William Jefferson Clinton was a very historic President in many ways. He was the first President who existed completely after the Cold War, and he was the first President whose Presidency existed during the 21st century. So, he saw both the old school and new school realities of American society. I remember growing up and hearing the far-right extremists viewing Bill Clinton as far left, near Communist, and extreme. These views are laughable. With more research now, we see that Bill Clinton was a centrist President not a super progressive President. Bill Clinton's ultimate legacy as President is that he made monumental contributions to society, and many scandals almost ruined his Presidency. Yet, he made many comebacks to make the country to be a better space in 2001 than in 1993 when his Presidency started. To start, Bill Clinton was born on August 19, 1946, and his original name is William Jefferson Blythe IV. Hope, Arkansas was the place of his birth. His biological father died in a traffic accident. He took his last name from his stepfather named Roger Clinton. Bill Clinton's mother was Virginia Kelley.
By July 24, 1963, he was a high school student and delegate to the American Legion Boys Nation. Bill Clinton met his political hero President John F. Kennedy in the White House Rose Garden and is photographed shaking Kennedy's hand. President John F. Kennedy believed in Social Security, universal health care for the elderly, civil rights, and ending oil allowances for large oil corporations. By 1968, Bill Clinton won a Rhodes Scholarship to go to Oxford University in England. In the same year, he earned a Bachelor's degree from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. In 1973, he earned a law degree from Yale University and took a teaching job at the University of Arkansas Law School. By this time, she met Hillary Clinton, who was a legal scholar herself. Bill Clinton ran for office and lost an Arkansas congressional race to the incumbent Republican Rep. John Paul Hammerschmidt back in 1974. Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham married on October 11, 1975, in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Clinton continues onward with his political career to be elected Attorney General of Arkansas in 1976. Bill Clinton was ambitious in his life. So, he was elected governor of Arkansas in November 7, 1978, defeating Republican Lynn Lowe. On February 27, 1980, the couple Bill and Hillary Clinton gave birth to their daughter of Chelsea. Bill Clinton lost his re-election bid as Arkansas governor on November 4, 1980. Therefore, he took a job at a private law firm.
Bill Clinton fought long and hard to win re-election as governor as he defeated the Republican Governor Frank D. White in the rematch of the 1980 race. By the 1980s, he had grown his popularity and was part of the new, neoliberal DLC movement. This movement wanted moderate views, not old-school New Deal liberalism, to dominate the Democratic Party ideologically. Bill Clinton ran for President on October 3, 1991, during his fifth term as governor of Arkansas. Most of the Democratic candidates for President were moderates. Clinton had to face many people. The person that he didn't like in the Democratic Primary was California political leader Jerry Brown. Jerry Brown was more progressive. Bill Clinton defended his wife against Brown's allegation. By this time, the country of America was in a recession. Jobs were lost, and people were suffering. President George H. W. Bush was in low popularity because he experienced a recession by the end of his first term. Bush Sr. accused Bill Clinton of being a tax and spend liberal. Clinton wanted a change from Bush Sr. Clinton wanted more investments, tax increases for the super-rich, and other policies. Bill Clinton criticized Reaganomics as a detriment to the growth of the economy of Americans. Bill Clinton won the Democratic Party's nomination and decided to pick Al Gore as his Vice-Presidential candidate. Bill Clinton is known for his great oratory ability and his debating skills, so he is similar to Barack Obama being a great one in a generation political leader. Even back then, he or Bill Clinton had controversies. Unlike Barack Obama, Bill Clinton unjustly criticized Sistah Soujah for misinterpreting what she meant. Sistah Soujah responded to Clinton and set the record straight about what she meant. In 1992, Bill Clinton had accusations of draft dodging during the Vietnam War, allegations of an extramarital affair, etc. He finished 2nd in the New Hampshire Democratic primary and said that he is "the comeback kid." By June 2, 1992, he won the Democratic nomination for President. He became the Democratic party's candidate for President at the Democratic National Convention in New York. Al Gore is his running rate. In that speech in New York, Bill Clinton said the following words: "Our country is falling behind. The President is caught in the grip of a failed economic theory. We have gone from first to 13th in the world in wages since Ronald Reagan and Bush have been in office." That speech have him wanting to unify the Democratic party on July 16th, 1992 on Thursdays at Madison Square Garden.
