比尔·克林顿：东山再起的风云人物 | 比尔·惠特尔

比尔·克林顿或许是美国史上最幸运的总统。这位第四十二任美国总统入主白宫时恰逢冷战结束，离任时又恰逢反恐战争前夕。那是一个无与伦比的和平与繁荣时代，美国作为世界唯一超级大国傲视群雄——苏联已轰然解体，而中国才刚刚崭露头角。面对如此机遇，克林顿会如何把握？

Bill Clinton may have been the luckiest president in US history. The forty second president of The United States entered the White House just as the Cold War ended and left it just before the war on terror began. It was a time of unparalleled peace and prosperity when America stood alone as the world's superpower. The Soviet Union had crashed and burned, and China was only just beginning to make its presence felt. Given this opportunity, what would Clinton do with it?

威廉·杰斐逊·克林顿1946年8月19日生于阿肯色州霍普镇。他的出身毫无特权可言，人生荣辱全凭自己打拼。其父是位旅行推销员，27岁前已有五段婚史，在比尔出生前数月离世。母亲很快改嫁，但继父是个酗酒成性的家暴者，实在算不上是比生父更好的选择。

William Jefferson Clinton was born on 08/19/1946 in Hope, Arkansas. There's nothing privileged about his background. Whatever he made of his life for good or ill, he did on his own. His father, a traveling salesman who'd been married five times before the age of 27, died months before Bill was born. His mother soon remarried, but her second husband, an abusive alcoholic, wasn't exactly an upgrade from the first.

然而年轻的比尔竟在这片废墟中闯出了道路。凭借敏锐头脑与亲和力，他早早燃起从政热情并展露天分，那种讨人喜欢的特质仿佛与生俱来。高中时他加入

Yet somehow, young Bill managed to navigate his way through the wreckage. Blessed with a sharp mind and a winning personality, he developed a passion for politics early on and found out he was good at it. He just exuded likability. In high school, he joined Boys Nation, a program where students learn how government operates. In 1963, the program allowed 16 year old Bill to travel to the White House to meet America's charismatic young president, John f Kennedy.

在返程巴士上，这位深受震撼的少年向朋友立誓：总有一天我要得到那个职位。1964年他考入乔治城大学，主修国际关系以期成为职业外交官。四年后他赢得著名的罗德奖学金，得以赴英国牛津大学深造。此时克林顿标志性的魅力已显露无遗。

On the bus ride home, the awestruck teenager vowed to a friend, someday, I'm gonna have that job. In 1964, he enrolled at Georgetown University. He majored in international affairs with an eye towards being a career diplomat. Four years later, he won a prestigious Rhodes Scholarship allowing him to study at the University of Oxford in England. By now, Clinton's trademark charm was readily apparent.

在耶鲁法学院，他将这种魅力施展在同学希拉里·罗德姆身上——这位来自芝加哥的严肃而雄心勃勃的年轻女性。克林顿追求她四年，最终在1975年赢得芳心。如同偶像肯尼迪，克林顿立即投身公职竞选：1974年，年仅28岁的他以民主党身份角逐阿肯色州四个国会席位之一，虽败选却给人留下深刻印象。

At Yale Law School, he applied that charm on one of his fellow students, Hillary Rodham, a serious and ambitious young woman from Chicago. Clinton pursued her for four years before she finally agreed to marry him in 1975. Like his hero JFK, Clinton wasted no time seeking public office. In 1974, at just 28, he ran as a democrat for one of Arkansas's four congressional seats. Although he lost, he made a big impression.

1978年他再度出击竞选州长，这场豪赌让他成为美国史上最年轻的州长之一。被称为

In 1978, he tried again, this time for the governorship. It was an audacious move, but he pulled it off becoming one of the youngest governors in American history. Nicknamed the boy governor, Clinton made rookie mistakes like raising an unpopular car registration tax. He lost his bid for reelection in 1980. He was now the youngest former governor in American history.

