Library Catalog
On the Shelf at CCBC Libraries
The Red and the Blue by
From MSNBC correspondent Steve Kornacki, a lively and sweeping history of the birth of political tribalism in the 1990s--one that brings critical new understanding to our current political landscape from Clinton to Trump In The Red and the Blue, cable news star and acclaimed journalist Steve Kornacki follows the twin paths of Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich, two larger-than-life politicians who exploited the weakened structure of their respective parties to attain the highest offices. For Clinton, that meant contorting himself around the various factions of the Democratic party to win the presidency. Gingrich employed a scorched-earth strategy to upend the permanent Republican minority in the House, making him Speaker. The Clinton/Gingrich battles were bare-knuckled brawls that brought about massive policy shifts and high-stakes showdowns--their collisions had far-reaching political consequences. But the '90s were not just about them. Kornacki writes about Mario Cuomo's stubborn presence around Clinton's 1992 campaign; Hillary Clinton's star turn during the 1998 midterms, seeding the idea for her own candidacy; Ross Perot's wild run in 1992 that inspired him to launch the Reform Party, giving Donald Trump his first taste of electoral politics in 1999; and many others. With novelistic prose and a clear sense of history, Steve Kornacki masterfully weaves together the various elements of this rambunctious and hugely impactful era in American history, whose effects set the stage for our current political landscape.
Call Number: E839.5 .K67 2018
My Life by
President Bill Clinton's My Life is the strikingly candid portrait of a global leader who decided early in life to devote his intellectual and political gifts, and his extraordinary capacity for hard work, to serving the public. It shows us the progress of a remarkable American, who, through his own enormous energies and efforts, made the unlikely journey from Hope, Arkansas, to the White House--a journey fueled by an impassioned interest in the political process which manifested itself at every stage of his life: in college, working as an intern for Senator William Fulbright; at Oxford, becoming part of the Vietnam War protest movement; at Yale Law School, campaigning on the grassroots level for Democratic candidates; back in Arkansas, running for Congress, attorney general, and governor. We see his career shaped by his resolute determination to improve the life of his fellow citizens, an unfaltering commitment to civil rights, and an exceptional understanding of the practicalities of political life. We come to understand the emotional pressures of his youth--born after his father's death; caught in the dysfunctional relationship between his feisty, nurturing mother and his abusive stepfather, whom he never ceased to love and whose name he took; drawn to the brilliant, compelling Hillary Rodham, whom he was determined to marry; passionately devoted, from her infancy, to their daughter, Chelsea, and to the entire experience of fatherhood; slowly and painfully beginning to comprehend how his early denial of pain led him at times into damaging patterns of behavior. President Clinton's book is also the fullest, most concretely detailed, most nuanced account of a presidency ever written--encompassing not only the high points and crises but the way the presidency actually works: the day-to-day bombardment of problems, personalities, conflicts, setbacks, achievements. It is a testament to the positive impact on America and on the world of his work and his ideals. It is the gripping account of a president under concerted and unrelenting assault orchestrated by his enemies on the Far Right, and how he survived and prevailed. It is a treasury of moments caught alive, among them: * The ten-year-old boy watching the national political conventions on his family's new (and first) television set. * The young candidate looking for votes in the Arkansas hills and the local seer who tells him, "Anybody who would campaign at a beer joint in Joiner at midnight on Saturday night deserves to carry one box. . . . You'll win here. But it'll be the only damn place you win in this county." (He was right on both counts.) * The roller-coaster ride of the 1992 campaign. * The extraordinarily frank exchanges with Newt Gingrich and Bob Dole. * The delicate manipulation needed to convince Rabin and Arafat to shake hands for the camera while keeping Arafat from kissing Rabin. * The cost, both public and private, of the scandal that threatened the presidency. Here is the life of a great national and international figure, revealed with all his talents and contradictions, told openly, directly, in his own completely recognizable voice. A unique book by a unique American.
Call Number: E886 .A3 2004
Digital Decade by
Newsmakers, world headlines, memorable people and events of the 1990s. From sheep cloning in Scotland to the death of Princess Diana, The Age of Freedom focuses on the decade's most notable national and world events, sports memories, entertainment, political and social topics, and the explosive growth of the internet.
Call Number: E881 .D54 2000
Census Information
Streaming Video
- The First Hundred Days of the Clinton Administration: Rights & WrongsWhen President Bill Clinton was inaugurated in January 1993, he inherited a humanitarian mission in Somalia that had U.S. troops protecting food aid and supplies; a simmering conflict in the Balkans that included charges of ethnic cleansing against the Muslim population in Bosnia-Herzegovina, as well as other human rights emergencies. His decision to enact "Don't Ask, Don't Tell' was seen as anti-gay at the time. This episode includes an interview with former President Jimmy Carter that examines the handling of these issues during the first 100 days of the Clinton administration. Also featured are reports from Sarajevo, Sri Lanka, and Mumbai. Some content may be objectionable. Part of the series Rights & Wrongs: Human Rights Television. Original broadcast title:: The First Hundred Days of the Clinton Administration: Show #106. (26 minutes)
- Bill Clinton: Commander in ChiefThis film examines Bill Clinton's decisions about the use of U.S. military power in his context as the first post-Cold War president. It presents him as facing a public reluctant to get involved in conflicts, but having a duty to use U.S. power to promote democracy and alleviate suffering. (50 minutes)
Databases
- U.S. History This link opens in a new window
Articles, essays, and primary sources on the history of the United States. - ProQuest Central This link opens in a new window
Articles on any subject. This is a good place to start.