Ross Perot came into the debate and Presidential race as an Independent candidate. By November 3, 1992, Bill Clinton won the election. He had 43 percent of the popular vote and 370 electoral votes to defeat both President George H. W. Bush and Ross Pero. Democrats have the majority in both houses of Congress. He was inaugurated as the 42nd President of the United States on January 20, 1993, when I was in the 4th grade. Maya Angelou gave a speech at the inauguration. From the beginning, he started to work. On January 22, 1993, he signed orders overturning Reagan and Bush-era restrictions on abortions. By February 5, 1993, he signed his first law. It is called the Family and Medical Leave Act, which allowed workers at large companies to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to attend to family concerns. The federal raid at Waco took place on April 19, 1993. At Waco, cult leader David Koresh called himself Jesus Christ and had followers. Attorney General Janet Reno authorized a federal raid to end a standoff at the compound. Many people died in a fire, including the cult leader David Koresh. There is controversy over whether the federal raid was too excessive or not. On July 19, 1993, after disputes over whether to allow homosexuals to serve in the military, Clinton proposes a "don't ask, don't tell" compromise with military leaders. The policy allows homosexuals to serve in the military if they do not reveal their homosexuality and refrain from homosexual conduct. President Barack Obama would later end don't ask and don't tell to allow LBGTQIA+ people to serve openly in the military. White House attorney Vince Foster was found dead on July 20, 1993. By August 10, 1993, President Clinton signed the first federal budget -- which calls for reducing spending and increasing taxes to reduce the deficit -- after it narrowly gained Congressional approval. Ruth Bader Ginsburg was sworn into the Supreme Court to replace Justice Byron White, becoming the second woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court on August 10, 1993. Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization signed a peace accord at the White House outlining limited Palestinian self-rule in Israeli-occupied territories. That existed on September 13, 1993. Bill Clinton signed the legislation forming AmeriCorps programs, that helped people to volunteer for national service and earn money for college (on September 21, 1993).
Eighteen U.S. soldiers, part of peacekeeping and the humanitarian force sent to Somalia by President Bush, are killed after coming under fire (on October 3, 1993). One of his best accomplishments was when Bill Clinton signed the Brady Bill on November 30, 1993. That imposed a waiting period and background checks for purchasing handguns. One of the most controversial bills that he signed was the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) on December 8, 1993. It sought to reduce tariffs and other trade barriers between North American nations. Progressives didn't like parts of it not dealing with labor and environmental issues. Many conservatives didn't like it over national sovereignty issues. Attorney General Janet Reno names Robert Fiske as independent counsel to investigate questions surrounding the Clintons' real-estate investment in the Whitewater Development Corporation. That was on January 20, 1994. American troops left Somalia in March of 1994. On May 6, 1994, Paula Jones files a civil lawsuit, later dismissed by a U.S. District Court judge, alleging Clinton made sexual advances toward her in 1991, while he was governor of Arkansas. At the White House, leaders of Israel and Jordan signed an agreement ending a longstanding state of war between the two nations on July 25, 1994. He ordered 200 U.S. troops to help Rwanda's humanitarian relief efforts after tons of people died in a civil war. On August 3, 1994, Stephen Breyer was sworn in to replace Justice Harry Blackmun on the U.S. Supreme Court. On September 13, 1994, Bill Clinton signed a bill banning assault weapons and funding police hiring plus state anti-crime efforts. The Crime Bill was now law. Congress failed to support Clinton's universal health care initiative, which was led by Hillary Rodham Clinton. It was taboo back then to advocate for universal health care. The Affordable Care Act would be passed many years later during the Obama Presidency.
On October 10, 1994, facing a threat from U.S. military forces, Haitian military leader Raoul Cedras yielded power to democratically elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. North Korea agreed to shut down nuclear plants that could produce bomb material in exchange for U.S. help in setting up alternate power supplies. This was on October 21, 1994. Troops left Rwanda in October of 1994. On November 8, 1994, there were historic Republican gains being majorities in both houses of Congress in the mid-term elections. There was pressure from conservatives to make Clinton more moderate after Republicans stopped many of his progressive nominees from cabinet positions. On December 8, 1994, Clinton signed the global trade agreement that created the World Trade Organization.
