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Many military events occurred during Clinton's presidency. The Battle of Mogadishu occurred in Somalia in 1993. During the operation, two U.S. helicopters were shot down by rocket-propelled grenade attacks to their tail rotors, trapping soldiers behind enemy lines. This resulted in an urban battle that killed 18 American soldiers, wounded 73 others, and one was taken prisoner. There were many more Somali casualties. Some of the American bodies were dragged through the streets – a spectacle broadcast on television news programs. In response, U.S. forces were withdrawn from Somalia and later conflicts were approached with fewer soldiers on the ground. In 1995, U.S. and NATO aircraft attacked Bosnian Serb targets to halt attacks on U.N. safe zones and to pressure them into a peace accord. Clinton deployed U.S. peacekeepers to Bosnia in late 1995, to uphold the subsequent Dayton Agreement. General John P. Jumper, U.S. Air Forces in Europe commander, escorts President William Jefferson Clinton upon his arrival to Ramstein Air Base, Germany, May 5, 1999. The president visited several European air bases to thank the troops (not shown) for their support of NATO Operations Allied Force and Shining Hope, 1999. Capturing Osama bin Laden had been an objective of the United States government from the presidency of Bill Clinton until bin Laden's death in 2011.[122] It was asserted by Mansoor Ijaz that in 1996 while the Clinton Administration had begun pursuit of the policy, the Sudanese government allegedly offered to arrest and extradite Bin Laden as well as to provide the United States detailed intelligence information about growing militant organizations in the region, including Hezbollah and Hamas,[123] and that U.S. authorities allegedly rejected each offer, despite knowing of bin Laden's involvement in bombings on American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.[123] However, the 9/11 Commission found that although "former Sudanese officials claim that Sudan offered to expel Bin Laden to the United States", "we have not found any reliable evidence to support the Sudanese claim."[124] In 1998, two years after the warning, the Clinton administration ordered several military missions to capture or kill bin Laden that failed.[125] In response to the 1998 Al-Qaeda bombings of U.S. embassies in East Africa that killed a dozen Americans and hundreds of Africans, Clinton ordered cruise missile strikes on terrorist targets in Afghanistan and Sudan. First was a Sudanese Pharmaceutical company suspected of assisting Osama Bin Laden in making chemical weapons. The second was Bin Laden's terrorist training camps in Afghanistan.[126] Clinton was subsequently criticized when it turned out that a pharmaceutical plant in Sudan (originally alleged to be a chemical warfare plant) had been destroyed. President Clinton greets Air Force personnel at Spangdahlem Air Base, May 5, 1999. To stop the ethnic cleansing and genocide[127][128] of Albanians by anti-guerilla military units in the former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia's province of Kosovo, Clinton authorized the use of U.S. Armed Forces in a NATO bombing campaign against Yugoslavia in 1999, named Operation Allied Force. General Wesley Clark was Supreme Allied Commander of NATO and oversaw the mission. With United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244, the bombing campaign ended on June 10, 1999. The resolution placed Kosovo under UN administration and authorized a peacekeeping force to be deployed to the region.[129] NATO announced that its forces had suffered zero combat deaths,[130] and two deaths from an Apache helicopter crash.[131] Opinions in the popular press criticized pre-war genocide statements by the Clinton administration as greatly exaggerated.[132][133] A U.N. Court ruled genocide did not take place, but recognized, "a systematic campaign of terror, including murders, rapes, arsons and severe maltreatments".[134] The term "ethnic cleansing" was used as an alternative to "genocide" to denote not just ethnically motivated murder but also displacement, though critics charge there is no difference.[135] Slobodan Milošević, the President of Yugoslavia at the time, was eventually charged with the "murders of about 600 individually identified ethnic Albanians" and "crimes against humanity."