- Baltimore Sun This link opens in a new window
Baltimore's newspaper, which is good for local news and issues from 1990 - today.
For articles published 1837-1992, see ProQuest Historical Newspapers: Baltimore Sun. - ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The Baltimore Sun This link opens in a new window
Primary source articles covering the politics, society and events of the time period 1837 - 1992.
- JSTOR This link opens in a new window
Journals, books, images, and primary sources about many subjects.
Online From CCBC Libraries
America in the Nineties by
This book is a survey treatment of the 1990s. The trajectory of the narrative follows from the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. This book seeks to give a voice to historically marginalized communities, while providing an overview of the 1990s. The analysis includes examinations of: the end of the 1980s, America's War in the Gulf, Bush's domestic agenda; The 1992 Campaign, Clinton's domestic agenda; The United States and genocide; globalization; science and technology; pop culture; race relations; LGBT and women's right; and the scandals of the Clinton Administration. The book strikes the balance between providing an analysis of the 1990s, while providing the reader with basic key information about the decade. This book is one of the first of its kind to examine the whole decade and while providing an analysis on a multitude of subjects.
Publication Date: 2015
Historical Dictionary of the Clinton Era by
William Jefferson Clinton's legacy remains a matter of significant contention among historians, political scientists, and pundits even after a decade of time to reflect. The narrative of Clinton's two terms may be, in some sense, the tale of two different men--or at least two incongruous public views of the nation's 42nd chief executive. On the one hand, there is the Clinton who left the White House more popular than when he took office--entering with a 58 percent approval rating and leaving with a 66 percent approval rating. On the other hand, an ABC News poll conducted on his last day showed that 67 percent of Americans said Clinton was not honest and trustworthy. The Historical Dictionary of the Clinton Era covers both sides of the Clinton presidency through a chronology, an introductory essay, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 300 cross-referenced entries on important personalities, including the president, his advisors, his family, his opponents, and his critics, as well as members of Congress, military leaders, and international leaders. This book is a vital access point for students, researchers, and anyone interested in the presidency of Bill Clinton.
Publication Date: 2012
American Culture in The 1990s by
American Culture in the 1990s focuses on the dramatic cultural transformations of the last decade of the millennium. Lodged between the fall of Communism and the outbreak of the War on Terror, the 1990s was witness to America's expanding influence across the world but also a period of anxiety and social conflict. National traumas such as the Los Angeles riots, the Oklahoma City bombing and the impeachment of President Clinton lend an apocalyptic air to the decade, but the book looks beyond this to a wider context to identify new voices emerging in the nation.This is one of the first attempts to bring together developments taking place across a range of different fields: from Microsoft to the Internet, from blank fiction to gangsta rap, from abject art to new independent cinema, and from postfeminism to posthumanism. Students of American culture and general readers will find this a lively and illuminating introduction to a complex and immensely varied decade.Key Features*3 case studies per chapter featuring key texts, genres, writers and artists*Chronology of 1990s American Culture*Bibliographies for each chapter*18 black and white illustrations
Publication Date: 2010
A Bubble in Time by
The all-too-brief period of relative tranquility that extended from the end of the Cold War to the beginning of the War on Terror is the subject of William L. O'Neill's brilliant new study of recent American history. Mr. O'Neill's sharp eye for the telling incident and the apt quotation combine with an acute historical judgment to make A Bubble in Time a compellingly readable informal history. The first Gulf War and President Clinton's interventions abroad notwithstanding, American spirits were freer from fear than they had been since the 1920s, the author argues. No world war loomed before the United States, and after the Berlin Wall came down the specter of nuclear annihilation faded as well. A brief recession in the 1990s gave way to the most prosperous years Americans had known for decades. Unlike in the 1980s under Ronald Reagan, the increase in national wealth trickled down to the middle class thanks to an unusual rise in productivity and large infrastructure investments by firms in the "new economy." To general amazement, crime rates began falling after almost thirty years of increases, so that Americans were happier, safer, and materially better off than before. Although the Republican party turned to the dark side, Mr. O'Neill writes, peace and prosperity enabled people to enjoy the finer things in life and to lavish their concerns on political correctness, the decline of the military, the troubles of higher education, and the manifestations of an out-of-control popular culture he calls "Tabloid Nation"--the trials of O.J. Simpson and President Clinton, SUVs, cell phones, and bimbo eruptions. Mr. O'Neill explores them all, and more, with insight and wit. "It was all too good to last," he tells us. "Reality intruded again with the dot.com crash in 2000 and the terrorist attacks of 2001. Still, we will always have Paris Hilton." With 8 pages of black-and-white photographs.
Publication Date: 2009