On April 19, 1995, the Oklahoma City bombing took place at the federal building in Oklahoma City killing 168 human beings. Timothy McVeigh was involved along with Terry Nichols. I was in the 6th grade when it took place. I remember the events just like yesterday. It was total mayhem and destruction. Clinton gave a speech showing confront and proposed legislation similar to the Patriot Act. On August 5, 1995, America and Vietnam formed diplomatic relations. In 1996, he signed the telecommunications deregulation bill. On April 26, 1996, after the 2ndgovernment shutdown, Clinton and Congress finally agree on a compromise federal budget. Republican Newt Gingrich lost the battle, and Clinton improved his popularity by 1996. He signed the amendments to strengthen the Safe Drinking Water Act. The law that I disagree with Clinton the most is the welfare reform bill that he signed on August 22, 1996. Many Democrats and progressives opposed him, because the bill limited welfare benefits for five years, gives more control to the states, and ruins much of the New Deal social safety net protections for poor, oppressed communities.
After the OKC Bombing, Bill Clinton ran for President for his 2nd term. He fought hard against Republican candidate Bob Dole. He won easily in 1996 because the economy was stronger, he was popular, and Bill Clinton signed many pieces of legislation that benefited people. Bill Clinton spoke about his views at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on August 28, 1996. America used missiles at Iraq to stop Kurdish oppression. By November 5, 1996, Bill Clinton has re-elected President with 49 percent of the popular vote and 379 electoral votes, defeating Sen. Bob Dole, R-Kan., and Reform Party candidate Ross Perot. By January 20, 1997, Bill Clinton was sworn into his 2nd term. By August 5, 1997, after a compromise with Republicans, signed tax-relief plan reducing estate and capital gains taxes, increasing cigarette taxes, establishing tax credits for children and college tuition, and created Roth IRAs. In 1997, he promoted SCHIP, which saved many lives. 1997 was a time when Bill Clinton was hugely popular. Then, 1998 existed. On January 16, 1998, Kenneth Starr, who replaced Fiske as independent counsel in August 1994, receives permission from Reno to expand his investigation to include a probe of Clinton's alleged sexual affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. By January 17, 1998, Bill Clinton denied a sexual relationship with Monica Lewinsky in a deposition for Jones' lawsuit. He lied. On January 26, 1998, Bill Clinton publicly denied the allegations by saying, "I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky." On April 1, 1998, the U.S. District Court judge dismisses Jones' lawsuit. She later drops an appeal of the dismissal, agreeing to a financial settlement. Later, President Bill Clinton admitted that he had an affair with Monica Lewinsky. I remembered the date of August 7, 1998, when terrorists bomb U.S. embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Hundreds of people were killed and thousands of people were injured. The coward Osama bin Laden and his terrorists were involved in the attack.
Bill Clinton testified via closed-circuit television from the White House before the federal Whitewater grand jury, becoming the first president to testify before a grand jury in his own defense by August 17, 1998. August 20, 1998, was when Bill Clinton Orders retaliatory missile attacks in response to the embassy bombings. The attacks in Afghanistan and Sudan are said to target Osama bin Laden's terror network, which is suspected of launching the embassy attacks. Sept. 9, 1998, was when Starr delivered to Congress an explicit report detailing the findings of his years-long investigation into Clinton's alleged wrongdoing. Oct. 23, 1998, was when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat reached an agreement at Clinton-organized talks in Maryland that Israel will transfer more West Bank territory into Palestinian control in exchange for Palestinian efforts to curb terrorism. However, violence later increases and Israel refuses to transfer the territory. Oct. 28, 1998, was the date when Clinton announces a $70 billion budget surplus -- the first federal surplus since 1969. Dec. 16, 1998, was when Bill Clinton becomes the second U.S. president to be impeached by the House of Representatives. On February 12, 1999, the Senate finds Clinton not guilty of the House's impeachment charges of perjury and obstruction of justice. On March 24, 1999, NATO forces, including those from the United States, start bombing Serb military targets in Kosovo. Some of the NATO bombings constitute war crimes. On June 10, 1999, negotiators reached an international peace plan for Kosovo. NATO suspends bombing campaign.
