You want to destroy our party? Keep ignoring or dismissing Bill Clinton's record of accomplishments

[bigtree]

There is no record of accomplishments we can point to, by a Democratic president, since Roosevelt's era, as extensive and impressive as Bill Clinton's


The Clinton Presidency: A Historic Era of Progress and Prosperity

* Longest economic expansion in American history

The President’s strategy of fiscal discipline, open foreign markets and investments in the American people helped create the conditions for a record 115 months of economic expansion. Our economy has grown at an average of 4 percent per year since 1993.

* More than 22 million new jobs

More than 22 million jobs were created in less than eight years -- the most ever under a single administration, and more than were created in the previous twelve years.

* Highest homeownership in American history

A strong economy and fiscal discipline kept interest rates low, making it possible for more families to buy homes. The homeownership rate increased from 64.2 percent in 1992 to 67. 7 percent, the highest rate ever.

* Lowest unemployment in 30 years

Unemployment dropped from more than 7 percent in 1993 to just 4.0 percent in November 2000. Unemployment for African Americans and Hispanics fell to the lowest rates on record, and the rate for women is the lowest in more than 40 years.

* Raised education standards, increased school choice, and doubled education and training investment

Since 1992, reading and math scores have increased for 4th, 8th, and 12th graders, math SAT scores are at a 30-year high, the number of charter schools has grown from 1 to more than 2,000, forty-nine states have put in place standards in core subjects and federal investment in education and training has doubled.

* Largest expansion of college opportunity since the GI Bill

President Clinton and Vice President Gore have nearly doubled financial aid for students by increasing Pell Grants to the largest award ever, expanding Federal Work-Study to allow 1 million students to work their way through college, and by creating new tax credits and scholarships such as Lifetime Learning tax credits and the HOPE scholarship. At the same time, taxpayers have saved $18 billion due to the decline in student loan defaults, increased collections and savings from the direct student loan program.

* Connected 95 percent of schools to the Internet

President Clinton and Vice President Gore’s new commitment to education technology, including the E-Rate and a 3,000 percent increase in educational technology funding, increased the percentage of schools connected to the Internet from 35 percent in 1994 to 95 percent in 1999.

* Lowest crime rate in 26 years

Because of President Clinton’s comprehensive anti-crime strategy of tough penalties, more police, and smart prevention, as well as common sense gun safety laws, the overall crime rate declined for 8 consecutive years, the longest continuous drop on record, and is at the lowest level since 1973.

* 100,000 more police for our streets

As part of the 1994 Crime Bill, President Clinton enacted a new initiative to fund 100,000 community police officers. To date more than 11,000 law enforcement agencies have received COPS funding.

* Enacted most sweeping gun safety legislation in a generation

Since the President signed the Brady bill in 1993, more than 600,000 felons, fugitives, and other prohibited persons have been stopped from buying guns. Gun crime has declined 40 percent since 1992.

* Family and Medical Leave Act for 20 million Americans

To help parents succeed at work and at home, President Clinton signed the Family and Medical Leave Act in 1993. Over 20 million Americans have taken unpaid leave to care for a newborn child or sick family member.

* Smallest welfare rolls in 32 years

The President pledged to end welfare as we know it and signed landmark bipartisan welfare reform legislation in 1996. Since then, caseloads have been cut in half, to the lowest level since 1968, and millions of parents have joined the workforce. People on welfare today are five times more likely to be working than in 1992.

* Higher incomes at all levels

After falling by nearly $2,000 between 1988 and 1992, the median family’s income rose by $6,338, after adjusting for inflation, since 1993. African American family income increased even more, rising by nearly $7,000 since 1993. After years of stagnant income growth among average and lower income families, all income brackets experienced double-digit growth since 1993. The bottom 20 percent saw the largest income growth at 16.3 percent.

* Lowest poverty rate in 20 years

Since Congress passed President Clinton’s Economic Plan in 1993, the poverty rate declined from 15.1 percent to 11.8 percent last year — the largest six-year drop in poverty in nearly 30 years. There are now 7 million fewer people in poverty than in 1993. The child poverty rate declined more than 25 percent, the poverty rates for single mothers, African Americans and the elderly have dropped to their lowest levels on record, and Hispanic poverty dropped to its lowest level since 1979.

