U.S. Politics & Government - 1992-2001, Presidents of the United States - Biography

Clinton's World

Name: Clinton's World
Author: William Hyland
ISBN: 9780275963965

by William Hyland

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Overview

No modern U.S. president inherited a stronger, safer international position than Bill Clinton. In 1992, the Cold War was over, and the nation was at peace and focused on domestic issues. Despite this temporary tranquility, Clinton would soon be faced with a barrage of crises, including flare-ups of unrest in the Middle East, ethnic conflict in Yugoslavia, uneasy relations with Japan and China, persistent trouble in the Persian Gulf, the dissolution of the USSR, and disastrous situations in Somalia and Haiti.

In this comprehensive and balanced examination of Clinton's foreign policy—the first such book to cover all the global focal points of his administration to date—William G. Hyland brilliantly shows the effects of combining this confusion with Clinton's unique personality characteristics. His first term was marked, in the author's analysis, by murky policy, unrealistic goals, and the mishandling of several crises. By the end of that term he learned some hard lessons, was able to alter his pattern of response, and reversed himself on some major aspects of foreign policy—all to benefit, in the author's view, the country and the world as a whole.

Synopsis

When inaugurated in 1993, no modern U.S. president inherited a stronger, safer, international position than Bill Clinton. Depsite this temporary tranquility, he would soon be faced with a barrage of crises. This forthright, yet balanced, overview and analysis of Clinton's foreign policy--by an expert in foreign affairs and national security--is the only book to cover all the global crisis points of his administration to date.

Library Journal

Is it too early to begin defining William Jefferson Clintons historical place as an architect of U.S. foreign policy? According to this seasoned intelligence officer and former editor of Foreign Affairs, the record will show that Clintonour first postCold War presidentwas an extremely popular leader in the era of global transition. In 15 crisp, readable chapters, Hyland chronicles the evolution of the presidents outlook from inexperience and idealism to trial-and-error pragmatism. He recognizes Clintons successesNATO enlargement, NAFTA, and the Dayton Peace Accords. Yet old enemiesSaddam Hussein, Fidel Castrostill bedevil the scene, and unresolved issues bristle like thorns. Virulent nationalism, proliferating weapons of mass destruction, a failed Russia, and the Asian financial mess are all problems that will pass to Clintons successor. In the end, Hyland fears that the moral authority of the presidency has suffered. Under Clinton, he sadly concludes, a magnificent historical opportunity to shape the international system had been missed. For academic and larger public libraries.John Raymond Walser, U.S. Dept of State, Washington, DC

About the Author, William Hyland

WILLIAM G. HYLAND was editor of Foreign Affairs from 1984 through 1992, and subsequently, was a research professor of international relations at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service.

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Editorials

Library Journal

Booknews

A former editor of and long-time US government agent finds Clinton's first term characterized by murky foreign policy, unrealistic goals, and the mishandling of several crises. By the second, he says, the president had learned some hard lessons and reversed some major aspects of foreign policy, which benefited both the country and the world. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknew.com)

Kirkus Reviews

A wide-ranging critique of Clinton's foreign policy that will please those frustrated over the continuing popularity of a president focused on domestic issues. Criticizing Clinton's foreign policy is like spearing fish in a barrel—it's so easy, there is no real sport in it. Moreover, there is a built-in bias toward the negative: if something has gone badly, it is a debacle, but if something goes well, then we have to wait and see how things turn out before passing judgment. Hyland, former editor of Foreign Affairs (Mortal Rivals: Superpower Relations from Nixon to Reagan, 1987), is not deterred. Starting from the premise that Clinton inherited a world in better shape than any other modern president, albeit briefly touching upon and minimizing the problems created by Bush's foreign policy of "prudence," Hyland systematically explores foreign policy issues and records the ways in which Clinton has botched them. Interventions in the Balkans, Somalia, and Haiti, negotiating Middle East peace agreements, relations with Russia, China, and Japan, responding to the Asian financial crisis, and more are addressed. Throughout, patterns of hesitancy, unwillingness to designate authority until matters have reached a crisis stage, and placement of emphasis on economic diplomacy and international trade over the traditional concerns of security and geopolitics are identified and excoriated. Clinton's transformation from idealist to pragmatist is noted, and seemingly some criticism is blunted, but Hyland doesn't shrink from a strong conclusion: adopting an ad hoc "selective engagement" approach instead of a clear direction for American foreign policy has meant that "a magnificenthistorical opportunity to shape the international system had been missed." Clinton's blunders invite this kind of harsh criticism, but the irony here is that Clinton forfeited the chance to lead the world in a dramatic new direction when he followed the advice of veteran foreign policy hands such as Hyland and turned himself into Bush. Like the recent American foreign policy he chronicles, Hyland eschews any positive theme.