[136] In Clinton's 1998 State of the Union Address, he warned Congress of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's possible pursuit of nuclear weapons: Together we must also confront the new hazards of chemical and biological weapons, and the outlaw states, terrorists and organized criminals seeking to acquire them. Saddam Hussein has spent the better part of this decade, and much of his nation's wealth, not on providing for the Iraqi people, but on developing nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and the missiles to deliver them. The United Nations weapons inspectors have done a truly remarkable job, finding and destroying more of Iraq's arsenal than was destroyed during the entire gulf war. Now, Saddam Hussein wants to stop them from completing their mission. I know I speak for everyone in this chamber, Republicans and Democrats, when I say to Saddam Hussein, "You cannot defy the will of the world", and when I say to him, "You have used weapons of mass destruction before; we are determined to deny you the capacity to use them again.[137] Bill Clinton and Jiang Zemin holding a joint press conference at the White House, October 29, 1997 To weaken Saddam Hussein's grip of power, Clinton signed H.R. 4655 into law on October 31, 1998, which instituted a policy of "regime change" against Iraq, though it explicitly stated it did not provide for direct intervention on the part of American military forces.[138][139] The administration then launched a four-day bombing campaign named Operation Desert Fox, lasting from December 16 to 19, 1998. At the end of this operation Clinton announced that "So long as Saddam remains in power, he will remain a threat to his people, his region, and the world. With our allies, we must pursue a strategy to contain him and to constrain his weapons of mass destruction program, while working toward the day Iraq has a government willing to live at peace with its people and with its neighbors."[140] American and British aircraft in the Iraq no-fly zones attacked hostile Iraqi air defenses 166 times in 1999 and 78 times in 2000.[141][142] Clinton's November 2000 visit to Vietnam was the first by a U.S. President since the end of the Vietnam War.[143] Clinton remained popular with the public throughout his two terms as President, ending his presidential career with a 65 percent approval rating, the highest end-of-term approval rating of any President since Dwight D. Eisenhower.[144] Further, the Clinton administration signed over 270 trade liberalization pacts with other countries during its tenure.[145] On October 10, 2000, Clinton signed into law the U.S.–China Relations Act of 2000, which granted permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) trade status to People's Republic of China.[146] The president asserted that free trade would gradually open China to democratic reform.[147] Clinton also oversaw a boom of the U.S. economy. Under Clinton, the United States had a projected federal budget surplus for the first time since 1969.[148] After initial successes such as the Oslo accords of the early 1990s, Clinton attempted to address the Arab–Israeli conflict. Clinton brought Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat together at Camp David.[36] Following the peace talk failures, Clinton stated Arafat "missed the opportunity" to facilitate a "just and lasting peace." In his autobiography, Clinton blames Arafat for the collapse of the summit.[4][149] The situation broke down completely with the start of the Second Intifada.[36] Judicial appointments Main articles: Bill Clinton Supreme Court candidates and Bill Clinton judicial appointments Clinton appointed the following justices to the Supreme Court: Ruth Bader Ginsburg – 1993[150] Stephen Breyer – 1994[151] Along with his two Supreme Court appointments, Clinton appointed 66 judges to the United States Courts of Appeals, and 305 judges to the United States district courts. His 373 judicial appointments are the second most in American history behind those of Ronald Reagan. Clinton also experienced a number of judicial appointment controversies, as 69 nominees to federal judgeships were not processed by the Republican-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee. In all, 84 percent of his nominees were confirmed.[152] Public opinion Clinton's approval ratings throughout his presidential career Clinton's job approval rating fluctuated in the 40s and 50s throughout his first term. In his second term, his rating consistently ranged from the high-50s to the high-60s.[153] After his impeachment proceedings in 1998 and 1999, Clinton's rating reached its highest point.[154] According to a poll conducted by CBS in conjunction with the New York Times, he finished with an approval rating of 68 percent, which matched those of Ronald Reagan and Franklin D. Roosevelt as the highest ratings for departing presidents in the modern era.