PRESIDENT WILLIAM J. "BILL" CLINTON - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 03/01/1994 - HFSID 284124

BILL CLINTON
He signs a typed letter to North Carolina minister Stan Easty (March 1, 1994), replying to praise of his State of the Union message and his comments on Mother Theresa.
Typed Letter signed: "Bill Clinton" as President, 1 page, 6¾x9. Washinton, D.C., 1994 March 1. On White House letterhead to Reverend Stan Easty, Elizabeth City, North Carolina. In full: "Thanks for your wonderful letter. Your kind words of encouragement mean a lot to me. I especially appreciate what you said about my State of the Union Address. I thought you might enjoy having a copy, so I have enclosed one. [Item not included.] Thanks, too, for letting me know how you feel about Mother Theresa and what I said about her. I also enjoy our correspondence, and I am grateful, as always, for your prayers. Sincerely". Clinton, born William Jefferson Blythe III in Hope, Arkansas in 1946, was Governor of Arkansas (1979-1981, 1983-1992) and the first Democrat re-elected President since FDR. The only elected U.S. President to be impeached (Andrew Johnson was impeached, but he had not been elected to the office), Clinton was acquitted in 1999 on both articles of impeachment brought against him: charges of perjury and obstruction of justice. Clinton's popularity stood at 67% at the end of his trial, however. Obviously, many Americans were willing to overlook his personal failings in an era of peace and prosperity. His accomplishments in office included a waiting period for gun purchases (the Brady Law), the Family and Medical Leave Act, the North American Free Trade Agreement, welfare reform and balancing of the federal budget. Clinton had previously co-written (with Al Gore) Putting People First (1992), and he would publish his autobiography, My Life, in 2004. Clinton's wife, former First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, was US Senator from New York and a 2008 Presidential candidate before accepting the post of Secretary of State in the Obama administration. Bill Clinton himself remains an important public figure, whose initiatives include many humanitarian efforts led jointly with the man he defeated in 1992: George Bush. Clinton must have genuinely appreciated support from Stan Easty, an Episcopal minister and personal friend, since his State of the Union Address had been delivered under adverse circumstances. The Republican opposition had just captured control of both Houses of the US Congress for the first time since 1958. Surprisingly, some of Clinton's greatest successes (and especially the balanced budget) came after - and may even have been made possible - by this electoral setback. The reference to Mother Theresa in the letter was probably a response to the President's statement calling her service to the poor "an inspiration and a challenge to the all the rest of us." Adhesive residue (previous mounting) at top and bottom center of verso - very minor show-through. Otherwise, fine condition.