Poll: Clinton Improved America

One year before the 2000 presidential election, Americans view the seven years of Bill ClintonÂ's presidency in a very positive way, despite various scandals and his impeachment earlier this year, according to a CBS News poll.

By 61 percent to 33 percent, Americans say Bill Clinton has accomplished most of what he set out to do as President.

A majority – 52 percent – say that as president, Clinton has made the United States a better place. Just 14 percent say he has made it worse. Even conservatives think Clinton has had some positive impact on the country: Thirty-seven percent say he has made it a better place, and only 26 percent think he has made it worse.

Most of the public are able to name an accomplishment of the Clinton administration, and the economy is the most frequently named, by an overwhelming margin. Thirty-nine percent cite the economy as the Clinton administrationÂ's greatest accomplishment, foreign policy is second, but named by just 7 percent. This focus on the economy – a major theme of the 1992 Clinton campaign – may be the reason most Americans think Clinton has accomplished many of his goals.

This poll was conducted among a nationwide random sample of 1,065 adults, interviewed by telephone October 28-30, 1999. There were 901 registered voters in the sample. The error due to sampling could be plus or minus 3 percentage points for the sample of all adults and all registered voters. The sampling error could be plus or minus six percentage points for the sample of Democratic primary voters.