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Oklahoma City Bombing
Timothy McVeigh, a former Army soldier, was seen selling anti-government merchandise in a truck in Waco, Texas. McVeigh is later caught in Oklahoma, killing 168 people. A truck bomb exploded in the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. 168 people dead and over 600 injured. The attack led to changes in U.S. counterterrorism laws and policies. The passage of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 aimed to help law enforcement powers and increase penalties for terrorist activities. -
Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act
President Clinton signed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, which altered the U.S. welfare system. The law replaced the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. It imposed work requirements and a five-year lifetime limit on welfare benefits to help reduce dependency on government assistance. Proponents said it reduced poverty and promoted self-sufficiency. Critics argued it left families without any support. -
Creation of the Children's Health Insurance Program
President Clinton signed into law the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which expanded healthcare coverage for children in low-income families. CHIP aimed to reduce the number of uninsured children by providing states with federal funding to offer affordable health insurance. By 2015, CHIP had helped cover millions of children and had become a key component of the U.S. healthcare system, ensuring that low-income families had access to essential health services for their children. -
Monica Lewinsky Scandal
President Clinton was involved in a scandal involving White House intern Monica Lewinsky. Clinton first denied having an affair with Lewinsky, but later admitted to lying under oath during an investigation. This led to his impeachment by the House of Representatives on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice. The Senate cleared Clinton in 1999, and he remained in office for the rest of his term. This influenced the partisan divisions of the time. -
Kosovo Conflict and NATO Intervention
NATO intervened in the Kosovo War, launching an air campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to stop the ethnic cleansing of Albanians by Serb forces. Critics argued that it violated international law, but it was justified by NATO as a necessary response to humanitarian crises. The conflict led to the withdrawal of Yugoslav forces from Kosovo and the establishment of a UN-administered province. This led to a shift toward humanitarian intervention in the post-Cold War era.