William J. Clinton Event Timeline
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William J. Clinton (42) Event Timeline

01/20/1993 – 01/20/2001

11/03/1992

Election Day. William J. Clinton wins the 1992 Presidential Election with 43% of the popular vote and 69% of the electoral vote, defeating incumbent George H. W. Bush and Independent Candidate H. Ross Perot.

1993

01/01/1993

Czechoslovakia peacefully divides into the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

01/20/1993

Inaugural Address.

01/21/1993

Henry G. Cisneros confirmed as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, first Hispanic to hold that position.

01/22/1993

End of Zoë Baird nomination fiasco (“nannygate”). Clinton had announced the nomination of corporate attorney Zoë Baird as Attorney General on 12/24/1992. Baird revealed that she had not paid Social Security due for a nanny for two years. A growing controversy ensued. Clinton announced that Baird had written requesting withdrawal of her nomination on this date.

01/22/1993

Issues a series of orders reversing Reagan directives on abortion and family planning: “Mexico City” Policy; “Title X Gag Rule;” Fetal Tissue in research; Abortions in Military Hospitals; Importation of RU-486.

01/25/1993

Appoints First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton to lead healthcare reform task force.

02/05/1993

Signs Family Medical Leave Act requiring employers to give their employees paid leave for medical reasons.

02/26/1993

World Trade Center in New York City is bombed. Several die and many are injured. The event is mentioned in Clinton’s Radio Address of 02/07/1993. Eventually investigation shows that this was a terror attack intended to cause the collapse of the towers.

03/03/1993

Announces the “National Performance Review,” under the direction of Vice President Gore, to seek greater efficiency and lower cost in government.

03/12/1993

Janet Reno Sworn in as Attorney General, the first woman to serve as Attorney General.

04/19/1993

Statement on Tragedy in Waco, TX. Standoff Between the Branch Davidians, a religious group, and federal agents in Waco, Texas ends with 82 dead.

05/28/1993

Executive Order 12850 lists conditions for renewing “most favored nation” trade status with China.

07/19/1993

Announces Don’t Ask Don't Tell Policy which will direct officials not to ask about recruits’ sexuality.

07/19/1993 Announces that he is dismissing FBI Director William Sessions on the recommendation of Attorney General Janet Reno. This is the first FBI Director to be dismissed from what is normally a 10-year appointment.

07/20/1993

White House Counsel Vince Foster Commits Suicide.

08/10/1993

Signs Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993, increasing the top income tax rate from 35% to 39% as well as reducing tax burden on the lower and middle class. Included a deficit-reduction plan. Passed without Republican votes.

08/10/1993

Ruth Bader Ginsburg sworn in as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, first Jewish female justice.

09/07/1993

Remarks on releasing the report of the National Performance Review. At least 21 subsequent Memorandums and Executive Orders refer to recommendations of the National Performance Review.

09/13/1993

Remarks at the signing of “Declarations of Principles” between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization at the White House. The agreement included gradual self-rule for Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

09/21/1993

Signs National Community Service Trust Act (“AmeriCorps”).

09/22/1993

Presents Healthcare Plan, which attempted to balance the Democratic desire for universal healthcare with conservatives' fear of increased taxes. The plan was rejected by Congress.

10/07/1993

Address to the Nation about fighting in Mogadishu, Somalia on October 3-4 in which 18 US soldiers died (“Black Hawk Down” incident).

11/30/1993

Signs the Brady Act, mandating background checks for purchases of firearms.

12/08/1993

Signs Act implementing NAFTA, the trade agreement between America, Canada, and Mexico.

12/21/1993

Department of Defense issues Directive 1304.26 “Qualification Standards for Enlistment, Appointment and Induction,” Implementing the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy announced in July 1993.

1994

01/10/1994

Remarks at NATO Summit in Brussels. Advocates a “Partnership for Peace” plan to integrate Eastern European states with NATO.

01/14/1994

Signs Kremlin Accords, which stop both states from aiming nuclear missiles at one another.

01/20/1994

Attorney General Reno appoints independent counsel to investigate Clinton family investment in the Whitewater Development Corporation. [Link to pdf of Reno press briefing.]

01/25/1994

First Annual State of the Union Address.

02/03/1994

Lifts Vietnam Trade Embargo.

03/24/1994

In Press Conference, announces return of troops from Somalis.

