How Did Clinton Promote Economic Growth During The 1990's

The economic growth during the 1990’s was a major thing President Clinton from being impeached, and he did play a large part in the growth. Through his leadership and the bills he passed, America experienced the largest economic boom in the nation’s history.

One of the things he did that promoted economic growth was the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA for short. NAFTA helped reduce tariff barriers, which was a good thing for most, but a few people were still hurt by NAFTA. Many union members began to question how they would be able to compete with the cheaper labor in China or with sweatshops. Another issue people had was the worldwide economic growth created environmental issues. This kinds of protests became so bad they disrupted the World Trade Organization’s meeting in Seattle in 2000 (Carnes, Garraty, pg. 839).

President Clinton also reduced the federal deficit which drove interest rates down using a new tax bill.

Unemployment while he was president dropped to 4.5 percent. That was the lowest it had been since the 1960s. He also dropped inflation to one percent. That was the lowest it had been in since the fifties. And, for the first time since 1969, the government was operating at a surplus (Carnes, Garraty, pg. 839).

While Clinton did participate in the economic growth during this period, he wasn’t the only factor at play. Personal computers and the internet became more and more common during the 90s. This, in turn, made workers more effective at their jobs because information could be processed far faster than in the past. Once everyone wanted to buy the new computers, their price began to drop. With their prices dropping, the computer became more accessible to everyone. The cycle continued, creating the need for people who were specialized in information technology, creating new jobs (The Story of the 1990s

Economy).
The increase in computers also created an opportunity for many companies to invest in websites. Billions were poured into websites. In 1999 and 2000 many companies went public, showing that they easily made 20 billion dollars. However, this sent many people selling their stock for tech companies. This caused the stock market to crash, leaving many fearing that the economy was reaching another recession in time for the next presidential election (Carnes, Garraty, pg. 840).
There was also a bit of luck involved with the economic growth during this period. Oil prices declined dramatically during this period in time. Clinton was then able to put a 4.5 cent tax on every gallon of gas pumped and still have the price be 95 cents per gallon (Jackson, B).

References
Carnes, M. C., & Garraty, J. A. (2012). American destiny narrative of a nation. Pearson.
Jackson, B. (2018, January 29). Clinton and Economic Growth in the '90s. Retrieved from https://www.factcheck.org/2007/12/clinton-and-economic-growth-in-the-90s/
The Story of the 1990s Economy. (2016, April 15). Retrieved from https://economics21.org/html/story-1990s-economy-276.html