Category: Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton was the forty second president of United States of America serving between the years 1993 to 2001. As the president of the United States of America, Bill Clinton promised the Americans that he would be the most ethical administrator ever seen in the history of the nation (Clinton 67).

Among his major concerns was the administration of foreign policy. However, he did not administer the foreign policy on his own; he had his foreign policy advisors who were Warren Christopher and Madeleine Albright the secretaries of state as well as Anthony Lake and Sandy Berger who were National Security Advisors (Clinton 54).

Foreign policy can be defined as the way a nation interacts with other global countries through economic, political and social relations. Also referred to as international relations policy, foreign policy is of great importance in any nation state.

During his term, Bill Clinton did all he could to make sure that the United States of America had good relations with other nations through proper foreign policy administration. To begin with, Clinton increased the number of free trade agreements between America and other countries from three to seventeen.

This, he did to boost the economy of the state as well as other developing and young democracies such as Jordan and Morocco (Clinton 502). The Expansion of the US role to Somalia nation-building was another foreign policy under the leadership of President Clinton. He facilitated aid to Somalia during the political chaos by sending his troop to provide security as well as food.

In the year 1992, as part of his foreign policy, Clinton helped the refugees from Haiti who came to the United States to seek refuge. In the following year, 1993, President Clinton pushed for an aid package to Russia worth $1.6B. He did this in a bid to stabilize the economy of Russia despite its unpopularity.

In his fear for global crisis, Clinton pushed for a Mexican bailout whereby Mexico was forced to repay all the loans so that the other countries including the United States of America could not face economic collapse.

He also initiated peace throughout the globe by making peace deals with especially the war-faced nations. For example in the year 1993, he signed a peace deal for the Middle East countries with the then Israel prime minister, Yitzak Rabin and Yasir Arafat who was a Palestinian leader (Clinton 476).

Clinton was able to deal with the nuclear energy issue that has been of global concern for many years. During his policy administration, he made China, one of the Asian countries to sign the free trade agreement that included the clause of nuclear non-proliferation. Indeed, it was a success since China agreed with the terms thus making a positive change for itself and the world at large.

Being the president of the super power nation in the world Clinton was also obliged to make decisions concerning any wars and terrorists attacks as part of foreign policy administration.

In 1998 after the United States embassies bombings in two capital cities of Kenya and Tanzania which are East African countries by Osama bin Laden, Clinton ordered missile attacks to Afghanistan as way of retaliating for the bombings.

Just like any normal human being with success and failures, Clinton failed in some instances of his foreign policy administration. The greatest failure in his foreign policy administration was when he declined sending troops to Rwanda during the 1994 Rwanda genocide that led to death of about 800, 000 people through manslaughter. However, he later apologised his mistake in 1998 when he visited the country.

It can therefore be concluded that Bill Clinton was successful in his foreign policies which upgraded the countrys relations with the others of the world.

Works Cited

Clinton, Bill. My Life. New York: Knopf Publishing Group, 2004.

The one person in the United States that is always in the spotlight is the President of the United States of America. Being the president is a hard job, the stress can be overwhelming. The American people are constantly judging and watching every move that the president makes. Their opinions can be quite judgmental. Kids look up to the president and think of them as a role model. Also, the American people believe it is the job of the president to keep them safe. Most presidents state at their inauguration that their number one responsibility is to protect the American people. The purpose of this paper is to examine President Bill Clinton’s ethics, the pros and cons of his personality.

The virtues that will be discussed in this analysis focus on the 42nd President, Bill Clinton. President Clinton was a southern man that most Americans viewed as a president with virtue. They believed that President Clinton was wise, generous, faithful to his wife, fair, compassionate, and had good judgment when it came to foreign affairs and believed he was an honest man (Velasquez et al., 2008).

The thing that most Americans did not want to believe about President Clinton was he had a vice. Even though there were rumors about infidelity during his campaign in 1992, no one wanted to believe it was true (Brusseau, 2012). Later the American people would realize that he had a weakness with infidelity.

The American people have always looked up to each of our presidents as someone whose job it is to protect them. The president needs to be a strong individual that Americans can count on through good and bad times. In the 19th and 20th century a presidential campaign was run on a ticket about virtue. The candidates talked about God, their service to their country and honesty. We as humans according to Velasquez et al. (2008) treat virtues as habits. These habits become characteristic of that person.

After three terms of Republicans in the oval office and the end of the cold war, Americans were ready for a change. It was time for a Democrat to be the next president. William (Bill) Jefferson Clinton was the Governor of Arkansas for most of the 1980s. He did a great job as governor and was well respected by the Democrats. Clinton had been criticized for a few incidents of sexual harassment and rumors of infidelity, but it had been pushed to the wayside. Clinton was honest about his younger days when he protested against the Vietnam War and admitted to smoking marijuana but did not inhale. He was not a drinker, he was an excellent speaker, he was charismatic and loved by Americans black and white. Clinton was elected in 1992 by a nice margin over President George H.W. Bush.

President Clinton had an impressive record of accomplishments during his two terms as president. According to the White House archives some of his accomplishments were:

• 30-year low for unemployment;
• 22 million jobs created during his 8-year term;
• Highest homeownership in history;
• Crime rate at an all-time low;
• Added 100,000 new police officers across the country;
• Lowest welfare since the 1960s;
• More than 1,700 nuclear warheads from the former Soviet Union disarmed.

Americans were happy during the 1990s and liked what President Clinton had done for the country. Even when Americans found out about his vice and he was impeached in December 1998 he had a 73% overall approval rating according to the Gallup poll (2019).

In January 1998 a story broke in the news stating that President Clinton and his intern Monica Lewinsky had sexual relations. The American people were shocked and President Clinton’s approval rating dropped to a low 51%. Sonner and Wilcox (1999) stated the American people were unsure whether the president had the integrity and the honesty to serve as the president.