05/06/1994

Paula Jones files suit alleging Clinton sexually harassed her in a Little Rock, AK, hotel room in 1991. In an Exchange with Reporters Clinton declined to comment beyond praising his lawyer.

05/10/1994

Announces Assistance to South Africa in anticipation of the Inauguration of Nelson Mandela.

05/10/1994

Nelson Mandela is inaugurated President of South Africa, ending apartheid regime

05/26/1994

Renews “Most Favored Nation” Trade Status for China, saying that China has made favorable progress in many areas.

06/24/1994

Message to Congress Transmitting Proposed Welfare Reform Legislation. A prominent campaign pledge had been to “end welfare as we know it.”

07/25/1994

Remarks at ceremony marking signing of “Washington Declaration” ending state of war between Israel and Jordan.

07/29/1994

US Troops are dispatched to Rwanda as part of a UN humanitarian aid mission.

08/05/1994

U.S. Court of Appeals appoints Kenneth W. Starr as Independent Counsel in the Whitewater case replacing Robert B. Fiske.

08/26/1994

Signs Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act, which gives money to energy and water resources.

09/13/1994

Signs Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act. the largest crime bill in the history of the country. Includes “3-strikes” provision and death penalty for killing a law enforcement officer. Also includes assault weapons ban. [Link to text of law.]

09/15/1994

Address to the Nation on Haiti about US goal to restore democratic government and remove General Raoul Cedras from power.

09/18/1994

Address to the Nation announcing that Haitian General has agreed to cede power.

09/26/1994

Statement on the failure of health care reform because of Republican filibuster.

09/27/1994

Russian President Boris Yeltsin and Wife Visit Washington D.C..

10/03/1994

Prince Hassan of Jordan and Shimon Peres of Israel meet in Washington D.C.

10/20/1994

First White House website “Welcome to the White House” is announced by Vice President Al Gore.

11/08/1994

Midterm Elections. Republicans gain control of the House and Senate for the first time in 40 years, known as the Republican Revolution. The GOP campaigned on a document called the “Contract with America.”

12/01/1994

Senate passes General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, which reduced trade barriers between multiple countries.

12/05/1994

Remarks at Signing of Denuclearization Agreements. Putting the START I treaty into force.

12/08/1994

Signs the “Uruguay Round Agreements Act.” The Uruguay Round Agreements included transforming the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) into the World Trade Organization (WTO).

1995

01/23/1995

Signs Congressional Accountability Act, which applies private workplace laws to federal government.

01/24/1995

State of the Union Address

01/31/1995

Authorizes Emergency Loan of $20 billion to Mexico, in order to stop the country from becoming insolvent.

04/19/1995

Oklahoma City Bombing, a domestic terrorist attack on a federal building, kills at least 168 people.

04/23/1995

Remarks at a Memorial Service for Oklahoma City Bombing Victims. Over the remainder of his term, Clinton will mention the bombing in remarks over 50 times.

05/17/1996

Signs “Megan’s Law,” requiring states to inform the public about he residential location of registered sex offenders.

07/11/1995

Recognizes Vietnam diplomatically, for the first time.

09/23/1995

Refuses to deploy American troops on the ground to resolve conflict in Bosnia.

10/03/1995

O.J. Simpson is found not guilty of the murder of his ex-wife.

10/23/1995

Meeting with President Yeltsin of Russia to discuss reduction of nuclear materials and arms.

10/28/1995

In Radio Address, describes “the great budget debate” under way. States his view that GOP are engaging in blackmail by linking budget priorities to raising the debt limit. This is a view that Clinton reiterates subsequently in many documents (e.g., the Statement of Administration Policy issued on 11/08/1995).

11/04/1995

Israel’s Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin is assassinated in Tel Aviv by an Israeli opponent of the 1993 agreement with the Palestinians.

11/08/1995

Calls for Further Reductions in Weapons of Mass Destruction.

11/13/1995

Vetoes bill allowing temporary debt limit increase.

11/14/1995

Remarks on the start of a government shutdown. This was a major gamble that the public would blame the GOP Congress more than the President.

11/19/1995

Statement Announcing an Agreement to Reopen the Federal Government. Pledges to negotiate to plan a balanced budget consistent with certain key principles.

11/27/1995

Address to the Nation on the Dayton Peace Accords to end the war in Bosnia, with negotiations facilitated by the Clinton Administration.

