Did you like Bill Clinton as president?

[BooHoo]

Did you like Bill Clinton as president? Yes or no and why?

[roadmaster]

Not as much as obama.

[Brewskier]

For a Democrat, Clinton was a good President. Obviously I don't agree with a lot of his politics, but unlike Obama, he was able to govern from the center. They tried Hillarycare, and when it was clear the public didn't want it, Clinton chucked it in an instant. He lowered capital gains taxes. He passed welfare reform. He signed NAFTA and other trade deals. He was able to work with Republicans, even strong ones like Newt Gingrich and Dick Armey. Obama can't even work with Boehner and Cantor, who are weak on pretty much every level.

Clinton gets too much credit for the state of the economy in the 90's, however. He did some good things, some of which I already mentioned, but Clinton was simply in the right place at the right time. Everyone ran out and bought a computer during his time in office, and it changed the way the world worked. Businesses got more efficient and more profitable, the internet opened up an infinite amount of opportunities for people, and the tech boom coming out of Silicon Valley added a ton of revenue to the economy. The Cold War was no longer an issue, so it was smooth sailing up until the very end of his Presidency, when the nation fell into a recession.

On the other hand, Clinton is the one who really got the ball rolling on what would eventually become the mortgage crisis. During his time in office, the sub-prime mortgage amount went from 35 billion to over 330 billion by the time he left office. Minority home ownership increased by triple digit percentages, far outpacing home ownership rates by whites. He was described as the first President to enforce the CRA that was passed by Jimmy Carter in the 70's and largely ignored in the 80's. This lowered standards for "sub prime" borrowers to obtain loans and pressured banks to set a a certain percentage of their loan funds aside for these underrepresented borrowers. Home values, which had stayed constant for 20-30 years, suddenly began increasing during Clinton's 2nd term. By the time he left office, housing prices were higher than at any point in history. This upward trend would continue on an almost linear path until 2007, when it all came crashing down. Clearly pushing home ownership onto people who couldn't afford it had disastrous consequences. Few people blame Clinton, since the collapse didn't occur on his watch, but it's clear that the trend began under his Presidency.

Bill Clinton's drive to increase homeownership went way too far
Add President Clinton to the long list of people who deserve a share of the blame for the housing bubble and bust. A recently re-exposed document shows that his administration went to ridiculous lengths to increase the national homeownership rate.
http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/hotproperty/archives/2008/02/clintons_drive.html

Minorities' Home Ownership Booms Under Clinton but Still Lags Whites'
It's one of the hidden success stories of the Clinton era. In the great housing boom of the 1990s, black and Latino homeownership has surged to the highest level ever recorded. The number of African Americans owning their own home is now increasing nearly three times as fast as the number of whites; the number of Latino homeowners is growing nearly five times as fast as that of whites.
http://articles.latimes.com/1999/may/31/news/mn-42807

HOMEOWNERSHIP AND ITS BENEFITS - 1995
At the request of President Clinton, the U.S. Department of Housing
and Urban Development (HUD) is working with dozens of national
leaders in government and the housing industry to implement the
National Homeownership Strategy, an unprecedented public-private
partnership to increase homeownership to a record-high level over the
next 6 years.
http://www.huduser.org/publications/txt/hdbrf2.txt

Fannie Mae Eases Credit To Aid Mortgage Lending
In a move that could help increase home ownership rates among minorities and low-income consumers, the Fannie Mae Corporation is easing the credit requirements on loans that it will purchase from banks and other lenders.

The action, which will begin as a pilot program involving 24 banks in 15 markets -- including the New York metropolitan region -- will encourage those banks to extend home mortgages to individuals whose credit is generally not good enough to qualify for conventional loans. Fannie Mae officials say they hope to make it a nationwide program by next spring.

http://www.nytimes.com/1999/09/30/business/fannie-mae-eases-credit-to-aid-mortgage-lending.html

Bill Clinton, Home Wrecker
"I want to target new (housing) markets, underserved populations, tear down the barriers to discrimination wherever they are found," Clinton said. "We have to do a better job of reaching the underserved; of eradicating discriminatory practices that prevent minorities from finding, financing or buying the home of their choice.

