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Jimmy Carter
|Jimmy Carter
|39th President of the United States
|In office
January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981
|Vice President
|Walter Mondale
|Preceded by
|Gerald Ford
|Succeeded by
|Ronald Reagan
|76th Governor of Georgia
|In office
January 12, 1971 – January 14, 1975
|Lester Maddox
|Preceded by
|Lester Maddox
|Succeeded by
|George Busbee
|Member of the Georgia Senate
from the 14th district
|In office
January 14, 1963 – January 10, 1967
|Preceded by
|Constituency established
|Succeeded by
|Hugh Carter
|Sumter County
|Personal details
|James Earl Carter Jr.
October 1, 1924
Plains, Georgia, U.S.
|Political party
|Rosalynn Smith (m. 1946)
|4, including Jack and Amy
|James Earl Carter Sr.
Bessie Lillian Gordy
|Plains, Georgia, U.S.
|Alma mater
|United States Naval Academy
|Civilian awards
|Nobel Peace Prize
See more
|Military service
|United States of America
|United States Navy
|Years of service
|1943–53 (Navy)
1953-61 (Navy Reserve)
|Military awards
| American Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
China Service Medal
National Defense Service Medal
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician and author who served as the 39th President of the United States from 1977 to 1981. In 2002, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work with the Carter Center.
Carter, a Democrat raised in rural Georgia, was a peanut farmer who served two terms as a Georgia State Senator, from 1963 to 1967, and one as the Governor of Georgia, from 1971 to 1975. He was elected President in 1976, defeating incumbent President Gerald Ford in a relatively close election; the Electoral College margin of 57 votes was the closest at that time since 1916.
On his second day in office, Carter pardoned all evaders of the Vietnam War drafts. During Carter's term as President, two new cabinet-level departments, the Department of Energy and the Department of Education were established. He established a national energy policy that included conservation, price control, and new technology. In foreign affairs, Carter pursued the Camp David Accords, the Panama Canal Treaties, the second round of Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT II), and the return of the Panama Canal Zone to Panama. On the economic front he confronted persistent "stagflation", a combination of high inflation, high unemployment and slow growth. The end of his presidential tenure was marked by the 1979–1981 Iran hostage crisis, the 1979 energy crisis, the Three Mile Island nuclear accident, and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. In response to the Soviet move he ended détente, escalated the Cold War, and led the international boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. By 1980, Carter's popularity had eroded such that, running for re-election that year, he was challenged by Senator Ted Kennedy in the Democratic Party's primaries for the presidential nomination, marking the most recent Democratic primary in which an incumbent faced serious opposition. Carter won the 1980 primary with 51.13% of the vote (all incumbent candidates since have won at least 72.8% of their party's primary votes) but lost the general election in an electoral landslide to Republican nominee Ronald Reagan, who won 44 of 50 states.
His presidency has drawn medium-low responses from historians, with many considering him to have accomplished more with his post-presidency work. He set up the Carter Center in 1982 as his base for advancing human rights. He has also traveled extensively to conduct peace negotiations, observe elections, and advance disease prevention and eradication in developing nations. Additionally, Carter is a key figure in the Habitat for Humanity project. Regarding current political views, he has criticized of some of Israel's actions and policies in regards to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. He has vigorously opposed the Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United v. FEC to strike down McCain-Feingold limits on campaign spending by corporations and unions, saying that the U.S. is "no longer a functioning democracy" and now has a system of "unlimited political bribery." He is a supporter of President Obama but has been critical of aspects of his foreign policy, particularly with regard to the use of drones and Obama's failure to close Guantanamo Bay detention camp. With his 35-year post-presidency, Carter is the longest-retired president in American history, breaking the record previously held by Herbert Hoover in 2012.
In August 2015, at age 90, Carter was diagnosed with melanoma which had metastasized to his liver and brain, and he began treatment which included surgery, immunotherapy, and radiation. Less than four months later, on December 6, 2015, Carter, now 91, said that he was cancer-free,[2] and on March 7, 2016, he concluded his cancer treatment.[3]
- 1 Early life
- 2 Naval career
- 3 Farming
- 4 Early political career, 1963–71
- 5 Governor of Georgia (1971–75)
- 6 1976 presidential campaign
- 7 Presidency (1977–81)
- 8 Post-presidency (1981–present)
- 8.1 Carter Center and Nobel Prize
- 8.2 Diplomacy
- 8.3 Criticism of U.S. policy
- 8.4 Author
- 8.5 Involvement with Bank of Credit and Commerce International
- 8.6 2012 Presidential race
- 8.7 Other activities
- 9 Personal views
- 10 Personal life
- 11 Public image and legacy
- 12 Books
- 13 See also
- 14 Notes
- 15 References
- 16 Further reading
- 17 External links
Early life
James Earl Carter was born on October 1, 1924, at the Wise Sanitarium in Plains, Georgia.[note 1] He is a descendant of English immigrant Thomas Carter, who settled in Virginia in 1635. Numerous generations of Carters lived as cotton farmers in Georgia. Plains was a boomtown of 600 people when Carter was born. Carter's father, James Earl Carter Sr., was a successful local businessman who ran a general store and had begun to invest in farmland. He had been a reserve second lieutenant in the U.S. Army's Quartermaster Corps during World War I. Carter's mother, Bessie Lillian Gordy, was a nurse at the Wise hospital. Carter was the first of Earl and Lillian's children; they moved several times during his infancy.[4]
The Carters settled on a dirt road in nearby Archery, which was almost entirely populated by impoverished African American families. They eventually had three more children: Gloria, Ruth, and Billy. Carter got along well with his parents, although his mother worked long hours and was often absent in his childhood. Although Earl was staunchly pro-segregation, he allowed his son to befriend the black farmhands' children. An enterprising teenager, Carter was given his own acre of Earl's farmland where he grew, packaged, and sold peanuts. He also rented out a section of tenant housing he had purchased.[4]