12/14/1995

Balkan Peace Agreement is Signed in Paris, which ends the Balkan War and three and half years of war in Bosnia.

12/16/1995

Failed Budget Negotiations between Clinton and the Republican Congress results in a second government shutdown.

1996

01/06/1996

Signs legislation funding the government through September 1996, Signs other legislation putting all Federal workers back on the job. Opinion polling showed that voters blamed Republican leaders more than Clinton.

02/08/1996

Signs Telecommunications Act promoting competition between telecommunications companies.

04/09/1996

Signs Line Item Veto Act, which allows the president to veto certain provisions of a bill five days after signing.

04/10/1996

Vetoes Partial Birth Abortion Legislation, because the proposed law would threaten women’s’ safety.

04/26/1996

Signs Omnibus Appropriations Bill, saying it meets his objectives and “is a bill we can all be proud of.”

05/28/1996

Whitewater Fraud Trial, examining the Clinton’s dealings in their past real estate investment venture. Former Clinton business partners are convicted of fraud.

07/05/1996

The first successfully cloned mammal from an adult cell is born.

08/20/1996

Signs Small Business Job Protection Act that boosts the minimum wage in two steps from $4.25 to $5.15.

08/21/1996

Signs Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which protects patient health information.

08/22/1996

Signs Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (Welfare to Work Act), which created a block grant for welfare that was administered by the states.

08/29/1996

Accepts Democratic nomination for Presidency.

09/03/1996

Announces missile strike on Iraq in response to Iraqi attack on the Kurdish city of Irbil.

09/24/1996

United Nations treaty bans testing of nuclear weapons.

11/05/1996

Election Day. Reelected with 70% of the electoral vote and 49% of the popular vote. Defeats Republican Robert Dole and Reform Candidate H. Ross Perot.

12/17/1996

Announces National AIDS Strategy.

1997

01/20/1997

Inaugural Address.

01/23/1997

Madeleine K. Albright sworn in as first woman to serve as Secretary of State

02/04/1997

State of the Union Address.

03/21/1997

Russia and the United States Work to Reduce Nuclear Weapons and Ballistic Missiles.

04/24/1997

Senate Ratifies Chemical Weapons Convention.

05/02/1997

Elimination of the Budget Deficit, creating the lowest deficit to GDP ratio of any of the G7 countries.

05/27/1997

In Paula Jones vs Clinton, the Supreme Court rules that a president can be sued in a private matter involving events before he became president. Jones had sued Clinton alleging abusive sexual advances which he was Governor of Arkansas.

06/13/1997

Statement on the Oklahoma City Bombing Trial. Timothy McVeigh is sentenced to death in the Oklahoma City Bombing case.

08/05/1997

Signs the Balanced Budget Act, which proposes to balance the budget by 2002.

10/03/1997

Attorney General Reno Finds No Campaign Violations in Clinton’s campaign.

10/28/1997

President Jiang Zemin of China Visits Washington DC, the first visit in 12 years.

11/10/1997

White House Conference on Hate Crimes.

12/11/1997

Kyoto Protocol Agreement, where the United States, along with other nations, pledged to limit greenhouse gas emissions.

12/23/1997

Oklahoma City Bombing Trial Concludes.

1998

01/16/1998

Kenneth Starr allowed to expand his investigation to include allegations of a Clinton sexual affair with a White House intern (Monica Lewinsky)

01/26/1998

Clinton Publicly Denies Lewinsky Allegations. (“I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky. I never told anybody to lie, not a single time—never.”) He had been deposed on 01/17/1998.

03/23/1998

Clinton Travels to Ghana.

04/10/1998

Good Friday Peace Accords, which ends the violence of the Troubles, or political conflict in Northern Ireland over remaining in the UK or becoming independent. The Clinton Administration representative Senator George Mitchell had chaired the talks.

07/17/1998

Issues Memorandum directing that documents relating to addiction be publishes.

08/07/1998

Terrorists bomb U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.

08/17/1998

Testifies to grand jury in Lewinsky tape on closed circuit television. Admits to “inappropriate intimate contact.” In defending earlier statements uses memorable line, “It depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is.”

08/20/1998

Orders missile strikes against targets in Afghanistan and Sudan in response to embassy bombings.

