

CLINTON When Hillary introduced herself to Bill at Yale in 1971, she left him uncommonly speechless. Bill was dazzled by her confidence and intelligence. Hillary admired Bill’s sociability and success. She also said, “He was the first man I’d met who wasn’t afraid of me.”1 It became apparent early on how the duo complemented each other—Bill was friendly, gentle, and averse to conflict, whereas Hillary was direct,

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assertive, and willing to fight. The partnership was formed.

Back to Arkansas After graduating from Yale in 1973, Hillary worked at the Children’s Defense Fund in Cambridge, Massachusetts, combining her legal talents

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After completing their degrees at Yale, Hillary and Bill went their separate ways for a time.

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with her passion for issues facing children. Bill returned to Arkansas to pursue politics. In the summer of 1973, he asked Hillary to be his wife and move to Arkansas with him. She said no. So while Hillary worked as an advocate for children, Bill returned to his home state to explore its political landscape and begin networking. After only six months with the Children’s Defense Fund, Hillary was asked to take a staff position on the House Judiciary Committee and assist with the investigation of President Richard Nixon. Charges of impeachment were being brought against him for his role in covering up the Watergate break-in during the 1972 presidential election, a crime committed by low-level Republican campaign officials to spy on the Democratic Party headquarters located in the Watergate Hotel in Washington, DC. She accepted and moved to Washington, DC, where she was immersed in politics and the legal investigation. Yet although Hillary seemed to be in her element, she was also considering her future with Bill. She loved him, and she understood where he was headed politically. Hillary even remarked to a friend in 1974 that Bill would one day be president. Her friend Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

thought the notion was ridiculous. Nonetheless, when the Nixon investigation was over, Hillary joined Bill in Arkansas in August 1974. Hillary’s friends told her she was throwing away her future. She had heard rumors of Bill having affairs, and she was leaving behind a life in Washington for a small

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town in the South. Hillary, though, believed she was taking an important political step forward. At that time, Bill was already involved in his first political campaign, running for US Congress. When Hillary arrived in Fayetteville, Arkansas, she inserted herself into the campaign, much to the dismay of Bill’s staff. Her directness and efficiency were off-putting to many, and she had a way of antagonizing everyone. Despite complaints about Hillary’s involvement and unpopularity, Bill always sided with her. He knew he needed Hillary.

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HILLARY GETS AN IMAGE MAKEOVER

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When Hillary first arrived in Arkansas, many

expected a wife to assume her husband’s name

people didn’t like her. Some were afraid of her,

and to take the time to make herself pretty.

and others distrusted her because she was an

By 1980, Hillary eventually bowed to political

outsider. In addition, she seemed not to care

pressure and made some changes. Instead of

about her appearance; with her thick glasses

glasses, she began wearing contacts. She had

and lack of makeup, she came across as plain.

her hair cut and styled in a fashionable bob.

Moreover, when Hillary decided not to take on

And she took Bill’s last name, becoming from

the Clinton name after she and Bill married, her

that point forward Hillary Rodham Clinton.

critics were outspoken. In the South, society

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The Partnership Even though Bill lost the congressional race, and Hillary was aware of his affairs, she decided to stay with Bill in Arkansas. The two were married in a simple wedding on October 11, 1975. They were deeply in love, and together they could follow the dreams they shared of achieving social justice, helping those in need, and making a difference in the world. And, most important, they looked forward to the possibility of going to the White House. Already known in Arkansas as a rising political force, Bill easily won the election for state attorney general in 1976. It was a stepping-stone to becoming governor and an opportunity to increase his political exposure. For Hillary, the move to Little Rock from Fayetteville allowed for better career opportunities, and she took a job at the state’s most prestigious law firm. After two years in the state capitol, Bill decided to run for governor. As she had Bill’s 1974 campaign for Congress and his 1976 campaign for attorney Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

general, Hillary managed much of the 1978 campaign for governor. She was Bill’s number one adviser, critical to his campaign. Those closest to Bill understood he needed her discipline and toughness in order to maximize his potential. The balance between their personalities led to Bill becoming the state’s youngest governor.

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Governor Bill Clinton As governor, Bill had high hopes of providing every citizen with “not a hand out, but a hand up.”2 He also dreamed of protecting Arkansas’s environment, easing the burdens of the needy, and ending the abuse of power by authority figures. Yet Bill’s

“For as long as I can remember, I have believed passionately in the cause of equal opportunity, and I will do what I can to advance it.”3

—Bill Clinton, inaugural address, January 9, 1979

dreams were many and unfocused. He wanted to befriend everyone and do right by everyone, but that was an impossible goal. As a result, his first term as governor became one bogged down in dreams of transforming the state with little tangible action. In one effort to improve Arkansas’s roads, which were outdated and badly in need of repair, Bill imposed a tax increase on vehicle licenses, a decision that Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

was wildly unpopular. Bill lost his reelection campaign for governor in 1980 to a little-known Republican who highlighted Bill’s youth and arrogance.

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Bill became governor of Arkansas at age 32.

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Both Bill and Hillary were devastated by the loss and worried their political careers were over before they had really begun. For her part, Hillary questioned her decision to follow Bill to Arkansas. And Bill was dejected, depressed, and obsessed with figuring out what he had done wrong. Bill and Hillary forged ahead together. Hillary was the mastermind, and she instilled a much-needed sense of order in Bill’s life. He was happy to let her do it. In addition, he recognized his failure

BABY CHELSEA According to Bill, the best thing that ever happened to him occurred on February 27,

tax hike on vehicle licenses, but also because in his first term as governor he’d

1980, when his daughter, Chelsea, was

failed to commit to any one issue. In the

born. Bill and Hillary had always envisioned

1982 election campaign, he focused on

a life with children, but for years they had trouble conceiving. But after returning from

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to be reelected was due in part to the

three issues: education, increasing job

a Bermuda vacation, they found out Hillary

opportunities, and keeping utility rates

was pregnant. Following Chelsea’s birth,

down. With focus and discipline in the

Bill reflected, “I knew then that being a

new campaign, Bill and Hillary staged a

father was the most important job I’d ever have.”4 He took to his new role with great

remarkable comeback, returning to the

enthusiasm, reading to Chelsea every night,

governor’s mansion two years after being

playing with her on the floor, and tossing

turned out in disgrace.

her in the air. Hillary likewise savored their new family.

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Bill and Hillary went on to win reelection after reelection. During Bill’s time as governor, he made substantial improvements to Arkansas’s education system, including requiring universal kindergarten, increasing teacher salaries, and equalizing funding between rural and urban schools. He also required statewide testing to measure student progress. Bill’s education reforms, combined with his focus on creating opportunities and building community, soon garnered the attention of national Democrats, who understood his potential to become president. Despite the fact that he had been reelected to a newly implemented four-year term as governor of Arkansas (previously the terms were two years), in 1987 Bill began testing the waters for making a bid for the presidency. In July, he called a press Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

conference. Everyone expected him to announce his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for president for the 1988 elections. Instead, he bowed out.

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Bill and Hillary celebrate their 1982 return to the governor’s mansion.

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BIG MOMENT TO RUN OR NOT TO RUN? In 1987, Bill had gained national attention and political respect, and the timing seemed perfect for him to challenge for the White House. Yet, with the press assembled in Little Rock, Bill instead announced he would not run after all, claiming he needed some family time. The reality, however, was that Bill’s campaign manager had advised against running because of his ongoing infidelity. While the Clintons formed a politically solid partnership, their marriage was rife with conflict. It seemed as though Hillary had come to terms with Bill’s affairs as a means Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

to greater political ends. Yet Bill’s opponents would not be so forgiving, and they would investigate Bill’s history and use it against him. And Bill was also worried about how the campaign and the issues it would dredge up would affect Chelsea.

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Despite the Clintons’ success in Arkansas, Bill ultimately decided not to run for president for the 1988 election.

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Bill believed he’d given up the best opportunity he would ever have for running, and he worried the dream he shared with Hillary was over. Their relationship deteriorated. It had been built on their shared goal of reaching the White House. It was now gravely injured by Bill’s affairs. It was a critical moment in the Clinton marriage. Hillary had stood by Bill for 15 years, putting everything on the line, and she was suddenly left wondering why.

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CHAPTER 4

A ROUGH

START Bill did not run for president in 1988, but he did enter the race for the presidency in 1992, and he defeated incumbent president George H. W. Bush. When the Clintons moved into the White House in January 1993, it was a dream come true. Yet the dream was soon overshadowed by reality. While the Clintons were well-known and highly respected in Arkansas, they weren’t in

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Arkansas any longer. The rules in Washington were much different, and people were not nearly as approachable. Established politicians didn’t trust Bill, nor did they think the young, inexperienced politician could lead the nation. Hillary was not popular either, as many saw her as formidable and too domineering. In their dislike of Hillary, some even criticized her

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Hillary and Bill celebrate winning the election with running mate Al Gore and his wife, Tipper Gore.

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changing hairstyles. Nonetheless, the Clintons were in the White House, determined to bring change to the country.

Health-Care Reform One of the changes Bill and Hillary desperately wanted was to make health care affordable for all Americans, and they wanted to do it within Bill’s first 100 days in office. Health-care reform had social implications and economic ones as well, since health-care costs accounted for an estimated

“I’ve always believed in a zone of privacy, but I guess I’ve been rezoned.”2

—Hillary Clinton, reflecting on the ongoing media and public scrutiny during the first term in White House

one-seventh of the nation’s goods and services.1 To accomplish the task, the president appointed Hillary to lead a task force to develop a program. With her success leading a commission on education reform in Arkansas, Bill believed Hillary was the obvious choice for health-care reform.