Carter attended the Plains High School from 1930 to 1941. The Great Depression had by then impoverished Archery and Plains, but the family benefited from New Deal farming subsidies, and Earl took a position as a community leader. Young Carter was a diligent student with a fondness for reading. A popular anecdote holds that he was passed over for valedictorian after he and his friends skipped school to venture downtown in a hot rod. Carter's truancy was mentioned in a local newspaper, although it is not clear he would have been valedictorian anyway.[5] Carter's teacher, Julia Coleman, was an especially strong influence. As an adolescent, Carter played on the Plains High School basketball team; he also joined the Future Farmers of America and developed a lifelong interest in woodworking.[5]
Carter had long dreamed of attending the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. He initially started undergraduate coursework in engineering at Georgia Southwestern College in nearby Americus in 1941, transferred to Georgia Tech in Atlanta in 1942, and achieved admission to the Naval Academy in 1943. He was a good student but was seen as reserved and quiet, in contrast to the academy's culture of aggressive hazing of freshmen. While at the academy, Carter fell in love with his sister Ruth's friend Rosalynn Smith, whom he would marry shortly after his graduation in 1946.[6] Carter graduated 60th out of 820 midshipmen in the class of 1946 with a Bachelor of Science degree and was commissioned as an ensign.[7] From 1946 to 1953, Carter and Rosalynn lived temporarily in Virginia, Hawaii, Connecticut, New York and California, as he served deployments in the Atlantic and Pacific fleets.[8] In 1948 he began officers' training for submarine duty, served aboard the USS Pomfret. He was promoted to lieutenant junior grade in 1949. In 1951 he became attached to the diesel/electric USS K-1, (a.k.a. USS Barracuda), qualified for command, and served in several duties including Executive Officer.[9]
In 1952 Carter began an association with the US Navy's fledgling nuclear submarine program led by then-Captain Hyman G. Rickover. Rickover's demands on his men and machines were legendary, and Carter later said that, next to his parents, Rickover was the greatest influence on his life.[10] He was sent to the Naval Reactors Branch of the then Atomic Energy Commission in Washington, D.C. for three month temporary duty, while Rosalynn moved with their children to Schenectady, New York. On December 12, 1952, an accident with the experimental NRX reactor at Atomic Energy of Canada's Chalk River Laboratories caused a partial meltdown resulting in millions of liters of radioactive water flooding the reactor building's basement and leaving the reactor's core ruined.[11] Carter was ordered to Chalk River to lead a U.S. maintenance crew that joined other American and Canadian service personnel to assist in the shutdown of the reactor.[12] The painstaking process required each team member to don protective gear and be lowered individually into the reactor for a few minutes at a time, limiting their exposure to radioactivity while they disassembled the crippled reactor. During and after his presidency, Carter said that his experience at Chalk River had shaped his views on atomic energy and led him to cease development of a neutron bomb.[13] After that experience, Carter rejoined his family to work on the USS Seawolf, one of the first two U.S. nuclear submarines, at the Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory which supports the U.S. naval nuclear propulsion program. In March 1953 he began nuclear power school, a six-month non-credit course covering nuclear power plant operation at Union College in Schenectady[8] and would lead to becoming an engineering officer for a nuclear power plant.[9] But in July his father died and the family business became his. Deciding to leave Schenectady proved difficult. Settling after moving so much Rosalynn had grown comfortable with their life. Returning to small-town life in Plains seemed "a monumental step backward," she said later. On the other hand, Carter felt restricted by the rigidity of the military and yearned to assume a path more like his father's. Carter was honorably discharged from the Navy on October 9, 1953.[14][15] He served in the Navy Reserve until 1961, and left the service with the rank of lieutenant.[16] Carter's awards included: the American Campaign Medal; World War II Victory Medal; China Service Medal; and National Defense Service Medal.[17]
Earl Carter died a relatively wealthy man, having also recently been elected to the Georgia House of Representatives. However, between his forgiveness of debts and the division of his wealth among heirs, his son Jimmy inherited comparatively little. For a year, Jimmy, Rosalynn, and their three sons lived in public housing in Plains; Carter is the only U.S. president to have lived in housing subsidized for the poor. Knowledgeable in scientific and technological subjects, however, Carter set out to expand the family's peanut-growing business. The transition from Navy to agribusinessman was difficult, as the harvest his first year failed due to drought; Carter was compelled to open several bank lines of credit to keep the farm afloat. Meanwhile, he also took classes and read up on agriculture while Rosalynn learned accounting to manage the business's books. Though they barely broke even the first year, the Carters grew the business and became quite successful.[18][19]
Early political career, 1963–71
Georgia State Senator (1963–67)
Racial tension was inflamed in Plains by the 1954 U.S. Supreme Court's anti-segregation ruling in Brown v. Board of Education. Carter was in favor of racial tolerance and integration—at one point, the local White Citizens' Council boycotted his peanut warehouse when he refused to join them—but he often kept those feelings to himself to avoid making enemies. By 1961 he was a prominent member of the community and the Baptist Church as well as chairman of the Sumter County school board, where he began to speak more loudly in favor of school integration.[20] A state Senate seat was opened by the dissolution of Georgia's County Unit System in 1962; Carter announced his run for the seat 15 days before the election. Rosalynn, who had an instinct for politics and organization, was instrumental to his campaign. The initial results showed Carter losing, but this was the result of fraudulent voting orchestrated by Joe Hurst, the sheriff of Quitman County. Carter challenged the results; when fraud was confirmed, a new election was held, which he won.[21]
