Part III america in the 1990s

The last decade of the 20^th century is often called one of the best periods in US history. During almost all that time America was in peace. The frightening and costly military competition with the Soviet Union had ended, the threat of nuclear attack seemed greatly reduced, if not gone. The economy improved from poor to very good. American scientists and engineers made major progress in medicine and technology. The internet computer system created a new world of communications.

America grew by almost 33 million people during the 1990s. Some minority groups grew faster than the white population, one in ten Americans was born in another country. During this decade there was a huge increase in immigrants from Latin America, the Caribbean and Asia. More than 280 million people lived in the United States by the end of the 20^th century. The population was getting older, however, and needing more costly healthcare. American families changed, more people ended their marriages. The divorce rate increased, so did the percentage of children living with only one parent.

In 1988 Americans elected George Herbert Walker Bush as their President. He benefited greatly from the popularity of the former President. George Bush was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. His father had served as a US senator from Connecticut, and young George had enjoyed a first-rate education at Yale. After service in World War II, he made a modest fortune of his own in the oil business in Texas. His deepest commitment, however, was the public service, he left the business world to serve briefly as a congressman and then held various posts in several Republican administrations, including emissary to China, ambassador to the United Nations, director of the Central Intelligence Agency, and vice president. He capped this long political career when he was inaugurated as president in January 1989, promising to work for “a kinder, gentler America.” During his campaign Bush promised to continue the economic policies of the Reagan administration. He echoed some of Reagan’s positions in social issues and stressed a commitment to be the “education president”.

The US-Soviet dialogue continued to broaden and deepen during the first year of the Bush administration. At that time a remarkable political change took place in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, symbolized by the opening of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. In the two years following that event, the world witnessed the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of its dominating influence in Eastern Europe. The Bush administration promoted the concept of a “new world order”, based on a new set of international realities, priorities, and moral principles.

The idea of a “new world order” was challenged when Saddam Hussein, the leader of Iraq, invaded oil-rich Kuwait in August 1990. Financially exhausted by its eight-year war with Iran that had ended in stalemate in 1988, Iraq needed Kuwait’s oil to pay its huge war bills.

Ironically, the United States and its allies had helped supply Saddam with the tools of aggression. Assuming that "the enemy of my enemy is my friend," American policymakers aided Iraq's war against Iran. In the process they helped build Saddam's military machine into one of the world's largest and most dangerous.

On January 16, 1991, the United States and its U.N. allies unleashed a hellish air war against Iraq. For thirty-seven days, warplanes pummeled targets in occupied Kuwait and in Iraq itself. Overwhelmed by the air attacks, Iraq offered almost no resistance, and even sneaked some of its own aircraft out of the country to avoid destruction. The air campaign constituted an awesome display of high-technology, precision-targeting modern warfare. Yet the Iraqis claimed, probably rightly, that civilians were nevertheless killed. On February 23, the dreaded and long-awaited land war began. Dubbed “Operation Desert Storm,” it lasted only four days – the “hundred-hour war.” On February 27, Saddam accepted a cease-fire, and Kuwait was liberated. The US and its allies achieved its military goal, but the victory was incomplete. Saddam Hussein remained in power, repressing the Kurds in the north and the Shiites in the south, both of whom had risen a rebellion after the war.

Despite popularity from his military and diplomatic triumph, when the election was held in 1992, Bush lost. In trying to explain his defeat most analysts agreed that the main factor was a loss of faith in the American Dream. It was evident that millions of Americans had lost confidence in their government, as Presidents had lied to them about Vietnam, Watergate, and Iran-contra. Many members of Congress ignored the needs of citizens and paid attention only to the special interests that contributed money to their election campaigns. And the campaigns themselves often had d egenerated into “mudslinging” theatricals instead of a discussion of issues.

William J. Clinton, Democratic candidate, became the 42^nd President of the United States. Clinton was born in Hope, Arkansas in 1945. He rose from poverty to graduate from Georgetown University, and later from Yale Law School where he met Hillary Rodham, whom he married in 1975. After returning to Arkansas, he became the nation's youngest governor in 1978. While governor of Arkansas, Clinton tried to move the Democratic Party away from left towards a more moderate mainstream position. Clinton also favored a national government that would be more active in meeting people's needs and bringing about social changes. He won the 1992 election largely on a platform focusing on domestic issues, notably the economic recession of the pre-election period. Clinton was the first Democrat to serve two full terms as President since Franklin D. Roosevelt. That election also brought the Democrats full control of the political branches of the federal government, including both houses of Congress as well as the Presidency. Throughout the 1990s, Clinton presided over continuous economic expansion, reductions in unemployment, and growing wealth through a massive rise in the stock market.

During the presidential campaign, Clinton was criticized for not having any experience in foreign policy. Yet his first two years in office saw several accomplishments in this area. The first accomplishment was passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA. This pact between the United States, Canada, and Mexico was designed to eliminate trade and investment barriers among the three nations. Also Clinton sent US troops to Bosnia and pursued efforts in the Middle East, where he was involved in confrontations with Saddam Hussein.

As the first Baby Boomer President, Bill Clinton was seen as quite a break from the presidents of previous generations. He was discussed as a remarkably informal president in a “common man” kind of way. With his sound-bite rhetoric and use of pop-culture in his campaigning, Clinton was declared, often negatively, as the “MTV president”.

Much of Clinton’s presidency was overshadowed by numerous scandals, including his sexual encounters with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. On December 19, 1998 Bill Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives on grounds of perjury and obstruction of justice, becoming the first elected US President to be impeached (and the second ever, the previous one being Andrew Johnson). The Senate, however, voted not to convict Clinton allowing him to stay in office for the remainder of his second term. The trial and the events leading to it caused deep concern among some Americans.

DISCUSSION

1. How did life in America change in the 1990s?

2. In 1988, Americans voted for George H. W. Bush as President. Speak about his career.

3. How did opening of the Berlin Wall and dissolution of the Soviet Union affect the US foreign policy?

4. Speak about American military campaign in Iraq in 1991.What is “Operation Desert Storm”?

5. How did analysts explain the defeat of George Bush in the 1992 presidential election?

6. Speak about Bill Clinton’s career.

7. What were Clinton administration’s accomplishments in foreign policy?

8. What is NAFTA?

9. Speak about Clinton’s personality. Why was he sometimes referred to as the “MTV president”?

10. What were the reasons for Bill Clinton’s impeachment?