Do you think that the actions of Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton warranted impeachment?
Impeachment is the act of removing a public official from a public office due to misconduct in the office. Impeachment is common in most nations or states where public officials behave unethically during their tenure. In the United States, it is common among presidents, whereby, most of them use public offices as an avenue for conducting unethical deeds (Garraty, 1995). Bill Clinton and Andrew Johnson are some of the U.S presidents who were impeached for their misconduct in office.
Bill Clinton was impeached because he had committed several crimes which included lying under the oath to a grand jury, perjury, and adultery. The perjury misconduct came about as Clinton testified to his relationship with Monica Lewinsky where he had been accused of sexual harassment (Bloch, 2006, p.1). Clinton also lied to Congress as he attempted to cover up some of his misdeeds. In doing all these, Clinton was abusing power and contravening the law. Therefore, his impeachment was justified because he had grossly abused his power.
Andrew Johnson, just like Clinton, was impeached when the Congress was not impressed with his conduct regarding matters of Post- Civil War (Longley, 2011, p.1). He was accused of signing several laws against the will of the congress. In addition to this, he fired cabinet members who failed to follow his instructions. It can therefore be argued that, despite the fact that he was the president, Andrew took the law into his own hands thus making him act wrongfully.
His impeachment is also justified because the president is expected to consult before making any decisions concerning the state or else it may lead to political unrest. Despite the numerous criticisms regarding impeachment, the action is justified in cases where a public official is proven to have had substantial misconduct while in office. This is because, if not warned, people in public offices can do more harm than good using the power accorded to them by the state.
If Richard Nixon had not resigned, what do you think would have happened?
Richard Nixon is regarded as one of the best presidents of the United States despite the unlawful mistakes that he made. However, during his second term in the office, a scandal named Watergate came up that led to his resignation together with other officials. In this scandal, Nixon was accused of breaking into the offices of DNC (a rival party) and destroying them. Those convicted covered up the whole scandal issue, while others opted to resign. At first, Nixon denied being involved in the scandal but was later forced to present tapes in order to prove himself innocent. As the case went on, Nixon stated his intention to resign out of office.
If Nixon made the decision to hang on, he would have definitely been impeached. This is because he used a government agency to destroy the headquarters of a rival political party. By doing this, he acted wrongfully and against the law. His actions in the Watergate scandal clearly depicted the kind of person he was, something that the citizens of America will live to remember.
Reference List
Bloch, S. (2006). Assessing the Impeachment of President Bill Clinton from a Post 9/11 Perspective. Web.
Garraty, J. (1995). The American Nation: a history of the United States. New York: Harper Collins College Publishers.
At the end of the Cold War, the U.S. was firmly entrenched as an economic power with all the resources for development. The most fundamental decision was whether the U.S. would pursue foreign cooperation or remain isolated and unidirectional. This is how the foreign policy strategies of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush differed. The paper outlines the different main features of their administrative actions.
Bill Clinton’s policy was that sharing experiences and using world connections was key to building world diplomacy. Clinton sought to broaden notions of democracy and influence the global community to establish a market economy and promote U.S. development. In addition, he followed the principles of globalization-especially regarding the cultural experience of nations and the empowerment of foreigners within the United States (Riley, n.d.). To maintain his global status, Clinton tried to channel domestic resources into an everyday diplomatic environment to develop leadership and take positions.
George W. Bush’s foreign policy was significantly different: he believed in the superiority of the American nation, whose freedom could only be encroached upon from outside. He was cautious about external interactions and believed chamberlains would allow the United States to develop (UVA’s Miller Center, 2017). In addition, Bush Jr.’s foreign strategy rejected restrictions and agreements that obliged countries to keep society safe. In addition, unlike Clinton, he focused on military build-up, which led to a confrontation with the principles of democracy. Finally, his policies did not imply globalization and unification but focused on the American nation’s dominance over others.
The foreign policy strategies of Clinton and Bush Jr. differed significantly. Clinton believed that the U.S. would become fully democratic and accessible if it showed openness and willingness to share resources. He believed that globalization was the way to build world diplomacy. In contrast, Bush Jr. was focused on isolation and confrontation with the principles of globalization. He was convinced that the U.S. would retain its superpower status if it showed domestic military and political potential.
In 1993, the administration of President Bill Clinton offered a healthcare reform plan, which was mainly associated with the Hillary Rodham Clinton First Lady of the United States, who was responsible for the group that devised the plan. In September 1993, the president gave a major speech on health care in the US Congress, where he introduced the parts of the healthcare reform, including a mandate for employers, which forced them to cover health insurance for all of the employees.
Similarly, during the 2008 presidential elections, Health Care Reform was one of the main topics in political debates. Obama was one of the candidates, and he said it would be one of his 4 top concerns if he would become a president. In 2009, he was elected and presented the Affordable Care Act. Affordable Care Act, which is also known as Obamacare, is a health care plan significant advantage of which was its affordability and accessibility for lower-income families in America.
Rhetoric and methods of Obama’s healthcare plan proposal were similar to the one that Clinton had. They both gave a speech during the US Congress joint session, and both of them had trouble with public support. However, Obama’s reform is believed to be far more successful than “Hillarycare” for three major points, which are insurance industry reform, expansion of coverage and the “triple aim” of improved access, improved outcomes, and reduced costs of care, the last of which will take the most time to evolve. Also, according to Rudnicki et.al.(2016), the new healthcare plan kept in mind the mistakes from the past reforms and tried to work on their program through learning from them (p.353).
While discussing significant similarities and differences of these healthcare plans proposed by two different presidents in two different timelines, it is essential to consider the topic of mandatory coverage. It was the central point in Clinton’s “Hillarycare” and made the healthcare insurance compulsory for all. According to Roy (2016), it forced employers to pay 80 percent of the health insurance of their employees (p.2). However, Obama was in opposition to an individual mandate proposed by Clinton. On the other side, President Obama required healthcare for all children. Obama’s views on this issue are still not particular.