* Lowest teen birth rate in 60 years

In his 1995 State of the Union Address, President Clinton challenged Americans to join together in a national campaign against teen pregnancy. The birth rate for teens aged 15-19 declined every year of the Clinton Presidency, from 60.7 per 1,000 teens in 1992 to a record low of 49.6 in 1999.

* Lowest infant mortality rate in American history

The Clinton Administration expanded efforts to provide mothers and newborn children with health care. Today, a record high 82 percent of all mothers receive prenatal care. The infant mortality rate has dropped from 8.5 deaths per 1,000 in 1992 to 7.2 deaths per 1,000 in 1998, the lowest rate ever recorded.

* Deactivated more than 1,700 nuclear warheads from the former Soviet Union

Efforts of the Clinton-Gore Administration led to the dismantling of more than 1,700 nuclear warheads, 300 launchers and 425 land and submarine based missiles from the former Soviet Union.

* Protected millions of acres of American land

President Clinton has protected more land in the lower 48 states than any other president. He has protected 5 new national parks, designated 11 new national monuments and expanded two others and proposed protections for 60 million acres of roadless areas in America’s national forests.

* Paid off $360 billion of the national debt

Between 1998-2000, the national debt was reduced by $363 billion — the largest three-year debt pay-down in American history. We are now on track to pay off the entire debt by 2009.

* Converted the largest budget deficit in American history to the largest surplus

Thanks in large part to the 1993 Deficit Reduction Act, the 1997 Balanced Budget Act, and President Clinton’s call to save the surplus for debt reduction, Social Security, and Medicare solvency, America has put its fiscal house in order. The deficit was $290 billion in 1993 and expected to grow to $455 billion by this year. Instead, we have a projected surplus of $237 billion.

* Lowest government spending in three decades

Under President Clinton federal government spending as a share of the economy has decreased from 22.2 percent in 1992 to a projected 18.5 percent in 2000, the lowest since 1966.

* Lowest federal income tax burden in 35 years

President Clinton enacted targeted tax cuts such as the Earned Income Tax Credit expansion, $500 child tax credit, and the HOPE Scholarship and Lifetime Learning Tax Credits. Federal income taxes as a percentage of income for the typical American family have dropped to their lowest level in 35 years.

* More families own stock than ever before

The number of families owning stock in the United States increased by 40 percent since 1992.

* Most diverse cabinet in American history

The President has appointed more African Americans, women and Hispanics to the Cabinet than any other President in history. He appointed the first female Attorney General, the first female Secretary of State and the first Asian American cabinet secretary ever.

http://clinton5.nara.gov/WH/Accomplishments/eightyears-01.html


the next administration should hope to do as well . . .

[MannyGoldstein]

1. Outsourcing Of Torture,

Sending jobs overseas, etc.

[Whisp]

17. calling off the Suharto dog a little late

for many dead East Timorese....

Kosovo and the IMF restructual adjustment. that's what That was about.

[dogman]

2. It has gotten worse than that.

Years of RW lies and smears are repeated with glee and enthusiasm. Things I've had to endure from GOPers over years have become standard fare. There is a record and that is fair game.

[babylonsister]

3. Does Clinton want to destroy our party? He sure acted like it last

week. He's very self-serving, even after being warned by several influential Dems. He got what he deserved for not reconsidering his actions. Maybe now he will.

[bigtree]

32. politics, sister

they're ALL self-serving. I haven't viewed his actions or statements as any more disruptive than the others'. They ALL need to keep the focus off of their sweet selves.

[swoop]

4. I wanted him to keep us safe.

And do something about WTC I, the USS Cole, the Khobar Towers bombing, Rwanda--and decently building and supplying our military.

[dsc]

8. The people who did WTC 1 were all tried, convicted, and are still in jail as I type.

The Khobar Tower bombers, tried, convicted, and still in jail. The Cole happened with about 4 months of the Clinton years left, Bush did nothing.