Yet the choice was a mistake. First, Hillary alienated people with her political Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

involvement and use of the word “we” when talking about government, suggesting she and the president were equals. Next, the appointment of the president’s wife as the head of a major task force charged with pursuing policy changes was a major shift in precedent, as previous First Ladies had typically stuck to softer issues. In addition, Hillary chose to work in secret with the task force and left Congress out

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BEHIND THE SCENES

THE FIRST CAT When the Clinton family moved into the White

Oval Office with the country’s most powerful

House in 1993, they brought with them a

officials, sitting on Bill’s shoulders. Hillary also

fourth family member, Socks. The First Cat

occasionally took Socks to visit children or

was almost as popular with the media as

senior citizens in area hospitals. Of course, the

the human Clintons, and at one point the

cat traveled in style, with his own carrying case

president requested the cat be left alone. When

with the presidential seal on the side. He lived

not in the spotlight, Socks was free to roam

well past the president’s terms in office and

the White House. He was often found in the

died in 2009 at the age of 20.

of the loop. And finally, the end product was unwieldy at 1,350 pages long, largely incomprehensible, and threatened to limit individual choice. By the summer of 1994, the Clintons’ dream of universal health-care reform in America was dead, representing an enormous setback for Bill’s administration. It was also a time of introspection for Hillary, compelling her to rethink her role as First Lady and refocus

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her efforts on work for children and women’s rights at home and abroad.

Economic Package of 1993 When Bill became president, the United States was in a deep recession with high unemployment and no end in sight. He knew he needed to jump-start the economy. His hope was to cut taxes for the poor and middle class, create jobs, and streamline

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government processes. His goal was to cut the federal deficit in half during his first term in office. Yet the package Bill put together in the late spring and early summer of 1993 needed support from both Democrats and Republicans to pass. Not only that, there were political implications for the president as well. Many believed if he failed to secure the votes for deficit reduction, it would reveal him to be ineffective. The president himself said, “I knew if I didn’t get the economy going, nothing else would matter.”3

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Hillary’s health-care plan was ultimately a failure.

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In the end, Bill made compromises he felt would appeal to both sides in Congress. Abandoning his heartfelt desire to cut taxes and invest in the middle class, he instead raised taxes and cut government spending. His hope was that this would lower interest rates and grow the economy. Republicans were unanimously opposed to the president’s budget, so he needed every Democratic vote he could get. Those closest to the president spent hours on the phone and met with fellow Democrats in person, trying to get their votes. In the end, the president’s budget passed and he signed it into law on August 10. At the time, no one predicted the economic boom that would follow.

Foreign Affairs The president also needed an effective foreign policy. His philosophy rested on expanding markets around the world,

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promoting free trade, fostering international alliances, participating in international peacekeeping, and intervening in world crises when appropriate.

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Bill was famous for taking early morning jogs while president.

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To that end, in November, the president pushed for the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which ended tariffs on products traded between the United States, Mexico, and Canada. With bipartisan support, the measure passed in November 1993 and the president signed it on December 8. To further his vision of economic globalization, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) passed in 1994, reducing tariffs by more than 30 percent and thus creating freer international markets.4 Yet despite his vision, Bill came to the Oval Office with very little foreign policy experience. He also had never served in the military. His lack of experience became evident as a civil war in Somalia reached a crisis point. Prior to Bill taking office, US

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EFFECTS OF THE 1993 ECONOMIC PACKAGE One of the legacies of Bill’s presidency is

the budget deficit was initially reduced by $87

the unprecedented reduction in the United

billion, from $290 billion to $203 billion. By

States’ national deficit. The package he sent to

1999, there was a surplus of $124 billion.5

Congress was a compromise of his campaign

This boom was accompanied by low inflation,

promises and also a gamble. However, the

economic growth, low interest rates, higher

package passed without a single Republican

incomes, and low unemployment. By the end of

vote, and the party warned his plan would send

Bill’s presidency, the US economy was one of

the nation into economic chaos. The result was

the strongest in the world.

quite the opposite. Between 1992 and 1994,

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peacekeeping forces had been sent to Somalia. The president had to decide

DON’T ASK, DON’T TELL

whether to expand the US role in the

Early in Bill’s first term as president, he

mission and attempt to capture Somali

was confronted with the issue of whether

warlord Mohammed Farah Aidid. The

gays should be allowed to serve in the

president deferred to the experience of Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs

US military. He attempted to lift the ban in place but was immediately met with resistance, even from his allies. With

of Staff. The subsequent mission was an

both military and Democratic leadership

utter disaster, with 18 US soldiers killed

resisting this change, he was forced into

and the body of one dragged through

a position of compromise. In the end, he announced the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy

the streets. Eighty-four others were

on July 19, 1993. Service members were

wounded.6 When the remaining troops

prohibited from asking about another’s

were withdrawn, the warlords were still

sexual orientation and from acknowledging their own.

in control, leading to criticism of the president’s foreign policy.

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A tragedy of much greater scope simmered in Rwanda, where another civil war was taking place between two tribes: the Tusi and the Hutu. In April 1994, the Hutu went on a killing spree. Yet with the events in Somalia still fresh in people’s minds, Bill and the US government were slow to get involved. In the end, more than 800,000 Tusi were killed, and the United States was criticized for not intervening.7

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PAULA JONES SCANDAL On January 17, 1994, a woman named

The lawsuit became another undercurrent of

Paula Jones accused the president of sexual

scandal during Bill’s presidency. Bill applied

harassment. Jones claimed that while he was

for presidential immunity, claiming that

governor of Arkansas, Bill had sent a state

pursuing the matter would be too much of a

trooper to invite her to his private room at a

distraction. But on May 27, 1997, the Supreme

hotel. In the room, Bill allegedly made sexual

Court ruled that the case could, in fact, move

advances, but nothing happened. Nonetheless,

forward while he was in office. While Bill

Jones and her legal team sued the president

eventually settled out of court with Jones, with

for “odious, perverse and outrageous conduct”

no acknowledgment of wrongdoing, the case

and for defamation as he denied the charges.

fueled the Republican attack on him.

8

The president was demoralized by what had happened. His foreign policy was stuck—while actions in Somalia had revealed the cost of acting too quickly, Rwanda had painfully exposed what happened if no action was taken. However, these lessons led to successful interventions in Haiti and Iraq, reinstating the democratically Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

elected president of Haiti, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, in September 1994 and preventing an Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in October 1994. After two years in the White House, the Clintons had endured significant highs and lows. Both the president and First Lady adjusted to their new roles, facing the

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fierce political climate in Washington and The 1994 midterm elections would

THE PRESIDENT’S CABINET

become another substantial low, leaving

In keeping with Bill’s deeply held values

the president reassessing how to move

of equality, during the 1992 campaign

the country forward.

he promised, if elected, to put together a

never-ending public and media scrutiny.

cabinet that “looked like America.”9 And he kept his promise. He named Janet Reno attorney general, making her the first woman to hold the job. Three other women were likewise named to cabinet positions, as well as other important posts, including Ruth Bader Ginsberg as a Supreme Court justice. His top posts also included African Americans and Latinos in larger numbers

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than in any previous administration.

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CHAPTER 5

THE MIDDLE

YEARS Two years after Bill took office, congressional elections were held across the nation. Republicans hoped to highlight the president’s weaknesses, failures, and scandals to win Republican votes. For his part, the president believed if he could show the public what his administration had accomplished and where he still wanted to go, he could convince voters to put Democrats in office. Bill went on the campaign trail publicizing the improvement in the economy and the newly passed ban

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on assault weapons. Yet that election night in 1994 became known as the Republican Revolution. The Democrats lost 54 seats in the House of Representatives and eight in the Senate.1 The result gave the Republicans control of both houses of Congress.

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The president delivered the 1995 State of the Union address in January before Congress, newly in Republican control.

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“Now all of us, Democrats and Republicans alike, must say, ‘We hear you. We will work together to earn the jobs you have given us.’”3

—Bill Clinton, January 24, 1995, in a speech to Congress and the nation following the crushing midterm elections in which Republicans took control of Congress

With the Republicans in full control of Congress beginning in 1995, the president was once again asking himself, “What did I do wrong?” He was also asking, “How do I fix it?”2 He embraced his old centrist principles and refocused on the ideals of his campaign: opportunity, responsibility, and community. By using these to focus his comeback strategy, he could appeal to both conservatives and liberals and perhaps gain some Republican votes on certain issues.

War in Europe While Bill struggled to find solid ground at home, war simmered in Bosnia, a small country on the Balkan Peninsula in Europe. By 1995, Serbians were regularly massacring Bosnian Muslims, despite the presence of peacekeeping forces sent

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by the United Nations (UN), an international organization that promotes cooperation among countries. The public called for the president to send troops to stop the ethnic cleansing. Bill did not want to send US troops into that war, yet he was haunted by his failure to act in Rwanda the year before. While struggling to decide on the proper course, in the summer of 1995 the Serbians made it abundantly clear action was

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OKLAHOMA CITY BOMBING One of the darkest moments for the country

not lost America, for we will stand with you,”

during Bill’s first term as president came on

the president said in his speech.5 Afterward, he

April 19, 1995. On that day, a truck bomb

met with every person there. He connected with

exploded just outside a federal building in

the mourners, hugged them, listened to them,

Oklahoma City, killing 149 workers and 19

and genuinely grieved with them. His emotion

children. Following the bombing, Bill went to

and strength in Oklahoma finally allowed the

Oklahoma to meet with those who had lost

public to see him as a leader the country could

loved ones. “You have lost too much, but you

rely on.

have not lost everything. And you have certainly

needed. On July 11, Serbian troops attacked a Bosnian city and killed more than 8,000 unarmed men and boys.4 On August 30, Bill agreed to a massive retaliatory attack by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), an international military alliance, on Serbian forces. For two weeks, NATO forces attacked the Serbians in Bosnia until the Serbs relented. Two months later, Bill oversaw the peace agreements between the countries Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

in Dayton, Ohio, known as the Dayton Peace Accords. And while he had acted to see an end to the genocide, there was another, unintended consequence: he emerged as a strong and confident leader of the free world, earning the respect of international leaders and those at home.