Another significant difference is government involvement in the health industry. In Clinton’s plan government had total control over healthcare and close relationship in this industry. However, in Obama’s plan, democrats allow private insurances. According to Senate Hearing(2016), plan known as HELP includes an option, where private insurance companies will be allowed to compete with the government insurance plans (p.571). Obama’s plan reduced the ineffectiveness of the existing healthcare system by reducing long-term expenses. These expenses included Medicare and Medicaid reductions, tax-free health benefits reduction, and “sin taxes,” which included failed taxes on soda and successful taxes on cigarettes.
Healthcare insurance is still a debatable issue, which has many aspects to include or exclude. When analyzing Hillarycare, Amadeo (2019) pointed out a few pitfalls that prevented the plan from becoming successful. Doctors were repelled by the possibility of losing control over pricing, care, and treatment. They feared that insurance companies would expand their leverage further and dictate what is covered and what is not. While Obamacare relied on Obamacare taxes, Hillarycare was supposed to be funded by deficit spending, which concerned Congress. Lastly, Hillarycare was not exactly popular with Americans, especially, labor unions that were still dissatisfied with President signing NAFTA. Despite all the aberrations and the eventual failure, the project was a historical event that set a precedent for a healthcare reform.
References
Amadeo, K. (2019). Hillarycare, the Health Security Act of 1993. Web.
ESSA implementation in states and school districts: Perspectives from education leaders. Hearing of the Committee on health, education, labor, and pensions, United States Senate, one hundred fourteenth Congress, second session on examining Every Student Succeeds Act Implementation in states and school districts, Focusing on perspectives from education leaders (February 23, 2016). Senate Hearing 114-731. (2017). Web.
Rudnicki, M., Armstrong, J. H., Clark, C., Marcus, S. G., Sacks, L., Moser, A. J., & Reid- Lombardo, K. (2016). Expected and unexpected consequences of the Affordable Care Act: The impact on patients and surgeons–pro and con arguments. Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery, 20(2), 351–360. Web.
William Jefferson Clinton, a young American president was elected twice as representative of a democrat in spite of all harsh criticism on his governmental fiscal policies, legal reforms, and foreign policies for Bosnia-Kosovo (stoppage of war of ethnicity) and personal scandals. He had been continuously victim of inexorable criticism of the Republican Party and ultimately he had to be humiliated due to an impeachment trial by the U.S Senate (American President FrontPage, 2008). From the very childhood, Bill Clinton dreamt of being President, who was born in 1946, educated in public schools in Hot Springs, Arkansas.
William Jefferson Blythe III, his late father was died in a traffic accident three months before his birth and his mother married Roger Clinton when he was four years old. His personality was groomed due to his excellence and brightness in education and he emerged as an intelligent student, saxophone player, scholar, politician, and president. Clinton was motivated to become a politician or president after first meeting with President John Kennedy as a delegate to Boys Nation at the high school level (Biography of William J. Clinton, 2008).
He had obsessive passions for politics, started to involve in politics from his student life at high school and later at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. He joined the committee staff of Senator William Fulbright of Arkansas and attended Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar in 1968 which helped to boost up his political career. He was elected as state attorney general in 1974. He was graduated from Yale Law School and joined the University of Arkansas as a Law lecturer. Clinton won the seat of the governor as the youngest politician at the age of thirty-two in 1978. In 1992, Clinton was nominated for the presidency of America by defeating President George H. W. Bush (American President FrontPage, 2008).
Clinton proclaimed to improve the sluggish economic growth of America, refurbishing crime laws, taxation, and job opportunities for welfare recipients, and reduction of military expenditures for domestic uses, reformed policies & legislation for abortion, environmental protection, educational prospects, equal employment, and national health insurance. Clinton had to face merciless attacks of Republicans as his conservative opponents ran aggressive campaigns against him in 1994 when his complex health care reform bill was rejected by Congress.
Clinton rejected to sign controversial budget bill, presented by the Republican-controlled Congress despite all federal governmental pressure, he remained resolute and influential to win the second term of presidency in 1996 (American President FrontPage, 2008).
Clinton administration had to face two drawbacks, firstly, his failure to approve the health care reform bill, secondly his impeachment trial by the House of Representatives due to his falsification of oath and scandalized affair with White House intern, Monica Lewinsky. In 1998, he got success in the midterm elections due to his strong economical and prosperous policies to reduce deficits and evidently, he became a popular leader among the American people despite all his impeachment charges, consequently, the Senate failed to castigate the basis of impeachment allegations.
Hillary Rodham Clinton, his life partner had played a vital role to boost up his political career and she gained immense popularity after the rejection of his health care reform bill by Congress in the initial stage of his presidency and the Monica Lewinsky scandal (American President FrontPage, 2008).
Interpretation of personality from psychologists’ theories
Alfred Adler’s Concepts
Alfred Alder stresses upon the cultural heritage and family influences as major factors for behavioral or sentimental changes but an individual can modify his personality, affected by such influences in his own way, developing his own personal characteristics independently. Alder put forward a theory of “inferiority complex” is reparation for a sense of inferiority. In childhood, a person may learn how to recompense such emotions by shifting towards superiority in some specific area or by aggressive attitude or some detachment or withdrawal. He also lays emphasis upon the role of family position or birth order in the formation of child character (Crisp, 2008).
If we interpret the ego mechanisms of defense in Clinton’s personality, we come to know that it dominates his prominent lifestyle, habits, goals, foibles, accomplishments, and failures. His personal, physical, sentimental, and psychological development, parental and adult influences, social surroundings, genetics, and traumas are the main factors to develop such ego defenses. The defense of Repression is maybe forgettable or unforgettable in the context of individualistic feelings or ideas about separation and castration threats and such signals of anxiety are unnoticed.
As Clinton may recollect the shift at the age of four from his grandmother’s house to his mother’s new home with a stepfather, Roger but emotions of such separation were suppressed. According to the psychological point of view, such repressions have direct influences upon the style of his responses (Lowinger, 1999).