[155] As he was leaving office, a CNN/USA TODAY/Gallup poll revealed 45 percent said they would miss him. While 55 percent thought he "would have something worthwhile to contribute and should remain active in public life", 68 percent thought he would be remembered for his "involvement in personal scandal", and 58 percent answered "No" to the question "Do you generally think Bill Clinton is honest and trustworthy?" Forty-seven percent of the respondents identified themselves as being Clinton supporters. The same percentage said he would be remembered as either "outstanding" or "above average" as a president, while 22 percent said he would be remembered as "below average" or "poor".[156] The Gallup Organization published a poll in February 2007, a correspondents to name the greatest president in U.S. history; Clinton came in fourth place, capturing 13 percent of the vote. In a 2006 Quinnipiac University Polling Institute poll asking respondents to name the best president since World War II, Clinton ranked number two behind Ronald Reagan. However, in the same poll, when respondents were asked to name the worst president since World War II, Clinton was placed number three behind Richard Nixon and George W. Bush.[157] In May 2006, a CNN poll comparing Clinton's job performance with that of his successor, George W. Bush, found that a strong majority of respondents said Clinton outperformed Bush in six different areas questioned.[158] ABC News characterized public consensus on Clinton as, "You can't trust him, he's got weak morals and ethics – and he's done a heck of a good job."[144] After leaving office, Clinton's Gallup Poll rating of 66 percent was the highest approval rating of any postwar president, three points ahead of both Reagan and John F. Kennedy.[159] In March 2010, a Newsmax/Zogby poll asking Americans which of the current living former presidents they think is best equipped to deal with the problems the country faces today, found that a wide margin of respondents would pick Bill Clinton. Clinton received 41 percent of the vote, while George W. Bush received 15 percent, George H. W. Bush received 7 percent, and Jimmy Carter received 5 percent.[160] Public image Main article: Public image of Bill Clinton Clinton greets a Hurricane Katrina evacuee, September 5, 2005. In the background holding his jacket is then-Senator Barack Obama. As the first baby boomer president, Clinton was the first president in a half-century not to have been alive during World War II.[161] Authors Martin Walker and Bob Woodward state Clinton's innovative use of sound bite-ready dialogue, personal charisma, and public perception-oriented campaigning was a major factor in his high public approval ratings.[162][163] When Clinton played the saxophone on The Arsenio Hall Show, he was described by some religious conservatives as "the MTV president."[164] Opponents sometimes referred to him as "Slick Willie", a nickname first applied while he was governor of Arkansas and lasting throughout his presidency.[165] Standing at a height of 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m), Clinton is tied with five others as the fourth-tallest president in the nation's history.[166][167] His folksy manner led him to be nicknamed "Bubba", especially in the Southern U.S.[168] Since 2000, he has frequently been referred to as "The Big Dog" or "Big Dog."[169][170] His prominent role in campaigning for President Obama during the 2012 presidential election and his widely-publicised speech at the 2012 Democratic National Convention, where he officially nominated Obama and criticized Republican nominee Mitt Romney and Republican policies in detail, earned him the nickname "Explainer-in-Chief".[171][172] Clinton drew strong support from the African American community and made improving race relations a major theme of his presidency.[173] In 1998, Nobel laureate Toni Morrison called Clinton "the first Black president", saying, "Clinton displays almost every trope of blackness: single-parent household, born poor, working-class, saxophone-playing, McDonald's-and-junk-food-loving boy from Arkansas".[174] Noting that Clinton's sex life was scrutinized more than his career accomplishments, Morrison compared this to the stereotyping and double standards that blacks typically endure.[174] Shortly after he took office, conservative newspaper owner Richard Mellon Scaife organized a fundraising campaign to smear Clinton's image in the media.[175] Leading the Arkansas Project, Scaife and other associates sought to find sources in Clinton's home state of Arkansas who would be willing to dish out negative allegations against the President.[175] Clinton in Ljubljana, Slovenia, 2009 In 1994, Paula Jones brought a sexual harassment lawsuit against Clinton, claiming he made unwanted advances in 1991, which he denied. In April 1998, the case was initially dismissed by Republican Judge Susan Webber Wright as lacking legal merit.