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BIG MOMENT STANDOFF Republican Newt Gingrich was an outspoken critic of the president and lured him into a political showdown over the federal budget in 1995. The Republican plan, announced by Gingrich, was to eliminate the federal deficit through deep spending cuts, especially on Medicare and Medicaid, programs that helped low-income and elderly people get health care. Bill wanted to work with Republicans, but his conscience would not allow him to sign a budget that would hurt so many Americans. However, if the president vetoed the bill, Congress would not allocate money for the federal Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

government, forcing a government shutdown. The president and his staff then came up with a solution that would protect Medicare and Medicaid yet keep many of the cuts proposed by the Republicans. The Republicans, however, refused to pass the proposal, and the government did shut down. All federal services, except for the most critical, were halted, and close

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Bill and the Republicans, led by Newt Gingrich, had to find some way to compromise on the budget to keep the government running.

to one million federal employees were out of work. The first shutdown happened in November, and a longer one followed in December. In time, the American public tired of the standoff and of the Republicans’ refusal to work on the issue. At one point during negotiations, as an observer remembers, the president looked Gingrich in the eye and said, Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

“You know, Newt, I can’t do what you want me to do. I don’t believe it’s right for the country. And it may cost me the election, but I can’t do it.”6 Bill had drawn a definitive line in the sand, revealing his strength of conviction. It signaled the beginning of the end of the standoff, and soon a few Republicans stepped forward to rally enough votes to pass the president’s budget with Medicare and Medicaid intact.

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Welfare Reform One of Bill’s cornerstone agenda items was welfare reform. During his 1992 campaign, he had promised to “end welfare as we know it” and to start giving people

BEHIND THE SCENES

WHITEWATER Of all the scandals that dogged Bill’s

land deal to include questions of misdeeds

presidency, Whitewater haunted the Clintons

during Bill’s presidency.

the longest. The issue had its roots in the late 1970s, over failed real estate investment schemes in Arkansas. The Clintons and their business partners had hoped to take unimproved land on the White River in Arkansas and develop vacation home sites, but the souring of the American economy and skyrocketing interest rates contributed to the

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deal’s failure. In 1992, reporters questioned whether the Clintons had acted improperly. The Clintons denied any wrong-doing, but their business partners were later charged with fraud. The questions intensified after Bill was in the White House, and the investigation that

Investigators requested the Clintons’ personal financial documents related to the Whitewater deal. Initially the Clintons refused, fueling speculation that they had done something wrong. The prosecution continued digging deeper into the Clintons’ lives, searching for evidence of both a crime and a cover-up, and at one point it seemed as though the prosecutor was on a mission to smear both Hillary and Bill. Finally, in 1997, after more than two years of investigation, the prosecution was unable to bring charges against the Clintons due to a lack of evidence and witnesses.

ensued expanded beyond the failed Arkansas

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a “hand up” instead of a “handout” just as he had done while governor of for day care for working parents; improve

GROWING UP IN THE WHITE HOUSE

health-care provisions for the poor; put

While the Clintons were busy taking

a cap on how long individuals could

on issues of national and international

collect welfare funds; and introduce

importance, they were still parents, a role

Arkansas.7 He wanted to increase funds

work requirements for all able-bodied

they took as seriously as any. Chelsea was 12 years old when they moved into

recipients. Yet with Republicans in control

the White House. And despite their busy

of Congress, finding a middle ground

schedules, Bill and Hillary were involved,

proved difficult. In fact, Bill vetoed two versions of the bill passed by Congress because they didn’t do enough.

strict parents. Looking back, Chelsea says that despite understanding that she was “living in history,” her childhood was fairly normal. 8 She was even kept away from White House state dinners and the

In the summer of 1996, the president was presented with a version that

annual Christmas parties because she had homework to do!

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seemed to be an acceptable compromise. It included many of the items he had fought for, yet fell short in his mind because it ended benefits for legal immigrants and cut nutritional assistance for low-income working families. And while many of Bill’s allies urged him to veto this third version also, he signed it, believing it was his

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best opportunity for enacting some reform. And despite critics of the bill, Bill had stayed true to his new Democrat philosophy and positioned himself in the middle, which appealed to many voters.

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Demonstrators protested the signing of the compromise welfare bill that cut nutritional assistance and ended benefits for immigrants.

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Reelection gained force, Bill positioned himself in

HILLARY ON WOMEN’S RIGHTS

the middle ground between Democrats

Following the health-care failure, Hillary

As the 1996 presidential campaign

and Republicans, not only with welfare reform but with other issues that helped

Lady. She returned to working on issues that were important to her but not so

improve the lives of Americans and their

politically charged. One of those was

children. His proposals included increased

women’s rights. Thus, in September 1995,

funding for the Head Start preschool

she attended and spoke at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, China. It

program, increased childcare support,

was there that Hillary famously asserted,

more police officers on the streets, and

“If there is one message that echoes forth

income tax credits for the poor. Hillary, for her part, took a backseat in the

from this conference, let it be that human rights are women’s rights and women’s rights are human rights, once and for

reelection campaign, instead embracing

all.”10 It was the first time a US dignitary

a more traditional role as First Lady. She

had spoken so forcefully on the issue in

did, however, emphasize their ongoing, Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

assumed a more traditional role as First

a country with a long history of abuses against women. It marked the beginning of

coordinated efforts to help children and

Hillary’s work on the international stage, as

families. She rallied voters with her

well as a launching point for her ongoing

message, “It takes a village.”9

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efforts to improve the lives of women and girls around the world.

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With Bill on the upswing and an economy growing stronger by the day, his Republican opponent in 1996, Robert Dole, found it difficult to take his own stance on the issues and ran a campaign without enthusiasm. Ross Perot again entered the race as an Independent candidate. Bill, on the other hand, was passionate about continuing to get things done, and said to voters, “We will together build a bridge to the 21st century wide enough and strong enough to take us to America’s best days. Will you do that?”11 And they did. On November 5, Bill won 70 percent of the electoral vote and was on his way to a second term in the White House. But as in 1992, he gained less than 50 percent of the popular vote because of Perot’s presence on

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the ballot.12

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Bill took the presidential oath of office for the second time on January 20, 1997.

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CHAPTER 6

THE

FINAL TERM The 1996 reelection gave Bill confidence going into his second term. Not only had he won the election definitively, but the economy was thriving, the lives of Americans were improving, the country’s prestige on the world stage was high, and Bill had a proven record of working with Republicans to make changes and get things done. Both Bill and Hillary were also well regarded by the public.

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More Scandal Yet during Bill’s period of political success, he was hiding some personal secrets. One of them was an ongoing affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. The affair began during the government shutdown in

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The president gave the annual State of the Union address on February 4, 1997, setting out his plan for his second term.

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1995, when most government workers could not come in to work but interns still reported in. It was then they had their first sexual contact, and they continued to meet in secret off and on for months. Whether Lewinsky was the first affair Bill had as president was a matter of debate. Given his history, and rumors around the White House, it seemed unlikely. Nonetheless, it was the one that became a public scandal. His meetings and interactions became the subject of suspicion among his staffers, who quietly transferred Lewinsky to a job at the Pentagon. There Lewinsky befriended a woman named Linda Tripp, who was a lifetime civil servant and not a fan of the Clintons. As the two became friends, Lewinsky confided in Tripp about the affair. Over time, as Lewinsky revealed more and more details, Tripp secretly taped the conversations. Tripp ultimately brought the affair to the public’s attention in January 1998. During this time, an earlier sexual harassment case from when Bill was governor involving Paula Jones went to trial, and Lewinsky was called to testify as a means for

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the prosecution to establish Bill’s pattern of sexual

“[It] was the most devastating, shocking and hurtful experience of my life.”1

—Hillary Clinton on learning about Bill’s affair with Monica Lewinsky

misconduct. Bill was called as well. Unbeknownst to him, Tripp had already given the tapes of conversations between Bill and Lewinsky to the prosecution, and federal agents had taped a lunch

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conversation between Tripp and Lewinsky. Prosecutors had set a trap for Bill: if he denied the affair with Lewinsky under oath, it was perjury. Prior to his testimony, Bill was presented with complicated criteria for what constituted “sexual relations.” Further, the lawyers for Paula Jones never outright asked Bill about specific acts. Instead, they tiptoed around the edges of the alleged relationship, and Bill himself walked a very fine legal line as he answered questions. It was this razor’s edge Bill walked, combined with allegations that he had tried to cover up the affair, that took the media by storm in January 1998. Powered by the

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Internet, Bill’s private affairs were under the scrutiny of the entire world within 72 hours of the press finding out. Demands for his resignation followed.

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Bill’s affair with Monica Lewinsky, wearing beret, almost cost him the presidency.

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A NEW ADDITION TO THE FAMILY Much to the dismay of the First Cat, Socks,

accompanying the president on walks around

the Clintons added a 3-month-old chocolate

the White House grounds. Buddy also loved

Labrador dog to the family in December

to chase tennis balls and tug on his leash.

1997. Buddy quickly became Bill’s loyal

When the president left office at the end of his

companion. Like most Labs, Buddy was

second term, Buddy went with Bill to New York.

playful and energetic, and he was often seen

Foreign Affairs While Bill’s personal life bubbled with scandal, he had his presidential duties to fulfill. In the spring of 1998, he toured six African nations. He oversaw the development and signing of the Good Friday Peace Accords in Northern Ireland, which brought the country’s Catholic and Protestant leaders together working toward stability and the end of religious conflict between the groups. Then, on August 7, 1998, two truck bombs exploded at US embassies in Africa—one in Nairobi, Kenya, and the other in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. In total, 224 Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

people were killed and more than 5,000 injured.2 Investigations revealed an Islamic fundamentalist and anti-American organization called al-Qaeda, headed by Osama bin Laden, was responsible. The president pledged to get justice for these terrible acts. But US air strikes on al-Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan and Sudan did not halt the growth of al-Qaeda. 60

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The following year, in 1999, the president was again forced to take action against Serbian forces in Europe. Based on reports of ethnic cleansing in Kosovo and Albania, he authorized the US military to lead NATO attacks against Serbia beginning in March. The air campaigns lasted until June, when Serbia finally agreed to withdraw its forces from Kosovo.