Sigmund Freud’s Concepts
Freud presents personality structure in three phases: the Id, the Ego, and the Superego which compose human complex behaviors. All these three essentials of personality structure should be well-balanced in order to maintain physical and psychological health. According to the psychoanalytic concept, the psychological conflict is intrinsic due to the influences of these main parts of personality, the Id, the Ego, and the Superego (Structure of Mind: Freud’s Id, Ego, & Superego, 2004). The Id (“It”) plays the role of the person as the part of the mind in an irrational or emotional way, demanding basic needs and feelings: “I want it and I want it all now”.
The Ego: (“I”) comprises the rational part of the mind to control normal functionality and maturity, developing awareness that “you can’t always get what you want” and giving a realistic approach in order to compromise with ID and the Superego. The Superego (“Over-I”) comprises the moral part of the mind, stressing upon the parental and societal or moral values (Structure of Mind: Freud’s Id, Ego, & Superego, 2004).
If we interpret the multi-faceted personality of Bill Clinton, there are three dimensions of developing personality, the self-identification or prehistoric features of the belligerent and immodest unconscious, the partial consciousness of egoism in the relation of the external factors surrounding the actual lifelike parents and society which are the main instrument to enhance pleasure or reduce sorrows; the role of superego or conscience which distinguishes between right and wrong, sense of being guilty (Lowinger, 1999). The conflict between the elemental factors of self-identification and egoistic social restraints creates apprehensiveness and fretfulness.
The conciliation is brought by the behavioral changes of the ego in the forms of defenses against self-identification and the superego. The formation of character has developed the effectiveness of these defenses according to the pre-designed silhouette of one’s personality. If this silhouette is developed on strong grounds, personality displays influential and healthy features while if there are some freak and fragile facets of an individual, he would be anxious, depressed, guilty or psyche or neurotic (Lowinger, 1999).
Denial is also a defense that influences the comprehensive ability how to recognize or distinguish the actual factors with strong refutation and there is no acknowledgment of visual and aural realities. Commonly Clinton refuted the experience of his step-father, Roger’s sexual harassment with his mother. According to some biographers, Clinton was abused but he repudiated this too. It was Clinton’s refusal of the criticisms by the voters and the press of his first term as governor which consequently caused his defeat at the polls after two years (Lowinger, 1999).
Karen Horney
Karen Horney presents the basic concepts about anxiety, infantile helplessness in a hostile world, coping with ten neurotic needs, moving toward, against, and away from people, and developing an idealized versus a real image of self. Horney also defines neurosis as a maladaptive or counterproductive style to establish a relationship. Such psychic people are desperate and dejected, having the desirability to seek out relationships to vent out their feelings of insecurity, anxiety, and neediness (Personality Synopsis, 2008).
According to the psychological theories, Clinton had been brought up in such a social setup where he felt lack of fatherhood, presence of strong women, lack of leadership, indecisiveness, fearfulness, ambivalence, aggressiveness, and lack of self-esteem or confidence. Bill Clinton’s sense of right and wrong via conscience or superego is reflected by his personal, family, and religious beliefs. That’s why Clinton’s super-ego always shows sublimation of infantile incestuous and murderous desires as a reaction to fearful feelings of castration or separation as retribution (Lowinger, 1999).
Bill Clinton’s sense of being guilty or effectiveness of superego is displayed how he felt guilty on not fulfilling public promises, his political manipulation, his extramarital affairs, and his feelings of anxiety or castigation by facing unsteady alcoholic stepfather in order to fight over his mother’s love and internal conflicts of his self-identification. He felt feelings of inferiority and guilt due to his real father’s death and was known by his stepfather’s name in school which weakened and disgraced him due to his father’s addiction to alcohol.
He tried to mold his personality in accordance with his ego-ideal models, John Kennedy and Arkansas Senator William Fulbright. He struggled hard to achieve success in his educational as well as political career by pleasing his mother, teachers, and public too in order to please his superego and to overcome his fears (Lowinger, 1999).
Abraham Maslow
Maslow demonstrates Motivation, Basic Concepts, Five Basic Needs (Place Satisfaction before Love, Esteem, and Self-Actualization) and Superior Personalities, Self-actualizing individuals. Maslow stresses the individualistic needs including the physiological needs, the safety and security needs, the love and belonging needs, the esteem needs which are instrumental in the formation of one’s character (Boeree, 2006). Bill Clinton displayed his feelings of insecurity, cravings for love, and self-esteem due to the parental and social influences upon him. His self-assertiveness and decisiveness were displayed while handlings the political affairs, governmental policies in spite of harsh criticism of his opponents, Congress and Republicans.
B.F Skinner
Skinner’s theories are famous especially “mutation behavior” and he explains how the internal processes of one’s personality are displayed in the form of behavioral changes. There is incoherence in his external and internal aspects of the personality. Skinner’s speculations about behaviorism are valuable for the formation of one’s character (Rozycki, 1999).
Clinton’s reactionary behavior against his political adversaries, his self-realization and self-assertion by overcoming his sense of inferiority (death of the real father, mother’s second marriage, lack of love and intimacy and security), his sense of superiority, maintained by his continuous struggle to fulfill his desires of being president, superior personality shows how some social factors and spiritual upheaval may affect someone’s behavior and he exposes impulsive reactions.
Conclusion
Bill Clinton was one of the popular political leaders and presidents of America due to his excellent handlings of international and national affairs. He got reputable status due to his extraordinary talents and became an intelligent student, scholar, music player, political leader, and president. But we find some psychological conflicts, flaws in his personality, being a superior leader if we interpret his personal characteristics, behaviors, lifestyle, and manners in the context of conceptual theories of famous psychologists and spiritual analysts, Alfred Adler, Sigmund Freud, Karen Horney, Abraham Maslow, and B.F Skinner, the complexity of his character, personality are displayed.