[SammyWinstonJack]

10. ...

:thumbsup:

[1corona4u]

46. And, maybe it's just me....

but I think Bush IS the reason 911 happened.

[swoop]

48. We lived in San Diego in the 1990's.

One of the 19 hijackers lived near us--about a mile away in Clairemont, CA. The plans were laid long before Bush got into office.

[Rockholm]

13. RW Talking Points. Great Contribution, Swoop.

[swoop]

49. I know.

Everytime someone brings up something someone here doesn't want to hear, it becomes a 'RW talking point'.

[Rockholm]

60. Funny thing, huh.

Usually they have lost post counts. Interesting how that works.

[BlueStateGirl]

59. RW Bullshit Propaganda.

[calmblueocean]

64. Go find a bridge, troll. nt

[corkhead]

5. you didn't mention NAFTA or the telecommunications act of 1998

they were accomplishements... depending on your perspective.

[zulchzulu]

18. I've seen this glossy cut and paste list before

I guess the part about "helping China be able to trade" and "helping the telecommunications industry to become more efficient" weren't in this list.

[bigtree]

28. NONE of those dominated the U.S. economy during his tenure

There have always been regions of America with economies in flux with changing markets. But, the economy in America, as a whole, during his terms, thrived. And most average Americans benefited from his stewardship of the economy. Most of the corruptive effects have occurred under the watch and manipulation of republicans. You can't see, in the overall economy during his presidency, these negative effects which republicans have furthered with their own stewardship over the last decade.

[zulchzulu]

35. Give it up. NAFTA, DOMA, Telecomm Act, China MFN, WTO... all signed by Bill

Are you even implying that NAFTA did nothing to the US economy during his tenure?

ROTFLMAO!!!

Put the Clinton KoolAid down.

[bigtree]

42. the vast majority of the negative effects of these happened during REPUBLICAN control of Congress

and the presidency.

Yet, some will blame our Democrats, who actually care about these things enough to act to mitigate them. Enforcement of the penalizing provisions in the trade bills by this administration would have gone a long way toward limiting the negative effects. But, some will reach all the way back, almost a decade ago, to blame Clinton for the mismanagement and neglect of Bush.

[corkhead]

63. the same logic would say that we should be in total control right now

how do you reconcile it with what is going on?

[zulchzulu]

69. Did the Repugs force Bill to sign their agenda into law?

Stop with the re-writing of history please...

[msongs]

6. obama = jesus and bill clinton = judas to some people on DU nt

[LittleClarkie]

9. Bah. If he's going to stick his neck into Hillary's campaign, he gets what he gets

Criticism that is. Just as if Kerry sticks his neck in to Obama's campaign, he too gets what he gets.

Criticism, mind you. No excuse for bashing our fine Dem leaders, on either side.

[New Dawn]

7. ROFL at "accomplishments"

How about these:

* NAFTA
* Welfare deform
* Telecommunications Act
* Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act
* Murderous sanctions on Iraq
* Murderous air strikes against Iraq, Yugoslavia, Sudan, etc.

He was a right-wing, imperialist president!

[bigtree]

12. you've got some good things to oppose there

but I've listed the items which directly affected MY life during his term. That counts for a great deal for my self and for my family.

[Catherine Vincent]

29. You're right wing aren't you? nt

[New Dawn]

36. I'm left-wing, which is why I do not support the Clintons!

[totodeinhere]

39. Add DOMA to that infamous list.

[Lerkfish]

11. oh, please, give me a break. If that destroys our party it deserves to die

one man is not the party.

[bigtree]

19. yet, Bill Clinton is the ONLY Democratic president in my lifetime with this level of success

. . . success in advancing solutions and remedies to the issues and concerns which were routinely ignored and aggravated by the republican opposition. He didn't accomplish these in a vacuum. He was a driving force for our party; a dominant and dynamic force for change. It makes no sense to tear down and leapfrog over his accomplishments to get to where we say we want our party to be. We will inevitably need to BUILD on many of his successes if, in fact, we are to be successful. Bill Clinton's presidency was more than just the bump in the road some folks want to portray it as. The accomplishments during his tenure offer us a visible platform on which voters can stand as they seek to advance or restore the progress we saw in that era. Cast all of that measurable progress aside at our party's peril.