"We can widen the circle of homeownership beyond anything we have ever seen," he added.

Indeed, Clinton's policies for the first time threw millions of previously unqualified buyers into the mortgage mix, fueling an unprecedented housing bubble.

http://news.investors.com/article/585922/201109231847/bill-clinton-home-wrecker.htm?p=full

[KC]

I'm conflicted. NAFTA is one of the worst things to happen in the 90s along with the repeal of Glass Steagal. I know there was very little he could do about the latter, but it's inescapably part of his record. I really like that he lowered capital gains taxes and managed to work with House Repubs on a number of issues and balance the budget.

[Brewskier]

I'm conflicted. NAFTA is one of the worst things to happen in the 90s along with the repeal of Glass Steagal. I know there was very little he could do about the latter, but it's inescapably part of his record. I really like that he lowered capital gains taxes and managed to work with House Repubs on a number of issues and balance the budget.

Another thing about Clinton is that he takes credit for a "surplus" that apparently was handed over to Bush, who then promptly squandered it. The only surplus that ever existed during Clinton's Presidency was an "on budget" surplus that occurred during calendar year 2000. Budgets are not looked at in calendar years, only fiscal years, which run between October 1 and September 30. If you look at every fiscal year (http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np) that occurred during Clinton's Presidency, the national debt went up every year. There was never a year where the debt went down. There was never a true surplus.

What happened was that an "off budget surplus" occurred during Clinton's last year, which offset the on budget surplus they had. "Off budget surpluses" are not treated the same way as on budget surpluses. Off budget surpluses go up when revenues into the trust funds exceed the outflows. In the case of Clinton, the Social Security Trust Fund took in more money than it paid out. The surpluses are treated as debt, because the money is spent elsewhere and the amount must be repaid by law. This debt is part of "intragovernmental holdings", which is one part of the national debt (the other being "debt held by the public).

To put it in simple terms, Clinton overdrew his checking account and had a balance of -75 dollars. He borrowed 100 dollars from his credit card, and brought the checking account balance to +25 dollars. Is this really a surplus of cash? Not really, since the surplus was overshadowed by a larger debt amount.

There's more info here (http://www.craigsteiner.us/articles/16) and here (http://www.craigsteiner.us/articles/30).

[Mainecoons]

Very informative thread.

[birddog]

Bill would be a slight improvement over Barry, but the main thing is we need to get that illegal SOB Barry our of there!

[coolwalker]

I am convinced that had there been a legitimate ThirdParty, Clinton would have been a member as he is neither a democrat or a republican...he is an absolute Moderate...not sexually (lol), but politically.

[Cigar]

I Love it ... Republicans longing for BJ - Bill and Bill sticking right back in their ass.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b137/chasc5/376842_375903469149902_1157565022_n.jpg
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b137/chasc5/tumblr_m9wrvuRiEq1qz82gvo1_1280.jpg

[shaarona]

I didn't vote for Clinton.. and I was embarrassed by his sexual escapades, but he was a savvy president.

[Cigar]

I didn't vote for Clinton.. and I was embarrassed by his sexual escapades, but he was a savvy president.


I'm really surprised no one ever asked to see his Grades

[coolwalker]

I'm really surprised no one ever asked to see his Grades

He was a Rhodes Scholar...no need to ask, he was 4.0 all the way.

[Cigar]

He was a Rhodes Scholar...no need to ask, he was 4.0 all the way.

Are you sure ... did you personally see the actual Grades or are you taking someone's opinion :)

[shaarona]

I'm really surprised no one ever asked to see his Grades

Clinton? He was a Rhodes Scholar.

[Cigar]

Clinton? He was a Rhodes Scholar.

How do you know :)

[texmaster]

Bill Clinton committed treason. He allowed our satellite technology to fall in the hands of China in exchange for campaign contributions which the DNC was finally fined for accepting but it was too late.

Clinton also was the most damaging president morally with his sexual acts in the white house and refusal to admit his fault creating a divide between liberals who then supported the immorality and the conservatives who did not forever changing the moral debate in this country as now a political line.

Obama as a whole is more dangerous because of his policies but Clinton is a traitor and deserves to be shot.