[176] But Jones appealed Webber Wright's ruling, and her suit gained traction following Clinton's admission to having an affair with Monica Lewinsky in August 1998.[177] In 1998 lawyers for Paula Jones released court documents contending a pattern of sexual harassment by then Governor Clinton. Main lawyer for the President, Robert S. Bennett, called the filing "an organized campaign to smear the President of the United States".[178] He later agreed to an out-of-court settlement and paid $850,000.[179] Bennett, however, stated that the President only made the settlement so he could end the lawsuit for good and move on with his life.[180] During the deposition for the Jones lawsuit, which was held at the White House,[181] Clinton denied having sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky – a denial that became the basis for an impeachment charge of perjury.[182] In 1992, Gennifer Flowers stated that she had a relationship with Clinton that began in 1980.[183] Flowers at first denied that she had an affair with Clinton, but later changed her story.[184][185] After Clinton at first denied having a relationship with Flowers on 60 Minutes, he later admitted that he had a sexual encounter with Flowers.[186] In 1998, Kathleen Willey alleged that Clinton groped her in a hallway in 1993. An independent counsel determined Willey gave "false information" to the FBI, inconsistent with sworn testimony related to the Jones allegation.[187] On March 19, 1998, Julie Hiatt Steele, a friend of Willey, released an affidavit, accusing the former White House aide of asking her to lie to corroborate Ms. Willey's account of being sexually groped by President Clinton in the Oval Office.[188] An attempt by Kenneth Starr to prosecute Steele for making false statements and obstructing justice ended in a mistrial and Starr declined to seek a retrial after Steele sought an investigation against the former Independent Counsel for prosecutorial misconduct.[189] Linda Tripp's grand jury testimony also differed from Willey's claims regarding inappropriate sexual advances.[190] Also in 1998, Juanita Broaddrick alleged Clinton had raped her though she did not remember the exact date, which may have been 1978.[191] In another 1998 event, Elizabeth Ward Gracen recanted a six-year-old denial and stated she had a one night stand with Clinton in 1982.[192] Gracen later apologized to Hillary Clinton.[193] Throughout the year, however, Gracen eluded a subpoena from Kenneth Starr to testify her claim in court.[194] Post-presidential career Main article: Post-presidency of Bill Clinton Clinton at a Democratic "Get out the vote" rally in Los Angeles, California on November 2, 2000 Bill Clinton continues to be active in public life, giving speeches, fundraising, and founding charitable organizations.[195] Altogether, Clinton has spoken at the last six Democratic National Conventions, dating to 1988.[dated info] Activities up until 2008 campaign In 2002, Clinton warned that pre-emptive military action against Iraq would have unwelcome consequences,[196][197] and later claimed to have opposed the Iraq War from the start (though some dispute this).[198] In 2005, Clinton criticized the Bush administration for its handling of emissions control, while speaking at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Montreal.[199] The William J. Clinton Presidential Center and Park in Little Rock, Arkansas was dedicated in 2004.[200] Clinton released a best-selling autobiography, My Life in 2004.[201] In 2007, he released Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World, which also became a The New York Times Best Seller and garnered positive reviews.[202] Clinton with former President George H. W. Bush in January 2005 In the aftermath of the 2004 Asian tsunami, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan appointed Clinton to head a relief effort.[203] After Hurricane Katrina, Clinton joined with fellow former President George H. W. Bush to establish the Bush-Clinton Tsunami Fund in January 2005, and the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund in October of that year.[204] As part of the tsunami effort, these two ex-presidents appeared in a Super Bowl XXXIX pre-game show,[205] and traveled to the affected areas.[206] They also spoke together at the funeral of Boris Yeltsin in 2007.[207] William J. Clinton Presidential Center and Park, dedicated in 2004 Based on his philanthropic worldview,[208] Clinton created the William J. Clinton Foundation to address issues of global importance. This foundation includes the Clinton Foundation HIV and AIDS Initiative (CHAI), which strives to combat that disease, and has worked with the Australian government toward that end. The Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), begun by the Clinton Foundation in 2005, attempts to address world problems such as global public health, poverty alleviation and religious and ethnic conflict.