The Civil Rights Movement was well underway as Carter took office. He and his family had become staunch John F. Kennedy supporters. In 1962, the town of Americus was the site of mass beatings and incarcerations of black protesters, echoing similar unrest throughout the country. Carter remained relatively quiet on the issue at first, even as it polarized much of the county, to avoid alienating his segregationist colleagues. He did speak up on a few divisive issues, giving speeches against literacy tests and against a change to the Georgia Constitution which, he felt, implied a compulsion to practice religion.[22] A diligent legislator, Carter took speed-reading courses to keep up with the workload. Within two years his connections landed him on the state Democratic Executive Committee, where he helped rewrite the state party's rules. He became chairman of the West Central Georgia Planning and Development Commission, which oversaw the disbursement of federal and state grants for projects such as historic site restoration. When Bo Callaway was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in November 1964, Carter immediately began planning to unseat him. The two had previously clashed over which two-year college would be expanded to a four-year college program by the state; Carter wanted it to go to Georgia Southwestern College in Americus, but Callaway wanted the funding to go to downtown Columbus. Carter saw Callaway, a Republican, as a rival who represented the inherited wealth and selfishness he despised in politics.[23]
Carter was re-elected in 1964 to serve a second two-year term. For a time in the State Senate, he chaired its Education Committee; he also sat on the Appropriations Committee toward the end of his second term. Before his term ended he contributed to a bill expanding statewide education funding and getting Georgia Southwestern a four-year program. He leveraged his regional planning work, giving speeches around the district to make himself more visible to potential voters. The last day of the term, he announced his run for Congress.[24]
1966 and 1970 campaigns for governor
The congressional race was shaken up in mid-May when Callaway dropped out and decided to run for Governor of Georgia instead. Callaway was a very strong candidate, and state Democrats panicked over the prospect of losing the governorship they had held since Reconstruction. Carter soon decided to follow Callaway and run for governor himself. In the Democratic primary he ran as a moderate alternative to both the liberal former governor Ellis Arnall and the conservative Lester Maddox. In a press conference he described his ideology as "Conservative, moderate, liberal and middle-of-the-road. ... I believe I am a more complicated person than that."[25] He lost the Democratic primary, but drew enough votes as a third-place candidate to force Arnall into a runoff election with Maddox. A chain of events then resulted in Maddox, the dark horse candidate, being elected governor.[note 2] The result was a sharp blow to Carter, who was left deeply in debt. His attempt to rescue the race from Callaway had resulted in the unlikely election of the segregationist Maddox, which he considered an even worse outcome.[26]
Carter returned to his agriculture business and, during the next four years, carefully planned his next campaign for Governor in 1970. This period was a spiritual turning point for Carter; he grew increasingly evangelical, undertaking several religious missions in other states. Inspired by his sister Ruth and liberal theologians such as Reinhold Niebuhr, he declared himself born again, a growing movement in 1960s America. His last child Amy was born around this time.[27][28]
The liberal former governor, Carl Sanders, was Carter's main opponent in the 1970 Democratic primary. Carter ran a more modern campaign this time around, employing printed graphics and statistical analysis. Responding to poll data, Carter leaned more conservative than before. He positioned himself as a populist, quickly going negative against Sanders for his wealth (labeling him "Cufflinks Carl") and associating him with the national Democratic Party. He accused Sanders of corruption, but when pressed by the media, could come up with no evidence.[29][30] Throughout the campaign Carter sought both the black vote and the "Wallace vote", after the prominent segregationist George Wallace. While he met with black figures such as Martin Luther King Sr. and Andrew Young, and visited many black-owned businesses, he also praised Wallace and promised to invite him to give a speech in Georgia. He implied support or dislike of private schools depending on the audience. The appeal to racism became more blatant over time; Carter's senior campaign aides handed out a photograph of his opponent Sanders celebrating with black basketball players.[29][30]
That September, Carter came ahead of Sanders in the first ballot by 49 to 38 percent, leading to a runoff. The campaign grew even more bitter; Carter's campaign criticized Sanders for supporting Martin Luther King Jr. Carter won the runoff election with 60 percent of the vote—winning 7 percent of the black vote—and went on to win the general election easily over the Republican Hal Suit, a local news anchor. Once he was elected, Carter began to speak confidently against Georgia's racist politics. Leroy Johnson, a black state Senator, voiced his support for Carter, saying, "I understand why he ran that kind of ultra-conservative campaign. ... I don't believe you can win this state without being a racist."[29]
Governor of Georgia (1971–75)
Carter was sworn in as the 76th Governor of Georgia on January 12, 1971. He declared in his inaugural speech that "the time of racial segregation was over. No poor, rural, weak, or black person should ever again have to bear the additional burden of being deprived of the opportunity for an education, a job, or simple justice." The crowd was reportedly shocked by this message, contrasting starkly with Georgia's political culture and particularly Carter's campaign. The many segregationists who had supported Carter during the race felt betrayed. Time magazine ran a story on the progressive "New South" governors elected that year in a May 1971 issue, featuring a cover illustration of Carter.[31][32][33]
