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Clinton was born in Hope, Arkansas and raised in Hot Springs, Arkansas. He was named William Jefferson Blythe III after his father, William Jefferson Blythe Jr. , a travelling salesman who had been killed in a car accident in Scott County, Missouri between the towns of Sikeston and Morley just three months before his son was born, hence a posthumous child. His mother, born Virginia Dell Cassidy , remarried in 1950 to Roger Clinton. Billy, as he was called, was raised by his mother and stepfather, using the last name "Clinton" throughout elementary school, but not formally changing it until he was 15. Clinton grew up in a turbulent family. His stepfather was a gambler and alcoholic who regularly abused his wife, and sometimes Clinton's half brother Roger, Jr. (born 1956).
Bill Clinton meets President John F. Kennedy at the White House in 1962 Clinton excelled as a student and as a saxophone player. At one time, he considered becoming a professional musician. As a delegate to Boys Nation while in high school, he met President John F. Kennedy in the White House Rose Garden. This encounter has often been romanticised as a crucial factor in leading Clinton to begin a life of public service.
He rose from poverty to graduate from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University with a degree in International Affairs. While attending Georgetown, he was a congressional aide for Senator William Fulbright. After graduation, he attended England's prestigious Oxford University ( University College) on a Rhodes Scholarship, and received a law degree from Yale Law School. At Yale, Bill Clinton met Hillary Rodham, and they married in 1975. They have one daughter Chelsea, born in 1980.
Clinton taught law at the University of Arkansas for a few years. During this time, he ran for the House of Representatives in 1974 against Congressman John Paul Hammerschmidt. Clinton lost the election by over 6,000 votes. After his teaching stint, Clinton was elected Attorney General of Arkansas in 1976. Bill Clinton was elected governor of the state of Arkansas first in 1978, when at the time he was the youngest state governor in the United States. His first term was fraught with difficulties, including an unpopular motor vehicle tax, and popular anger over the escape of Cuban prisoners (from the Mariel Boat Lift) detained in Fort Chafee in 1980.
Furthermore, Hillary Rodham's decision to keep her maiden name while Arkansas' First Lady raised many eyebrows in the traditionally conservative state. After only one term, Clinton was defeated by Republican challenger Frank D. White in 1980. He was the youngest ex-governor in the nation's history.
Out of office, Clinton addressed the concerns that led to his political failure. He established new relationships with business interests, and made amends with the political establishment of the state. Hillary took her husband's surname and adopted a more traditional public role as a political wife, while quietly establishing herself as a political force in her own right through her skills as an attorney. Clinton was elected governor again in 1982, and was re-elected again in 1984, 1986 and 1990, serving until 1992.
Clinton's business-friendly approach mollified conservative criticism during his terms as governor. However, several deals the Clintons made during this period led to the Whitewater investigation, which dogged his later presidential administration.
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