...d no Republican opposition. Clinton took public office for the first time in January 1977. As attorney general, he fought rate increases by public utilities and opposed the construction of a large coal-burning poer plant. He promoted tougher las to protect the environment and consumers. hen Arkansas governor David Pryor ran for the U.S. Senate in 1978, Clinton ran for governor. He promised to improve the states schools and highays and to improve economic conditions so that more jobs ould be created. At that time, the average income of people in Arkansas ranked 49th among the 50 states. Clinton on easily, receiving 60 percent of the votes against four opponents in the Democratic primary election and 63 percent against the Republican candidate, Lynn Loe, in the general election. hen he took office in January 1979 at age 32, he as one of the youngest governors in the nations history. Governor of Arkansas First Term Clintons first term as governor included efforts to improve Arkansas economy. One of his biggest successes as governor as his highay program, but it as politically costly. Clinton thought good highays ere a key to developing the state, and the states roads ere among the orst in the country. To upgrade the highays, he asked the legislature to pass a package of tax increases. The largest increases ere on licensing fees on automobiles and on large trucks that damaged the highays ith heavy loads. Clinton as forced to make compromises in his plan because many businesses and the trucking industry opposed his program. The compromise plan passed but as unpopular because it levied more taxes on individual car oners. Clinton undertook other legislative initiatives that generated opposition. His criticism of the practice of clear-cutting trees in national forests alienated the lumber and papermaking companies, hich ere the largest employers in the state. Physicians opposed his efforts to increase health care in poor, rural areas. Bankers disliked Clintons proposal to ithhold state funds from banks that did not lend enough money for businesses that created jobs in their communities. Another factor affecting the governor as the presence of Cuban refugees in Arkansas. In 1980 Cuba temporarily removed its exit restrictions and permitted about 120,000 people to go to the United States. In May 1980, President Jimmy Carter temporarily housed about 18,000 Cuban refugees at an old U.S. Army post near Fort Smith, Arkansas. By the end of May, the confined refugees ere disgruntled ith delays in their resettlement, and some 300 escaped from the fort. On June 1 approximately 1000 Cuban refugees broke through the gate of the post and ere met in the nearby ton of Barling by approximately 500 armed tonspeople. State officers subdued the refugees, but the incident proved disastrous for Clinton, ho had previously campaigned on his friendship ith Carter. Clinton ran for reelection in 1980 against Frank D. hite, a Little Rock businessman ho had sitched to the Republican Party to run against Clinton. hite received support from many of those alienated by Clintonincluding the trucking and ood products companies, banks, utilities, and the poultry industry. In addition, hite used television advertisements that shoed rioting Cubans and claimed that the Cubans ould be released into Arkansas communities and take jobs aay from Arkansas orkers. Clintons popularity plummeted further, and hite on the election ith nearly 52 percent of the votes. Second Through Fifth Terms After his defeat, Clinton joined a large corporate la firm in Little Rock. Against the advice of most of his friends and advisers, ho urged him to ait before running for office again, Clinton quickly began planning his campaign for the next gubernatorial election, in 1982. Clinton on the Democratic nomination, although it required a runoff election because of the closeness of the race. In the general election, Clinton faced hite, ho as running for reelection, and the to candidates sapped bitter charges. hite repeated his accusations from the 1980 campaign, and Clinton accused hite of unfairly letting utilities raise the rates people paid for electricity and telephone service. Clinton promised he ould make it harder for utilities to obtain rate increases. Clinton campaigned for the votes of blacks, and he received more than 95 percent of their votes. Clinton defeated hite ith nearly 55 percent of the votes. Clinton had found lessons in his 1980 defeat about ho to govern. He learned to choose his fights carefully, not to try to change everything at once, and to prepare people before proposing major changes. These abilities helped Clinton continue to be reelected in 1984, 1986, and after the gubernatorial term changed from to years to four years, in 1990. At the start of his second term, Clinton decided to spend all his energies trying to improve education, hich he thought as the states biggest problem. Clinton believed that the states poor education system did not prepare children for good jobs nor make Arkansas attractive to industries that offered skilled jobs. He appointed his ife as the head of a committee to rite higher standards for Arkansas schools. She conducted hearings in each of the states 75 counties, and she and Clinton made numerous speeches across the state, saying more should be demanded from schools and students. In the fall of 1983, Clinton called the legislature into a special session to approve many changes in the school system. Clinton on approval of most parts of his seeping reform program taxes ere increased to pay teachers more money, offer more courses in the high schools, and provide college scholarships state money for education as distributed differently to help the poorest schools eighth graders ere required to pass a test of basic knoledge before going to high school and all school teachers and administrators also had to take a basic knoledge test in order to keep their jobs. The Clinton administration also adopted tough ne standards proposed by Hillary Clintons committee that raised the requirements for graduation from high school and forced high schools to offer more science, mathematics, foreign language, art, and music classes, and to reduce the size of kindergarten and elementary school classes. School districts that did not meet these requirements ithin three years ould be merged into districts that did meet the standards. The requirement that all teachers pass a test angered most school teachers and generated a national debate. But the program, and the taxes, proved popular ith Arkansas voters. During this time, the scores of Arkansas students on college-entrance tests improved. In the early 1980s a high percentage of Arkansas students dropped out of school before graduating, and feer high school graduates ent to college than in any other state. But by 1990, the dropout rate had fallen ell belo the national average, and the percentage of young people ho ent to college matched the national average. Clin...
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