Lester Maddox, Carter's predecessor as governor, became lieutenant governor. Carter had endorsed Maddox, although the two did not campaign as a ticket. The two found little common ground during their four years of service, often publicly feuding with each other.[34] Richard Russell Jr., then President pro tempore of the United States Senate, died in office during Carter's second week in office; the newly inaugurated governor appointed David H. Gambrell, state Democratic Party chair, to fill Russell's unexpired term in the Senate.[35]
With Carter's reluctance to engage in back-slapping and political favors, the legislature found him frustrating to work with.[36][37] He looked to aggressively expand the governor's authority while reducing the complexity of the state government. Therefore, he negotiated a bill allowing him to propose executive restructuring and to force a vote on it. He implemented zero-based budgeting within state departments and added a Judicial Selection Commission to verify the credentials of judges appointed by the governor.[36] The reorganization plan was submitted in January 1972, but had a cool reception in the legislature. After two weeks of negotiations it was passed at midnight on the last day of the session.[38] Ultimately he merged about 300 state agencies into 22—a fact he would emphasize in his presidential run—although it is disputed that there were any overall cost savings from doing so.[39]
Civil rights were a heartfelt priority for Carter. He expanded the number of black state employees, judges, and board members. He hired Rita Jackson Samuels, a black woman, to advise him on potential appointments.[40] He placed portraits of Martin Luther King Jr. and two other prominent black Georgians in the capitol building, even as the Ku Klux Klan picketed the unveiling ceremony.[41] Still, Carter tried to keep his conservative allies comfortable. He co-sponsored an anti-busing resolution with George Wallace at the 1971 National Governors Conference.[40] After the U.S. Supreme Court threw out Georgia's death penalty statute in Furman v. Georgia (1972), Carter signed a revised death penalty statute which addressed the court's objections, thus re-introducing the practice in the state. Carter later regretted endorsing the death penalty, saying, "I didn't see the injustice of it as I do now."[42]
Carter pushed reforms through the legislature to provide equal state aid to schools in the wealthy and poor areas of Georgia, set up community centers for mentally handicapped children, and increased educational programs for convicts. He took pride in his program for the appointment of judges and state government officials. Under this program, all such appointments were based on merit, rather than political influence.[43][44]
In one of his more controversial decisions,[45] he vetoed a plan to build a dam on Georgia's Flint River. After surveying the river and the literature himself, he argued that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was underestimating both the project's cost and its impact on the region. The veto won the attention of environmentalists nationwide.[41] When Lieutenant William Calley was convicted in a military trial and sentenced to life for his role in the My Lai Massacre in South Vietnam, a politically polarizing issue, Carter avoided paying direct tribute to Calley. He instead instituted "American Fighting Man's Day" and asked Georgians to drive for a week with their lights on in support of the military.[46]
National ambition
Looking toward a potential presidential run, Carter engaged himself in national politics and public appearances. He was named to several southern planning commissions and was a delegate to the 1972 Democratic National Convention, where the liberal U.S. Senator George McGovern was the likely presidential nominee. Carter tried to ingratiate himself with the conservative, anti-McGovern voters, so that the convention would consider him for McGovern's running mate on a compromise ticket. He endorsed Senator Henry "Scoop" Jackson, in part to distance himself from George Wallace. Carter was still fairly obscure at the time, and his attempt at triangulation failed; the 1972 Democratic ticket went to McGovern and Senator Thomas Eagleton.[47]
After McGovern's loss in November 1972, Carter began meeting regularly with his fledgling campaign staff. He had quietly decided to begin putting a presidential bid together. He tried unsuccessfully to become chairman of the National Governors Association to boost his visibility. On David Rockefeller's endorsement he was named to the Trilateral Commission in April 1973. The following year he was named chairman of the Democratic National Committee's congressional, as well as gubernatorial, campaigns.[48] In 1973 he appeared on the game show What's My Line, where a group of celebrity panelists would try to guess his occupation. None recognized him and it took several rounds of question-and-answer before movie critic Gene Shalit correctly guessed he was a governor.[49]
1976 presidential campaign
When Carter entered the Democratic Party presidential primaries in 1976, he was considered to have little chance against nationally better-known politicians; his name recognition was two percent. As the Watergate scandal of President Nixon was still fresh in the voters' minds, Carter's position as an outsider, distant from Washington, D.C., became an asset. He promoted government reorganization. Carter published Why Not the Best? in June 1976 to help introduce himself to the American public.[50]
Carter became the front-runner early on by winning the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary. He used a two-prong strategy: In the South, which most had tacitly conceded to Alabama's George Wallace, Carter ran as a moderate favorite son. When Wallace proved to be a spent force, Carter swept the region. In the North, Carter appealed largely to conservative Christian and rural voters; he had little chance of winning a majority in most states. He won several Northern states by building the largest single bloc. Carter's strategy involved reaching a region before another candidate could extend influence there. He had traveled over 50,000 miles, visited 37 states, and delivered over 200 speeches before any other candidates announced that they were in the race.[51] Initially dismissed as a regional candidate,[52] Carter proved to be the Democrat with the most effective national strategy, and he clinched the nomination.