By reviewing all his biographical aspects, we conclude that his personality is very complicated, being the embodiment of inferiority and superiority complex and there are some social and parental factors too which have been involved in the formation of his character, cause of his success and failures in his political career.
References:
American President FrontPage, 2008, Bill Clinton Frontpage(A Life in Brief). Web.
Biography of William J. Clinton, 2008. Web.
Bem, Allen, Personality theories, development, growth, and diversity (5th ed ). Web.
Boeree, Dr. C. George, 2006 Abraham Maslow 1908-1970. Web.
Crisp, Tony, Alfred Adler – 1870-1937. Web.
Lowinger, Paul An excerpt from Bill Clinton Meets The Shrinks (Bill’s Character). Web.
Rozycki, Edward G. 1999, The Practice of Personhood in Psi, Keller’s Personalized System Of Instruction originally, presented 5-12-79 at a conference sponsored by The Center for Personalized Instruction, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. Web.
Structure of Mind: Freud’s Id, Ego, & Superego. Web.
President Clinton and Vice President Gore have been guided by three core values: building a community of all Americans; creating opportunity for all Americans; and demanding responsibility from all Americans. Pursuing policies based on these values has resulted in tremendous progress for our nation, and a strong America at the dawn of the 21st Century. The President and Vice President are committed to a “New Opportunity Agenda” to build on our progress and expand our prosperity until it reaches every corner of the nation.
Longest Economic Expansion in US.. History
In February 2000, the United States entered the 107th consecutive month of economic expansion — the longest economic expansion in history. [National Bureau of Economic Research and Council of Economic Advisors]
the Clinton years were unquestionably a time of progress, especially on the economy Clinton’s 1992 slogan, ‘Putting people first,’ and his stress on ‘the economy, stupid,’ pitched an optimistic if still gritty populism at a middle class that had suffered under Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. By the end of the Clinton presidency, the numbers were uniformly impressive. Besides the record-high surpluses and the record-low poverty rates, the economy could boast the longest economic expansion in history; the lowest unemployment since the early 1970s; and the lowest poverty rates for single mothers, black Americans, and the aged.
In proposing a plan to cut the deficit, Clinton submitted a budget that would cut the deficit by $500 billion over five years by reducing $255 billion of spending and raising taxes on the wealthiest 1.2% of Americans It also imposed a new energy tax on all Americans and subjected about a quarter of those receiving Social Security payments to higher taxes on their benefits.
Republican Congressional leaders launched an aggressive opposition against the bill, claiming that the tax increase would only make matters worse. Republicans were united in this opposition, as it were, and every Republican in both houses of Congress voted against the proposal. In fact, it took Vice President Gore’s tie-breaking vote in the Senate to pass the bill. After extensive lobbying by the Clinton Administration, the House narrowly voted in favor of the bill by a vote of 218 to 216 The budget package expanded the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) as a relief to low-income families.
It reduced the amount they paid in federal income and Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax (FICA), providing $21 billion in relief for 15 million low-income families. Improved economic conditions and policies served to encourage investors in the bond market, leading to a decline in long-term interest rates. The bill contributed to dramatic decline of the budget deficit in the years following its enactment–in 1998, for the first time since 1969, the nation achieved a budget surplus. The surplus money was used to pay down the national debt, which had risen to $5.4 trillion by 1997. The economy continued to grow, and in February 2000 it broke the record for the longest uninterrupted economic expansion in U.S. history—lasting ten years. In the year 2000, the nation was on track to be debt-free for the first time since 1835.
More Than 22 Million New Jobs
22.2 million new jobs have been created since 1993, the most jobs ever created under a single Administration — and more new jobs than Presidents Reagan and Bush created during their three terms. 92 percent (20 million) of the new jobs have been created in the private sector, the highest percentage in 50 years. Under President Clinton and Vice President Gore, the economy has added an average of 248,000 jobs per month, the highest under any President. This compares to 52,000 per month under President Bush and 167,000 per month under President Reagan. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
Fastest and Longest Real Wage Growth in Over Three Decades
In the last 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased 3.8 percent — faster than the rate of inflation. The United States has had five consecutive years of real wage growth — the longest consecutive increase since the 1960s. Since 1993, real wages are up 6.5 percent, after declining 4.3 percent during the Reagan and Bush years. [National Economic Council, 6/00]
Household Income Breaks $40,000 for First Time in History
Income for median households rose $1,072, or 2.7 percent, from $39,744 in 1998 to $40,816, marking an unprecedented fifth year of significant growth in income. In 1999, the median income of African American households increased from $25,911 in 1998 to $27,910 — an increase of $1,999, or 7.7 percent, which is the largest one-year increase ever recorded. The income of the median Hispanic household, adjusted for inflation, increased from $28,956 in 1998 to $30,735 in 1999 — an increase of $1,779, or 6.1 percent, which is the largest one-year increase ever recorded. [Census Bureau, Money Income in the United States: 1999, 9/26/00]
Unemployment is the Lowest in Over Three Decades
Unemployment is down from 7.5 percent in 1992 to 3.9 percent in September, the lowest in more than three decades. The unemployment rate has fallen for seven years in a row, and has remained below 5 percent for 37 months in a row — over three full years. Unemployment for African-Americans fell to the lowest level ever recorded, and for Hispanics it remains at historic lows. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
Highest Homeownership Rate in History
The homeownership rate reached 67.2 percent in the second quarter of 2000 — the highest ever recorded. Minority homeownership rates were also the highest ever recorded. In contrast, the homeownership rate fell from 65.6 percent in the first quarter of 1981 to 63.7 percent in the first quarter of 1993. There are almost 9 million more homeowners than in 1993. [Bureau of the Census, 7/26/00]
Lowest Poverty Rate Since 1979
In 1999, the poverty rate dropped from 12.7 percent to 11.8 percent, the lowest rate in two decades. Since President Clinton and Vice President Gore passed their Economic Plan in 1993, the poverty rate has declined from 15.1 percent in 1993 to 11.8 percent in 1999 – the largest six-year drop in poverty in nearly 30 years (1964-1970). There are now 7 million fewer people in poverty than in 1993, and over 2.2 million, or over 30 percent, of this decline occurred during the past year. [Census Bureau, Poverty in the United States: 1999, 9/26/00]
Largest One-Year Drop in Child Poverty in More than Three Decades
Under President Clinton and Vice President Gore child poverty has dropped by 25.6 percent — from 22.7 percent in 1993 to 16.9 percent in 1999. While this is still too high, it is the lowest child poverty rate since 1979 and includes the largest one-year decline since 1966, which occurred from 1998 to 1999. The African American child poverty rate has fallen 28.2 percent since 1993, and dropped from 36.7 percent in 1998 to 33.1 percent in 1999 — the largest one-year drop in history and the lowest level on record (data collected since 1959). The Hispanic child poverty rate has fallen by 26 percent since 1993, and dropped from 25.6 percent in 1998 to 22.8 percent in 1999 — the lowest level since 1979. [Census Bureau, Poverty in the United States: 1999, 9/26/00]
Trade
Clinton made it one of his goals as president to pass trade legislation that lowered the barriers to trade with other nations. He broke with many of his supporters, including labor unions, and those in his own party to support free-trade legislation.[37] Opponents argued that lowering tariffs and relaxing rules on imports would cost American jobs because people would buy cheaper products from other countries. Clinton countered that free trade would help America because it would allow the U.S. to boost its exports and grow the economy. Clinton also believed that free trade could help move foreign nations to economic and political reform.