The president denied the allegations and the American people doubted his innocence. Finally, the president spoke on national television and stated he was not guilty of having sexual relations with his intern Monica Lewinsky. Later that year in August he publicly admitted he had. Brusseau (2012) speaks about insensibility being a vice. President Clinton did not think about how the American people would perceive him after he lied, because at that time he was thinking about not getting caught.

When the Republicans tried to impeach President Clinton, his approval rating rose to 73% the highest it had been at any point during his presidency. According to statistics and many Americans, he was a good man and a great President. He had a great approval rating from the American people even after they find out about his infidelity and continued to support him. They accepted that the president had a vice. Sometimes depending on the situation, vices do not matter if it does not interfere with the overall job.

Conclusion

The one person in the United States (U.S.) that is always in the spotlight is the President of the United States of America. Americans believed that President Clinton was wise, generous, faithful to his wife, fair, compassionate, and had good judgment when it came to foreign affairs and believed he was an honest man (Velasquez et al., 2008).

In January 1998 a story broke in the news stating that President Clinton and his intern Monica Lewinsky had sexual relations. The American people were shocked and President Clinton’s approval rating dropped to a low 51%. Sonner and Wilcox (1999) stated the American people were unsure whether the president had the integrity and the honesty to serve as the president. According to statistics and many Americans, he was a good man and a great President. He had a great approval rating from the American people even after they find out about his infidelity and continued to support him. Had he been a weak president this whole thing may have turned out a lot different.

William Jefferson Blythe III, known to many today as Bill Clinton, was born August 19, 1946, in Hope, Arkansas. William was born to William Jefferson Blythe Junior and Virginia Cassidy. Before Virginia gave birth to her son, William, her husband died in a vehicle accident. A few years after her husband’s death, Virginia married Roger Clinton, an abusive alcoholic who would become the stepfather of Bill Clinton. Bill Clinton was first introduced to politics in high school, where he was heavily involved in his state’s Boy Nation. After he was chosen to represent his state for Boy’s Nation, he met President John F. Kennedy and instantly knew that he wanted to be involved in politics later in life. Later in life, when Bill was in college at Georgetown, he worked as a clerk for the United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Bill Clinton was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship that would allow him to study at the prestigious Oxford University in England. In 1978, Clinton got his first major entrance into politics when he ran for Governor of Arkansas. However, Governor Clinton would not be re-elected after his first term in office. Instead of giving up on politics, Bill went around the state campaigning and listening to voters. Voters recognized the amount of charisma that he had and decided to give him another chance during the 1982 election. The connections that Clinton made during his time as a clerk and as a governor aided his presidential campaign during the 1992 presidential election.

George H.W. Bush, the incumbent president of the 1992 election was a strong candidate. One of the most striking and visible issues during the election of 1992 was the employment rate. The United States was seeing the highest unemployment rate in over five years. In 1992, the unemployment rate jumped to a staggering 7.4% in December. At the height of unemployment in 1992, the unemployment rate was 7.8%. At the start of Bush’s presidency, the unemployment rate was only 5.4 to 6.3%. As the unemployment rate continued to increase, Bush’s approval rating tanked. Voters were in disbelief of the exorbitantly high unemployment rate. George H.W. Bush was starting to be seen as out of touch with the middle class and struggling Americans and did not take a strong course of action to try to reinvigorate the economy and lower unemployment rates. Bill Clinton, even though he may not have been an economist, had a clear plan to improve the economy, thus lowering the unemployment rate. Voters enjoyed having a plan that was clear and concise that outlined how to improve the unemployment rate. Clinton’s plan during his 1992 campaign included paying more attention to the middle class and renewing a government program to solve the problem. Bill Clinton’s plan to decrease the unemployment rate was key in convincing voters to vote for him instead of George H.W. Bush.

The economy was perhaps the biggest issue in the 1992 election. Leading up to 1992, the election was not performing well. Between 1990 and 1992 there was an economic recession. In 1991, the United States saw a loss of over 800,00 jobs. Overall, the economy was in a slump and Bush was partially to blame. Clinton saw Bush’s weakness and exploited it. Bill Clinton publicly came out during his campaign and gave his own potential economic plans. Voters, excited by the thought of an improving economy, heavily supported Clinton and his plan. Clinton’s plan included cutting taxes for the middle class, making training more easily accessible so workers could become highly-trained, giving funding to emerging technologies, and making FHA loans more accessible. Middle class families and those struggling saw the chance to elect a president that would fight for them and their families. During the Clinton’s 1992 campaign, Clinton’s strategist, James Carville, put such an emphasis on the economy that they coined the phrase, “It’s the economy, stupid”. Since many voters will vote in accordance with how well their bank account is performing, Bill Clinton was the top candidate due to his direct plan to boost the economy. Even though Ross Perot was an economist, his lack of political experience and his history of leaving elections made voters weary of what he may do as president. Therefore, Ross Perot lagged behind in the race, even though his main issue to tackle was also his strong suit, the economy. Bill Clinton was able to push an economic plan to Americans that would ultimately aid him in becoming President of the United States of America.

Debt at the time of the 1992 election was approximately 4.17 trillion dollars. George H.W. Bush had raised the debt from 2.68 trillion dollars to 4.17 trillion dollars, an increase of over 55%. National Debt causes many different problems that harm the entire nation and economy. Consequences may include decreased savings and income, higher interest rates on loans, and cuts on government spending. Decreasing income causes a lower amount of income tax collected and decreases spending. A decrease in spending causes less items to be produced, which may cause layoffs in businesses due to decreased demand. Higher interest rates cause less Americans to obtain a mortgage or car loan which may cause a lower amount of money in property taxes collected. Cuts on government spending may mean more people being kicked off food stamps or social programs which causes more people to go into poverty. Overall, national debt is an extremely negative thing to have that causes harm to people. Bill Clinton had an extremely strong stance against debt. When he was Governor of Arkansas, Clinton saw businesses close and people lose their jobs due to the national debt. Clinton strongly believed that the national debt is a direct result of trickle-down economics. Bill Clinton believed that by reinvesting into America, that the national debt would go down in return. In conclusion, during the 1992 campaign, Bill Clinton took an extremely strong stance against national debt and believed it was due to trickle-down economics.

