Public image of Bill Clinton

Clinton was also dogged by investigations throughout his presidency, particularly of sexual misconduct, damaging the public's beliefs of his trustworthiness, though his approval ratings remained high, even as his impeachment trial continued.

[6] The Gallup Organization published a poll in February 2007 asking respondents to name the greatest president in U.S. history; Clinton came in fourth place, capturing 13% of the vote.

However, in the same poll, when respondents were asked to name the worst president since World War II, Clinton placed 1% behind Richard Nixon and 18% behind George W. Bush to come in third with 16% of the vote.

[8] ABC News characterized public consensus on Clinton as, "You can't trust him, he's got weak morals and ethics – and he's done a heck of a good job.

[22] Clinton drew strong support from the African American community and made improving race relations a major theme of his presidency.

She alleged that she has "no idea what his real instincts are, in terms of race" and claimed she was only describing the way he was being treated during the impeachment trial as an equivalent to a poor black person living in the ghetto.

[32] During the deposition for the Jones lawsuit which was held at the White House,[33] Clinton denied having sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky – a denial that became the basis for the impeachment charge of perjury.

The independent counsel determined Willey gave "false information" to the FBI and inconsistent sworn testimony related to the Jones allegation.

[35] Gennifer Flowers, Elizabeth Ward Gracen, Sally Perdue and Dolly Kyle Browning – claimed to have had adulterous sexual relations with Clinton during or before his service as governor.

[39] A haircut Clinton received on May 13, 1993, by the stylist Cristophe aboard Air Force One at Los Angeles International Airport became the subject of controversy at the time.

The national media initially reported that air traffic was affected while two runways were shut down for an hour on account of the president's plane standing on the tarmac for the duration of the haircut.