Impeachment As Bill dealt with international matters, prosecutors at home continued

VITAL VOICES

uncovering information about the affair

In her ongoing efforts to improve the lives

with Lewinsky that suggested the president had committed perjury in his

Hillary, along with former secretary of state Madeline Albright, launched the Vital Voices

testimony in the Paula Jones trial. They

Democracy Initiative in 1997 to make the

laid the grounds for impeachment. Many

advancement of women a foreign policy

around Bill urged him to resign rather

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of women and girls around the world,

goal in the United States. This led in 2000 to the creation of a nongovernmental

than face impeachment, just as Richard

program, Vital Voices Global Partnership,

Nixon had done decades earlier. But

promoting the economic, political, and

he refused, in part because of Hillary’s

social status of women around the world through increasing political participation,

insistence that he fight back. At the same

supporting entrepreneurship, providing

time, the American public was weary of

skills, advancing women’s rights, and more.

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the ongoing Republican attacks on the president. And while many disagreed with how Bill conducted his personal affairs, they were just as unhappy with the partisanship and division cultivated by Republicans. As such, during the 1998 midterm elections, voters sent a message and Republicans lost seats in Congress. Nonetheless, the impeachment process moved forward. When brought before the House of Representatives, members voted on December 19, 1998, to impeach the

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Despite his acquittal, the impeachment clouded the end of Bill’s presidency.

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president. The charges were perjury and obstruction of justice. It was only the second time in US history the House of Representatives impeached a president. The trial then moved to the US Senate in January 1999, and in order to convict the president and remove him from office, it would need a two-thirds majority vote against him. That didn’t happen. On February 12, 1999, the president was acquitted on both articles of impeachment. He had two years left in his second term. And although he wasn’t impeached, the entire scandal seriously undercut his ability to get anything accomplished for the remainder of his term as the entire impeachment issue widened the gap between political parties.

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APPROVAL RATINGS

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Public opinion polls are constantly conducted to

concerned with how he ran the country than

gauge the effectiveness and public perception

with his personal life. Further, many people

of those in office. Ironically, during the

voiced issues with ongoing Republican attacks

impeachment process, Bill’s approval ratings

that had crossed the line into mean-spirited

were near 70 percent in public opinion polls,

attempts to further the Republican agenda.

which was an all-time high. Most people had

Hillary’s ratings were even higher than

a low opinion of his character and honesty, but

Bill’s, due in part to the dignity with which

most gave him high marks for performance.

she conducted herself in the face of her

The American public seemed much more

personal trials.

3

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“Listen, this guy loved being President. He even loved being President when it was tough. A lot of times I would say, ‘How does he smile? How does he keep laughing? How does he keep going through this?’ But it was because he got the energy back from the people. Whatever you think of the man, he wanted to do the right thing for the people of his county, his state, his country, and that never changed about him.”5

As Bill emerged wounded and tired from the impeachment crisis, Hillary announced in 1999 it was time for her to forge her own path. She stated, “I want independence. I want to be judged on my own merits. Now for the first time I am making my own decisions.”4 It was then Hillary announced she would run for a US Senate seat in New York. After all those years of standing by Bill, through the wild ups and downs, it was Hillary’s turn to make her own dreams.

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—Words of one of Bill Clinton’s friends, after he left office

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Hillary remained married to Bill despite his affairs and the scandals.

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CHAPTER 7

BIG

CHANGES When Hillary announced she would take part in the 2000 Senate race, it marked a new beginning for her. She began her campaign in New York with a return to her roots, what had guided her philosophically at Wellesley and Yale—starting with a listening tour of New York. She wanted to know what people cared about and struggled with. She walked a bipartisan line. She was open to different perspectives and avoided criticizing her opposition. She took office as a New York senator the

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same month Bill’s second term as president ended, January 2001.

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Hillary announced her intention to run for the Senate on February 6, 2000, while she was still First Lady.

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Senator Clinton “For 20 years we’ve gone where I wanted to go and done what I wanted to do, and I’ll give you the next 20 years. And if I’m still alive after that, we’ll fight over the rest.”1

—Bill Clinton, reflecting on Hillary’s decision to run for the Senate

In the Senate, Hillary pursued her own political career. She knew she had earned the Senate seat in part because of her celebrity as First Lady, but she also astutely understood she could not act like a celebrity. Instead, Hillary became well known for reaching across the aisle to foster friendships with Republicans, creating bridges between the two parties on certain issues. Hillary even worked with

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CARPETBAGGER? When Hillary declared in 1999 she would run

DC. Without any clear roots, she and her

for the New York Senate seat, some people

staff considered which states would be of the

called her a carpetbagger—a politician running

greatest value to her political career, and New

for office in an area to which he or she has

York emerged as the front-runner. Still, Hillary

no connection. Yet when Hillary contemplated

had never lived in New York or worked or paid

running for Senate in the first place, the first

taxes there, so her opponents called her a

question was, where? She had grown up in

carpetbagger. Nonetheless, Hillary won over

Illinois and moved to Massachusetts for college

voters in New York and became that state’s

and Connecticut for law school. She’d also

first female senator.

lived in Arkansas, California, and Washington,

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politicians who had been her husband’s foes while in the White House. A conservative senator from South Carolina remarked, “Her high-profile status, combined with a reputation as smart, prepared, serious senator, creates real influence.”2 Hillary began her Senate career by working with Democrats and Republicans alike to forge positive changes for the American people in education, health, and the environment. Then, on September 11, 2001, everything changed. Foreign suicide attackers who were soon linked to al-Qaeda hijacked and crashed four airplanes, hitting the Pentagon in Washington, DC, both towers of the World Trade Center in New York, and a field in Pennsylvania, when heroic passengers prevented that plane from hitting a more strategic target. In the months after the terrorist attacks, Hillary became much more visible on issues of national security and foreign policy. She backed the invasion of Afghanistan, which aimed to capture al-Qaeda leaders, and she also supported the Patriot Act, which broadened the powers of law enforcement

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agencies to bring terrorists to justice. Civil libertarians complained the new law invaded the privacy of innocent people by permitting wiretaps and searches without warrants. Then, in 2002, Hillary supported President George W. Bush’s

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“That September morning changed me and what I had to do as a senator, a New Yorker, and an American.”3

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decision to attack Iraq, although she later criticized the president’s handling of it and was criticized herself for her vote—an issue that would profoundly affect the trajectory of her political career. Following the September 11 attacks, Hillary worked to secure funding for the redevelopment of the World Trade Center site in New York City. She also took note of the health issues facing the first responders from that day and led an initiative to investigate those issues. Hillary easily won reelection as senator in 2006. She continued her bipartisan work with Republicans, and she also made veterans’ issues part of her focus, earning her increased national respect. At the same time, incumbent George W. Bush’s second term as president was nearing an end. Hillary

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was a strong front-runner for the Democratic nomination. She had the experience. She’d supported her husband all those years. It was

Bill campaigned with Hillary as she ran for reelection to the Senate.

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her time, so she thought. On January 20, 2007, Hillary announced she would run for president of the United States in the 2008 campaign.

Bill the Civilian During the time Hillary served in the Senate, the Clintons mostly lived apart—she in a home in Washington where she could carry out her duties in Congress, and he in a home in New York. Before the end of his presidency, Bill had given serious consideration to how he should live his post-presidential life. At the age of 54, he believed he still had much work to do, yet running for another office seemed unrealistic considering Hillary’s growing career. With few dynamic former presidential role models, Bill ultimately looked to the life of Jimmy Carter. Bill admired the efforts of the Carter Center and its humanitarian work promoting human rights. As Bill imagined his life as a private citizen who could still make a difference in the world, his vision emerged. He wanted to establish “a nongovernmental organization that could leverage the unique capacities of governments, partner Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

organizations, and other individuals to address rising inequalities and deliver tangible results that improve people’s lives.”4 Thus, in 2001, he established the William J. Clinton Foundation. One of the foundation’s first initiatives was to address the HIV/ AIDS epidemic worldwide. Goals were to improve access to care and necessary medications for patients and also to strengthen health-care systems as a whole.

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Since its inception, the Clinton Foundation had addressed issues including climate change, ending childhood obesity, promoting sustainable economic growth in Africa and South America, offering both short- and long-term assistance in Haiti following the 2010 earthquake, and more. In 2005, Bill established the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI). After a lifetime of meetings with world leaders that resulted in little tangible action, Bill hoped to convince leaders to commit to taking real action to improve the lives of individuals around the world. He hoped a nongovernmental organization (NGO) could achieve better results than were usually achieved through the formal diplomatic channels.