Conservatives and Liberals have polar opposite views on taxes. Conservatives believe that lower taxes will result in greater economic growth. Liberals believe that raising taxes will result in greater economic growth. Bill Clinton was a proponent of raising taxes. However, he was also a proponent of cutting taxes for the working middle class. Clinton wanted to raise taxes on the upper class who can afford it. Bill Clinton believed that by promising to cut taxes for the middle class, that he could fulfill a promise that George H.W. Bush had broken. In Bush’s famous “read my lips: no new taxes” speech, he had promised to not add more taxes. However, Bush broke that promise shortly after and Americans were not too fond of him. Clinton also wanted to change the tax code. If the tax code were to benefit companies and entice them to modernize their plants, then they might stay in the United States. Furthermore, during his 1992 campaign, Bill promised to raise 45 billion dollars of revenue from taxes. Those taxes would be from foreign owned corporations. In conclusion, Bill Clinton believed in both raising and lowering taxes. Clinton believed that taxes was one of the ways he could gain voters from the untrustworthy George H.W. Bush.

During George H.W. Bush’s presidency, crime was at an all-time high. More and more people were dying and less people were getting caught. In 1991, crime peaked with an average of 5,856 crimes per 100,000 people. Clinton had a very detailed plan to decrease the number of violent crimes that were happening. Firstly, Clinton believed there was a system that could be made to perform background checks before someone could buy a handgun. The inspiration for this idea most likely came from James Brady, the Vice President of Ronald Reagan who was shot with a handgun. Furthermore, Clinton also believed in a harsh regulation of assault rifles. By regulating assault rifles, the hope is that police have a change in gang-infested neighborhoods. Bill Clinton was also a proponent of hiring more police offices. Most of the inspiration for all of Clinton’s viewpoints came from a crime bill that was not passed by the Senate. In conclusion, Bill Clinton was a proponent of the Brady Bill, believed in regulation on assault rifles, and thought there should be more police on the streets.

The United States of America is the world’s most powerful and biggest economy. When President Trump replaced Barrack Obama as president of the world’s most powerful nation, there was a lot of skepticism. However, one that Trump constantly preached during the campaign period was the American Agenda of putting America and Americans first. This agenda has truly worked for the treaty.

The economy of the United States has been at its strongest point in recent years due to the Trump administration of putting America and Americans first. On December 18, 2019, news filtered through that the House of Representatives had impeached President Trump for breach of the supreme law of the land the constitution. The American economy hit a snag. The dollar’s exchange rate significantly dropped and this was a sign of worrying times for many market players who had flourished under the Trump administration.

History has a tendency of repeating itself, in 1998 Bill Clinton became the second sitting president of the United States to be impeached after Andrew Johnson. Clinton survived this impeachment by diverting the attention of the nation and the world by interfering in the Yugoslavia- Kosovo war. Clinton joined forces with NATO in airstrikes against Serbia forces. This movement by Clinton managed to deflect the attention from his impeachment and instead it shows the superiority of the United States. Thus ceding the claim that the United States is the leader in world affairs.

About twenty-one years later, the third sitting president of the United States of America has been impeached by the House of Representatives with the Senate confirming the impeachment. However, as events were in the 20th century during the time of Clinton, Trump used his wildcard option to divert the attention of the nation and the world at large by killing an Iranian army general, who was a major figure in the Iranian administration.

On January 6, 2020, it was reported that the United States had killed Iranian Major General Qassem Soleimani in an airstrike. President Trump defended the decision by saying that General Soleimani was a threat to world peace because he was a terrorist. President Trump accused the slain General of being behind attacks on U.S properties in different parts of the Middle East.

The move by President Trump is part of the American Agenda of taking the lead in the affairs of the world. President Trump justified that the United States of America was more concerned about the threats that General Soleimani posed to the world. He further said that the U.S spent a lot of money helping Iran yet the monies were diverted to pursue terrorist activities and hence the move to slay the General.

The American Agenda successfully managed to cede the claim of leadership in the affairs of the world and that saved President Trump the dreaded ax of impeachment.

Throughout life, we are given many choices and it is up to us to decide based on our own moral compasses. Sometimes though we are faced with situations that are essentially dual-edged swords and have no favorable outcome. These scenarios are called ethical dilemmas and we as humans encounter them every day from taking credit for others’ work insider knowledge to manipulate trades. We assume that people will make the right ethical choice because societal factors such as whether you will be liked after making your decision play a huge factor in deciding what you will do. Rabbi Harold S. Kushner once said, “When facing a dilemma choose the more morally demanding alternative”. In a nutshell, what this means is that when you are faced with two morally challenging situations go with the one that would be more societally pleasing. At the end of the day, you are going to catch grief no matter what decision you make when it involves an ethical dilemma. The real win is determining which choice will equate to be the lesser of the two evils.

None of us are perfect in any way but given the fact that society exists in different tiers of life, the spotlight shines brighter on others. One of the most famous examples of an ethical dilemma that shocked the country was the scandal of former President Bill Clinton and his intern Monica Lewinsky. The two began a sexual relationship in 1995 that continued sporadically until about 1997. Monica Lewinsky was born in San Francisco in 1973 to an affluent family where she was raised in the Los Angeles area. After she graduated from Lewis and Clark College, she landed an unpaid internship at the White House working out of the Old Executive Office Building. President Clinton and Lewinsky had their first sexual encounter on the night of November 15, 1995. It was little surprise that later that month she was taking a paying position in the Office of Legislative Affairs. According to Lewinsky, in the months that followed she and Bill Clinton had seven more sexual liaisons in the White House. Lewinsky’s visits to the Oval Office drew notice from people in the administration. At the Pentagon, loose lips began to sink ships when Lewinsky befriended a female coworker named Linda Tripp who she confided in about her sexual escapades with the president. In typical scandalous behavior, Tripp then shared the story with a literary agent by the name of Lucianne Golberg who happened to be an anti- Clinton conservative.

