William Jefferson Clinton was born William Jefferson Blythe IV on August 19, 1946 in Hope, Arkansas. His father, an automobile parts salesman, was killed in a car accident three months before he was born. At the age of fifteen, Bill changed his name to that of his stepfather Roger's as a gesture of goodwill to both him and his mother. Clinton attended Hot Springs High School where he was very active in the student government, among other things. In 1963, Clinton was chosen to attend the American Legion Boys State, a government and leadership conference in Little Rock, where he was elected a senator and given the opportunity to go to Washington D. C. and meet President John F. Kennedy.… Clinton attended Georgetown University after he graduated from high school, where he majored in International Studies. He interned for Senator William Fulbright of Arkansas, and with him became an opponent of the Vietnam War. Clinton won a Rhodes scholarship to Oxford where he studied for two years before attending the University of Arkansas Law School. There he was issued a draft letter and joined ROTC, but was never called up since he received a high number for the draft lottery. In 1970, Clinton entered Yale Law School and worked for George McGovern's presidential campaign in 1972. He graduated from Yale in 1973, and worked for a short time in D. C. as a staff attorney for the House Judiciary Committee. In 1974, Clinton entered his first political race, against Congressman John Paul Hammerschmidt, losing to the Congressman by 2 percent. In 1976, he was elected Arkansas Attorney General and in '78 ran for Arkansas Governor, winning the race 63% to 37%. He lost the reelection two years later because of Cuban refugee issues, but regained the title in 1982, and held it till he became President in 1993. Bill Clinton announced his run for President on October 3, 1991, and with Al Gore as his Vice President, took office on January 20, 1993 at the age of 46. He was one of the youngest men to hold the office of President and the first Democrat to be elected since 1976. As President, Clinton worked on health care reform, cut federal spending, created jobs, reduced the deficit and enacted the Assault Weapon Ban as part of the Crime Bill. He also helped Israel and Jordan achieve a peace treaty, enabled a peace accord between Israel and Palestine and contributed to the cease fire in Northern Ireland. Clinton stepped down from the Presidency in 2000 to make way for George W. Bush, and established himself in offices in Harlem, New York City, New York, while his wife was elected to the U.S. Senate, representing New York State.
George Herbert Walker Bush was born on June 12, 1924 in Milton, Massachusetts. He attended Phillips Academy in Andover. At the age of 18, Bush enlisted in the Navy and became the youngest pilot in the Navy when he got his wings. He flew 58 combat missions during World War II and received the Distinguished Flying Cross for bravery in action when he was shot down during a mission. After the war, Bush attended Yale, and after graduating, began a career in the oil industry. Much like his father before him, Bush became interested in public service and served two terms as the Texas Representative to Congress. He had two unsuccessful runs for a Senate seat before receiving some high profile… assignments. He was appointed as an Ambassador to the United Nations, followed by an appointment as Chairman of the Republican National Convention, the Chief of the United States Liaison Office in the People's Republic of China and finally, Bush became the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. In 1980, Bush tried for the Republican bid for President, but was chosen instead as Reagan's running mate. After serving as Vice President of the United States, Bush won the Republican vote in 1988 for President, running with Dan Quayle and defeating Dukakis for the position of President. During Bush's presidency, he was well favored for his role abroad in Dessert Storm, but Americans were disillusioned with the way things were run domestically. In 1992, Bush lost the reelection to William Jefferson Clinton, a democrat.