The national news media discovered and promoted Carter, as Lawrence Shoup noted in his 1980 book The Carter Presidency and Beyond:
What Carter had that his opponents did not was the acceptance and support of elite sectors of the mass communications media. It was their favorable coverage of Carter and his campaign that gave him an edge, propelling him rocket-like to the top of the opinion polls. This helped Carter win key primary election victories, enabling him to rise from an obscure public figure to President-elect in the short space of 9 months.[53]
Carter was interviewed by Robert Scheer of Playboy for the November 1976 issue, which hit the newsstands a couple of weeks before the election. While discussing his religion's view of pride, Carter said: "I've looked on a lot of women with lust. I've committed adultery in my heart many times."[54] He is the only interviewee of Playboy to become US president.[55]
As late as January 26, 1976, Carter was the first choice of only four percent of Democratic voters, according to a Gallup poll.[citation needed] Yet "by mid-March 1976 Carter was not only far ahead of the active contenders for the Democratic presidential nomination, he also led President Ford by a few percentage points", according to Shoup.[56]
He chose Senator Walter F. Mondale as his running mate. He attacked Washington in his speeches, and offered a religious salve for the nation's wounds.[57]
Carter began the race with a sizable lead over Ford, who narrowed the gap during the campaign, but lost to Carter in a narrow defeat on November 2, 1976. Carter won the popular vote by 50.1 percent to 48.0 percent for Ford, and received 297 electoral votes to Ford's 240. Carter became the first contender from the Deep South to be elected President since the 1848 election. Carter carried fewer states than Ford—23 states to the defeated Ford's 27—yet Carter won with the largest percentage of the popular vote (50.1 percent) of any non-incumbent since Dwight Eisenhower.[citation needed]
Presidency (1977–81)
Carter's tenure was a time of continuing inflation and recession, as well as an energy crisis. Among his first acts was the fulfillment of a campaign promise by issuing an executive order declaring unconditional amnesty for Vietnam War-era draft evaders.[58][59] On January 7, 1980, Carter signed Law H.R. 5860 aka Public Law 96-185 known as The Chrysler Corporation Loan Guarantee Act of 1979, bailing out Chrysler Corporation. He canceled military pay raises during a time of high inflation and government deficits.[citation needed]
Carter attempted to calm various conflicts around the world, most visibly in the Middle East with the signing of the Camp David Accords; giving back the Panama Canal; and signing the SALT II nuclear arms reduction treaty with Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev. His final year was marred by the Iran hostage crisis, which contributed to his losing the 1980 election to Ronald Reagan.[60]
Iran hostage crisis
On November 4, 1979 a group of Iranian students, belonging to the Muslim Student Followers of the Imam's Line, who were supporting the Iranian Revolution, took over the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.[61] Fifty-two American diplomats and citizens were held hostage for the next 444 days until January 20, 1981. During the crisis, Carter remained in isolation in the White House for more than 100 days, until he left to participate in the lighting of the National Menorah on the Ellipse.[62] On April 24, 1980, Carter ordered Operation Eagle Claw to try free the hostages. The mission failed, leaving eight American servicemen dead and causing the destruction of two aircraft.
U.S. energy crisis
On April 18, 1977, Carter delivered a televised speech declaring that the U.S. energy crisis during the 1970s was the moral equivalent of war. He encouraged energy conservation by all U.S. citizens and installed solar water heating panels on the White House.[63][64] He wore sweaters to offset turning down the heat in the White House.[65]
EPA Love Canal Superfund
In 1978, Carter declared a federal emergency in the neighborhood of Love Canal in the city of Niagara Falls, New York. More than 800 families were evacuated from the neighborhood, which was built on top of a toxic waste landfill. The Superfund law was created in response to the situation.[66] Federal disaster money was appropriated to demolish the approximately 500 houses, the 99th Street School, and the 93rd Street School, which were built on top of the dump; and to remediate the dump and construct a containment area for the hazardous wastes. This was the first time that such a process had been undertaken. Carter acknowledged that several more "Love Canals" existed across the country, and that discovering such hazardous dumpsites was "one of the grimmest discoveries of our modern era".[67]
In 1977, Carter appointed Alfred E. Kahn, a professor of economics at Cornell University, to be chair of the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB). He was part of a push for deregulation of the industry, supported by leading economists, leading 'think tanks' in Washington, a civil society coalition advocating the reform (patterned on a coalition earlier developed for the truck-and-rail-reform efforts), the head of the regulatory agency, Senate leadership, the Carter administration, and even some in the airline industry. This coalition swiftly gained legislative results in 1978.[citation needed]
The Airline Deregulation Act (Pub.L. 95–504) was signed into law by President Carter on October 24, 1978. The main purpose of the act was to remove government control over fares, routes and market entry (of new airlines) from commercial aviation. The Civil Aeronautics Board's powers of regulation were to be phased out, eventually allowing market forces to determine routes and fares. The Act did not remove or diminish the FAA's regulatory powers over all aspects of airline safety.[citation needed]
In 1979, Carter deregulated the American beer industry by making it legal to sell malt, hops, and yeast to American home brewers for the first time since the effective 1920 beginning of Prohibition in the United States.[68] This Carter deregulation led to an increase in home brewing over the 1980s and 1990s that by the 2000s had developed into a strong craft microbrew culture in the United States, with 3,418 micro breweries, brewpubs, and regional craft breweries in the United States by the end of 2014.[69]
U.S. boycott of the Moscow Olympics
In response to the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Carter called for a boycott the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, which raised a bitter controversy.[70] It was the only time since the founding of the modern Olympics in 1896 that the United States had not participated in a Summer or Winter Olympics. The Soviet Union retaliated by boycotting the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. It did not withdraw troops from Afghanistan until 1989 (eight years after Carter left office).