After the Report stirred up media frenzy by publishing a piece accusing the president of having a sexual affair with a former White House intern it became a public relations nightmare for Bill Clinton. Clinton even came out to dispute allegations against him in a famous press conference where he uttered a phrase that has been parodied countless times, “I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky.” Former President Clinton’s words might have held truth had it not been for one piece of evidence that sealed the deal, a single blue dress that contained his DNA. Lewinsky’s cooperation in testifying granted her immunity and it was actually the snitch, Linda Tripp who suggested to Lewinsky that she not wash the dress. In August of 1998, Clinton had to testify before a grand jury and confessed that he had engaged in, “inappropriate intimate physical contact” with Lewinsky. However, because he contended that his actions did not fit the scope of the definition of sexual relations as defined by Jones’ attorney, so he hadn’t perjured himself. In September 1998, Starr gave Congress a 445-page report describing Clinton and Lewinsky’s encounters in explicit detail and putting forth 11 possible grounds for impeachment. The Starr Report, as it became known, was soon made public by Congress and published in book form, becoming a best-seller.

That October, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to proceed with impeachment hearings against Clinton. In December, the House approved two articles of impeachment against him: perjury and obstruction of justice. Now be it an extreme example this serves as a reminder that no one is above the ensnaring entrapment of an ethical dilemma. Even someone as prolific as a president who has a slew of connections in order to make problems disappear. President Clinton was stuck between a rock and a hard place, on hand, you have the wellbeing of your political career hanging in the balance. and on the other, you have your personal marital connections potentially about to crash around you. What Bill Clinton got convicted of was lying in court or what is known as perjury. We as humans can’t escape choices, we can only analyze them as they make themselves present and engage in the choices that yield the highest chance for positive natural selection. A lot of times we see natural selection as being overly simplified such as the battle of the fittest or only the strongest survive but, that is a very narrow-minded way to look at it. Sometimes the natural selection is having enough charisma to be able to win over an audience or sway them to your way of thinking.

Obituaries are statements of information that follows a person’s death. They offer a brief biography of an individual for public knowledge. This paper seeks to offer a feature obituary of Bill Clinton. The paper will rely on existing published information about the subject for comprehensive review of his biography.

Bill Clinton’s feature obituary

It is with deep sorrow and humility that we announce the death of William Jefferson Bill Clinton. The former president of the United States passed away today at six hours local time. Though the exact cause of his death has not been confirmed, Bill is suspected to have succumbed to a heart failure. This is because he was previously diagnosed with a number of cardio vascular complications and has always been on medication.

Career achievements

Bill Clinton, as he was popularly known in the political field, made his achievements as a politician and a leader. He will also be remembered as a dedicated “scholar, teacher, politician, and a reformer” (Metz, p. 13). These features particularly contributed to Bill’s success as the governor for Arkansas.

During this period, Bill Clinton instituted measures to ensure that education was highly prioritized in his state and the entire nation. His success as a governor is an indicator to his political achievements that followed (Metz, p. 13).

Clinton’s highest career achievement was later realized in the year 1993 when he was elected as the United States president. In his capacity as the president, Jefferson succeeded in leading the nation through a political transition from cold war that had been a milestone to the United States history.

Though his presidency was marred with media reports of failed leadership, he was a successful leader and was highly regarded by public opinion ratings. His career as a leader was as well felt after his presidency. He continually involved in the global fight against HIV and in initiatives to promote peace in conflict inflicted areas (Mobilereference, n.p.; Genovese, p. 99).

Life history

William Clinton was born to Jefferson Blyth and Virginia Dell on 19 August in the year 1964. His father, who was a resident of Hope, was a businessperson and was in constant travelling encounters. Blyth died in a road accident before Bill Clinton was born.

His mother later got married to Roger Clinton and Bill was enrolled in “St. John’s Catholic Elementary School, Ramble Elementary School, and Hot Springs high school” all in his locality of Hope in Arkansas. He was actively involved in leadership and rugby (Mobilereference, n.p.).

It was however in the year 1963 that Bill derived his inspiration and will, to be actively involved in politics. This decision was influenced by his visit to the white house where he met the then president, J. F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther’s speech of ‘I have a dream’ that was delivered in the same year and popularized by the then media.

He later joined Georgetown University and graduated in the year 1968 with a science degree in foreign services. He got married to Rodman in the year 1972 with whom he had one daughter, Chelsea and began his active political career in the year 1978 when he was elected to govern the state of Arkansas.

Though Bill contemplated contesting for presidency in the year 1988, he withdrew his candidature and was later to win the seat in 1992 for two consecutive terms. He had a brother and his career life included legal practice (Mobilereference, n.p.).

Conclusion

Bill Clinton will be remembered for his leadership abilities that he demonstrated even in difficult times of negative public criticism.

Works Cited

Genovese, Michael. Encyclopedia of the American presidency. New tork, NY: Infobase Publishing, 2010. Print.

Metz, Allan. Bill Clinton: a bibliography. New York, NY: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2002. Print.

Mobilereference. Calendar of Historical Events, Births, Holidays and Observances. Boston, MA: MobileReference, 2007. Print.

