Description
Book SynopsisThis book uses hundreds of hours of newly opened interviews and other sources to illuminate the life and times of the nation''s forty-second president, Bill Clinton. Combining the authoritative perspective of these inside accounts with the analytic powers of some of America's most distinguished presidential scholars, the essays assembled here offer a major advance in our collective understanding of the Clinton White House. Included are path-breaking chapters on the major domestic and foreign policy initiatives of the Clinton years, as well as objective discussions of political success and failure. 42 is the first book to make extensive use of previously closed interviews collected for the Clinton Presidential History Project, conducted by the Presidential Oral History Program of the University of Virginia's Miller Center. These interviews, recorded by teams of scholars working under a veil of strict confidentiality, explored officials' memories of their service with President
Trade Review
"42 hits a home run. From its introduction to its conclusion, this lively collection of essays by the nation's leading presidential scholars dissects the presidency of Bill Clinton by exploiting a unique resource: oral history interviews with over 130 individuals, including Cabinet officers, political advisors, members of Congress, and assorted foreign dignitaries. These interviews provide the foundation for a series of astute commentaries on the Clinton presidency. This deftly written and authoritative study is a must-read for students of the American presidency and of contemporary politics." -- Stephen F. Knott, Professor of National Security Affairs, United States Naval War College
"Drawing on the rich resources of the Miller Center's innovative oral history program, 42 offers impressively fair-minded assessments of 'the paradox that was Bill Clinton' and of his `tainted success’ as president." -- William E Leuchtenburg, author of The American President: From Teddy Roosevelt to Bill Clinton
"For anyone interested in Bill Clinton's presidency, nothing compares to the accounts provided here in 42. The accomplished scholars writing in this volume deftly weave insights from an extraordinary collection of on-the-record interviews with key administration officials into a riveting analysis of the political context in which that president—and that paradoxical presidency—both succeeded as well as fell short of expectations. It is all here: deep coverage of domestic policy, foreign policy and party politics of that period provide a thoughtful foundation for understanding the path leading to our contemporary political environment." -- Nancy Kassop, State University of New York at New Paltz
"In 42, Michael Nelson, Barbara A. Perry, and Russell L. Riley have achieved a rare meld of political science analysis and oral history verisimilitude. This is an indispensable document about the Clinton presidency." -- David Levering Lewis, Julius Silver University Professor and Professor of HistoryEmeritusNew York University, author of W. E. B. Du Bois
"This book makes an original and significant contribution to presidency studies and American politics with its comprehensive assessment of the Clinton presidency. The range of perspectives and topics will engage scholars and policymakers about the political leadership, policy successes, and challenges of one of the most consequential presidencies in the twentieth century. The authors made good use of the unique primary resource of transcripts in the William J. Clinton Presidential History Project of the University of Virginia's Miller Center. By incorporating the perspectives of administration officials into scholarly commentary on politics, domestic policy, and foreign policy, 42 presents a complete and informative evaluation of the Clinton presidency." -- Meena Bose, Executive Dean of the Peter S. Kalikow School of GovernmentPublic Policyand International Affairs and Director of the Peter S. Kalikow Center for the Study of the American Presidency, Hofstra University, author of Shaping and Signaling Presidential Policy: The National Security Decision Making of Eisenhower and Kennedy
"This book contains invaluable, deeply probing, highly readable scholarship on Bill Clinton's remarkable if complicated presidency. 42 profits greatly from a trove of oral history interviews with key participants." -- Thomas E. Cronin, Colorado College, co-author of The Paradoxes of the American Presidency
Table of Contents
Foreword Elaine Kamarck
Preface Michael Nelson, Barbara A. Perry, and Russell L. Riley Bill Clinton's Road to the White House
Introduction: History and Bill Clinton
Russell L. Riley
Part I POLITICS
1. Redividing Government: National Elections in the Clinton Years and Beyond
Michael Nelson
2. Triangulation: Position and Leadership in Clinton’s Domestic Policy
Bruce F. Nesmith and Paul J. Quirk
Part II DOMESTIC AND ECONOMIC POLICY
3. Compromise and Confrontation: Clinton’s Evolving Relationship with Congress
Sean M. Theriault, Patrick T. Hickey, and Megan Moeller
4. Root Canal Politics: Economic Policy Making in the New Administration
Brendan J. Doherty
5. The Broken Places: The Clinton Impeachment and American Politics
Andrew Rudalevige
6. Clinton and Welfare Reform: An Oral History
Michael Nelson
7. Hillary Rodham Clinton: Recasting the Role of First Lady
Barbara A. Perry
Part III FOREIGN POLICY
8. The Reluctant Grand Strategist at War: Diplomacy and Force in Bosnia and Kosovo
Spencer D. Bakich
9. Peacemaker’s Progress: Bill Clinton, Northern Ireland, and the Middle East
Robert A. Strong
Conclusion: Clinton’s Legacy for Politics and Government
Sidney M. Milkis
Appendix 1: Interviewees for the William J. Clinton
Presidential History Project
Appendix 2: Interviewers for the William J. Clinton
Presidential History Project