International trips
Carter made twelve international trips to twenty-five countries during his presidency.[71] Carter was the first president to make a state visit to Sub-Saharan Africa when he went to Nigeria in 1978. His travel also included trips to Europe, Asia, and Latin America. He made several trips to the Middle East to broker peace negotiations. His December 31, 1977 – January 1, 1978 visit to Iran took place less than a year before the overthrow of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.[72]
1980 presidential campaign
Carter later wrote that the most intense and mounting opposition to his policies came from the liberal wing of the Democratic Party, which he attributed to Ted Kennedy's ambition to replace him as president.[73] Kennedy surprised his supporters by running a weak campaign, and Carter won most of the primaries and secured renomination. However, Kennedy had mobilized the liberal wing of the Democratic Party, which gave Carter weak support in the fall election.[74]
Carter's campaign for re-election in 1980 was one of the most difficult, and least successful, in history. He faced strong challenges from the right (Republican Ronald Reagan), the center (independent John B. Anderson), and the left (Democrat Ted Kennedy). He had to run against his own "stagflation"-ridden economy, while the hostage crisis in Iran dominated the news every week. He alienated liberal college students, who were expected to be his base, by re-instating registration for the military draft. His campaign manager and former appointments secretary, Timothy Kraft, stepped down some five weeks before the general election amid what turned out to have been an uncorroborated allegation of cocaine use.[75] Carter was defeated by Ronald Reagan in a landslide, and the Senate went Republican for the first time since 1952.[76]
Post-presidency (1981–present)
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In 1981, Carter returned to Georgia to his peanut farm, which he had placed into a blind trust during his presidency to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest. He found that the trustees had mismanaged the trust, leaving him more than one million dollars in debt. In the years that followed, he has led an active life, establishing the Carter Center, building his presidential library, teaching at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, and writing numerous books.[57] He has also contributed to the expansion of Habitat for Humanity, to build affordable housing. Since early September 2012, Carter has been alive longer after leaving the White House than any other U.S. President.[77]
Carter Center and Nobel Prize
Carter has been involved in a variety of national and international public policy, conflict resolution, human rights and charitable causes. In 1982, he established the Carter Center in Atlanta to advance human rights and alleviate human suffering. The non-profit, nongovernmental Center promotes democracy, mediates and prevents conflicts, and monitors the electoral process in support of free and fair elections. It also works to improve global health through the control and eradication of diseases such as Guinea worm disease, river blindness, malaria, trachoma, lymphatic filariasis, and schistosomiasis. It also works to diminish the stigma of mental illnesses and improve nutrition through increased crop production in Africa.[citation needed]
A major accomplishment of The Carter Center has been the elimination of more than 99 percent of cases of Guinea worm disease, from an estimated 3.5 million cases in 1986 to 148 reported cases in 2013[78] to 23 in 2015[79] The Carter Center has monitored 96 elections in 38 countries since 1989.[80] It has worked to resolve conflicts in Haiti, Bosnia, Ethiopia, North Korea, Sudan and other countries. Carter and the Center support human rights defenders around the world and have intervened with heads of state on their behalf.[citation needed]
In 2002, President Carter received the Nobel Peace Prize for his work "to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development" through The Carter Center.[81] Three sitting presidents, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and Barack Obama, have received the prize; Carter is unique in receiving the award for his actions after leaving the presidency. He is, along with Martin Luther King Jr., one of only two native Georgians to receive the Nobel.[82]
North Korea
In 1994, North Korea had expelled investigators from the International Atomic Energy Agency and was threatening to begin processing spent nuclear fuel. In response, then-President Clinton pressured for US sanctions and ordered large amounts of troops and vehicles into the area to brace for war.[citation needed]
Bill Clinton secretly recruited Carter to undertake a peace mission to North Korea,[83] under the guise that it was a private mission of Carter's. Clinton saw Carter as a way to let North Korean President Kim Il-sung back down without losing face.[84]
Carter negotiated an understanding with Kim Il-sung, but went further and outlined a treaty, which he announced on CNN without the permission of the Clinton White House as a way to force the US into action.
The Clinton Administration signed a later version of the Agreed Framework, under which North Korea agreed to freeze and ultimately dismantle its current nuclear program and comply with its nonproliferation obligations in exchange for oil deliveries, the construction of two light water reactors to replace its graphite reactors, and discussions for eventual diplomatic relations.[citation needed]
The agreement was widely hailed at the time as a significant diplomatic achievement.[85][86] However, in December 2002, the Agreed Framework collapsed as a result of a dispute between the George W. Bush Administration and the North Korean government of Kim Jong-il.