Introduction

We live in a world full of turmoil where violence and the threat of terrorism forever looms on the peaceful inhabitants of a place called earth. Most times we are just pawns in a shrewd game of politics but subject to the evils that may follow owing from decisions made by democratically elected leaders. In this regard our future and that of our children become pegged to the decisions made by our government through the leadership of the president. The president of the United States becomes an important symbol since he is charged with protecting the citizens of America and by extension to ensure stability in other regions of the globe. In pursuant to his duty a president is expected to have strong foreign and domestic policies which act as a pillar for fundamental decisions that define the nature of national security policies and implementation. However, there will always be a difference in the way individual presidents choose to make decisions owing to a difference in ideologies and political advisors.

Main body

One of the most influential and to some extent controversial president was Bill Clinton. He was a Democratic Party nominee and one of the few to actually unseat a sitting president, a pointer to the amazing political skill that the man possessed. He was described as one of the most charismatic leaders to ever occupy the white house which is probably how he was able to get away with so much mischievous and unnecessary foreign military interventions. The Clinton administration was successful in many sectors but it was not without critics. In sectors like finance it was credited with expansion and balance budgets that resulted to a surplus.

This was probably one of the several factors that led to the formation of the Clinton’s administration policy of enlargement and engagement (Neuchterlein, 2000).

The policy sought to expand America’s involvement in expanding its military operations to establish peace and stability in more than one areas of conflict across the world. Along the same line it sought to expand the doctrine of free market across several nations based on the American understanding that free market gave rise to more democracy and prosperity. Clinton wanted to use the countries intelligence service to aid the country’s multinational by protecting them from international espionage. There was great criticism to some of Clinton’s military interventions in various corners of the world with some legislators questioning the prudence of subjecting American soldiers to harm when such wars did nothing for America. Some pointed out that in some situations like the Somalia intervention or in Haiti, internal conflicts and poverty respectively never ended questing whether America should continue to pursue the policy of enlargement and engagement.

President Bush came to power in January 2001 and was faced with the common problems that strike all new US presidents. He continued to a large extent to pursue the policies laid down by Clinton with a normal emphasis on national security. However on September 2001 terrorists perpetrated the largest act of Terror on American soil taking the life of thousands of American people. This act brought to light the dynamic changes that were happening in the terrorist underworld and led the Bush administration to consider revising all national security strategies in order to fight terrorism effectively.

The Bush administration in the first term decided to change approach towards national security from containment towards a more ambitious pre emptive strike option. This new approach set to give America the power to attack other nations that are a threat towards the security of the United States. Furthermore Bush decided that America must pursue terrorists and terminate them wherever they may be. This strategy sought to increase military and security funding by exploiting the anger of the people towards those they felt were enemies. President Bush therefore committed numerous funds to the pursuit of known terrorists like Osama though like his many operations it has borne no fruits. This also saw the president identify Iran, Iraq and North Korea as the axis of all evil. Following this revelation the president mislead the country that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction and ordered a preemptive strike to topple Saddam and confiscate the weapons in a bid to prevent their use against America. However his policies became unpopular due to the fact that no mass weapons were found, thousands of American soldiers’ lives had been lost and the country was having budgetary deficits due to the expensive Iraq war (Hook & Spanier, 2007).

In Bush’s second term he has continued with most of his national security plans against terrorism. However there was a significant change when the president expressed that he might actually reduce the number of troops in Iraq. This is undoubtedly good news to the American public who has for long been demanding that America must withdraw from this war. Bush further decided that democracy is a right of people and saw it as an obligation to enforce it where it was lacking whether those people asked for it or not. On another front Bush received a major boost when Congress agreed to increase findings for covert operations against Iran in the hope that they will be in a position to track possible terrorists within Iran. This might signify a change in the radical response to terrorism and threat to America and a shift from preemptive strikes to a moderate system of tracking terrorist covertly and stop them before they carry out attacks. This there fore saw Bush refrain from sending American forces to intervene in foreign problems as was the case in his first term. Changes did the Bush administration make in U.S. national security strategy in its first term. Consequently, his administration has resulted to either giving economic incentives or imposing sanctions to force co-operation like is the case in Iran and North Korea.

References

1. Steven. H and John Spanier. American Foreign Policy Since WW II, New York CQ Press, 17th Edition, (2007): 241-267
2. Neuchterlein, Donald E. America Recommitted. New York CQ press (2000): 199-280

The cooperation of America and Britain has had thousands of years’ antiquity that started with America as the colony of Britain. Historical studies prove that the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom stems from their coalition in the second world war, especially their victory over Hitler. The cultural as well as social similarities of both the countries have merged together, and it is clear with the participation of both the countries in matters of their concern. British premiership and the United States presidency have often ruled hand in hand, and an overview of Bill Clinton’s influence on Tony Blair discloses most of these precisions that Blair was much influenced by Clinton in various fields. It varies in fields like politics, international affairs, democratic campaigns, the Third-way concept, and so on. One can find the seeds of mutual influence lie in the freemasonry of the two countries in various sectors. Some of the biographers could find Clinton’s personal influence on Blair. The words of Clinton are explanatory when he wrote about Blair’s commitment towards him regarding international matters. Clinton writes about Blair, “Tony listened to my advice graciously but ignored it completely by immediately accepting a new job as Middle East envoy for the Quartet.” This paper is an attempt to find out the influence of Clinton on Blair in various fields and how they affected the social and cultural development of both America and Britain.

Bill Clinton’s influence on Tony Blair in international affairs

The United States and the United Kingdom have collated in many national and international affairs. This collation was clearly visible in different issues like Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan. An online article reviews the role of Blair in the Iraq issue, making comparisons with Clinton and it writes,” Like his American counterpart, Bill Clinton, Blair favored innovative solutions over rigorous ideology, and he counted among his successes a revived economy, a reasonably sturdy peace in Northern Ireland, and a successful military campaign against Slobodan Milosevic in Kosovo.”