Oct. 13, 1999, was when the U.S. Senate refuses to ratify the Clinton-signed Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, which would have to forbid nuclear weapons testing. Sept. 2, 1999, was when The Clintons purchase a home in Chappaqua, N.Y., north of New York City. Feb. 4, 2000, was the time when Bill Clinton announced that the U.S. economy has set a record for its longest uninterrupted economic expansion. April 22, 2000, was when Federal agents seized Elian Gonzalez, a 6-year-old Cuban refugee boy, in a raid on the Miami home of his relatives. Officials eventually returned Gonzalez to his father's custody in Cuba, angering many U.S.-based Cubans. July 13, 2000, was when the United States and Vietnam normalize trade relations. Oct. 10, 2000 was the time when Clinton signed a bill to grant permanent normal trade relations with China. Oct. 12, 2000, was when terrorists attacked the USS Cole in a Yemeni port, blowing a hole in the side of the ship and killing 17 sailors. Nov. 7, 2000, was when Hillary Clinton is elected to represent New York state in the U.S. Senate. Turmoil involving the vote in Florida leaves the presidential race between Gore and Republican Texas Gov. George W. Bush unresolved, though Bush eventually emerges as the winner. Nov. 17, 2000, was when Bill Clinton arrives for the first official state visit to Vietnam by a U.S. president. Jan. 20, 2001, or on his last day in office, Clinton grants pardons to dozens of people, including Marc Rich, a commodities trader living in Switzerland to avoid prosecution on numerous charges. Bill Clinton ends his Presidency. Bill Clinton works in Harlem, NYC in his office space. Living History was released in 2003 being Hillary Clinton's memoirs. Bill Clinton survived heart bypass surgery in New York City on September 6, 2004. Bill Clinton works with George H. W. Bush (his friend) to invest in a response to help the victims of the 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean. He fights childhood obesity with Mike Huckabee. He works to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina with Bush Sr. too. When Hillary Clinton ran for President in 2008, Bill Clinton didn't like Barack Obama for a time. It was personal. Both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama criticized each other. On January 26, 2008, there was a controversy by explaining Barack Obama's success in the South Carolina Democratic presidential primary against his wife, Hillary Clinton, by citing an earlier African-American candidate's record there: "Jesse Jackson won South Carolina in '84 and '88. Jackson ran a good campaign. And Obama ran a good campaign here." The book Game Change paraphrases a conversation between Senator Ted Kennedy and former President Bill Clinton in which the latter (i.e. Bill Clinton) says about President Obama, “A few years ago, this guy would have been getting us coffee," reports POLITICO. When Kennedy endorsed Obama instead of Hillary Clinton, the former president is said to groaned, “the only reason you are endorsing him is because he’s Black. Let’s just be clear.” These quotes from the book Game Change, which was written by journalists MARK HALPERIN AND JOHN HEILEMANN.
Bill Clinton has promoted the Clinton Foundation with his family. Clinton was the U.N. special envoy in dealing with the effort to help people during the 2010 Haitian Earthquake disaster. Recently, he spoke during the night of the 2021 Biden inauguration ceremony to advance unity in American society. President William Jefferson Clinton had a wide-ranging legacy as President. He helped to expand the American economy to new heights. He worked to lower the crime rates in America, he expanded the social safety net in many ways, and he has grown the Democratic Party in many ways. He made numerous mistakes like adultery, the welfare reform act, many imperial policies, the growth of the prison industrial complex, and other compromises with Republicans (as Bill Clinton was a leader of the Democratic Leadership Council being a centrist, neoliberal group dedicated to the status quo on many political issues). The 1996 welfare reform law was one of Clinton's biggest errors as President causing about 426,000 children to live in poverty in a year after the law was passed (according to a report by the Children's Defense Fund). By and large, his Presidency marked the end of the 20th century and the start of the 21st century in the increase of economic growth. Clinton was a moderate President who believed in the power and strength of America to do some good in enriching its general welfare. He was a great orator and a politically astute person who loved the art of political strategy.
