Clinton responded in Clinton fashion. He didn't hide, he responded. He decided to go on "60 Minutes" on January 26, in the broadcast that came right after the Super Bowl, and admit there had been challenges in their relationship but that they had moved beyond them and this should not be part of the campaign. Both he and Hillary denied that he had an affair with Flowers.
The interview received immense coverage. Democrats were surprised and impressed by how he was able to keep his composure throughout this crisis. Upon seeing the interview, Flowers was livid.
Soon after the year old Flowers released suggestive, but highly garbled, tapes of phone conversations discussing with her how to respond when questioned by reporters. Flowers was not the most credible witness. The fact she was paid for the story raised suspicions, while the phone tapes didn't exactly confirm what she had said. She would also accept money from Penthouse for a story with a pictorial to go along with it.
A year earlier, she had also threatened to sue a radio station for airing the accusations. Six years later, while under oath during a deposition in a sexual harassment case, Clinton again denied the allegations of a long-running affair with Flowers, but he did admit they had a sexual encounter. What you need to know about Bill Clinton's alleged sexual misconduct. Besides surviving the scandal, Clinton performed masterfully in New Hampshire, inspiring crowds by demonstrating his appealing personality and impressive command of policy.
He also bought extensive airtime so that he could communicate directly to voters with town hall events. Clinton went on to win the primaries and the scandal. In New Hampshire he did well, coming in a strong second to Paul Tsongas. And the scandal, though never deemed wrong, did not end Clinton's candidacy. After New Hampshire, the "Comeback Kid" said that he felt "liberated.
Clinton's strategy and changing times. In the end, the scandal fizzled. Why was this? Part of this has to do with Clinton and his strategy. This is where the individual mattered. He understood that in the modern era of politics, candidates had to be aggressive when attacked -- he established what his people called a war room -- and not allow their opponents to define them.
Yet another part of the story had to do something bigger, a change that was taking place in American politics that would remain relevant in decades to come.
Though cultural conservatives such as Patrick Buchanan, the Richard Nixon speechwriter and political television commentator who challenged the incumbent President in the primaries, were still fighting the culture wars -- trying to defend some image of nostalgic values -- the truth was that much of the nation had continued to move to the left when it came to society and culture.
The Age of Aquarius had a much more lasting impact than conservatives understood. Americans were more comfortable with the complexities of sexual relations and cultural choices, in red states and blue. They watched MTV, with all of its sexuality, all over the country and they saw movies and television shows that were a far cry from "Leave It to Beaver.
The truth is that many Americans didn't really care about the personal peccadilloes of politicians as long as their private actions didn't fundamentally clash with the political positions for which they stood. The times, they were a-changin'. Bill Clinton never pretended to be some kind of cultural conservative who claimed that everyone should live by certain personal standards.
Nor was he a politician who wanted some kinds of regulations on the ways in which other Americans lived their lives. As the campaign unfolded, it looked as though Dole would go down to certain defeat. Clinton offered the public more of the same, including "McIssues" such as school uniforms and after-school programs for teenagers, none of which constituted major policy initiatives, but all of which preempted the Republican attempt to portray Democrats as dangerous radicals.
Instead, Clinton became the candidate of "family values" and successfully won the suburban family vote, especially that of the "soccer Moms. Press reports broke a story alleging improper contributions to the President's campaign war chest.
The story embarrassed the Democratic campaign but failed to turn public support to Dole. The seventy-three-year-old senator from Kansas had announced his resignation from the Senate to focus on the campaign, and then he barnstormed the country nonstop to demonstrate his energy.
While both tactics won him great respect, they did not change the outcome of the election. Perot captured no electoral votes and garnered less than half of his popular vote.
The President failed, however, to win his desired mandate with a popular majority, and thus he remained a minority President. Still, the victory for the "Comeback Kid" was especially impressive in view of his predicted demise in Although Clinton had won a personal victory, his party remained in deep difficulty. Republicans continued to control the House and Senate, proving that their congressional victory in had been no fluke. Moreover, Republicans maintained their recent gains in state legislative seats and in governorships, particularly in the South.
In , Clinton's first year in office, there had been 30 Democratic governors; that number fell to 17 entering Moreover, almost all the large states had Republican governors, and the Republicans had achieved parity in a long-time Democratic stronghold: state legislatures.
The electorate was about evenly divided in party identification. In the South, a large majority of whites were now firmly aligned with the Republicans.
During Clinton's two terms, the President failed to stem the slow but steady disintegration of the New Deal coalition toward a realignment favoring Republicans and independents. Grant Rutherford B. Hayes James A. Garfield Chester A. Roosevelt Harry S. Truman Dwight D. Eisenhower John F. Kennedy Lyndon B. Bush Bill Clinton George W. Help inform the discussion Support the Miller Center.
University of Virginia Miller Center. Bill Clinton: Campaigns and Elections. Breadcrumb U. The Campaign and Election of Bill Clinton easily defeated the leading Democratic contenders in the primaries, despite charges about having avoided the Vietnam draft and his rumored affairs with women.
The Campaign and Election of Midway through his first term in office, Clinton's reelection prospects were dim, given the stunning victory of Republicans in the off-year elections.
Republican Contract with America Although only 39 percent of the electorate voted in the congressional elections, the Republicans swept to victory. Republican Challenger Robert Dole For most of the time after , Senator Robert Dole was the hands-down front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination. The Ross Perot Candidacy As with the election, Ross Perot again jumped into the fray, using his newly organized Reform Party to mount an independent bid for the presidency.
Engineering a Presidential Comeback Starting in , after Clinton defeated the Republicans in the budget battles, he engineered one of the most impressive comebacks in presidential campaign history. On the Campaign Trail As the campaign unfolded, it looked as though Dole would go down to certain defeat. Russell L.
Bill Clinton Essays Life in Brief. Life Before the Presidency. Campaigns and Elections Current Essay. Domestic Affairs. Foreign Affairs. Life After the Presidency. Family Life. The American Franchise. Impact and Legacy.
The election was the first presidential election since in which a third party candidate garnered a significant percentage of the popular vote. Although billionaire Texas businessman Ross Perot failed to win any Electoral College votes, his presence had an important effect on the election. For one, Perot's concerns about free trade, federal budget deficits, and the U. Moreover, although there remains some debate about Perot's impact on the outcome of the election, most analysts conclude that his presence Perot won Bush who won
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