Other examples can be cited out for U.S. and UK collation. In the Iraq invasion of America, the support from the Tony Blair administration was immense, and it ended with the fall of Iraq. It was at the time of Clinton Blair’s rule, they threw away the old conservative ideas, and they planned to adopt a charming reformist future, leaving the “old left” and “new right”. Some of the political thinkers are of the view that during their rule, the socialist concepts were totally ignored, and the concepts of “community” entered. During their rule, “collectivism” was replaced by “solidarity”. It has often been viewed that “at its best, Blairism, like Clintonism, was always a brilliant balancing act.”

Bill Clinton’s Democratic Campaign

For the Democratic Party, Bill Clinton’s 1992 campaign was an important turning point. Bill Clinton had served as the Chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council. He had taken many steps for the development of his country. As the rich people were getting richer and politicians were considering them only, Clinton had made the rich pay tax for their property and stopped the middle-class people from paying tax. Bill Clinton had supported the people for better education and also provided good training for all the workers, so they got better knowledge and attained high talent. He had also struggled with various trade laws and the development of technology. The middle-class people in America had many wrong concepts about various things like they believed that everything would be lost if they suffered from any illness, and Bill Clinton changed this wrong concept by bringing a new American health care plan. Through these types of plans, he made people more aware of things and gave them better knowledge. Bill Clinton helped the people who were poor and illiterate. To overcome poverty and illiteracy, he provided jobs and education to the people. He gave priority to people’s problems rather than his own problem. Bill Clinton generated a Rebuild America Fund, and these funds were used for the development of the country, like to create the most excellent transportation, environment protection, education, health, etc.

About democratic campaign and strategies

The campaign for president of the United States was held in the year 1992. It paved the way for the formulation of the Democratic Party. Bill Clinton succeeded in that campaign and was against George W Bush. Clinton had chosen Al gore which was an American Environmental activist, and he had worked under Bill Clinton from 1993 to 2001, and Al gore had served as the 45th vice president of the United States. There is a remarkable quotation from a brochure named ‘Bill Clinton for President 1992 Campaign Brochures’ which shows America’s miserable condition that prevailed at that time. It remarks, “America is in trouble. Our people are hurting. The rich keep getting richer, and the politicians just seem to be taking care of themselves.” America should stand strong enough at home so as to compete with the world. National security should begin at home.

In his campaign, he had accepted an exact blend of informality with specific goals, which in fact, helped him to succeed in that campaign. Bill Clinton put into practice so many effective strategies to boost the economic development of America. Firstly Bill Clinton introduced an economic plan to compete with the world economy. He again introduced a new plan for improving the health of Americans. Bill Clinton realized the need for education, and he offered a creative plan for ensuring world-class education. Putting people first is the important strategy of national economic strategy and which guides the administration of America. In early America, the wealthiest Americans grew richer, and the middle class had to work harder and pay higher taxes to the government. The government failed to create proper job situations, world-class education, effective healthcare, safe streets. Analyzing this issue, one can see that the implementation of a proper national economic strategy was necessary to find a solution for this problem. Putting America to work was also considered an important strategy.

Bill Clinton’s political influence on Tony Blair

When analyzing the views of political dogmatists, one can find a considerable influence on Mr. Blair’s general operational policies and political ideologies. Both of them have developed the political view based on friendliness and antagonism. A natural conversationalist, great intellect, and a peerless diplomat Bill Clinton fixed his name as a great politician in his own age. At the time when Tony Blair reached the throne, his faction was mere reproduction of Bill Clinton’s political and ideological dogmatism. The web article entitled A comedy of errors: Tony Blair and America by Godfrey Hodgson express his readiness to support Clinton’s influence on Tony Blair. The author remarks, “Tony Blair, it is said with Clinton’s explicit encouragement, set out to achieve as close a relationship with the new president as he had with the old.” After a detailed analysis, a reader can find that Blair’s gullible implementation of US-flavored laws and policies is not only the result of ignorance of America but also a craze for his own country. With the result of its strong influence on Scandinavian democracy and Clinton’s principle, Blair changed his policies and programs. This helped Blair to modulate his labor party to face new challenges such as environmental issues, globalization, and other social issues. Marketing influences of political behavior was one of the effective strategies adopted and successfully implemented by Clinton in the 1992 U.S. Presidential election. The same had a deeper impact on Blair, and it prompted him to implement it in the British parliamentary elections in the following year. It helped them to generate a new political approach based on broad, coordinated, and delivery-oriented techniques.

Third-way concept

Tony Blair was a former prime minister of the United Kingdom and served as a leader of the labor party. He always had a good rapport with Bill Clinton, who was a former president of the United States. The word “Third Way” is popular in its recent use. It was created in 1992 by a group of consultants. This policy was implemented in the United States in 1992 by Bill Clinton, and Tony Blair was inspired by this policy and that was executed in the United Kingdom. Tony Blair considered that it is very necessary to accept new challenges of economic globalization. This policy blends between traditional and social democracy and liberalism in some of the main areas of social improvement. Social reform was required in so many areas such as governance, the welfare state, education, political culture, and job creation in a new economy. “In Europe, the emerging discussion on the Third Way revolves around the Tony Blair success story and its foundations.” Tony Blair’s own genuine project has created a lot of confusion in its different layers and dimension. But he amazingly applied a three-layer revolution in a very short span of time. The most important quality of Blair’s version of the Third Way was its base on essential principles. These values mechanically involved certain structural and institutional obligations such as pluralism, civil rights, and social equality. In the outline of these basic principles, Tony Blair anticipated that at the policy level, conventional disagreements such as nationalism, and internationalism, human rights and responsibilities, poverty, and bias would be overcome. Blair considered his approach on Third Way was always right, and he barely admitted that it would require a lot of time to fulfill this project. In addition, Tony Blair was faithful to the devolution of the United Kingdom’s political system, to an improvement of the nation’s educational method, and to a more productive contribution of the United Kingdom in the European Union.