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CLINTON HEALTH ACCESS INITIATIVE In 2002, HIV/AIDS was at a crisis level in the

improve markets for lifesaving medicines and

developing world. Not only that, but most

diagnostics, lower the costs of treatments, and

people in those countries were too poor to

expand access to life-saving technologies.”

access proper health care, or the care was

The goal is to create a sustainable health-care

nonexistent. In his retirement, Bill began the

system. Due to the efforts of CHAI, 9.9 million

Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative to address the issue.

people in developing countries around the world

Later renamed the Clinton Health Access

now have access to quality treatment for HIV

Initiative (CHAI), the organization works with

and AIDS.5

leaders in these developing countries “to

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Chelsea Grows Up When her father left the Oval Office and

BILL’S HEART

her mother entered the Senate, Chelsea

In 2004, Bill began experiencing chest

was already a young woman. True to

pains. Doctors soon discovered four of

their 1993 campaign promise, Bill and

and a heart attack was imminent. Thus, in

Hillary had shielded their daughter from

September 2004, he underwent emergency

the press and public scrutiny. Although

heart bypass surgery. The quadruple

she had been in the public eye from the

bypass procedure created detours around the clogged arteries using vessels from

day she was born, the world knew very

other parts of his body. Bill recovered and

little about her. What is known is that

was doing well until 2010, when he began

the Clintons tried exceptionally hard not only to be active participants in their

experiencing chest pain again. One of the arteries from his operation in 2004 was clogged again, a condition not uncommon

daughter’s life but also to make her life

in bypass patients. Bill underwent another

as normal as possible. They ate dinner

heart procedure in February. During that

together almost every night, helped her Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

his major arteries were partially blocked,

surgery, doctors inserted a stent, or a mesh metal tube, into the artery to prop it

with her homework, and vacationed

open. Doctors said the former president’s

together as a family.

prognosis for an active, healthy lifestyle was good.

In 1997, while the Clintons still lived in the White House, Chelsea chose not

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to follow her parents’ footsteps and enroll at Yale. Instead, she started her college education at Stanford University in Stanford, California, as a premed student, but eventually changed her major to history. Her thesis was on the Northern Ireland peace process her father helped broker. After graduating, she went to Oxford University in England as her father had. There she worked toward a master’s degree in international relations. Upon graduating in 2003, Chelsea returned to the United States and immediately took a job with a consulting firm in New York City, advising businesses on both financial and health care related matters. This was followed by a stint on Wall Street with an investing group that specializes in investing in companies facing bankruptcy. Then Chelsea took a position as a special correspondent with NBC News, and eventually joined her parents at the Clinton Foundation as vice chair in 2014. At the beginning of the new millennium, the three Clintons were all following their

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own paths. Yet family ties remained important.

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Chelsea graduated from Stanford University in 2001.

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CHAPTER 8

SECRETARY

CLINTON When Hillary announced in early 2007 she would run for president, she was the clear front-runner. There were few other potential Democratic candidates with the experience and national name recognition she had. Not only that, the Republican incumbent George W. Bush was losing ground with the American people due to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Although Bush was finishing his second term and could not run, his unpopularity rubbed off on other Republicans. Realizing the dream of

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becoming the first female president of the United States seemed within Hillary’s reach. Yet Hillary’s Senate vote to support the Iraq War (2003–2011) back in 2002 had not been forgotten by the American people. Not only that,

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Hillary hoped to become the first female president in 2008.

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a youthful African-American senator from Illinois who had been a staunch opponent of the war emerged as another Democratic candidate. His name was Barack Obama. Obama represented a new generation,

CHELSEA CLINTON, CAMPAIGNER As a young woman in her 20s, Chelsea sought her place in the world in the first decade of the 2000s. Yet when her mom ran for president in 2008, Chelsea took time off from career searching to help

of hope and change. Hillary’s campaign staff scrambled to reinforce her platform, built on experience and a lifetime of accomplishments. As the Democratic primary elections

her mother campaign. Chelsea attended

began, it became apparent Obama was

400 events in 40 states during that time,

a direct and potent threat to Hillary’s

helping younger voters connect with her mother (who was 60 at the time). 2 It was

candidacy. Every time she was down, she

also during that time Chelsea began to

fought on, and she ultimately collected

understand the impact her voice and

almost 18 million votes.1 The race to win

ideas could have on the world. She began

the Democratic presidential nomination

wondering how she could use that voice to Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

and his campaign rested on the values

advocate for issues she cared about. The

lasted 17 months. In the end, however,

next step for Chelsea, then, was figuring out

Hillary recognized the presidency would

how to use her voice and her platform to

not be hers, at least in 2008. Thus,

the best ends.

on June 7, 2008, she conceded the

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Democratic nomination to Obama. It was a devastating blow, but certainly not an end to her political career. After her loss in the Democratic primaries to Obama, Hillary was hurt and discouraged. Yet after Obama went on to win the 2008 election, he approached her about becoming his secretary of state, heading the State Department and foreign affairs. Hillary was interested in and qualified for the position, and it was also a key political stepping-stone should she decide to run for president again. Thus on January 21, 2009, Hillary became the sixty-seventh secretary of state.

Effecting Change In previous years, the United States’ diplomatic reputation had been damaged internationally because of the Iraq War. Thus one of Hillary’s most pressing goals was to repair the country’s image and reestablish the United States’ role and presence on the world stage. To that end, as secretary of state, she visited 112 countries and

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traveled almost one million miles (1.6 million km).3 President Obama guided most of Hillary’s actions, as is the case in all presidencies. Nonetheless, many of Hillary’s actions are well regarded: improving diplomatic relations with Russia, imposing sanctions on Iran to pressure the country

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Hillary used her position as Obama’s secretary of state to effect change in ways she could not as First Lady or as a senator.

to stop nuclear arms research, standing firm against China’s attempts to expand its

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territory, and fighting against terrorism. In addition to traditional diplomatic relations, Hillary built relationships with nongovernmental agencies to address issues of concern to her, such as the rights of women and children, and also to promote development and security. The previous Bush administration had believed this type of collaboration weakened US influence,

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but as secretary, Hillary found Democrats and Republicans alike believed this type of cooperation was effective. Hillary unveiled the Global Hunger and Food Security program, as well as dozens of other programs dedicated to women’s rights and global health. Another tool Hillary employed to help rebuild diplomatic relations and

FEED THE FUTURE

power was social media. In the past, US

Throughout her life, Hillary has been

ambassadors overseas sent reports back

focused on humanitarian issues, including

to Washington in secret in the middle of

global hunger. Hillary understands that

the night. Hillary, however, understood

of itself, with 800 million people facing

the power of social media and instead

chronic hunger in 2015, but that it impedes

encouraged ambassadors under her to

economic development and threatens the

use Twitter and Facebook. She said,

stability of governments.5 As secretary of state, Hillary created the Feed the

“We are in the age of participation,

Future initiative to better organize US

and the challenge . . . is to figure out

efforts to combat hunger and poverty. In

how to be responsive, to help catalyze, Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

not only is hunger an urgent issue in and

unleash, channel the kind of participatory

a partnership with many nongovernmental agencies, leaders, and other individuals, it generated a sustainable, comprehensive

eagerness that is there.” Due to her push

approach focusing on the science,

for the use of technology, not only did

technology, and research of agriculture to

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empower farmers to feed their own families and communities.

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A 2010 visit to South Korea was just one of many trips abroad Hillary took while serving as secretary of state.

diplomats receive extra computer and social media training, but Hillary earned the Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

nickname “TechnoMom” from Chelsea.6

Benghazi During Hillary’s tenure as secretary of state, tensions in the Middle East exploded into the Arab Spring uprisings in late 2010 and 2011, which featured a series of

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antigovernment revolts in Arab countries in North Africa and the Middle East. During these uprisings, Libyan dictator Mu‘ammar al-Gaddhafi threatened to kill those who had revolted again him. In response, led by the United States, the UN authorized attacks on Gaddhafi’s forces. Hillary’s diplomacy also included covertly assisting the Libyan rebels and helping them restore telecommunications in an effort to oust Gaddhafi once and for all. Still concerned about a counterattack, Hillary gathered numerous foreign diplomats and voiced her concern over the situation in Libya. As a result, attacks against Gaddhafi’s forces continued and support for rebel leadership increased.

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TECHNOMOM

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A photo taken of Hillary aboard a military flight

FLOTUS [First Lady of the United States], US

in October 2011 went viral online and helped

Senator, SecState, author, dog owner, hair

transform her image. The photo, titled “Texts

icon, pantsuit aficionado, glass ceiling cracker,

from Hillary,” features the secretary seated,

TBD . . .”7 Within 24 hours she had more than

wearing dark glasses, and working on her

360,000 followers. Hillary’s embrace of social

Blackberry. She looks very hip. Understanding

media was a savvy move not only because it

the power of a digital presence, she signed

allows her to connect with younger voters but

up for a Twitter account on June 10, 2013.

also because it shows her as a real, humorous

Her bio reads, “Wife, mom, lawyer, women &

person who can make fun of herself.

kids advocate, FLOAR [First Lady of Arkansas],

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Yet on September 11, 2012, Islamic militants stormed two US buildings in Benghazi, Libya. Four Americans were killed in the terrorist attack, including the US ambassador Chris Stevens. Hillary was immediately criticized for not having provided the right training and security for Americans in Libya prior to the attack; for her lack of availability and communication during the attack; and for the slow US response. Republicans blamed her for incompetence and later for a cover-up of the events surrounding the attack.

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Hillary was called to testify on January 23,

“I am proud of my mom for many, many reasons, but one of the reasons that I’m chiefly proud of her is the legacy that she will leave as secretary of state. That women’s voices won’t only be a vital part of how America is seen around the world, but a central part of how we . . . try to build a better world.”9

2013, regarding the events of the Benghazi attack. Republicans suggested she had attempted to cover up the events in September 2012. During her testimony, Republicans continued confronting Hillary, and at one point she responded forcefully, saying, “I will do my best to answer your questions about this, but the fact is people were trying their best in real time to get the best information.”8 Journalists judged the hearings to be anticlimactic, noting little new information was revealed.

—Chelsea Clinton

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While her testimony was heralded by some as forceful, humble, and smart, the Benghazi attacks nonetheless cast a shadow on Hillary’s political record. Yet as she stepped down from her position on February 1, 2013, Hillary left the office having proven herself on the international stage and earned the respect of many Democrats and Republicans.

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Hillary testified about her department’s actions before and after the Benghazi attacks, defending herself and the State Department.

