Dichotomy Of Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton, known as Bill Clinton, served as the 42nd President of the United States during a time of significant economic expansion and political conflict. Clinton’s presidency is characterized by dramatic highs and lows, resulting from his handling of a divided government, questionable character, and energizing personality. His legacy includes a mix of massive blunders and remarkable upturns, leading to widespread debate about his presidential greatness. Clinton’s presidential ranking of thirteen in the Siena 2010 survey serves as evidence of his rise to a top fifteen presidential ranking and a point of contention to be examined. This paper uses his level of progressiveness, history of scandal, and strength of accomplishments
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This bottom 5 ranking is largely, if not completely, due to the Monica Lewinski scandal that tarnished American’s view of his character, but didn’t affect his popularity. With respect to the nature and public perception of Bill Clinton, he represents a paradoxical dichotomy. On the one hand, Clinton has been known as the most publicly shamed President in modern day history. Yet, oddly enough, he is also hailed as one of the most charismatic and popular presidents in modern day history as well. The decline of Americans’ trust in Clinton began on January 21, 1998, when the story broke about Clinton’s improper sexual relationship with a young female intern at the White House, Monica Lewinsky. Despite polls showing that two-thirds of people believed Clinton lied about the affair, his approval rating improved in 1998. “At the beginning of 1998, Clinton’s job approval rating hovered just above 50%” but by “the end of the year it was approaching 70%, higher than at any previous time in his presidency.” Clinton’s popularity, despite being surrounded by scandal, showed the power of his relatable personality and …show more content…
This led to the House of Representatives authorizing Ken Starr, the previous Chancellor of Baylor University, to independently lead the impeachment inquiry. Ultimately, Starr’s findings of explicit sexual misconduct were released in what is famously known as the Starr report. This report revealed the nature and extent of the relationship between Clinton and Lewinsky that began as early as November 1995. On August 17, 1998, Bill Clinton became the first sitting President to testify before a grand jury as a result of an investigation into his own personal conduct. Later that day, President Clinton appeared on national television where he admitted to inappropriately being involved in a relationship with Monica Lewinsky. Several days later the House of Representatives received the Starr report and released the first several hundred pages to the public. As a result of this report, Starr personally recommended impeaching Clinton on eleven grounds, which included perjury, obstruction of justice, witness tampering, and abuse of power. Based on the information from the Starr report, the House of Representatives voted to impeach President Clinton for allegedly lying under oath about his relationship with Lewinsky and also for obstructing the investigation of that
This bottom 5 ranking is largely, if not completely, due to the Monica Lewinski scandal that tarnished American’s view of his character, but didn’t affect his popularity. With respect to the nature and public perception of Bill Clinton, he represents a paradoxical dichotomy. On the one hand, Clinton has been known as the most publicly shamed President in modern day history. Yet, oddly enough, he is also hailed as one of the most charismatic and popular presidents in modern day history as well. The decline of Americans’ trust in Clinton began on January 21, 1998, when the story broke about Clinton’s improper sexual relationship with a young female intern at the White House, Monica Lewinsky. Despite polls showing that two-thirds of people believed Clinton lied about the affair, his approval rating improved in 1998. “At the beginning of 1998, Clinton’s job approval rating hovered just above 50%” but by “the end of the year it was approaching 70%, higher than at any previous time in his presidency.” Clinton’s popularity, despite being surrounded by scandal, showed the power of his relatable personality and …show more content…
This led to the House of Representatives authorizing Ken Starr, the previous Chancellor of Baylor University, to independently lead the impeachment inquiry. Ultimately, Starr’s findings of explicit sexual misconduct were released in what is famously known as the Starr report. This report revealed the nature and extent of the relationship between Clinton and Lewinsky that began as early as November 1995. On August 17, 1998, Bill Clinton became the first sitting President to testify before a grand jury as a result of an investigation into his own personal conduct. Later that day, President Clinton appeared on national television where he admitted to inappropriately being involved in a relationship with Monica Lewinsky. Several days later the House of Representatives received the Starr report and released the first several hundred pages to the public. As a result of this report, Starr personally recommended impeaching Clinton on eleven grounds, which included perjury, obstruction of justice, witness tampering, and abuse of power. Based on the information from the Starr report, the House of Representatives voted to impeach President Clinton for allegedly lying under oath about his relationship with Lewinsky and also for obstructing the investigation of that