ABSTRACT
The presidency of Bill Clinton (served 1993-2001) resembled a roller-coaster ride. In his first year he suffered a rapid three-month loss of popularity, and yet the same year he achieved passage of a landmark deficit-reduction package and other new legislation, earning him an 86 percent legislative success score for 1993-1994. His second year saw the resounding defeat of his health care package, damaging charges of a White House cover-up, and a stunning 1994 rebuke for his party as the Republicans gained control of the Senate and House of Representatives for the first time since 1954.