Tax Cuts for Working Families
15 million additional working families received additional tax relief because of the President’s expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit. In 1999, the EITC lifted 4.1 million people out of poverty – nearly double the number lifted out of poverty by the EITC in 1993. This year, the President proposed expanding the EITC to provide tax relief to an additional 6.8 million hard-pressed working families. [Good News for Low-Income Families: Expansions in the EITC and Minimum Wage, CEA, 12/98; Census Bureau]
Signed the Adoption and Safe Families Act
The Adoption and Safe Families Act, which was based in large part on the recommendations of the Clinton-Gore Administration’s Adoption 2002 report, made sweeping changes in adoption law so that thousands of children in foster care move more quickly into safe and permanent homes. In 1999, 46,000 foster care children were adopted – more than a 64 percent increase since 1996 and well on the way to meeting the President’s goal of doubling the number of adoptions from 28,000 in 1996 to 56,000 by 2002. [PL 105-89, 11/19/97; HHS Press Release, 9/20/00]
Putting Families First
The President and Vice President developed and implemented the first-ever plan to protect our children from tobacco and end tobacco marketing targeted to young people. They also required the installation of V-chips in all new televisions, and encouraged schools to adopt school uniform policies to deter school violence and promote discipline. [Presidential Statement, 8/23/96; FCC Report No. GN 98-3, 3/12/98; Presidential Memorandum, 2/23/96]
Welcoming New Americans
Since 1993, the United States has welcomed 4.4 million new American citizens. Faced with this unprecedented number of applications, the Administration undertook an initiative that has significantly reduced the backlog of citizenship applications and is restoring timely processing. Furthermore, the Administration’s English as a Second Language/Civics Education Initiative will provide limited English-speaking adults with instruction in both English literacy and critical life skills necessary for effective citizenship and civic participation.
Providing Fairness for Legal Immigrants
The President believes that legal immigrants should have the same economic opportunity and bear the same responsibility as other members of society. In 1997 and 1998, the President fought for and succeeded in restoring disability, health and nutritional benefits for certain legal immigrants, and he will continue to press for additional restorations. The President and Vice President have also taken executive actions to ensure that immigrants who are eligible for benefits are not deterred by language or other access barriers.
Largest Investment in Education in 30 Years
Opening the Doors of College to All Americans
President Clinton proposed and enacted the HOPE Scholarships and Lifetime Learning tax credits, which in 1999 were claimed by an estimated 10 million American families struggling to pay for college. The HOPE Scholarship helps make the first two years of college universally available by providing a tax credit of up to $1,500 for tuition and fees for the first two years of college. The Lifetime Learning Tax Credit provides a 20 percent tax credit on the first $5,000 of tuition and fees for students beyond the first two years of college, or taking classes part-time (in 2003, this increases to $10,000 of tuition and fees).
In his FY 2001 budget, the President has proposed expanding the Lifetime Learning tax credit with a College Opportunity tax cut, which will give families the option of taking a tax deduction or claiming a 28 percent credit for the first $5,000 of college tuition and fees until 2002, and $10,000 thereafter [Education Department, 4/2/99; Treasury Department; FY 2001 Budget, p. 49]
Expanding Work Study and Pell Grants
One million students can now work their way through college because of the President’s expansion of the Work-Study Program, and nearly four million students will receive a Pell Grant of up to $3,300, the largest maximum award ever. The maximum award has increased 43 percent under the Clinton-Gore Administration. This year President Clinton proposed a $77 million increase in Work Study to continue to support one million awards, and a $200 increase in the Pell Grant maximum award, to raise it to $3,500. [Education Department, Office of Student Financial Assistance, Interim Performance Objectives, Final Report FY99; FY 2001 Budget, p. 50]
Expanding Access to Technology
With the Vice President’s leadership, the Clinton-Gore Administration has made increasing access to technology a top priority. The President and Vice President created the Technology Literacy Challenge Fund to help connect every school to the Internet, increase the number of multimedia computers in the classroom and provide technology training for teachers. They increased overall investments in educational technology from $23 million in 1993 to $769 million in FY 2000, and tripled funding for Community Technology Centers to reach at least 120 low-income communities.