09/11/1998

Full Report on Lewinsky incident is released to the public (had been provided to Congress on 09/09/1998).

09/30/1998

Announces a budget surplus, the largest since the 1950s as a percentage of the economy.

10/23/1998

Wye River (MD) Memorandum is signed, which aimed to achieve peace between Israel and Palestine by giving Palestine territory in the West Bank.

10/28/1998

Signs Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which helped to clarify copyright laws for digital works.

11/03/1998

Midterm Elections. Democrats gain five seats in the House.

11/05/1998

Iraq fails to comply with United Nations Resolutions demanding that inspectors be allowed to enter the country.

12/16/1998

Orders retaliatory air-strikes on Iraq.

12/19/1998

House Votes to Impeach Clinton on four articles of impeachment for perjury and obstruction of justice. The largest vote in favor is 228-206 on Article 1 (perjury).

1999

01/07/1999

Senate impeachment trial begins.

01/19/1999

State of the Union Address. Makes no mention of impeachment.

02/12/1999

President Clinton is acquitted of impeachment charges by the U.S. Senate. “I want to say again to the American people how profoundly sorry I am for what I said and did to trigger these events. . . “

03/24/1999

Airstrikes on Serbian Targets in Yugoslavia, in order to stop ethnic cleansing of Albanians .

04/20/1999

In Littleton CO, Columbine High School mass shooting results in the deaths of 12 students. In Remarks, Clinton calls for attention to the problem of violence.

06/10/1999

Address to the nation on the end of the NATO campaign in Serbia. Agreement was reached between the International Security Force and the Governments of Yugoslavia and Serbia.

10/13/1999

Senate fails to ratify treaty banning underground nuclear weapons testing .

11/15/1999

United Nations Places Sanctions on the Taliban.

12/06/1999

Signs the Healthcare Research and Quality Act which funds research on rare childhood diseases.

12/09/1999

Memorandum on Narrowing the Digital Divide, which gives more Americans access to information technology.

12/12/1999

Signs the Deceptive Mail Prevention and Enforcement Act, in order to protect elderly from mail fraud.

12/14/1999

Panama Canal is Officially Transferred to Republic of Panama.

12/31/1999

Boris Yeltsin Resigns as President of Russia.

2000

01/04/2000

Renominates Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan for another term at the Federal Reserve.

01/27/2000

State of the Union Address. “My fellow Americans, we have crossed the bridge we built to the 21st century. Now, we must shape a 21st century American revolution of opportunity, responsibility, and community.”

05/01/2000

Announces that high-quality Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) previously available only for military uses, would be available to the public.

06/03/2000

Meeting with President Vladimir Putin of Russia.

06/28/2000

Elian Gonzalez, a five year old boy who was rescued off the coast of Florida in attempt to come to America, is reunited with his father and returns to Cuba.

07/11/2000

Israeli/Palestinian Peace Talks at Camp David end without agreement.

08/17/2000

Al Gore accepts nomination for President of Democratic National Convention.

09/20/2000

Independent Counsel concludes investigation of Whitewater affairs without any indictment.

09/20/2000

United Nation Refugee Workers are Killed in Indonesia and Guinea .

09/26/2000

Proposes the Violence Against Women Act.

10/05/2000

Urges Congress to take action on “Big Tobacco.”

10/05/2000

Reprimands Congressional Republicans for removing hate crime legislation from the Department of Defense Authorization bill.

10/10/2000

Signs bill establishing permanent normal trade relations with China.

10/12/2000

Terrorist attack on USS Cole (a guided-missile destroyer) in the port of Aden, Yemen kills 17 sailors.

10/16/2000

Issues Statement on Administration’s Efforts to Bridge the Digital Divide .

10/28/2000

Signs Act dealing with human trafficking and violence against women.

11/07/2000

Election Day. No winner is declared after vote count is inconclusive in Florida. (APP documents related to the ensuing controversy are available here). Hillary Clinton is elected Senator in New York state.

11/09/2000

Remarks at dinner commemorating the 200th Anniversary of the White House. “. . . the White House has never belonged to any one of us. It will always belong to all of us.”

11/17/2000

Remarks at a State Dinner on first state visit by a US President to Vietnam

12/13/2000

Vice President Gore concedes the presidential race to George W. Bush following a 5-4 Supreme Court ruling that makes it impossible to recount contested Florida votes.

2001