第一节 背景介绍
1946年8月19日，比尔·克林顿出生在阿肯色州霍普的一个普通家庭。他的父亲小威廉·杰弗逊·布莱斯是一名推销员，在克林顿出生的前三个月惨遭车祸离世。克林顿的母亲弗吉尼亚·德尔·卡西迪把比尔留在自己的父母身边，独自一人到新奥尔良学习护理。1950年，弗吉尼亚从护士学校毕业后回到霍普，不久嫁给了温泉城的一个汽车经销商罗杰·克林顿。此后，比尔和母亲与继父一同生活在温泉城。克林顿的继父是一个酒鬼和赌徒，不过他的继父还是和他的母亲一起把克林顿抚养成人。比尔·克林顿原名叫做威廉·杰弗逊·布莱斯三世，在威廉·杰弗逊15岁那年，正式将自己的姓氏改成了“克林顿”。
克林顿的少年时光是很精彩的，他的成绩在学校里一直都非常出色，除此之外，他还是一个优秀的萨克斯演奏手，曾一度想成为专业的音乐家。不过在高中时期，当他作为全国学生代表到白宫与当时的美国总统约翰·肯尼迪见面后，他的想法又发生了转变。这一次白宫之行，彻底让他下定决心成为一名公务员。
成绩优异的克林顿拿到了乔治城大学外交学院的国际关系学位后，又获得了罗兹奖学金，得到了去英国牛津大学深造的机会。1973年又获得了耶鲁法学院的法学学位，克林顿从耶鲁法学院毕业后回到了阿肯色州，在阿肯色大学法学院任教。
1979年1月，时年32岁的克林顿就任阿肯色州州长一职，使他成为了美国历史上最年轻的州长之一。1982年，自信满满的克林顿再度当选州长，并连续执政十年。1990～1991年克林顿还曾担任民主党领导委员会的领导人。克林顿任州长期间，在推动州教育改革和实施经济发展计划方面取得了辉煌的成就，被选为美国南部经济发展政策委员会主席，兼任全美州长联席会议主席，并协助总统主持国家最高教育当局的工作。当克林顿还在阿肯色州任职时，在政治舞台上就已经显示出了耀眼的光芒，各方对于他将来竞选总统深信不疑。1988年民主党全国大会上，克林顿受邀发表讲话介绍民主党的总统候选人迈克尔·杜卡基斯，这是他第一次踏入全国的政治舞台。然而这场原定15分钟的演讲，最后却成为了一场长达一个半小时的乏味谈话。
尽管克林顿在政治舞台上第一次崭露头角就受到了打击，但他还是下定决心参加1992年的总统选举，对寻求总统连任的老布什发出了挑战。当时美国刚经历过海湾战争，老布什似乎铁定连任，就连民主党内的其他几位对手，例如纽约州州长马里奥·郭默都想跃跃欲试，克林顿当选总统的机率非常渺茫。
然而结果却出乎人们的意料，当时如日中天的老布什和众多民主党内重量级的竞选人物都打了退堂鼓，这让一些虽有些声望但资历尚浅的竞争对手得到了机会。克林顿即是其中之一，虽然克林顿在新罕布什尔州全国第一场初选输给了马萨诸塞州参议员宗格斯，但是他后来居上赢得了民主党提名。
1992年7月，美国举行了民主党全国代表大会，民主党中有六位候选人一同出席了这次会议，并向大会阐述各自的竞选纲领。这次大会的结果是克林顿和戈尔双双获得了当选民主党总统和副总统的候选人资格。在民主党大会结束的时候，克林顿发表了《新的契约》的演说，他一再地强调：“是美国需要做出变革的时候了。”
然而在克林顿竞选的初期，他也曾经遭受到很多指责，例如婚外恋、吸毒等问题。因而他在竞选中并非一帆风顺，还一度处于劣势。但是他机智的头脑、敏锐的思维以及真诚和自信深深地打动了选民的心，人们开始对这位政坛新人刮目相看，此后，克林顿的知名度一度攀升。
平民出身的克林顿总是以和善面对世人，他的这篇演讲体现了他对国家和未来的美好憧憬，对孩子和弱势群体的关怀，对企业和各个阶层的希望。他的“人民放在首位”的思想，无论从经济、教育、妇女还是儿童等方面都得到了广大选民的支持，他像民众拉家常一样阐述着自己的政治倾向与竞选主题，言语中充满了坚定和自信，给广大选民振奋与鼓舞。
第二节 克林顿1992年获民主党提名演讲
July 16 1992， New York
Governor Richards， Chairman Brown， Mayor Dinkins， our great host， my fellow delegates and my fellow Americans， I am so proud of Al Gore：
He said he came here tonight because he always wanted to do the warm-up for Elvis. Well， I ran for President this year for one reason and one reason only： I wanted to come back to this convention and finish that speech I started four years ago.