Through the E-rate program, they secured low-cost connections to the Internet for schools, libraries, rural health clinics and hospitals, benefiting more than 80 percent of America’s public schools. They also increased investment in education research to ensure all children benefit from educational technology. In 1999, 95 percent of public schools were connected to the Internet — up from just 35 percent in 1994. [FY 2000 Budget, p. 67; National Center for Education Statistics, Stats in Brief NCES 2000-086, 2/00]
Supporting Local Education Reform Efforts
The President signed the Education Flexibility Partnership Act of 1999 (Ed-Flex) into law in April 1999, giving all states greater flexibility in the use of federal education funds in exchange for greater accountability for helping all students reach high academic standards. [PL 106-25, 4/29/99]
Lowest Crime Rates in a Generation
When President Clinton and Vice President Gore took office in 1993, the violent crime rate in America had more than quadrupled during the previous three decades. Since then, America has experienced the longest continuous drop in crime on record. The overall crime rate is the lowest in 25 years, and in 1999 crime fell for the eighth consecutive year nationwide. Violent crime rate fell 7 percent in 1999 and 27 percent since 1993. Since 1993, the murder rate is down more than 25 percent to its lowest point since 1967, and gun violence has declined by more than 35 percent. [Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1998 National Crime Victimization Survey; Federal Bureau of Investigation, Uniform Crime Reports for the United States 1998, 1999]
More Than Half a Million Felons, Fugitives and Domestic Abusers Denied Guns
Since taking effect in 1994, the Brady Law has helped to prevent a total of more than 536,000 felons, fugitives, domestic abusers, and other prohibited purchasers from buying guns. In November 1998, the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) took effect under the Brady Law, allowing access to a fuller set of records that law enforcement officials can use to conduct checks of all prospective gun purchases — not just for handguns. As of March 2000, NICS has conducted over 10 million background checks on gun purchasers, and stopped an estimated 179,000 illegal gun sales. [Bureau of Justice Statistics, Background Checks for Firearm Transfers, 1999, 6/00]
Cracking Down on the Most Serious Gun Criminals
President Clinton and Vice President Gore have established a tough record of enforcement of our nation’s gun laws by helping law enforcement take serious gun criminals out of our communities and put them where they belong: behind bars. The number of federal firearms cases prosecuted by the U.S. Attorneys increased 16 percent, from 4,754 in 1992 to 5,500 in 1999. And, by providing federal, state and local law enforcement and prosecutors with the tools they need to crack down on gun criminals, overall gun prosecutions have increased 22 percent. In addition, the average sentence for federal gun offenders has increased by nearly two years, and federal law enforcement is successfully targeting the most serious gun offenders. Between 1992 and 1998, the number of federal gun defendants sentenced to prison for three years or more went up 20 percent, and the number sentenced to five years or more went up 12 percent. [Justice Department Press Release, 1/18/00]
Developed Comprehensive Anti-Drug Strategy Including a $195 Million National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign
The President appointed Barry McCaffrey, a four-star general, to lead the Clinton-Gore Administration’s anti-drug strategy as the nation’s Drug Czar. In 1997, President Clinton and Director McCaffrey launched the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign, the largest targeted effort ever to teach youth about the dangers of drugs. The Campaign uses the full power of the modern media to encourage young people to reject drug use, and helps parents, teachers and other responsible adults talk to kids about drugs and get more involved in the lives of young people. Illicit drug use among young people age 12-17 declined for the past three years, and the average age of first-time use went up.
Since 1997, overall youth drug use is down by more than 20 percent, and youth marijuana use has declined by over 25 percent. Overall drug use is down since its peak in the 1970s, drug-related murders have fallen by 48 percent since 1992, and youth drug use is leveling off or declining. [Department of Health and Human Services Press Release 12/17/99, 8/31/00; SAMHSA, 1999 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse]
Preventing Violence with the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative
Evidence shows that a comprehensive, integrated community-wide approach is an effective way to address the problems of school violence and alcohol and other drug abuse and promote healthy childhood. In 1998, President Clinton unveiled the Administration’s Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative (SS/HS), an unprecedented joint effort involving the Departments of Education, Justice, and Health and Human Services to help communities design and implement a comprehensive approach, including educational, mental health, social service, and law enforcement services for to help combat youth violence.
SS/HS has provided $146 million to 77 local education authorities who have established formal partnerships with local mental health and law enforcement agencies. This year, the President has called for a $100 million expansion of the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative.
Protecting Children from Sex Offenders
President Clinton signed Megan’s Law and the Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act, requiring states to set up sex offender registration systems and require community notification when sex offenders are released from prison. [White House, Office of the Press Secretary, 5/17/96]
Creating New Tools to Help Families Move from Welfare to Work
The 1997 Balanced Budget Act signed by President Clinton included $3 billion to move long-term welfare recipients and low-income non-custodial fathers into jobs. The President’s Access to Jobs initiative helps communities design innovative transportation solutions, such as van services, to help former welfare recipients and other low-income workers get to work. President Clinton has secured 110,000 new housing vouchers in the last two years to help welfare recipients and hard-pressed working families move closer to job opportunities, and this year he is proposing $690 million for 120,000 new housing vouchers. And the Welfare-to-Work Tax Credit provides tax incentives to encourage businesses to hire long-term welfare recipients. [Domestic Policy Council]
Doubled Child Support Collections
President Clinton signed into law the toughest child support crackdown in history. Federal and state child support programs broke new records in 1999, collecting nearly $16 billion — double the amount collected in 1992. The number of paternities established rose to a record 1.5 million in 1999 – more than triple the number from 516,000 in 1992. The number of child support cases with collections more than doubled during the Clinton Administration, from 2.8 million in 1992 to 4.5 million in 1999. [Child Support Enforcement FY 1999 Preliminary Data Report, 10/00]
Encouraging Investment in Underserved Communities with the New Markets Initiative