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E-mail Scandal THE PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the nation’s highest civilian honor. It was

of Hillary’s key strategies to bolster US standing and diplomacy abroad, it later turned into another mark against

established by President John F. Kennedy

her reputation. In early 2015, the New

to honor individuals who make large

York Times broke the story that Hillary,

contributions to the country, peace, culture,

while serving as secretary of state, had

or the world. On November 20, 2013, President Obama bestowed the honor on

used a private e-mail account instead

former president Bill Clinton. He received

of her government-issued one. When

the honor for his work around the world

questioned, Hillary stated it was a matter

through the Clinton Foundation and for the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund he established

of convenience, so she wouldn’t need a

with President George W. Bush in the

phone for personal matters and another

wake of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. At the

for government affairs. She also added

ceremony, Obama said, “These are the men and women who in their extraordinary Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

While the use of technology was one

that the private server located at her

lives remind us all of the beauty of the

New York home was entirely secure

human spirit, the values that define us as

and the home was protected by the

Americans, the potential that lives inside of

Secret Service.

all of us.”10

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A BIG WEDDING Chelsea met Marc Mezvinsky, the son of two

down the aisle while more than 400 friends

politicians, at a political retreat their parents

and family members looked on. Security in the

attended in the 1990s when she was a child.

area was at the highest level. The news media

For a time, Chelsea and Marc were just good

was also kept away, but the Clinton family

friends, but their friendship later evolved into

released a statement: “We could not have

a romantic relationship. Their wedding, which

asked for a more perfect day to celebrate the

took place on July 31, 2010, was dubbed

beginning of their life together, and we are so

America’s Royal Wedding. At their wedding, in

happy to welcome Marc into our family.”12

Rhinebeck, New York, Bill walked his daughter

When the story broke, Hillary was ordered to produce the personal server and her e-mails from her time as secretary of state. Yet before turning over anything, she deleted almost 32,000 e-mails, claiming they were personal. She released 55,000 pages of e-mails she claimed were related to work, but she refused to relinquish her personal server at that time. In her defense, Hillary stated, “I fully complied with every rule that I was governed by.”11 Regardless, her actions made it look as though

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she was hiding something. The government’s greatest concern was that e-mails with classified information had been handled improperly. As questions continued, Hillary turned over her personal e-mail server to investigators in August. Hillary’s campaign continued, with an apology to the American people for mishandling her e-mail.

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CHAPTER 9

THE CLINTON

LEGACY Beginning in Arkansas in the 1970s, the Clintons have built their name into a political dynasty and a brand with international recognition. Bill’s tenure as Arkansas’s governor is well regarded in that state. He is recognized for making major positive changes, particularly in education and health care. As president, his legacy is mixed. In foreign affairs he had successes, such as in Europe and economic globalization, but also failures, including the disaster in Rwanda. Bill’s presidency was

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also surrounded by scandal and hedging, and he even had to endure the humiliation of impeachment. Yet he emerged from all of it with high approval ratings. And no matter what people thought about him, the federal deficit was eliminated during his terms.

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The Clintons’ foundations and nongovernmental organizations are one aspect of their legacy.

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Hillary’s effectiveness as both a senator and the secretary of state is notable. She leaves behind a reputation for bipartisan effort and advocacy for numerous humanitarian efforts. Most important, the work of the Clintons isn’t done.

The Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation The Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation, started in 2001 by Bill and originally named the William J. Clinton Foundation, is not a traditional foundation through which a family’s personal wealth is distributed. Instead, the Clintons solicit donations and grants to fund their various philanthropic projects around the world. The organization has numerous divisions that each focus on a different cause, including climate change, economic development, improvements in global health and health care, infant and toddler health, advocacy for women and girls, rebuilding infrastructure in

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Haiti, and more.

“I’ve always been aware of both how extraordinarily normal and how extraordinarily extraordinary my life has been.”1

—Chelsea Clinton, in a rare interview, August 2012

In 2014, Chelsea joined the team as vice chair. After years of career experimentation, she decided the foundation was the best platform for her to enact change for causes she deeply cared about. Her initial job was using her data analysis skills to organize the foundation, which operated in 36 countries with little collaboration between the

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Chelsea carries on her parents’ spirit of activism; representing the Clinton Foundation, she helps children volunteers prepare free medical kits for developing countries.

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different initiatives. The goal was to create a data-driven, sustainable organization that would continue to promote positive changes around the world for years to come. Among other things, Chelsea consolidated the three separate New York offices into one and created a coordinator position to better connect the different aspects of the foundation. In this regard, Chelsea is like her mother, pragmatic and effective, the

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perfect balance to Bill’s big dreams and charisma that got the foundation started in the first place. In 2015, Chelsea continued another family tradition, releasing a children’s book, It’s Your World: Get Informed, Get Inspired & Get Going! The book aims to inspire readers to get involved in fixing global issues.

CGI The Clinton Global Initiative was the result of Bill’s dream to convene world leaders in an effort to effect real change. Participants tackle world problems and include leaders of corporations, nongovernmental organizations, and nonprofits, as well as some government officials. Members gather yearly in Manhattan, New York, for a three-day conference. Bill uses his gift for connecting with people to make things happen. As one consultant said, “He gets the CEO of Coca-Cola in the room and says, ‘You can help distribute medicine in Tanzania.’ Everybody does it because everyone does what Bill Clinton says. It’s like he has this magic wand.”2 As of 2014, the organization had generated $103 billion in pledges to fund 2,800 projects

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worldwide.3 Chelsea has gotten involved with CGI as well, most notably beginning an assessment of the 2,800 commitments to determine which are most effective. Through ongoing collaboration, members can use actual data to see what is working and what is not to guide future projects.

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During her break from public office, Hillary also supported CGI’s efforts. Specifically, in 2014 she announced the Collaborative for Harnessing Ambition and Resources for Girls’ Education (CHARGE). In conjunction with 30 partners from around the world, the goal of CHARGE is to use “$600 million to reach 14 million girls around the world over five years.”4 The new initiative comes with the growing recognition that education and

In 2014, the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation launched the No Ceilings project. The project, led in part by Chelsea,

empowerment for girls and women are

will track and foster the progress of

powerful tools for change. CHARGE’s

women and girls around the globe. Despite

goals include keeping girls in school, keeping them safe in school, improving

advancements made toward women’s rights, there are still high barriers keeping women and girls from “equal access,

their quality of education, providing safe

representation, and compensation in our

travel to and from school, and supporting

communities and around the world.”5

leaders who are working to fulfill these goals. Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

NO CEILINGS

The initiative will bring together global partners to evaluate the progress of women and assess the challenges that remain. The ultimate goal is to have the

Ready for Hillary

full participation of women and girls in

After leaving her position as secretary of

and control over the direction their

state, Hillary kept one foot in the political

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education, leadership, business ownership, lives take.

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door. Whether Hillary would run for president again was a matter of great speculation, beginning in 2008 after her primary loss to Obama. At the beginning of 2015, the speculation continued. At last, on April 12, 2015, Hillary officially announced her candidacy. In a video released on social media that afternoon, Hillary said, “Everyday Americans need a champion. And I want to be that champion.”6 Notably, the video Hillary released features Americans from all walks of life getting ready to make changes in 2015. It includes a young child ready to perform as a fish in a play; an Asian-American college student on a job hunt; a gay couple preparing to get married; an African-American couple awaiting the birth of their baby boy; a woman about to retire; and more. When Hillary finally appears in Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

the video, she says, “I’m getting ready to do something, too. I’m running for President.”7 Of the many issues Hillary is expected to

Campaign posters pronounce voters “Ready for Hillary.”

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target in her campaign, women and families will be at the forefront, including equal pay for women, a higher minimum wage, paid family and medical leave, and access to affordable childcare. As Hillary enters the 2016 presidential race, she does so with universal name recognition, something that could both

Hillary’s Methodist faith has played a large role in her humanitarian efforts as a

help and hurt her. She also has millions

public and a private citizen. As a child, she

of supporters, especially among women.

attended church regularly; Hillary later was

Political experts believe Chelsea will play a key role in the 2016 campaign, and they

an active participant in her youth group, under the influential leader Don Jones. He opened Hillary’s eyes to the social

talk about the “invisible hand of Chelsea”

revolution of the 1960s, and he called for

playing a part in all major decisions just

youth to practice faith in action through

as she does now in strategic decisions at

social service. In college, Hillary continued to let her faith guide her actions. Then,

the foundation. In the campaign, Chelsea

once in politics, she addressed and tackled

is expected to work behind the scenes as

numerous social issues both in the United

8

Hillary’s senior adviser, while also proving Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

HILLARY’S FAITH

States and abroad. Hillary also relies on her faith for guidance and for strength. Her

key in appealing to younger voters. Bill will

faith allows her to keep going “even when

likely have a role in the 2016 campaign

the odds are long, even when we are tired

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and just want to go away somewhere to be alone and rest, let’s make it happen.”9

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as well, as he is famously effective when talking to larger crowds just as he did for Obama in the 2012 campaign. Whether Hillary makes it back to the White House is up to the voters. At the same time Hillary was gearing up her campaign, Chelsea was asked if she would enter politics herself one day. In years past, her answer was a forceful no, but her answer to that question this time was not quite as forceful as it once was. Though she hasn’t said yes, the country may see yet another Clinton on a ballot in the coming

CHARLOTTE CLINTON MEZVINSKY

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After Chelsea married her longtime friend

Ironically, this baby bundle may be a game

Marc Mezvinsky in 2010, Hillary was not shy

changer for Hillary as she enters the 2016

about hints, both in private and in public,

presidential race. Hillary as a grandmother

about wanting to be a grandma. Chelsea joked

softens her image, and the title “grandmother”

that her mom was completely “unapologetic”

will help her to connect with voters. Likewise,

about wanting to add “grandma” to her list of

Charlotte is an inspiration for Hillary to

titles.

continue pushing forward policies that will help

10

At the same time, Chelsea and Marc

hoped 2014 would be the year of the baby. It

all children and all families.

was. On September 26, 2014, Charlotte Clinton Mezvinsky entered the world.

