Pump-Up What is President Clinton most remembered for?

A Time of Change

Today’s Vocabulary AmeriCorps – Clinton program that put students to work and offered a scholarship so they could continue their education. Illegal Immigration Reform Act – Increased border patrol agents, built a fence between the U.S. and Mexico and set penalties for smuggling people or providing fraudulent documents to prevent illegal immigration. NAFTA – The U.S., Mexico and Canada all agreed to participate in free trade.

The Computer Changes Society The 1 st computer company was Intel and was started in Silicon Valley, California. – Apple introduced the 1 st practical and affordable home computer. – The World Wide Web spawned a “dot-com” economy. Cell phones rose to use in the 1990s.

Computer and Internet Use, based on % of U.S. Households

Clinton’s Agenda Clinton believed that the federal deficit must be reduced but did not want to get rid of many important social programs. – Decided to raise taxes. Created a health care reform task force and appointed his wife, Hillary Clinton, to head it. – Guaranteed health benefits but put the burden of paying for the benefits on employers. – Clinton’s plan died without a vote. Family Medical Leave Act. – Gave workers up to 12 weeks per year for the birth of a child or for the illness of a family member. Created AmeriCorps and cracked down on gun control and crime.

Republicans Gain Control of Congress During the midterm elections of 1994, Americans voted Republican. Republicans clashed with Clinton over the federal budget. – Clinton vetoed Republican budget proposals and Republicans refused to compromise. – Resulted in a federal gov’t shut down. Health Insurance Portability Act – Improved health coverage for people. Welfare Reform Act, – Limited people to no more than 2 consecutive years on welfare.

Election of 1996 Democrat- Bill Clinton – Took credit for the booming economy. Republican- Bob Dole – Promised a 15% tax cut. Reform Party- Ross Perot – Made the deficit the main campaign issue.

Clinton’s Second Term In 1997 a balanced budget was submitted to Congress! Children’s Health Insurance Program – Provided health insurance for children whose parents could not afford it. Helped students by increasing grants for college and expanded Head Start. Clinton was impeached for perjury and obstruction of justice. – Senate did not reach the 2/3rds majority it needed to remove Clinton from office.

Clinton’s Foreign Policy Haiti – Military leaders overthrew the 1 st democratically elected president. – UN to impose a trade embargo and Jimmy Carter convinced Haiti’s rulers to step aside. Bosnia – Christian Serbs began an ethnic cleansing of Bosnian Muslims. – NATO took military action. Kosovo (Serbia) – Albanians wanted Kosovo to separate from Serbia. – NATO used force to stop the fighting. Middle East – Iraq attacked the Kurds. The U.S. fired missiles at Iraq. – Palestine and Israel started negations over who controlled what territory. Radical Palestinians assassinated Israel’s Prime Minister.

Changes in Immigration Law Immigration Act of 1965 – Abolished the national origins quota act. – Migration chains were established. Began allowing more refugees into the country. Immigration Reform and Control Act of – Established penalties for employers who knowingly hire unauthorized immigrants and strengthened border controls. The U.S. began to strengthen laws against illegal immigration through the Illegal Immigration Reform Act of 1996.

Recent Immigration

A Global Economy Globalization – The idea that the world is becoming increasingly interconnected. – Supporters believe that trade helps the American economy. – Opponents believe that trade causes jobs to move overseas. NAFTA increased trade with Canada and Mexico 104%. 120 nations became members of the World Trade Organization. Clinton expanded trade with China.

Rise of Global Trade and Global GDP

Global Environmentalism Scientists discovered that CFCs had created an ozone hole over Antarctica. – 23 other nations agreed to phase out chemicals that weakened the ozone layer. Concern about global warming led 38 nations to sign the Kyoto Protocol promising to reduce emissions. – Very few nations have actually complied with its requirements and reduced their emissions.

Reflection Explain the accomplishments and failures of President Clinton.