[Lerkfish]

47. Look, I voted for Bill twice, and I voted for Carter

Bill is not worthy to untie Carter's shoes, but even so, Carter is just a man.
If the party depends on one man to be viable, then it is worthless. A party needs to stand for ideals, not charismatic men.

[ORDagnabbit]

14. what if it just seems that he did good but when you dig into it he just helped the problems along

like with NAFTA?

[bigtree]

21. I think NAFTA was corrupted by this republican administration and their republican enablers

but, its passage definitely left them the opportunity for all of that, without institutionalizing the offsets, enforcements, and new industry here at home which would balance the negative effects of the open door . . . like moving again to tax the dollars which are flowing out of the country. It used to be at like 15% and Reagan took it to zero. That would have gone a long way to mitigating the outflow of capital and jobs overseas.

[arendt]

66. NAFTA was DOA. The Mexican economy cratered a year later, and we had to bail it out.

I call BS on the claim that it was somehow viable until 2000.

Basically, Carlos Slim and the other oligarchs of Mexico used NAFTA to impoverish the rest of Mexico, with help from Wall St. We have been paying for that with increased illegal immigration ever since NAFTA passed.

Your statement is BUNK.

arendt

[THUNDER HANDS]

15. so when is he going on the ballot?

oh, wait.

[Jamastiene]

16. They will not listen.

They think they already know everything. :eyes:

[kenfrequed]

20. Uhm

How about the end of welfare?

How about the end of big government?

How about NAFTA, the WTO, and the GATT?

What about folding to the republican contract ON America?

What about the telecommunications act?


I am sorry but you always, ALWAYS, have to take the bitter with the sweet. Bill may have been an alright president as things go(particularly when compared to the Bushes and Reagan), but he could have been a hell of a lot more progressive. He was no FDR.

[Catherine Vincent]

31. Welfare ended?

Welfare still exists, Einstein.

[kenfrequed]

51. hmm well...

There are plenty of single mothers with children that would disagree. It was effectively killed and gutted as a federal program and reformed completely under the states with less regulation about how it was administered.

So rather than the friggin ad hominem bs, why not deal with the reality of children nennied by television and an increase in child poverty.

[Bitwit1234]

22. If by some hook or crook the other candidate gets the nod

it will SPLIT THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY directly in two....And it will never regain it's prominence.

[MasonJar]

23. Stop bashing Bill Clinton; he was a great president and he helped

all of us. Bill Clinton was good for America and that was in spite of constant demonization by the rightwing swiftboaters. I do NOT think that many individuals could have withstood the onslaught. I admire him for his fortitude and his accomplishments and his warm and wonderful smile and manner. I resent the rewriting of history by DUers who obviously do NOT want Hillary for our nominee. Hillary has always been left of Bill and she is certainly left of Obama, so stop with the GOPerisms. We should be grateful that such incredible men and woman are willing to subject themselves to continuous degradations in order to lead our nation out of the mire George W, the real enemy/loser, has sunk us in.

[hfojvt]

33. I still remember the history, so no need to re-write it

he simply was not very progressive

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/71

[Wednesdays]

24. I love Bill Clinton's accomplishments...

is it okay if I don't vote for his wife at this time?

:shrug:

[rodeodance]

30. sure.

[bigtree]

34. definitely okay

more power to you

[Sherman A1]

41. Agreed & Well Said

I think he was a great President and appreciate all he did and is still doing, but I will not be voting for Hillary in the Primary. Hope that's okay with everyone and even if it isn't.............

[rosesaylavee]

25. Agreed.

But we do need to also look at the whole presidency to see where we want to be with the next. He did bring prosperity to most Americans. And he certainly was a breath of fresh air after the Reagan/Bush years. However, he did lay the groundwork for some of our major economic and social problems today. (Nafta, welfare reform which wasn't, media deregulation, losing the fairness doctrine, not signing Kyoto)

You are right though. We do owe him a debt of thanks and respect for what he was able to accomplish despite years of hard, unrelenting opposition from the republicans.