Labor party

There are two main political parties in England, namely the labor party and the conservative party. The Labor party is the important leftist party in England. They came into power in England at different times. The Labor party had a tremendous victory in 1997 under the leadership of Tony Blair. The Labor party had the slogan that they always stand for the principle of socialism. Tony Blair was elected as the leader of the labor party in 1994. He changed the old concept of the welfare state and introduced new policies. When Blair became the party leader, he introduced one vote for one person, and it was a great success. He succeeded in convincing the party’s character to its members, and it was based on the principle of socialism, that is, the redistribution of wealth and the centralized ownership of the means of production. Labor party had a tremendous victory in 1997 under the leadership of Tony Blair, with the majority of 179 seats out of 659 in the House of Commons. His stand was more conventional towards Europe. His foreign policies were followed by different national leaders. Blair’s labor party won the election in 2001, and it was the first time in the party’s history to complete its second full term. After the terrorist attack in America on September 11, 2001, he offered his full support to the US and sought support from other countries against terrorism in America.

When the labor party came into power in 1997, Tony Blair introduced policies for the weaker section and took measures to curtail the poverty of children. He introduced the national minimum wage, controlled inflation, brought down the crime rate, providing employment opportunities to the people, increased the literacy rate, and introduced policies in the education and health sector, policies for children and elders, policies in the business field, and other welfare measures.

Conclusion

To conclude, one can infer that Bill Clinton’s influence on Tony Blair has had various phases. The prominent one is his influence on international affairs. It includes their collation in different invasions and peace talks. Among them, the Iraqi invasion of the Americans, the Gulf war, and so on assumes greater importance. The notable thing regarding this collation is that both the American as well as the British administrations joined hand in hand under the leadership of Clinton and Blair. Clinton’s Democratic campaign had a tremendous influence on the social and political scenario, and it also strengthened the American social setup. Clinton’s Democratic campaign was favorable for the poor. He introduced a tax on the property of the rich. As part of the campaign, Clinton promoted better education for the poor that later attracted the attention of Blair, and the same acted as a motivating factor for Blair. Bill Clinton’s political influence on Tony Blair was too much, which could bring changes in the political field of both countries. The political power and ideologies of Clinton helped Blair in the formation of the operational activities and in handling international political issues. The concept of Clinton and Blair was different regarding peace and mutual cooperation. They diverged from Bush’s ways of attack and invasion, and it is clear with Blair’s acknowledgment in matters concerned with Iraq and Afghan issues. The third-way concept was the other attraction of their rule, and this policy joined traditional and social democracy with liberalism in some of the main areas of social improvement. Thus one can say that the different policies of Clinton have attracted Blair individually and as the British prime minister in executing national and international affairs.

Bibliography

1. Time’s 100 – Tony Blair by Bill Clinton. 2008. Look to the stars: The World of Celebrity Giving.
2. Hogan, Michael. 2009. Tony Blair remains friends with Bush, doesn’t regret Iraq. Vanity Fair.
3. Dionne, E J. 2007. Blair’s influence to outlast his Iraq stand. Real Clear Politics.
4. Former president Bill Clinton: Founder, William J. Clinton Foundation: 42^nd president of the United States. 2001. William J. Clinton Foundation.
5. Bill Clinton for president 1992 campaign brochures: ‘Fighting for the forgotten middle class’. 2009. Web.
6. Hodgson, Godfrey. 2004. A comedy of errors: Tony Blair and America: The nature of “presidential” politics. Open Democracy: Free Thinking For The World. Web.
7. Meyer, Thomas. 1999. Politik und Gesellschaft online: International politics and society 3/1999: Third ways. IPG Homepage. Web.
8. Tony Blair biography. 2007. Notable Biographies:: Be-Br. Web.
9. Tony Blair: Labour’s (Blair’s) top 50 achievements since 1997. Web.

Two main candidates:

• Democratic party: Hillary Rodham Clinton, former secretary of state.
• Republican party: Ted Cruz, U.S. Senator from Texas since 2013

Introduction

There is no use denying the fact that presidential elections can be a good opportunity for different candidates to show their skills in rhetoric and their ability to persuade people. Usually, the most topical questions are discussed, and different possible solutions to existing problems are suggested by candidates. With this in mind, it is possible to say that there are several hot button issues that will be obviously discussed by candidates as these questions can bring popularity and guarantee victory. That is why it is possible to discuss the most topical problems of our age in this work.

It is obvious that the first question, which will be discussed by all candidates, is the crisis in international relations and some possible ways of its solution. Nowadays, relations between different countries are very tensed. It is even possible to say that the current situation is similar to the situation which was peculiar to the years of the Cold War.

There are two main blocks in the world which have different ideas and points of view on the same problems. The USA and countries of the European Union can be taken as representatives of the first block while Russia and its allies comprise the second one. It is obvious that there have always been some differences in the point of view on some processes between these countries; however, nowadays, these differences become crucial and make normal relations between these states impossible (Koren para. 4).

Events that happened in Ukraine at the end of 2014 and during 2015 triggered the development of confrontation between these two blocks. The USA and Europe accuse Russia of interfering in the domestic affairs of Ukraine and providing help for rebels in the East of Ukraine. However, Russia, at the same time, underlines the legitimacy of all its actions and underlines the necessity of negotiations between all belligerents. It is obvious that this conflict does not promote the development of stability and peace in the world. Moreover, a great number of sanctions, which were created to weaken Russia and make it give up, also influence countries of the West and the USA as traditional market outlets are destroyed, and economies of states suffer. Resting on these facts, it is possible to say that the issue of international relations will become one of the most discussed by different candidates (Trenin para. 2).

The USA is one of the main initiators of sanctions against Russia, and it proclaims its intention to make this country retreat and give Crimea back. However, it is obvious that not all citizens of the USA are satisfied with the current political course. Moreover, the government of Ukraine makes many controversial steps that can be treated in different ways. With this in mind, it is possible to say that different politicians will exploit this very situation in order to get a benefit from it and increase the level of their popularity. Different possible variants, starting with the force solution and ending with negotiations with Russia and some concessions, will be suggested. Moreover, some main steps connected with the conflict in Ukraine will also be discussed.