[209] In 2005, Clinton announced through his foundation an agreement with manufacturers to stop selling sugared drinks in schools.[210] Clinton's foundation joined with the Large Cities Climate Leadership Group in 2006 to improve cooperation among those cities, and he met with foreign leaders to promote this initiative.[211] The foundation has received donations from a number of governments all over the world, including Asia and the Middle East.[212] In 2008, Foundation director Inder Singh announced that deals to reduce the price of anti-malaria drugs by 30 percent in developing nations.[213] Clinton also spoke in favor of California Proposition 87 on alternative energy, which was voted down.[214] Presidential election 2008 During the 2008 Democratic presidential primary campaign, Clinton vigorously advocated on behalf of his wife, Hillary Clinton. Through speaking engagements and fundraisers, he was able to raise $10 million toward her campaign.[215] Some worried that as an ex-president, he was too active on the trail, too negative to Clinton rival Barack Obama, and alienating his supporters at home and abroad.[216] Many were especially critical of him following his remarks in the South Carolina primary, which Obama won. Later in the 2008 primaries, there was some infighting between Bill and Hillary's staffs, especially in Pennsylvania.[217] Considering Bill's remarks, many thought that he could not rally Hillary supporters behind Obama after Obama won the primary.[218] Such remarks lead to apprehension that the party would be split to the detriment of Obama's election. Fears were allayed August 27, 2008, when Clinton enthusiastically endorsed Obama at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, saying that all his experience as president assures him that Obama is "ready to lead".[219] After Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign was over, Bill Clinton continued to raise funds to help pay off her campaign debt.[220][221] After the 2008 election Clinton with President Barack Obama and Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett in July 2010 In 2009, Clinton travelled to North Korea on behalf of two American journalists imprisoned in North Korea. Euna Lee and Laura Ling had been imprisoned for illegally entering the country from China.[222] Jimmy Carter had made a similar visit in 1994.[222] After Clinton met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, Kim issued a pardon.[223][224] Since then, Clinton has been assigned a number of other diplomatic missions. He was named United Nations Special Envoy to Haiti in 2009.[225] In response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake, U.S. President Barack Obama announced that Clinton and George W. Bush would coordinate efforts to raise funds for Haiti's recovery.[226] Clinton continues to visit Haiti to witness the inauguration of refugee villages, and to raise funds for victims of the earthquake.[227] In 2010, Clinton announced support of, and delivered the keynote address for, the inauguration of NTR, Ireland's first environmental foundation.[228][229] At the 2012 Democratic National Convention, Clinton gave a widely praised speech nominating Barack Obama.[230] Post-presidential health concerns In September 2004, Clinton received a quadruple bypass surgery.[231] In March 2005, he underwent surgery for a partially collapsed lung.[232] On February 11, 2010, he was rushed to Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York City after complaining of chest pains, and had two coronary stents implanted in his heart.[231][233] After this experience, Clinton adopted the plant-based whole foods (vegan) diet recommended by doctors Dean Ornish and Caldwell Esselstyn.[234] Clinton has reportedly begun practicing Buddhist meditation in order to help him relax and achieve a healthier lifestyle.[235] Wealth On ABC News, Diane Sawyer said that it has been reported that Bill Clinton has made more than $100 million giving paid speeches since leaving public office. Hillary Clinton explained that she and Bill came out of the White House financially broke and in debt, especially due to large legal fees incurred during their years in the White House. "We had no money when we got there, and we struggled to, you know, piece together the resources for mortgages, for houses, for Chelsea's education." She added, "Bill has worked really hard ... we had to pay off all our debts, which was, you know, he had to make double the money because of obviously taxes and then pay off the debts and get us houses and take care of family members."[236] |
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