[hfojvt]

26. is it better to lie about them, then?

this, for example, is simply not true

"* Higher incomes at all levels

After falling by nearly $2,000 between 1988 and 1992, the median family’s income rose by $6,338, after adjusting for inflation, since 1993. African American family income increased even more, rising by nearly $7,000 since 1993. After years of stagnant income growth among average and lower income families, all income brackets experienced double-digit growth since 1993. The bottom 20 percent saw the largest income growth at 16.3 percent."

The bottom 20% saw the largest growth?
My figures show the mean income, in real terms of the bottom quintile went from $8,942 in 1993 to $10,136 in 2001. For the top 20% mean income went from $122,148 to $145,970, and for the top 5% from $209,647 to $260,464. That's a 19.5% growth rate for the top 20%, a 24.2% growth for the top 5%, and only a 13.35% growth rate for the bottom 20%.

The share of income for the bottom 60% fell from 27.7% to 26.8%. The share of income for the top 5% grew from 21% to 22.4%. It was 16.6% when Johnson left office. Johnson, IMO, rocks much more than Clinton when it came to helping the poor.

[Cant trust em]

27. Hey Bill, try inhaling this time

Please chill out and when this blows over I'll be able to look at you in a positive light.

[Avalux]

37. That's HIS record, not HERS. I'm tired of her running on it.

Let me be clear about this - the more it seems the two of them are running together, the more Bill says "we" when campaigning for Hillary, the more she allows him to do it - the more it turns people off.

[bigtree]

43. I agree that she should be judged on her own potential and record

she'll stand or fall on her own. I expect she'll want it that way. Tricky business.

[NMMNG]

38. Yes, I've noticed lately

It's become nothing but shit all over Bill Clinton now that it will serve to (ostensibly) ruin Hillary's chances for the election and make Obama look better. Funny how it was mostly freepers dumping on him prior to the primaries.

[hughee99]

40. Personally...

though I'd like to believe it's true, I struggle to credit Clinton with the booming economy during his years, though I certainly credit him with not F'ing it up (unlike some other presidents). He did do a number of very good things, some of which you have mentioned above, but all in all, with things going as well as they were during his administration economically, I think he missed a golden opportunity to make a significant and lasting change.

[bigtree]

44. It's fair to have expected more

one thing, the attention he gave the deficit provided the base for the lower interest rates and freed up money which could be used elsewhere.

[hughee99]

I agree...

though economically, IMHO, the economy was more a factor of the technological breakthroughs made (or more precisely, reaching the market) during his time. He did things to help it along where it could, but there was no "master plan" or anything that he could implement to make it happen again.

[Lerkfish]

56. really? my memory is that greenspan kept jacking up the rate

at the end of Bill's presidency to allegedly "put the brakes" on runaway inflation.

I remember being angry about it at the time.

[robbedvoter]

45. Thank you.

[Bread and Circus]

50. A lot of good things happened in the 90's Bill can't take credit for them

all. Nor even most of them.

Hell, many of the things he actually did had bad results: doma, don't ask don't tell, nafta, chinese fast track, and a sullied Presidency that made it an uphill climb for Gore.

Besides, who'd running Bill or Hillary?

I can't tell anymore.

[chieftain]

52. I can applaud many aspects of the Clinton presidency but

vote for Obama. I don't see that as tearing the Party apart.

[bigtree]

53. of course, it isn't

congrats on SC

[chieftain]

62. Thanks, you're a class act.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

54. Clinton and the neo-libs, triangulated a moderate left party into a moderate right party.

In the same way that Tony Blair did to the Labour Party in Britain.

The "Third Way" is just another way of pandering to the right.

[Geek_Girl]

55. I don't thin Bill would have voted to go to war with Iraq but his wife did

Last I checked Bill wasn't running for office

[surfermaw]

57. I am a staunch Edwards supporter but agree with your post

Bill Clinton was one of the best Presidents we have ever had, and it is terrible the thing that have been said here, just wait a few weeks and you will understand what he was trying to tell the nation.