President Clinton’s New Markets Initiative will help bring economic development and renewal to communities that have not benefited from the soaring economy by spurring more than $22 billion in new investment in urban and rural areas. On July 25, 2000, the House passed the President’s New Markets Initiative in a historic bipartisan agreement that included extension and expansion of Empowerment Zones, and an increase in the Low Income Housing Tax Credit. The President has taken three New Markets Tours of underserved communities, which have helped generate more than $1 billion in private sector investment commitments. [Presidential Statement, 8/5/99]
Enacted Most Comprehensive Medicare Reforms in History
In the 1997 Balanced Budget, the Clinton-Gore Administration protected, modernized and extended the life of the Medicare Trust Fund while offering new options for patient choice and preventive care. New preventive benefits passed include coverage of annual mammograms, coverage of screening tests for both colorectal and cervical cancer, and a diabetes self-management benefit. The President proposed a plan to reform and modernize Medicare’s benefits, including an optional prescription drug benefit that is affordable and available to all beneficiaries. The President has also proposed a reserve fund to help Medicare beneficiaries with extremely high prescription drug costs. [National Economic Council/Domestic Policy Committee, 7/2/99]
Passed Meaningful Health Insurance Reform
The President signed into law the Kennedy-Kassebaum Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, which helps individuals keep health insurance when they change jobs, guarantees renewability of coverage, and ensures access to health insurance for small businesses. As many as 25 million people will benefit from this law. The bill also eliminated the discriminatory tax treatment of the approximately 10 million Americans who are self-employed; strengthened efforts to combat health care fraud, waste and abuse by creating a stable source of funding; and provided consumer protections and tax incentives for private long-term care insurance. [FY 2000 Budget, p. 83; Domestic Policy Council]
More Americans Have Health Insurance
From 1998 to 1999, the number of Americans with health insurance rose by 1.7 million — two-thirds of them children. This is the first decline in the number of uninsured in 12 years. Factors contributing to the decline in the uninsured include the establishment of the historic S-CHIP program; the unprecedented outreach and enrollment efforts by the Administration and key states; and the improving economy in which increasing numbers of employers are offering health insurance. Despite historic gains, millions of Americans remain without insurance. The President and Vice President remain committed to providing health insurance coverage for all Americans. [Census Bureau, Health Insurance Coverage: 1999, 9/28/00]
Signed Mental Health Parity Provisions into Law
To help eliminate discrimination against individuals with mental illnesses, the President signed into law mental health parity provisions that prohibit health plans from establishing separate lifetime and annual limits for mental health coverage. In 1999, the White House held the first-ever Conference on Mental Health and released the Surgeon General’s first Report on Mental Health. This year, the President’s budget includes an investment of $100 million for mental health services, a 90 percent increase since 1993 levels. [FY 2001 Budget, p. 246]
Ensuring Safe Food for America’s Families
President Clinton created the President’s Council on Food Safety to develop a comprehensive food safety strategic plan for federal agencies. The Clinton-Gore Administration has implemented a new science-based inspection system — Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points — and reduced the prevalence of salmonella in raw meat and poultry by as much as 50 percent. The President signed the Food Quality Protection Act, which included special safeguards for kids and strengthened laws governing pesticides and food safety. The Administration also issued new rules to prevent foodborne illness caused by pathogens such as E. coli. [Executive Order 13100, 8/25/98; USDA Press Release, 10/7/99; USDA Press Release, 10/7/99]
Promoting Reproductive Health
The Clinton-Gore Administration has taken strong steps to protect a woman’s right to choose and to promote safe reproductive health services for women. The President has provided contraceptive coverage to more than a million women covered by federal health plans; provided family planning services to low income women through the Medicaid program; stood up against attempts to prohibit the FDA from approving RU-486, and continues to fight restrictions on international family planning. [Domestic Policy Council]
Preserving Our National Forests
The President directed the National Forest Service to develop and propose regulations to provide long-term protection for 40 million acres of roadless areas within national forests and ensure that future generations will be able to enjoy the pristine wilderness. The proposed regulations would ban road building in these areas and could also prohibit logging or other activities that harm their unique ecological value. [Executive Memorandum, 10/13/99]
Accelerating Toxic Cleanups and Brownfield Redevelopment
The Clinton-Gore Administration has completed clean-up at more than 530 Superfund sites, more than three times as many as completed in the previous twelve years. Clean-up of more than 91 percent of all sites is either completed or in progress. The Administration’s Brownfield redevelopment initiative has leveraged over $2.3 billion in private sector investment and generated 6,400 jobs. [Environmental Protection Agency, Superfund NPL Construction Completions Since 1/20/93 to 6/22/99; EPA Headlines, www.epa.gov, 8/24/00]
Keeping Our Drinking Water Safe
The President proposed and signed legislation to strengthen the Safe Drinking Water Act to ensure that our families have healthy, clean tap water. The Clinton-Gore Administration has required America’s 55,000 water utilities to provide regular reports to their customers on the quality of their drinking water. The Administration significantly tightened the arsenic standard, providing additional protection to at least 22.5 million Americans from cancer and other health problems.
The Administration has adopted or proposed new standards to provide the first-ever protection against waterborne illness like Cryptosporidium, potentially preventing more than half a million illnesses each year. The Administration also proposed new rule to reduce dirty runoff and strengthen protections for 20,000 rivers, lakes and other waterways too polluted for swimming and fishing. Ninety-one percent of America’s tap water from community drinking water systems now meets all federal standards. [PL 104-182, 8/6/96; White House, Council on Environmental Quality, 4/22/99; Environmental Protection Agency, Summary of the 2000 Budget, p. 30; Environmental Protection Agency, Press Release, 5/24/00].
Unprecedented Investment in Biomedical Research
Two years ago, the President called for an increase of almost 50 percent over 5 years in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) budget as part of his Research for America Fund. Since that time, the NIH budget has increased by over $4.3 billion and with the funding proposed by the President this year, the Administration will be one year ahead of schedule in reaching the 50 percent goal.
As a result, NIH now supports the highest levels of research ever on nearly all types of disease and health conditions, making new breakthroughs possible in vaccine development and use, the treatment of chronic disease, and prevention and treatment of diseases such as diabetes, osteoporosis, heart disease, cancer, and neurological diseases like Alzheimer and Parkinson’s. The Clinton-Gore Administration’s FY 2001 budget includes a $1 billion increase for NIH. [National Economic Council, 11/18/99; Domestic Policy Council; FY! 2001 Budget, p. 103].