但克林顿并未气馁。他吸取教训走遍全州，以魅力挽回失望的选民，1982年重掌州长官邸并连任三届。其执政走中间路线：既推行平权法案等自由主义政策，又提高州教育标准、鼓励福利改革、支持死刑等保守举措。

But Clinton was undeterred. Learning from his mistakes, he traveled up and down the state, working his charm on disaffected voters. And in 1982, he returned to the Governor's Mansion. He would be reelected three more times. Clinton governed as a centrist.

九十年代初，克林顿的实用主义开始引起南方以外民主党人注意——这个温和派能否成为带领政党摆脱左翼困境的救星？自1976年后民主党再未赢过大选。从不缺乏自信的克林顿认为舍我其谁。

He promoted liberal policies such as affirmative action, but also conservative ones, such as raising the state's education standards, encouraging people to get off welfare, and supporting the death penalty. At the dawn of the nineteen nineties, Clinton's pragmatism began to attract the attention of Democrats outside of the South. Could Clinton be the savior they were looking for, a moderate, who could lift the party out of its left wing rut? The Democrats hadn't won a presidential election since 1976. Clinton, never short of self confidence, thought he was the man for the job.

1991年他宣布挑战共和党总统老布什。当时布什因海湾战争的出色指挥支持率高达89%，胜选几乎无望。但克林顿先需赢得党内提名。初选季刚启动，其竞选就因阿肯色州雇员珍妮弗·弗劳尔斯爆出的婚外情指控遭遇重创。

In 1991, he declared his intention to challenge Republican president George h w Bush. That year, Bush's approval rating had reached a sky high 89%, thanks to his masterful handling of the Gulf War. Beating Bush seemed like a near impossible task. But first, of course, he would have to win the Democratic nomination. Just as primary season began in earnest, his campaign hit a brick wall, an accusation of infidelity made by an Arkansas state employee named Jennifer Flowers.

在《60分钟》节目中，克林顿否认出轨但含糊承认婚姻曾受伤害。这番回避策略却让选民愿给机会，为他赢得

On the popular TV news show sixty Minutes, Clinton denied the affair but vaguely admitted to causing pain in his marriage. Despite the deflection, the TV appearance convinced voters to give him another chance, earning him the nickname the comeback kid. The Arkansas governor walked away with the nomination. In the nineteen ninety two general election, he zeroed in on an economy that had fallen into recession. His campaign manager, James Carville, kept the always loquacious candidate on message, it's the economy, stupid.

克林顿成功推销了自己，他向选民宣称：“我理解你们的痛苦。”或许最关键的是，克林顿得益于得克萨斯州亿万富翁罗斯·佩罗以第三党候选人的身份参选。佩罗的竞选纲领强调国债和就业岗位外包至墨西哥的问题，吸引了许多原本会投票给共和党在任总统的选民。由于选票分散至三方，克林顿仅获得43%的普选票，但足以在选举人团中以370票对布什的168票取得压倒性胜利。克林顿实现了他的梦想。

Clinton made the sale, declaring to voters, I feel your pain. Perhaps most importantly, Clinton benefited from the third party candidacy of Texas billionaire Ross Perot. Running on a platform stressing the national debt and the outsourcing of jobs to Mexico, Perot's campaign attracted many voters who otherwise would have voted for the Republican incumbent. Split three ways, Clinton only won 43% of the vote, but it was enough to win an electoral college landslide 370 to Bush's one sixty eight. Clinton had achieved his dream.

他得到了约翰·F·肯尼迪曾拥有的职位，却全然不知这份工作会有多艰难。我是比尔·惠特尔，代表普拉格大学。感谢您观看本视频。为保持普拉格大学视频免费，请考虑进行可抵税的捐款。

He had John f Kennedy's job. But he had no idea how hard that job would be. I'm Bill Whittle for Prager University. Thank you for watching this video. To keep PragerU videos free, please consider making a tax deductible donation.