Last night Mario Cuomo taught us how a real nominating speech should be given. He also made it clear why we have to steer our ship of state on a new course. Tonight I want to talk with you about my hope for the future， my faith in the American people， and my vision of the kind of country we can build together.
I salute the good men who were my companions on the campaign trial： Tom Harkin ， Bob Kerrey， Doug Wilder， Jerry Brown， and Paul Tsongas.
One sentence in the Platform we built says it all. The most important family policy， urban policy， labor policy， minority policy， and foreign policy America can have is an expanding entrepreneurial economy of high-wage， high-skilled jobs.
And so， in the name of all those who do the work and pay the taxes， raise the kids， and play by the rules， in the name of the hardworking Americans who make up our forgotten middle class， I proudly accept your nomination for President of the United States.
I am a product of that middle class， and when I am President， you will be forgotten no more.
We meet at a special moment in history， you and I. The Cold War is over. Soviet communism has collapsed and our values—freedom， democracy， individual rights， free enterprise—they have triumphed all around the world. And yet， just as we have won the Cold War abroad， we are losing the battles for economic opportunity and social justice here at home.
Now that we have changed the world， it's time to change America.
I have news for the forces of greed and the defenders of the status quo： Your time has come and gone. Its time for a change in America.
Tonight 10 million of our fellow Americans are out of work， tens of millions more work harder for lower pay. The incumbent President says unemployment always goes up a little before a recovery begins， but unemployment only has to go up by one more person before a real recovery can begin. And Mr. President， you are that man.
This election is about putting power back in your hands and putting government back on your side. It's about putting people first.
You know， I've said that all across the country， and whenever I do， someone always comes back to me， as a young man did just this week at a town meeting at the Henry Street Settlement on the Lower East side of Manhattan.He said， “That sounds good， Bill， but you're a politician. Why should I trust you？”
Tonight， as plainly as I can， I want to tell you who I am， what I believe， and where I want to lead America.
I never met my father. He was killed in a car wreck on a rainy road three months before I was born， driving from Chicago to Arkansas to see my mother.
After that， my mother had to support us， so we lived with my grandparents while she went back to Louisiana to study nursing. I can still see her clearly tonight through the eyes of a three-year-old， kneeling at the railroad station and weeping as she put me back on the train to Arkansas with my grandmother.
She endured that pain because she knew her sacrifice was the only way she could support me and give me a better life. My mother taught me. She taught me about family and hard work and sacrifice. She held steady through tragedy after tragedy， and she held our family—my brother and I together through tough times.
As a child， I watched her go off work each day at a time when it wasn't always easy to be a working mother.As an adult， I've watched her fight off breast cancer， and again she has taught me a lesson in courage. And always， always， she taught me to fight.
That's why I'll fight to create high-paying jobs so that parents can afford to raise their children today.
That's why I'm so committed to make sure every American gets the health care that saved my mother's life and that women's health care gets the same attention as men's.
That's why I'll fight to make sure women in this country receive respect and dignity， whether they work in the home， out of the home， or both.
You want to know where I get my fighting spirit？ It all started with my mother. Thank you， Mother. I love you.
When I think about opportunity for all Americans， I think about my grandfather. He ran a country store in our little town of Hope. There was no food stamps back then， so when his customers， whether they were White or Black who worked hard and did the best they could， came in with no money， well， he gave them food anyway. He just made a note of it. So did I.