In 2001, George W. Bush had taken a confrontational position toward North Korea. And in January 2002, Bush had named North Korea as part of an "Axis of Evil". Meanwhile, North Korea began developing the capability to enrich uranium.
Bush Administration opponents of the Agreed Framework believed that the North Korean government never intended to give up a nuclear weapons program. However, supporters of the Agreed Framework believed that the agreement could have been successful, had it not been undermined by the Bush Administration.[87]
In August 2010, Carter traveled to North Korea in an attempt to secure the release of Aijalon Mahli Gomes. Gomes, a U.S. citizen, was sentenced to eight years of hard labor after being found guilty of illegally entering North Korea. Carter successfully secured the release.[88]
Middle East
Carter and experts from The Carter Center assisted unofficial Israeli and Palestinian negotiators in designing a model agreement for peace—called the Geneva Accord—in 2002–2003.[89]
Carter has also in recent years become a frequent critic of Israel's policies in Lebanon, the West Bank, and Gaza.[90][91]
In 2006, at the UK Hay Festival, Carter stated that Israel has at least 150 nuclear weapons. He expressed his support for Israel as a country, but criticized its domestic and foreign policy; "One of the greatest human rights crimes on earth is the starvation and imprisonment of 1.6m Palestinians," said Carter.[92]
He mentioned statistics showing nutritional intake of some Palestinian children was below that of the children of Sub-Saharan Africa and described the European position on Israel as "supine".[92]
In April 2008, the London-based Arabic newspaper Al-Hayat reported that Carter met with exiled Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal on his visit to Syria. The Carter Center initially did not confirm nor deny the story. The US State Department considers Hamas a terrorist organization.[93] Within this Mid-East trip, Carter also laid a wreath on the grave of Yasser Arafat in Ramallah on April 14, 2008.[94] Carter said on April 23 that neither Condoleezza Rice nor anyone else in the State Department had warned him against meeting with Hamas leaders during his trip.[95] Carter spoke to Mashaal on several matters, including "formulas for prisoner exchange to obtain the release of Corporal Shalit."[96]
In May 2007, while arguing that the United States should directly talk to Iran, Carter again stated that Israel has 150 nuclear weapons in its arsenal.[97]
In December 2008, Carter visited Damascus again, where he met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and the Hamas leadership. During his visit he gave an exclusive interview to Forward Magazine, the first ever interview for any American president, current or former, with a Syrian media outlet.[98][99]
Carter visited with three officials from Hamas who have been living at the International Red Cross office in Jerusalem since July 2010. Israel believes that these three Hamas legislators had a role in the 2006 kidnapping of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, and has a deportation order set for them.[100]
In August 2014, Carter was joined by Mary Robinson during the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict with the pair pressing for the inclusion of Hamas as an actor in peace talks with Israel, recognition of the group as a legitimate political entity, and the lifting of the siege of Gaza. The two Elders, in an op-ed article in Foreign Policy, noted the recent unity deal between Hamas and Fatah when Hamas agreed with the Palestinian Authority to denounce violence, recognize Israel and adhere to past agreements, saying it presented an opportunity. Carter and Robinson called on the UN Security Council to act on what they described as the inhumane conditions in Gaza, and mandate an end to the siege.[101]
Carter held summits in Egypt and Tunisia in 1995–1996 to address violence in the Great Lakes region of Africa.[102]
Carter played a key role in negotiation of the Nairobi Agreement in 1999 between Sudan and Uganda.[103]
On June 18, 2007, Carter, accompanied by his wife, arrived in Dublin, Ireland, for talks with President Mary McAleese and Bertie Ahern concerning human rights. On June 19, Carter attended and spoke at the annual Human Rights Forum at Croke Park. An agreement between Irish Aid and The Carter Center was also signed on this day.[citation needed]
Carter led a mission to Haiti in 1994 with Senator Sam Nunn and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Colin Powell to avert a US-led multinational invasion and restore to power Haiti's democratically elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide.[104]
Carter visited Cuba in May 2002 and had full discussions with Fidel Castro and the Cuban government. He was allowed to address the Cuban public uncensored on national television and radio with a speech that he wrote and presented in Spanish. In the speech, he called on the US to end "an ineffective 43-year-old economic embargo" and on Castro to hold free elections, improve human rights, and allow greater civil liberties.[105] He met with political dissidents; visited the AIDS sanitarium, a medical school, a biotech facility, an agricultural production cooperative, and a school for disabled children; and threw a pitch for an all-star baseball game in Havana. The visit made Carter the first President of the United States, in or out of office, to visit the island since the Cuban revolution of 1959.[106]
Carter observed the Venezuela recall elections on August 15, 2004. European Union observers had declined to participate, saying too many restrictions were put on them by the Hugo Chávez administration.[107] A record number of voters turned out to defeat the recall attempt with a 59 percent "no" vote.[108] The Carter Center stated that the process "suffered from numerous irregularities," but said it did not observe or receive "evidence of fraud that would have changed the outcome of the vote".[109] On the afternoon of August 16, 2004, the day after the vote, Carter and Organization of American States (OAS) Secretary General César Gaviria gave a joint press conference in which they endorsed the preliminary results announced by the National Electoral Council. The monitors' findings "coincided with the partial returns announced today by the National Elections Council," said Carter, while Gaviria added that the OAS electoral observation mission's members had "found no element of fraud in the process." Directing his remarks at opposition figures who made claims of "widespread fraud" in the voting, Carter called on all Venezuelans to "accept the results and work together for the future".[110] A Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates (PSB) exit poll had predicted that Chávez would lose by 20 percent; when the election results showed him to have won by 20 percent, Douglas Schoen commented, "I think it was a massive fraud".[111] US News & World Report offered an analysis of the polls, indicating "very good reason to believe that the [Penn, Schoen & Berland] exit poll had the result right, and that Chávez's election officials – and Carter and the American media – got it wrong." The exit poll and the Venezuela government's control of election machines became the basis of claims of election fraud. However an Associated Press report states that Penn, Schoen & Berland used volunteers from pro-recall organization Súmate for fieldwork, and its results contradicted five other opposition exit polls.[112]
