Category History

William J. Clinton, popularly known as Bill Clinton dreamt of becoming a popular musician when he was in high school. He used to play the saxophone as well but fate had something else in store for him- to become the 42nd president of the United States.

As a student, Clinton had an excellent record. He was part of the Boys Nation (an organization imparting civic training) and once got a chance to meet President Kennedy in the White House Rose Garden. This incident changed his life and paved his way to public service. After receiving a law degree, his life in politics began in Arkansas, first as the attorney general and then governor.

Clinton became the president defeating George H.W. Bush. His tenure was considered as a new wave in American political leadership. Clinton presided over the longest period of peacetime economic expansion in the history of America. His budget plan increased taxes on the wealthy and provided tax cuts to high-tech companies to encourage their growth. He wanted to improve the economy and stop the government from spending more than it took in. His plan worked; he was able to create a surplus of money in the federal budget for the first time in thirty years!

Clinton became the first D Democrat since Franklin D. Roosevelt to be elected to a second full term. During his second term, though he was charged for some unethical behaviour, he was never found guilty. Clinton was the second president to be impeached; it was the result of issues surrounding personal indiscretions with a young woman White House intern. Despite this, Clinton continued to have unprecedented popular approval for his work as president. His autobiography My Life was a best-seller.

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A completely dramatic world awaited George Bush when he became the president of the United States. The Cold War ended after 40 bitter years, the Communist empire broke up, and the Berlin Wall fell. The Soviet Union dissolved and its president Mikhail Gorbachev resigned. The list does not end here.

Bush sent many American soldiers to trouble spots, the most important one being Iraq. The US and UN drove the Iraqi forces away from Kuwait in a well-planned and carefully executed operation called Desert Storm. Bush assembled a multinational force to compel the withdrawal of Iraq from Kuwait in the Persian Gulf War.

It would not be wrong to say that Bush had a background in politics; his father was a US senator from Connecticut. It was natural for him to join politics. While living in Texas, he was selected as a Congressman. Later, he served as the US representative to the United Nations and China. He also worked as the director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the nation’s spy organization.

Before becoming the president, Bush served as vice president during Ronald Reagan’s tenure. As president, Bush’s term was remarkable. But Bush was unable to withstand discontent at home despite his international success. America had a faltering economy and violence soared in inner cities. Voters weren’t happy with his handling of the economic problems. Though he contested for the 1992 election, he lost. Two of George H.W. Bush’s sons were elected governors-George W. Bush of Texas in 1994 (who later became the 43rd president) and Jeb Bush of Florida in 1998.

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Ronald Reagan was the 40th president of the US. But he was famous even before becoming the president, not as a politician, but as a movie star. Reagan had been a movie and television actor for years and moved to politics much later.

Reagan became the president at the age of 69. In fact, he was the oldest first-term US president. He held this distinction until 2017, when Donald Trump became president at age 70. Reagan is also the only movie actor ever to become president. He was a skilled orator and was known as the Great Communicator.

In 1966, Reagan became the governor of California. In 1980, Reagan won the Republican presidential nomination defeating Jimmy Carter. Reagan’s term in office began with cheerful news about the release of the hostages in Iran. Though all the work for this was done by his predecessor Carter, the incident set a positive tone for his tenure.

Though he was shot and wounded by a would-be assassin 69 days after swearing in, he recovered quickly and resumed duties. This incident increased his popularity; Reagan did not forget to maintain his grace and wit during the dangerous incident. During his tenure, Reagan obtained legislation to stimulate economic growth, increase employment, and strengthen national defence. He lowered taxes for the wealthy; Reagan thought if the rich spent more money; it would help all levels of the economy.

Reagan was concerned about keeping America safe during the Cold War and spent a lot on weapons. He was elected for a second term. This time, he made efforts to smoothen the relationship with Russia. He left office in January 1989. Reagan disclosed in November 1994 that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease earlier that year. He died at home in 2004.

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The 39th president of the United States was honoured with the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize. The award recognised his efforts to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and the promotion of economic and social development. The president that we are talking about is Jimmy Carter!

Jimmy Carter was an honest man with a good heart. He believed in making the government more efficient, ending unfair treatment of African Americans, and taking care of the environment. Carter carried out many reforms; he deregulated the trucking and airline industries. His expansion of the national park system included protection of 103 million acres of Alaskan lands.

The energy crisis was a major problem during Carter’s presidency. The oil rich nations in the Middle East raised the oil price and this led to a shortage of gasoline. Though Carter’s Energy Bill helped reduce the shortages, the voters weren’t happy. He therefore established a national energy policy that decontrolled domestic petroleum prices and stimulated production.

There were other serious problems as well. In 1979, Islamist students attacked the U.S. embassy in Iran and took 52 Americans hostage. Carter tried to negotiate their release for well over a year. He also tried a rescue mission, which failed miserably. His lack of success in freeing these hostages was seen as weakness and contributed to him losing the 1980 election to Ronald Reagan.

Even after his tenure, Carter continued with his activism. He established the Carter Centre to promote and expand human rights. He also travelled extensively to conduct peace negotiations, and help in disease prevention and eradication in developing nations.

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‘I assume the presidency under extraordinary circumstances. This is an hour of history that troubles our minds and hurts our hearts.’ Gerald R. Ford said these words when he took office in 1974. Ford was the only person ever to hold the top U.S. office without having been chosen by the voters as either president or vice president.

As president, Ford tried to calm down the controversies that changed the political climate of America. He granted a full pardon to Nixon and made a cabinet from scratch. He believed that inflation was the primary threat to the economy, and thought that controlling inflation would help reduce unemployment. To rein in inflation, it was necessary to control the public’s spending. He believed that this shift would bring a better life for all Americans.

In his foreign policy, Ford tried to maintain U.S. power and prestige. Israel and Egypt were at the verge of breaking into a war. Ford helped persuade the two countries to accept an interim truce agreement. He also implemented a new agreement with the Soviet Union regarding nuclear weapons. Though he ran for the presidential election in 1976, he lost.

Ford was a good football player during his youth. He worked as an assistant coach while pursuing a law degree. Before joining politics, he worked in the Navy during the Second World War. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1948 and served in Congress for 25 years. During his time in Congress, he developed a reputation for honesty and openness, qualities which helped him during his tenure as president.

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Lyndon B. Johnson served as vice president when Kennedy was the president. Johnson succeeded him after Kennedy was shot dead. He was sworn in as president two hours after Kennedy died.

Johnson entered politics because he wanted to make the world a better place for those who struggled for a living. He served as a U.S Congressman in the beginning of the Second World War, but had to leave to fight in the war later. Years later, he was chosen as the leader in the Senate. After swearing in as the president, Johnson tried to continue Kennedy’s Policies.

Kennedy had been urging for a new civil rights bill and a tax cut at the time of his death. His War on Poverty programme provided early education for poor Children; the programme helped millions of Americans rise above the poverty line.

Johnson persuaded the Congress to pass Medicare and Medicaid plans. These were aimed at providing health care for the elderly and those who could not afford insurance. The people of America were happy with their president and winning the 1964 election was a cakewalk for Johnson.

During Johnson’s administration, America made significant advancements in the space programmed. However, during his second term, the Vietnam War took place. This war turned out to be Johnson’s downfall. As more and more U.S. soldiers died in the war, Johnson’s popularity began to diminish and protests grew throughout the country. Johnson put his full efforts into gaining a peace settlement, but failed.

He left office while peace talks were going on and died due to heart attack on 22 January, 1973.