Before I was big enough to see over the counter， I learned from him to look up to people other folks looked down on.
My grandfather just had a high school education—a grade school education， but in that country store he taught me more about equality in the eyes of the Lord than all my professors at Georgetown， more about the intrinsic worth of every individual that all the philosophers at Oxford， more about the need for equal justice under the law than all the jurists at Yale Law School.
If you want to know where I come by the passionate commitment I have to bringing people together without regard to race， it all started with my grandfather.
I learned a lot from another person too： a person who for more than 20 years has worked hard to help our children， paying the price of time to make sure our schools don't fail them. Someone who traveled our state for a year， studying， learning， listening， going to PTA meetings， school board meetings， town hall meetings， putting together a package of school reforms recognized around the Nation， and doing it all while building a distinguished legal career and being a wonderful， loving mother.
That person is my wife.
Hillary taught me. She taught me that all children can learn and that each of us has a duty to help them do it.
So if you want to know why I care so much about our children， and our future， it all started with Hillary. I love you.
Frankly， I am fed up with politicians in Washington lecturing the rest of us about family values. Our families have values. But our government doesn't.
I want an America where family values live in our actions， not just in our speeches. An America that includes every family. Every traditional family and every extended family. Every two parent family. Every single-parent family. And every foster family. Every family.
I do want to say something to the fathers in this country who have chosen to abandon their children by neglecting their child support： Take responsibility for your children or we will force you to do so. Because governments don't raise children； parents do. And you should.
And I want to say something to every child in America tonight who is out there trying to grow up without a father or a mother： I know how you feel. You are special too.
You matter to America. And don't you ever let anybody tell you can't become whatever you want to be. And if other politicians make you feel like you are not part of their family， come on and be part of ours.
The thing that makes me angriest about what has gone wrong in the last 12 years is that our government has lost touch with our values， while our politicians continue to shout about them. I'm tired of it！
I was raised to believe the American Dream was built on rewarding hard work. But we have seen the folks of Washington turn the American ethic on its head.
For too long those who play by the rules and keep the faith have gotten the shaft， and those who cut corners and cut deals have been rewarded.
People are working harder than ever， spending less time with their children， working nights and weekends at their jobs instead of going to PTA and Little League or Scouts. And their incomes are still going down. Their taxes are still going up. And the costs of health care， housing and education are going through the roof.
Meanwhile， more and more of our best people are falling into poverty even though they work 40 hours a week.
Our people are pleading for change， but government is in the way. It has been hijacked by privileged private interests. It has forgotten who really pays the bills around here. It has taken more of your money and given you less in return. We have got to go beyond the brain-dead politics in Washington and give our people the kind of government they deserve， a government that works for them.
A President， a president， ought to be a powerful force for progress. But right now I know how President Lincoln felt when General McClellan wouldn't attack in the Civil War. He asked him， “If you’re not going to use your army， may I borrow it？”And so I say： George Bush， if you won't use our power to help America， step aside. I will.
Our country is falling behind. The President is caught in the grip of a failed economic theory. We have gone from first to 13th in the world in wages since Ronald Reagan and Bush have been in office.
Four years ago， candidate Bush said， “America is a special place， not just another pleasant country somewhere on the UN Roll Call between Albania and Zimbabwe.” Now under President Bush， America has an unpleasant economy struck somewhere between Germany and Sri Lanka.
And for most Americans， Mr. President， life's a lot less kind and a lot less gentle than it was before your administration took office.
Listen， do it some more.
Our country has fallen so far so fast that just a few months ago the Japanese prime minister actually said he felt sympathy for the United States. Sympathy. When I am your President ， the rest， the rest， of the world will not look down on us with pity but up to us with respect again.
What is George Bush doing about our economic problems？
Now， four years ago he promised 15 million new jobs by this time， and he's over 14 million short. Al Gore and I can do better.
He has raised taxes on the people driving pickup trucks and lowered taxes on the people riding in limousines. We can do better.
He promised to balance the budget， but he hasn't even tried. In fact， the budgets he has submitted to Congress nearly doubled the debt. Even worse， he wasted billions and reduced our investments in education and jobs. We can do better.
