The post-presidency of Bill Clinton began on January 20, 2001 following the end of Bill Clinton's second term as president. Clinton was the 42nd president of the United States, serving from 1993 to 2001. After he left office, he continued to be active in the public sphere, touring the world, writing books, and campaigning for Democrats, including his wife, Hillary Clinton, who served as the junior U.S. senator from New York between 2001 and 2009 and the 67th United States Secretary of State between 2009 and 2013, on her presidential campaigns in 2008, in which she was runner-up for the Democratic nomination, and in 2016, when she lost the election to Donald Trump. After Clinton left office, he ended up forming a close friendship with George H. W. Bush and later, with George W. Bush.
Public speaking and campaigning
At the end of his presidency, the Clintons moved to their house 15 Old House Lane in Chappaqua, New York, in Westchester County. Clinton opened his personal office in the Harlem section of New York City. In 2000, Clinton assisted his wife in her campaign for office as Senator from New York. Clinton campaigned for a number of Democratic candidates for the Senate in the 2002 elections.
Clinton comments on contemporary politics in speaking engagements around the world. One notable theme is his advocacy of multilateral solutions to world problems.
Clinton spoke for the fifth consecutive time at a Democratic National Convention on July 26, 2004, praising candidate John Kerry. He said of President George W. Bush's depiction of Kerry, "strength and wisdom are not opposing values." Despite Clinton's speech, the post-convention bounce to Kerry's poll numbers was less than was hoped for.
Clinton has given dozens of paid speeches each year, mostly to corporations and philanthropic groups in North America and Europe, often earning $100,000 to $300,000 per speech; for 13 speeches he was paid $500,000, or more. According to his wife's Senate ethics reports, he earned more than $30 million in speaking from 2001 to 2005. In 2007, it is estimated he amassed around $40 million from speaking fees. Overall, Bill Clinton earned more than $104 million from 542 paid speeches between January 2001 and January 2013.
Clinton made his first visit to new United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in April 2007.
He was the opening speaker at the Ontario Economic Summit held on November 13, 2007 in which he addressed people on various subjects including Canada's role in Afghanistan, environmentalism and access to healthcare.
Clinton served as one of the organizers for the New Baptist Covenant alongside former President Jimmy Carter and other Baptist leaders. This effort sought to bring various Baptists in America together, especially across racial lines, to discuss issues that unite them. Clinton spoke at the January 2008 celebration in Atlanta, Georgia.
Post 9/11 and relations with Bob Dole
Following 9/11, Clinton teamed up with his one-time political rival, former U.S. Senator Bob Dole, on the Families of Freedom Foundation, a scholarship fund campaign to pay for the college educations for the families of 9/11 victims. It helped raise more than $100 million. Clinton also was, for a short time in 2003, a commentator opposite Dole on CBS's 60 Minutes.
William J. Clinton Presidential Center
Clinton dedicated his presidential library, the William J. Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock, Arkansas on November 18, 2004. Under rainy skies, Clinton received praise from former presidents Jimmy Carter and George H. W. Bush, as well as from then-president George W. Bush. He was treated to a musical rendition from Bono and the Edge from U2, who expressed their gratitude at Clinton's efforts to resolve the Northern Ireland conflict during his presidency. The library has the largest archives of any presidential library.
The Clinton facility was funded to a large degree by donations from foreign governments, receiving a $10 million donation from the royal family of Saudi Arabia.
Published work
Clinton released a personal autobiography, My Life in 2004. The book was published by the Knopf Publishing Group at Random House on June 22, 2004. According to the publisher, for single day non-fiction book sales, the book set a worldwide record. Later released as an audio book, total sales were in excess of 400,000 copies. As a writer's fee, he received U.S. $12 million in advance.
