How did President Clinton respond to the challenges of globalization?

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Section Chronology

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U.S. Troops in Kosovo
In 1999, American troops joined a NATO peacekeeping unit in the former Yugoslav province of Kosovo after a U.S.-led NATO bombing campaign forced the Serbian army to withdraw. The NATO soldiers were dispatched to monitor the departure of Serbian troops, assist the return of ethnic Albanians who had fled the Serbian army, and reestablish civil governments. Here, an ethnic Albanian boy walks beside Specialist Brent Baldwin from Jonesville, Michigan, as he patrols the town of Gnjilane in southeast Kosovo in May 2000. Wide World Photos, Inc.

AMERICA’S ECONOMIC SUCCESS in the 1990s was linked to its dominance in the world economy, which was undergoing tremendous transformations in a process called globalization — the growing integration and interdependence of national citizens and economies. President Clinton lowered a number of trade barriers, despite critics who emphasized the economic deprivation and environmental devastation that often resulted. Debates likewise arose over the large numbers of immigrants entering the United States.

Clinton agreed with George H. W. Bush that the United States must retain its supreme position in the world. He took military action in Somalia, Haiti, the Middle East, and eastern Europe, and he pushed hard to ease the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. Clinton also strove to safeguard American interests from terrorist attacks around the world, a challenge in many ways more difficult than combating communism.

CHRONOLOGY

1993

  • – Israel and Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) sign peace accords.
  • – North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

1994

  • – United States sends troops to Haiti.
  • – General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade establishes World Trade Organization.

1995

  • – United States, with NATO, bombs Serbia.

1998

  • – United States bombs terrorist sites in Afghanistan and Sudan.

1998–2000

  • – United States bombs Iraq.

CHAPTER LOCATOR

How did the United States respond to the end of the Cold War and tensions in the Middle East?

How did President Clinton seek a middle ground in American politics?

How did President Clinton respond to the challenges of globalization?

How did President George W. Bush change American politics and foreign policy?

What obstacles stood in the way of President Obama’s reform agenda?

Conclusion: How have Americans debated the role of the government?

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