How good a president was Bill Clinton? William "Bill" Clinton was the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He ran for

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Clara Widdison

How good a president was Bill Clinton?

William "Bill" Clinton was the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He ran for the Democrats against incumbent President George Bush, who had been deemed ‘unbeatable’ after the Persian Gulf conflict. However, his approval ratings feel from 80% to just over 40% by the time of the general election. Clinton’s election campaign was dogged with allegations of affairs, drug-use and shady business deals, but Clinton stood firm by refusing to withdraw from the election. He un-expectantly won with 42.9% of the vote. There were three main factors that contributed to Clinton’s election victory; first, the campaign came in the midst of the recession of 1992. The resulting job loss fuelled strong discontent with Bush. Clinton was perceived as sympathetic, concerned, and more in touch with ordinary families. Second was the decision by Bush to accept a tax increase. Not having been in Congress at the time, Clinton was able to effectively condemn the tax increase. Finally, Bush's support was in disarray as his conservative voters lacked confidence in him.

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Clinton appealed to the electorates with his charismatic personality. His relaxed personality was popular with young people, whereas him high intelligence impressed those who expected more from him. Clinton was seen during his presidency and during his candidacy as a change from the presidents of the World War II Generation. Despite criticisms that his appeal to young voters lacked substance, Clinton won among younger voters in the 1992 election, with the highest Generation X turnout ever. Clinton clearly came across as popular to young people. Clinton was also very popular overall among African-Americans and made improving race relations a ...

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