Supporting University Research, Training the Next Generation of Scientists and Engineers
The FY 2000 budget contained a 6.6 percent increase in the National Science Foundation research budget to support science and engineering research across all fields and disciplines. This includes $126 million for the Administration’s “Information Technology for the 21st Century” initiative. [National Economic Council, 11/18/99].
Increasing Participation in Our Democracy with the Motor Voter Law
President Clinton signed the National Voter Registration Act during his first year in office — making voting easier for millions more Americans, and leading to the registration of more than 28 million new voters. [Presidential Statement, 5/20/93; FEC, 6/99; FEC, 6/97].
References
Office of Management! and Budget; National Economic Council, 9/27/00.
HHS Administration for Children and Families, December 1999 and August 2000; White House, Office of the Press Secretary, 8/22/00.
Patterson, Robert, Lt. Colonel, USAF (Ret) (2003). Dereliction of Duty: The Eyewitness Account of How Bill Clinton Endangered America’s Long-Term National Security.
Clinton health proposal plan was formulated by a task force led by Hillary Clinton. The plan, which was over 1000pgs proposed a system for health care that catered for the health care coverage of all Americans including aliens since America was the only industrialized rich nation that lacked a universal health care that covered all its citizens.
Main body
Hillary Clinton argued that millions of Americans could not afford health care bills and at the same time the health insurance currently in use was unsustainable especially during the times of inflation. She accused the insurance companies of making incredible profits at the expense of American population (Hernandez, 2006). This proposal however failed to pass through congress even after a twelve month heated debate that resulted to a sharp fall of its popularity from 71% to 41% with much of the opposition coming from democrats and the elderly. The plan led many to question the government’s ability to bring in the much needed health reforms because the middle class still felt left out whereas others argued that the bill gave patients few or no choice at all in deciding their choice insurance cover.
Its main components included the formulation of a national health board that was supposed to regulate the health care structure in the United States. Also the health care system was supposed to standardize health care benefits including doctors’ visits and major health problems such that US citizens could only be required to finance for themselves only the cost of additional benefits. The proposal also required all employers to finance 80% health care expenses for their employees whereas the employees catered for the remaining 20%. This also included small scale employers who however could receive credit tax refund.
Insurance companies were supposed to give all American citizens health insurance coverage and at the same time they were to set a certain amount of premiums for paying-off claims other than setting it aside as company’s profit. Moreover the insurance premiums were supposed to be affordable particularly based on the income of individual families. No American was supposed to leave his health insurance cover unless he/she was covered by another insurance health cover (Longest, 2006).
There are several rationales accredited to its fall and many of its opponents launched serious campaigns and advertisements against it including the famous Harry and Louise. For instance those who supported a nationalized health care agenda were opposed to the 80% employer sponsorship that passed on the remaining 20% to individuals and this was where the middle class still felt constrained as this still meant that they had to get into their pockets to pay health insurance.
The plan was also polarized such that to enforce it would require constant government intervention and use of force and at the same time many reforms were necessary to make the plan workable. Moreover, the presence of the first lady in the special task force was controversial. Some had problems with the first lady having in-door meeting over the same bill as this seemed to kill transparency whereas others perceived her as a private citizen with no mandate to be in the task force. Eventually the bill was voted down after a series of advertisement against it by insurance companies, conservatives and republicans.
Kindon (1984) attempts to give a policy formulation process that involves three streams, that is, problem streams, policy streams, and political streams (Boussaguet 2004). In his argument, policy making does not emanate from rational process of decision-making, policy actors always appear to formulate policy without analytically reflecting on alternatives. In the first instance, for a situation to be converted into a policy, it must be identified as a problem and as such a solution needs to be achieved or alternatives should be provided (Longest, 2006).
In the second instance, this where policy makers sit down and come up with solutions to a situation identified as a problem. Ideas are derived after an analysis of the problem. In the last instance, given policies are formulated or included as proposals of given political wings and the stage therefore occurs independent of the other two. This can be due expectation of change of a government or an election.
This streams work perfectly if all occur simultaneously though it is argued that two stream occurrences are okay but uncertainty still lingers. So like the case of the Clinton health policy, when either side argues that their approaches towards health can work best and a compromise is achieved, the policy can be classified as satisfactory.
However, such was not the case with the Clinton’s health policy; eventually the policy did not appeal to either side such that even democrats were not content with it. This happened even after democrats gave a compromise proposal whereby small scale employers were to be exempted. Some still saw the bill as too bureaucratic and many democrats attempted to give their different approaches. Republicans regress from health insurance policies. This is therefore a case of all streams occurring independently which usually result to greater uncertainty. As some have argued policy making has little difference with how sausages are made an argument that can be said to coincide with Kindon’s views (Longest, 2006).
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Clinton health bill came at the time when Americans perceived that the democrats could handle health care more appropriately than the republicans with the republicans scoring way below 30%. However, policy formulation goes beyond any political wings expectations like in the case of Hillary Clinton’s failure to persuade Congress to pass the health care bill. Therefore, irrespective of a party’s popularity, any US president must avoid assumptions of politically achieving a perfect universal health care system. Perhaps democrats could have performed better on this bill if they had attempted to convince the congress before hand other than using a private task force especially one holding secretive meetings with the first in it.
References
Boussaguet, et al. (2004). Streams model: Presses of Foundations National Sciences policies. Oxford: University Press.
Hernandez, R., & Pear, R. (2006). Once a Rival, Health Sector warms to Clinton. New York: The New York Times.
Hillary, Clinton. (2007). The American Health Choice Plan: Guaranteeing Affordable and Excellent Health Care for American Citizens. Web.
Longest, Jr. B. (2006). Health policymaking in the United States (4th Ed.). Chicago: Health Administration Press.