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The presidential election of 1992 was one of a
long shot for Bill Clinton. He was
the governor of a small state and had great political ambition but with
little national recognition, his chances of winning the presidential
election were slim. With his
running mate Al Gore, they fought and challenged the current U.S. president
George Bush who at the time had the advantage with the power of incumbency
behind his back. |
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Near the beginning of the election year, Clinton
received much media coverage when he took an interview with 60 minutes to
defend allegations of an extramarital affair brought upon him in February
of 1992. He and Hillary assured the
public even though they had marriage problems in the past, they were
perfectly happy with their current marriage status. This situation demonstrated Clinton's
great resistance to adversity, and proved he could change this negative
media to help him in his campaign for presidency. |
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During the middle of it all, voters felt George
Bush did not focus enough on the economy and that’s when the Clinton
campaign coined the phrase "It's the economy, stupid." Even though this was a great advantage
to the Clinton campaign, it was an up and coming TV appearance that gave
him a head start in the race for the presidency. |
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In an effort to reach young and African American
voters, Clinton appeared on the Arsenio Hall Show. To show his "New Democratic"
side, Clinton, equipped with a pair of dark sunglasses and saxophone, played
two songs along side with the show's band.
Hall complimented the former presidential candidate saying he was
"Glad to see a Democrat who could blow something besides an
election". |
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His appearance on FOX was a turning point in the
election race against President Bush.
It was also a turning point in America's history. After his appearance, America saw its
highest voter turnout of 18 to 24 year olds since the twenty fifth
amendment was passed. |
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In the end Clinton used his image of youth to
convince voters to take a change and vote for a democrat for the first time
in 10 years. He not only achieved
success for his campaign but also in voting amongst the younger
generations. The FOX appearance
showed America the "New Democrat" Clinton's campaign had hoped to
create and voters responded, which in the end sealed the victory for the
former unknown governor of Arkansas. |
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Notes