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years, even after the 2016 elections. And on September 26, 2014, Chelsea and Marc’s daughter, representing a whole new generation of Clintons, was born. The Clinton family seems likely to continue influencing American politics and society into the future.

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Three generations of Clintons: Marc Mezvinsky and Chelsea with daughter, Charlotte, and proud grandparents Bill and Hillary.

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TIMELINE

1946

1993

William Jefferson Clinton is born on

Bill’s budget plan is passed and signed

August 19.

on August 10; on December 8, Bill signs the North American Free Trade Agreement

1947

(NAFTA), eliminating most trade barriers

Hillary Rodham is born on October 26.

Mexico. 

1975

1994

Bill and Hillary marry.

Paula Jones accuses Bill of sexual

between the United States, Canada, and

harassment.

1978 Bill wins the race for governor in Arkansas.

1995 In November and December, Bill and

1980

Congress are locked in a standoff over how

The Clintons’ only child, Chelsea, is born on

the deficit.

to balance the federal budget and reduce

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February 27.

1992 Bill wins the presidential election on

1996 Bill wins reelection on November 5 and goes on to serve a second term as president.

November 3 to become the forty-second president of the United States.

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1998

2007

Reports of an affair between the president

Hillary announces she will run for president

and a woman named Monica Lewinsky go

in the 2008 elections, but she loses in the

public in January; on December 19, the House

Democratic primary to Barack Obama.

of Representatives votes to impeach Bill on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice in the Monica Lewinsky case.

2009 Hillary is sworn in as President Obama’s

1999

secretary of state on January 21.

On February 12, the Senate acquits Bill and he

2010

is not removed from office.

Chelsea marries longtime boyfriend Marc

2001

Mezvinsky in a large, private ceremony on July 31.

Hillary begins her first term as a senator from New York in January, the same month Bill’s second term as president ends; Bill establishes

2013

the William J. Clinton Foundation, which is later

Hillary steps down as secretary of state on

renamed the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton

February 1.

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Foundation.

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2015 On April 12, Hillary announces she will run for president again, in the 2016 election.

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FUN FACTS

• Hillary was a Republican until 1968, describing herself as a “mind conservative and a heart liberal.”1

• At the age of 14, Hillary announced she wanted to be an astronaut.

• Bill and Hillary were known for being habitually late, much to the frustration of their staff.

• Hillary was the first First Lady elected to the Senate, and the first female senator from Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

New York.

• Hillary is also the first First Lady to hold a law degree.

• As First Lady, Hillary traveled to more foreign countries than any other First Lady up to that time.

• Chelsea is a vegetarian. • Chelsea’s name is from the popular 1960s song “Chelsea Morning” by Joni Mitchell.

• When he was president, Bill loved doing crossword puzzles.

• When Bill got his dog, Buddy, during his second term in office, the joke was that he wanted one loyal friend in Washington.

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• Bill said, “When I took office, only

• Since undergoing heart surgery in

high energy physicists had ever

2010, Bill has drastically changed

heard of what is called the World

his lifestyle, adopting a vegan diet

Wide Web. . . . Now even my cat

and losing more than 30 pounds

has its own page.”2

in an effort to win his longtime

• In the last 24 hours of the 1992

struggle with heart disease.

presidential campaign, Bill appeared in nine states and spoke until he lost his voice.

• Chelsea arrived at Stanford University in a motorcade with her parents, Secret Service, and 250

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journalists.

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GLOSSARY

ambassador

defamation

A government official who represents his or her country while living in a foreign country.

The act of damaging someone’s reputation through false statements or accusations.

bipartisan

diplomat

Relating to or involving the cooperation of two political parties that generally oppose one another.

One who represents his or her country’s government in a foreign country in an effort to maintain good relations between the two countries.

cabinet A group of presidential advisers.

centrist One whose political beliefs are moderate, falling toward the middle of the political spectrum between Democrats and Republicans.

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conservative One who believes in established, traditional values in politics, marked by moderation and caution, and resistance to change.

entitlement The belief that one has a right to do or have something, simply based on status.

ethnic cleansing The mass removal or killing of people who belong to an ethnic group different from the ruling group in a country or region.

extramarital affair A romantic relationship with someone outside of one’s marriage.

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humanitarian

primary

One who is dedicated to promoting human welfare and social reform.

An election within one political party to determine who will run in a larger, more important election against opposing party candidates.

incumbent An official currently in office.

initiative A plan or program launched to address certain issues or problems.

liberal One who is open to new ideas and ways of thinking, and who believes the government should be active in supporting social and political change.

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nongovernmental organization (NGO) A nonprofit, voluntary citizen’s group formed around a common interest that is not part of any government or for-profit business.

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recession A period of time during which the economy slows down, including a decline in trade and industrial activity and the loss of jobs.

sanction An action or order given by one country to force another country to obey international laws; actions include limiting or stopping trade, or suspending economic aid.

tariff A tax paid on the import or export of goods.

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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY Chafe, William H. Bill and Hillary: The Politics of the Personal. New York: Farrar, 2012. Print. Clinton. Directed by Barak Goodman. PBS, 2012. DVD. Koepp, Stephen, and Michael Duffy, eds. Hillary: An American Life. New York: Time, 2014. Print.

FURTHER READINGS Burgan, Michael. Hillary Clinton. New York: Raintree, 2014. Print. The American Presidency. Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica, 2010. Print.

WEBSITES

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To learn more about America’s Great Political Families, visit booklinks.abdopublishing.com. These links are routinely monitored and updated to provide the most current information available.

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PLACES TO VISIT THE WHITE HOUSE 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20500 https://www.whitehouse.gov The White House is the president’s residence. It holds significant collections of art and has been a key witness to American history. Every president has lived in the White House since John Adams moved in in 1800. The White House welcomes the public to tour for free. Tours must be arranged in advance through a member of Congress. Or take a virtual tour through the White House website.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY & MUSEUM 1200 President Clinton Ave. Little Rock, AR 72201 501-374-4242

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www.clintonlibrary.gov The William J. Clinton Presidential Library features museum exhibits and educational programs about Clinton’s presidency, as well as housing his papers and archive collections.

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SOURCE NOTES

CHAPTER 1. OPPORTUNITY, RESPONSIBILITY, COMMUNITY

CHAPTER 2. ROOTS OF A POLITICAL LEGACY

1. Bill Clinton. “Announcement Speech.” 4President.org. 4President Corporation, 3 Oct. 1991. Web. 14 July 2015.

1. Clinton. Directed by Barak Goodman. PBS, 2012. DVD.

2. Ibid. 3. William H. Chafe. Bill and Hillary—The Politics of the Personal. New York: Farrar, 2012. Print. 137.

2. William H. Chafe. Bill and Hillary—The Politics of the Personal. New York: Farrar, 2012. Print. 42. 3. Ibid. 40. 4. Ibid. 40–46.

4. Gail Sheehy. “What Hillary Wants.” VF News. Condé Nast, May 1992. Web. 14 July 2015.

5. “The Class of ’69.” Life. 20 June 1969. 30. Google Book Search. Web. 14 July 2015.

5. “In 1992, Clinton Conceded Marital ‘Wrongdoing’,” Washington Post. Washington Post, 26 Jan. 1992. Web. 14 July 2015.

6. William H. Chafe. Bill and Hillary—The Politics of the Personal. New York: Farrar, 2012. Print. 65.

6. Clinton. Directed by Barak Goodman. PBS, 2012. DVD. 7. William H. Chafe. Bill and Hillary—The Politics of the Personal. New York: Farrar, 2012. Print. 135. 8. Clinton. Directed by Barak Goodman. PBS, 2012. DVD.

7. Ibid. 68–69. 8. Ibid. 65–67. 9. Ibid. 70–71. 10. Clinton. Directed by Barak Goodman. PBS, 2012. DVD.

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9. William H. Chafe. Bill and Hillary—The Politics of the Personal. New York: Farrar, 2012. Print. 152–153. 10. Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley. “Election of 1992.” American Presidency Project. American Presidency Project, 2015. Web. 14 July 2015.

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CHAPTER 3. GOVERNOR CLINTON

CHAPTER 5. THE MIDDLE YEARS

1. William H. Chafe. Bill and Hillary—The Politics of the Personal. New York: Farrar, 2012. Print. 71.

1. Clinton. Directed by Barak Goodman. PBS, 2012. DVD.

2. Ibid. 99.

2. Ibid.

3. Ibid. 99.

3. Ibid.

4. Ibid. 102–103.

4. Ibid.

CHAPTER 4. A ROUGH START

6. Ibid.

1. “Bill Clinton: Domestic Affairs.” The Miller Center. University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 14 July 2015.

7. William H. Chafe. Bill and Hillary—The Politics of the Personal. New York: Farrar, 2012. Print. 260.

2. Clinton. Directed by Barak Goodman. PBS, 2012. DVD.

8. Leslie Larson. “Chelsea Clinton Says Parents Made Her Skip White House Parties to Do Homework.” Daily News. NYDailyNews.com, 17 Mar. 2014. Web. 14 July 2015.

3. Ibid. 4. “Bill Clinton: Foreign Affairs.” The Miller Center. University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 14 July 2015. 5. “Bill Clinton: Domestic Affairs.” The Miller Center. University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 14 July 2015.

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5. Ibid.

9. William H. Chafe. Bill and Hillary—The Politics of the Personal. New York: Farrar, 2012. Print. 263.

6. Tom Lansford. Historical Dictionary of US Diplomacy since the Cold War. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow, 2007. 255. Google Book Search. Web. 14 July 2015.