Hip Hop in 2022 has been filled a mixture of legendary artists showing their music and the new generation of musicians expressing themselves. One album released in 2022 was KRE One called IMACU12. The songs in the albums have his personal philosophies on hip hop, lyricism, and his bragging style. It has many stories about the story of hip hop starting out in New York City from a poor environment to make a living. The 1980's was described by him as being dominated heavily by the crack epidemic. The crack epidemic ruined so many families and other lives during that decade. Ironically, hip hop produced some of the greatest hip hop music during the 1980's too. In 2022, Black Thought worked with Danger Mouse in the song of No Gold Teeth. Black Thought is unique in the sense he is rapping like he is 20 years old, but he is 50 years old. Easily, Black Thought is one of the greatest lyricists in history being part of the hip-hop group called The Roots. I heard of The Roots back in 1996 when they showed a commercial on Splash TV. Black Thought's complex lyricism, double entendres, and politically aware lyrics plus his continuous multisyllabic rhyme schemes make him an icon of hip hop music. The beat in the son of No Gold Teeth is nostalgic. Black Thought and Danger Mouse has a song in 2022 called Because too (featuring Joey Bad___, Russ, and Dylan Cartlidge). Albums in 2022 like Donda 2 from Kanye West, Pusha T's It's Almost Dry, and Kendrick Lamar's Mr. Moral and the Big Steepers show hip hop's further evolution into more creative spaces. Hip-hop music is diverse too. There are experimental albums, club albums, and political albums made by people like Lupe Fiasco's Drill Music in Zion, Big K.R.I.T.'s Digital Roses Don't Die, Logic's Vinyl Davis, MC Eiht's Revolution in Progress, Vince Staples's Ramona Park Broke My Heart, Coi Leray's Trendsetter, and tons of other music.
It shows lyrics about survival in an imperfect society. Black Thought is one of the few MCs in history who has been around for over 30 years and haven't lost a step in his lyrical ability. Sampa the Great has made new music called "Never Forget" as a tribute to Zamrock. Her song called Lane ft. Denzel Curry represents her views and her journey in life. Sampa Tembo or Sampa the Great was born in Zambia. She is almost 29 years old. Hip Hop now is dominated by women MCs too like Nicki Minaj, Latto, and other people. The recent Czarface album of Czarmageddon is abstract, has references to comic books, and has tons of internal rhymes. Czarface is a duo group made up of Inspectah Deck (who is from Wu Tang Clan and is one of the most underrated lyricism of all time), DJ 7L, and Esoteric (who is a great artist). Even in 2022, Nas' Magic album is very popular. Black Star released their album called No Fear of Time filled with music, philosophies on life, spirituality, and more lessons. Black Star is the duo made up of Talib Kweli and Mos Def.
R&B music in 2022 is very much diverse. There is Silk Sonic, The Weeknd, Muni Long, and Ella Mai. There are records made by Lizzo. Lizzo can dance, sing, write songs, and perform. Heart on My Sleeve is Ella Mai's new album released on May 2022. She also has a recent song with Babyface too. It is called Keeps on Fallin'. One of the most important albums of R&B in 2022 is Mary J. Blige's album of Good Morning Gorgeous. The album is her 14th studio album. It's her first release under 300 Entertainment. It has been produced by tons of people like H.E.R., Anderson.Paak, Dj Khaled, Jerry Duplessis, London on da Track, Swizz Beatz, etc. It has collaborations with Anderson.Paak, Usher, Dave East, Fivio Foreign, and other people. Good Morning Gorgeous celebrates the inspiration, strength, beauty, and heart of women, especially black women. In 2022, she won the Icon Award at the Billboard Music Awards. She won the BET Awards in 2022 for the BET Her Award. Ella Mai's album of Heart of My Sleeve (which was released on May 6, 2022) is heavily cohesive, potent, and has a flow. Her songs on that album detail her experiences and feelings about love and romance in complex terms. R&B music has been strong with people like Chloe, Halle, Ari Lennox, Summer Walker, Tems, Jazmine Sullivan, Bleu, Given, Lucky Daye, and other human beings.
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