If not I don't understand why so many of you complain about him.
How history will judge Bill Clinton
How history will judge Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton's economic legacyThe largest budget surplus in history, the lowest unemployment rate in more than 40 years, the fastest growth in real wages for more than two decades, and the biggest drop in welfare rolls seen during any administration. That he has presided over the longest economic expansion in US history is undeniable. The US entered its 107th consecutive month of growth last February. Mr Clinton can also point to the fact that while he inherited the biggest federal budget deficit in history, it now shows the largest surplus ever.
Clinton's international recordPresident Bill Clinton will leave office with the longest boom in US history. Mr Clinton also leaves the legacy of a huge and growing budget surplus.
During the eight years of the presidency, the economy expanded by 50% in real terms, and by the end of his tenure the US had a gross national product of $10,000bn - one quarter of the entire world economic output. The booming US economy has brought economic benefits right across the income spectrum. The unemployment rate has dropped by half, to 4%, a 40-year-low, while the economy has created some 15 million jobs. Mr Clinton did manage to preserve spending on certain key programmes, most notably the huge and popular entitlement programmes for the elderly, Social Security and Medicare.
And he also had a blow job. What else can you ask from him?Outgoing President Clinton has been making a last-minute effort against the odds to secure an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. But apart from that, the foreign policy legacy of his eight years in office has already been drawn up. Many people credit Mr Clinton with a key role in helping bring about a Northern Ireland peace agreement. The Irish News commented that with his departure, someone rather exceptional was riding off into the sunset. He's certainly that. Besides charisma and an actor's sensitivity to his audience, Bill Clinton has sharp intelligence and quick-wittedness. He has immersed himself in every detail of policy and international negotiations. Certainly, Mr Clinton took a very long time to make up his mind about intervention in the Bosnian war before the United States finally acted decisively in 1995. Since then, he has developed with others the doctrine of humanitarian intervention to prevent ethnic cleansing and the slaughter of innocent people.
Last edited by sergeriver (2007-05-24 16:59:58)