So if you are sick and tired of a government that doesn't work to create jobs， if you're sick and tired of a tax system that's stacked against you， if you're sick and tired of exploding debt and reduced investments in our future， or if， like the great civil rights pioneer Fannie Lou Hamer， you're just plain old sick and tired of being sick and tired， then join us， work with us， win with us， and we can make our country the country it was meant to be.
Now， George Bush talks a good game， but he has no game plan to rebuild America， from the cities to the suburbs to the countryside， so that we can compete and win again in the global economy. I do.
He won't take on the big insurance companies and the bureaucracies to control health costs and give us affordable health care for all Americans， but I will.
He won't even implement the recommendations of his own commission on AIDS， but I will.
He won't streamline the federal government and change the way it works， cut 100，000 bureaucrats and put 100，000 new police officers on the streets of American cities， but I will.
He's never balanced a government budget， but I have 11 times.
He won't break the stranglehold the special interests have on our elections and the lobbyists have on our government， but I will.
He won't give mothers and fathers the simple chance to take some time off from work when a baby is born or a parent it sick， but I will.
We're losing our farms at a rapid rate， and he has no commitment to keep family farms in the family， but I do.
He's talked a lot about drugs， but he hasn't helped people on the front line to wage that war on drugs and crime. But I will.
He won't take the lead in protecting the environment and creating new jobs in environmental technologies for the 21st century， but I will.
And you know what else？ He doesn't have Al Gore， and I do.Just in case， just in case， you didn't notice， that's Gore with an E on the end.
And George Bush—George Bush won't guarantee a women's right to choose； I will.
Hear me now. I am not pro-abortion； I am pro-choice， strongly. I believe this difficult and painful decision should be left to the women of America.
I hope the right to privacy can be protected and we will never again have to discuss this issue on political platforms. But I am old enough to remember what it was like before Roe v. Wade， and I do not want to return to the time when we made criminals of women and their doctors.
Jobs， education， health care-these are not just commitments from my lips； they are the work of my life.Our priorities must be clear； we will put our people first again. But priorities without a clear plan of action are just empty words. To turn our rhetoric into reality we've got to change the way government does business， fundamentally. Until we do， we'll continue to pour billions of dollars down the drain.
The Republicans have campaigned against big government for a generation， but have you noticed？ They've run this big government for a generation and they haven't changed a thing. They don't want to fix government； they still want to campaign against it， and that's all.
But， my fellow Democrats， its time for us to realize we've got some changing to do too. There is not a program in government for every problem， and if we want to use government to help people， we have got to make it work again.
Because we are committed in this Convention and in this Platform to making these changes， we are， as Democrats， in the words that Ross Perot himself spoke today， “a revitalized Democratic Party.”
I am well aware that all those millions of people who rallied to Ross Perot's cause wanted to be in an army of patriots for change. Tonight I say to them， join us， and together we will revitalize America.
Now， I don't have all the answers， but I do know the old ways don't work. Trickledown economics has sure failed. And big bureaucracies， both private and public， they've failed too.
That's why we need a new approach to government， a government that offers more empowerment and less entitlement. More choices for young people in the schools they attend in the public schools they attend. And more choices for the elderly and for people with disabilities and the long-term care they receive. A government that is leaner， not meaner； a government that expands opportunity， not bureaucracy； a government that understands that jobs must come from growth in a vibrant and vital system of free enterprise.
I call this approach a New Covenant， a solemn agreement between the people and their government based not simply on what each of us can take but what all of us must give to our Nation.
We offer our people a new choice based on old values. We offer opportunity. We demand responsibility. We will build an American community again. The choice we offer is not conservative or liberal. In many ways， it is not even Republican or Democratic. It is different. It is new. And it will work. It will work because it is rooted in the vision and the values of the American people.
Of all the things that George Bush has ever said that I disagree with， perhaps the thing that bothers me most is how he derides and degrades the American tradition of seeing and seeking a better future. He mocks it as the “vision thing.”
But just remember what the Scripture says： “Where there is no vision， the people perish.”