Situation in the Middle East

The next issue, which will probably be discussed, is the situation in the Middle East and American troops there. Nowadays, this region became one of the main problems of the whole civilized world. The latest events in Yemen and in other countries of the Middle East show that these local problems can develop into some global threats to the whole world. The thing is, that situation is complicated by the fact that the issue of terrorism is combined with some religious and ethnic conflicts. That is why the problem becomes very complicated.

Islamic State of Iraq and Levant is taken by the majority of states in the world as a terrorist organization. However, local people support it, especially those who have the same religion and culture. That is why it is very difficult to find the right solution to this problem. The USA is already involved in this conflict. This region has always been in its sphere of interest, and that is why there is a great number of American troops in the Middle East (Witte’s para. 5).

With this in mind, it is possible to suggest that all candidates will discuss this very issue. The main question is whether the USA should become even more involved in the conflict and use its military forces to solve it or some other way should be found. There are adherers to both these points of view, and that is why it is possible to say that candidates will try to convince as many people as it is possible in order to increase their popularity.

The Issue of External Debt

However, there is one more hot button issue that will obviously be touched. It is the issue of the economy. The problem is that the USA has the greatest external debt, which increases every second (Chaufen para.3).

Moreover, modern conditions have a pernicious influence on the economy of the USA. Additionally, in terms of sanctions and the world financial crisis, it is impossible to achieve some significant improvement in the economy of the state. Resting on these facts, it becomes obvious that some serious measures are needed. That is why candidates will obviously discuss the issue of the economy of the state and some possible ways of its improvement. Moreover, it is possible to predict different strategies of their behavior. Some candidates can directly say that some unpopular measures will be needed for the country to be able to overcome all problems and continue its development. Moreover, these measures can be enumerated and suggested as the only possible variant. Besides, some candidates can promise a significant improvement of the economy of the state, not underlining the necessity of strict measures in order to increase their popularity.

With this in mind, it is possible to conclude that candidates will center their speeches around these three main problems which should obviously be solved as soon as it is possible. Moreover, solutions to this problem, suggested by different candidates, will influence the level of their popularity.

Works Cited

Chaufen, Alejandro. “The U.S. Economy In 2015: Challenges And Opportunities“. Forbes. 2015. Web.

Koren, Marina. “How 2014 Became the Worst Year in U.S.-Russia Relations Since the Cold War“. National Journal. 2014. Web.

Trenin, Dmitry. “Europe’s Nightmare Coming True: America vs. Russia…Again“. The National Interest. 2014. Web.

Wittes, Tamara. “With friends like these: America’s allies in the Middle East create as many problems as they solve.” Brookings. 2015. Web.

Bill Clinton was the forty second president of United States of America serving between the years 1993 to 2001. As the president of the United States of America, Bill Clinton promised the Americans that he would be “the most ethical administrator ever seen in the history of the nation” (Clinton 67).

Among his major concerns was the administration of foreign policy. However, he did not administer the foreign policy on his own; he had his “foreign policy advisors who were Warren Christopher and Madeleine Albright the secretaries of state as well as Anthony Lake and Sandy Berger who were National Security Advisors” (Clinton 54).

Foreign policy can be defined as the way a nation interacts with other global countries through economic, political and social relations. Also referred to as international relations policy, foreign policy is of great importance in any nation state.

During his term, Bill Clinton did all he could to make sure that the United States of America had good relations with other nations through proper foreign policy administration. To begin with, Clinton increased the number of free trade agreements between America and other countries from three to seventeen.

This, he did to “boost the economy of the state as well as other developing and young democracies such as Jordan and Morocco” (Clinton 502). The Expansion of the US role to Somalia nation-building was another foreign policy under the leadership of President Clinton. He facilitated aid to Somalia during the political chaos by sending his troop to provide security as well as food.

In the year 1992, as part of his foreign policy, Clinton helped the refugees from Haiti who came to the United States to seek refuge. In the following year, 1993, President Clinton pushed for an aid package to Russia worth $1.6B. He did this in a bid to stabilize the economy of Russia despite its unpopularity.

In his fear for global crisis, Clinton pushed for a Mexican bailout whereby Mexico was forced to repay all the loans so that the other countries including the United States of America could not face economic collapse.

He also initiated peace throughout the globe by making peace deals with especially the war-faced nations. For example in the year 1993, he signed a peace deal for the Middle East countries with the then Israel prime minister, Yitzak Rabin and Yasir Arafat who was a Palestinian leader (Clinton 476).

Clinton was able to deal with the nuclear energy issue that has been of global concern for many years. During his policy administration, he made China, one of the Asian countries to sign the free trade agreement that included the clause of nuclear non-proliferation. Indeed, it was a success since China agreed with the terms thus making a positive change for itself and the world at large.

Being the president of the super power nation in the world Clinton was also obliged to make decisions concerning any wars and terrorists attacks as part of foreign policy administration.

In 1998 after the United States embassies bombings in two capital cities of Kenya and Tanzania which are East African countries by Osama bin Laden, Clinton ordered missile attacks to Afghanistan as way of retaliating for the bombings.

Just like any normal human being with success and failures, Clinton failed in some instances of his foreign policy administration. The greatest failure in his foreign policy administration was when he declined sending troops to Rwanda during the 1994 Rwanda genocide that led to death of about 800, 000 people through manslaughter. However, he later apologised his mistake in 1998 when he visited the country.

It can therefore be concluded that Bill Clinton was successful in his foreign policies which upgraded the country’s relations with the others of the world.

Works Cited

Clinton, Bill. My Life. New York: Knopf Publishing Group, 2004.