[Skidmore]

58. There is no reason under the sun for me or anyone else in this party

to lend credence to the use of a poorly disguised application of Nixon's old bigoted Southern Strategy on behalf a candidate in this party. Such tactics have no place in this day and age. Bill Clinton damaged the party and his legacy by his tawdry and cynical performance over the past weeks.

[BootinUp]

61. K&R

nice post.

[Meshuga]

Delete

Oops...

[Hill_YesWeWill]

65. The problem is Bill isn't running and

a co-presidency goes against our constitution, think about Cheney and you'll understand why.

And, more importantly, when you talk about Bill you undermine Hillary's campaign and it's not fair. Hillary is not Bill, and she shouldn't be expected to be or desired to be. She is her own person, and she deserves to be reviewed on her own achievements and actions.

[David Zephyr]

67. NAFTA, DOMA, Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Welfare "Reform" & Outsourcing.

What a record.

50% of Americans despise the Clintons.

Keep up the PR. They need it.

[LandOLincoln]

70. Nope--only the frothing wingnuts

at each end of the spectrum.

And the rest of the world loves him. I can actually remember what it was like to have a president who could walk into crowds anywhere in the world and be mobbed by adoring fans. It was good to be an American abroad then.

[mtnsnake]

68. K&R!

[Clinton Crusader]

71. members of this party are ripping it apart all by themselves

Bill Clinton was our HERO, we defended him against the Repugs, we defended him against everyone.

Now every other post in here is bringing him down, saying he's worthless, can't stand him, the worst president, he's a cancer, I hate him, on and on and on.

Do you think for one second any Republican would ever say anything like this about any of their Presidents? Never. They stick together like glue and that's why they win.

Behavior like I have witnessed the past few weeks in here is why we lose.

We would stab each other in the back in a heartbeat.

It doesn't seem so long ago when all you saw was "How many ways can I count how I love the Big Dawg". Now the very same people hate his guts, the most popular and successful Dem president in light years. Everyone loves him, but in this place, everyone loveD him. The freepers must be wetting themselves reading this stuff!

The Dems hate their hero, Bill Clinton, they can't stop sniping, laughing, ridiculing, fighting, and insulting each other, we'll walk all over them.

I cannot fathom how many people are being brainwashed by this bullshit being purportrated by the MSM.

I am so saddened to see my beloved party in this state.

[VotesForWomen]

72. the clintons' detractors are woefully out of touch with reality. nt

[nancyharris]

73. Bill Clinton - December 1998

"That is why, on the unanimous recommendation of my national security team -- including the vice president, the secretary of defense, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, the secretary of state and the national security adviser -- I have ordered a strong, sustained series of air strikes against Iraq.

They are designed to degrade Saddam's capacity to develop and deliver weapons of mass destruction, and to degrade his ability to threaten his neighbors.

At the same time, we are delivering a powerful message to Saddam. If you act recklessly, you will pay a heavy price. We acted today because, in the judgment of my military advisers, a swift response would provide the most surprise and the least opportunity for Saddam to prepare.

If we had delayed for even a matter of days from Chairman Butler's report, we would have given Saddam more time to disperse his forces and protect his weapons."

[goodhue]

74. I'm proud to say that I never voted for Bill Clinton

[stillcool]

75. He himself has disparaged his own record.

The age of the internet doesn't help.

THREE YEARS OF NAFTA:
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH !
by Scott Cooper
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Economics/ThreeYears_NAFTA.html

http://www.apa.org/pi/wpo/introduction.html
Introduction Welfare Is Not the Problem-Poverty Is the Problem

In 1996, President Clinton signed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) into law. PRWORA replaced existing AID to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS), and Emergency Assistance programs.
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/International_War_Crimes/ClintonWarCriminal_Herman.html

1998 Censored
Foreign Policy News Stories
from
Project Censored
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Project%20Censored/CensoredNews_1998.html

http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/American_Empire/Lying_for_Empire.html