10. Liz Kreutz and Erin Dooley. “Hillary Clinton: 12 Moments That Define the Woman Who Wants to Be President.” ABC News. ABC News, 13 Apr. 2015. Web. 14 July 2015.

7. “Bill Clinton: Foreign Affairs.” The Miller Center. University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 14 July 2015.

11. Clinton. Directed by Barak Goodman. PBS, 2012. DVD.

8. William H. Chafe. Bill and Hillary—The Politics of the Personal. New York: Farrar, 2012. Print. 272.

12. Ibid.

9. “Bill Clinton: Domestic Affairs.” The Miller Center. University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 14 July 2015.

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SOURCE NOTES CONTINUED

CHAPTER 6. THE FINAL TERM

CHAPTER 8. SECRETARY CLINTON

1. Liz Kreutz and Erin Dooley. “Hillary Clinton: 12 Moments That Define the Woman Who Wants to Be President.” ABC News. ABC News, 13 Apr. 2015. Web. 14 July 2015.

1. Stephen Koepp and Michael Duffy, eds. Hillary: An American Life. New York: Time, 2014. Print. 68–74.

2. “Presidential Key Event—Bill Clinton.” The Miller Center. University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 14 July 2015. 3. Ibid. 4. “Hillary Clinton.” The Miller Center. University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 14 July 2015. 5. Clinton. Directed by Barak Goodman. PBS, 2012. DVD.

3. Stephen Koepp and Michael Duffy, eds. Hillary: An American Life. New York: Time, 2014. Print. 21. 4. Ibid. 85. 5. “Overview.” Feed the Future. US Government’s Global Hunger & Food Security Initiative, n.d. Web. 14 July 2015.

CHAPTER 7. BIG CHANGES

6. Stephen Koepp and Michael Duffy, eds. Hillary: An American Life. New York: Time, 2014. Print. 85.

1. Stephen Koepp and Michael Duffy, eds. Hillary: An American Life. New York: Time, 2014. Print. 56.

7. Jena McGregor. “Hillary Clinton Joins Twitter, Sounds Human.” Washington Post. Washington Post, 11 June 2013. Web. 14 July 2015.

2. Ibid. 57–59. 3. Ibid. 62. 4. “Clinton Foundation History.” Clinton Foundation. Clinton Foundation, n.d. Web. 14 July 2015. Copyright © 2015. ABDO Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

2. Danielle Sacks. “Chelsea Clinton Makes Her Move.” Fast Company. Fast Company & Inc, 14 Apr. 2014. Web. 14 July 2015.

5. “Clinton Health Access Initiative.” Clinton Foundation. Clinton Foundation, n.d. Web. 14 July 2015.

8. Daniel Halper. Clinton Inc.—The Audacious Rebuilding of a Political Machine. New York: Broadside, 2014. Print. 184–186. 9. Jonathan Van Meter. “Waiting in the Wings: An Exclusive Interview with Chelsea Clinton.” Vogue. Vogue, 13 Aug. 2012. Web. 14 July 2015. 10. Megan Slack. “President Obama Honors Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients.” The White House Blog. The White House, 20 Nov. 2013. Web. 14 July 2015.

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11. Stephan Dinan. “Hillary Clinton Deleted 32,000 ‘Private’ Emails, Refuses to Turn Over Server.” Washington Times. Washington Times, 10 Mar. 2015. Web. 14 July 2015. 12. Jessica Rinaldi. “Chelsea Clinton Marries in ‘Royal Wedding.’” Reuters. Thomson Reuters, 1 Aug. 2010. Web. 14 July 2015.

CHAPTER 9. THE CLINTON LEGACY 1. Jonathan Van Meter. “Waiting in the Wings: An Exclusive Interview with Chelsea Clinton.” Vogue. Vogue, 13 Aug. 2012. Web. 14 July 2015.

9. Stephen Koepp and Michael Duffy, eds. Hillary: An American Life. New York: Time, 2014. Print. 94–98. 10. Dan Merica. “Chelsea Clinton Gives Birth to a Daughter.” CNN. Cable News Network, 27 Sept. 2014. Web. 14 July 2015.

FUN FACTS 1. Jung Hwa Song. “Get to Know Hillary Clinton.” ABC News. ABC News, 6 Dec. 2007. Web. 14 July 2015. 2. “Socks the Cat.” Presidential Pet Museum. Presidential Pet Museum, 21 July 2013. Web. 14 July 2015.

2. Danielle Sacks. “Chelsea Clinton Makes Her Move.” Fast Company. Fast Company & Inc, 14 Apr. 2014. Web. 14 July 2015. 3. Ibid. 4. “No Ceilings Announces CHARGE: Collaborative for Harnessing Ambition and Resources for Girls’ Education.” Clinton Foundation. Clinton Foundation, 14 Sept. 2014. Web. 14 July 2015.

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5. “No Ceilings: The Full Participation Project.” Clinton Foundation. Clinton Foundation, n.d. Web. 14 July 2015. 6. Amy Chozick. “Hillary Clinton Announces 2016 Presidential Bid.” New York Times. New York Times, 12 Apr. 2015. Web. 14 July 2015. 7. Ibid. 8. Rebekah Lowin. “What Role Will Chelsea Clinton Play in Mom’s Presidential Campaign?” TODAY News. NBC News, 13 Apr. 2015. Web. 14 July 2015.

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INDEX

al-Gaddhafi, Mu‘ammar. See Gaddhafi, Mu‘ammar alal-Qaeda, 60, 69

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Benghazi, Libya, attacks, 84–85 Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation, 90–92, 93 bin Laden, Osama, 60 Bosnia, 46–47 Buddy the dog, 60 Bush, George H. W., 6, 11–14, 34 Bush, George W., 69–70, 76, 80, 86 Carter, Jimmy, 71 Chicago, Illinois, 18, 19 Children’s Defense Fund, 22, 24–26 civil rights, 19, 21, 22 Clinton, Bill Arkansas governor, 4, 28–31, 42, 51, 58, 88 Arkansas state attorney general, 28 cabinet diversity, 43 centrist, 6, 46 childhood, 16–19 economic package, 1993, 37–39, 40 education, 19, 22, 23 extramarital affairs, 8, 9–11, 26, 28, 32, 56–59, 61

health, 73 impeachment, 61–64, 88 post-presidency career, 71–72, 90, 92 presidential campaign, 1992, 4–14, 34 presidential campaign, 1996, 27–28 Presidential Medal of Freedom, 86 US Congress campaign, 27–28 Clinton, Chelsea childhood, 13, 30, 32, 51, 73 education, 74 marriage, 87, 96 nonprofit work, 74, 90–92, 93 political campaigns, 78, 95–96 Clinton, Hillary Rodham childhood, 19–21 education, 74 e-mail scandal, 86–87 faith and religion, 18, 21, 95 First Lady role, 36–37, 42, 53 image, 27, 34–35, 63 New York senator, 66–70 presidential campaign, 2008, 71, 76–79 presidential campaign, 2016, 94–97 secretary of state, 79–85 social media, 81–82, 83

Clinton, Roger, 16–17 Clinton, Roger, Jr., 17 Clinton, Virginia, 16–17 Clinton Global Initiative, 72, 92–93 Clinton Health Access Initiative, 72 Clinton marriage, 4, 9, 27, 28, 32–33 Clinton partnership, 7–8, 24, 28, 32–33 Collaborative for Harnessing Ambition and Resources for Girls’ Education, 93 Dole, Robert, 54 Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, 41 family tree, 15 Fayetteville, Arkansas, 27–28 federal budget, 39, 48–49 federal deficit, 38, 40, 48, 88 Flowers, Gennifer, 8 Gaddhafi, Mu‘ammar al-, 83 General Agreement of Tariffs and Trade, 40 Georgetown University, 19 Gingrich, Newt, 48–49 Global Hunger and Food Security program, 81 government shutdown, 48–49, 56

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Haiti, 42–43, 72, 86, 90 health care, 12, 22, 36–37, 48, 51, 53, 71, 72, 74, 88, 90 Hope, Arkansas, 16 Iraq, 12, 42, 70, 76, 79 Jones, Paula, 42, 58–59, 61 Kosovo, 61 Lewinsky, Monica, 56–59, 61 Libya, 83–84 Little Rock, Arkansas, 6, 28, 32 Medicare and Medicaid, 48–49 Mezvinsky, Charlotte Clinton, 96, 97 Mezvinsky, Marc, 87, 96, 97 midterm elections, 1994, 43, 44–46

Obama, Barack, 78–79, 86, 94, 96 Oklahoma City bombing, 47 Oxford University, 19, 74 Patriot Act, 69 Perot, Ross, 12–14, 54 Reagan, Ronald, 6 recession, 12, 37 Rodham, Dorothy, 20 Rodham, Hugh, 20 Rwanda, 41–42, 46, 88

Tripp, Linda, 58–59 Watergate break-in, 26 welfare, 6, 50–53 Wellesley College, 21, 66 Whitewater scandal, 50 William J. Clinton Foundation, 71–72, 74, 77, 86, 90 women’s rights, 19, 21, 37, 53, 61, 80–81, 90, 93, 95 Yale Law School, 19, 22–23, 24, 66, 74

Serbia, 46–47, 61 social equity, 18, 19, 21, 22, 43 Socks the cat, 37, 60 Somalia, 40–41, 42 Stanford University, 74

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new Democrat, 6–7, 12, 52 No Ceilings project, 93 North American Free Trade Agreement, 40 North Atlantic Treaty Organization, 47, 61 Northern Ireland, 60, 74

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Laura Perdew is an author, writing consultant, and former middle school teacher. She writes fiction and nonfiction for children and has written numerous titles for the education market. She is also the author of Kids on the Move! Colorado, a guide to traveling through Colorado with children. Laura lives and plays in Boulder with her husband and twin boys.

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