Following Ecuador's severing of ties with Colombia in March 2008, Carter brokered a deal for agreement between the countries' respective presidents on the restoration of low-level diplomatic relations announced June 8, 2008.[113][114]
On November 18, 2009, Carter visited Vietnam to build houses for the poor. The one-week program, known as Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project 2009, built 32 houses in Dong Xa village, in the northern province of Hải Dương. The project launch was scheduled for November 14, according to the news source which quoted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Nguyen Phuong Nga. Administered by the non-governmental and non-profit Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI), the annual program of 2009 would build and repair 166 homes in Vietnam and some other Asian countries with the support of nearly 3,000 volunteers around the world, the organization said on its website. HFHI has worked in Vietnam since 2001 to provide low-cost housing, water, and sanitation solutions for the poor. It has worked in provinces like Tiền Giang and Đồng Nai as well as Ho Chi Minh City.[115]
The Elders
On July 18, 2007, Carter joined Nelson Mandela in Johannesburg, South Africa, to announce his participation in The Elders, a group of independent global leaders who work together on peace and human rights issues.[116] The Elders work globally, on thematic as well as geographically specific subjects. The organization's priority issue areas include the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Korean Peninsula, Sudan, and South Sudan, sustainable development, and equality for girls and women.[117]
Carter has been actively involved in the work of The Elders, participating in visits to Cyprus, the Korean Peninsula, and the Middle East, among others[118] In October 2007, Carter toured Darfur with several of the Elders, including Desmond Tutu. Sudanese security prevented him from visiting a Darfuri tribal leader, leading to a heated exchange.[119] He returned to Sudan with fellow Elder Lakhdar Brahimi in May 2012 as part of The Elders' efforts to encourage the presidents of Sudan and South Sudan to return to negotiations, and highlight the impact of the conflict on civilians.[120][121]
In November 2008, President Carter, former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, and Graça Machel, wife of Nelson Mandela, were stopped from entering Zimbabwe, to inspect the human rights situation, by President Robert Mugabe's government. The Elders instead made their assessment from South Africa, meeting with Zimbabwe– and South Africa-based leaders from politics, business, international organisations and civil society in Johannesburg.[122]
Criticism of U.S. policy
In 2001, Carter criticized President Bill Clinton's controversial pardon of Marc Rich, calling it "disgraceful" and suggesting that Rich's financial contributions to the Democratic Party were a factor in Clinton's action.[123]
In June 2005, Carter urged the closing of the Guantanamo Bay Prison in Cuba, which has been a focal point for recent claims of prisoner abuse.[124]
In September 2006, Carter was interviewed on the BBC's current affairs program Newsnight, voicing his concern at the increasing influence of the Religious Right on US politics.[125]
In September 2009, Carter put weight behind allegations by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, pertaining to United States involvement in the 2002 Venezuelan coup d'état attempt by a civilian-military junta, saying that Washington knew about the coup and may have taken part.[126]
On June 16, 2011, the 40th anniversary of Richard Nixon's official declaration of America's War on Drugs, Carter wrote an op-ed in The New York Times urging the United States and the rest of the world to "Call Off the Global War on Drugs",[127] explicitly endorsing the initiative released by the Global Commission on Drug Policy earlier that month and quoting a message he gave to Congress in 1977 saying that "[p]enalties against possession of a drug should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself."
Criticisms of George W. Bush
Carter has also criticized the presidency of George W. Bush and the Iraq War. In a 2003 op-ed in The New York Times, Carter warned against the consequences of a war in Iraq and urged restraint in use of military force.[128] In March 2004, Carter condemned George W. Bush and Tony Blair for waging an unnecessary war "based upon lies and misinterpretations" to oust Saddam Hussein. In August 2006, Carter criticized Blair for being "subservient" to the Bush administration and accused Blair of giving unquestioning support to Bush's Iraq policies.[129] In a May 2007 interview with the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, he said, "I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history," when it comes to foreign affairs.[130][131] Two days after the quote was published, Carter told NBC's Today that the "worst in history" comment was "careless or misinterpreted," and that he "wasn't comparing this administration with other administrations back through history, but just with President Nixon's."[132] The day after the "worst in history" comment was published, White House spokesman Tony Fratto said that Carter had become "increasingly irrelevant with these kinds of comments."[133]
On May 19, 2007, Blair made his final visit to Iraq before stepping down as British Prime Minister, and Carter criticized him afterward. Carter told the BBC that Blair was "apparently subservient" to Bush and criticized him for his "blind support" for the Iraq war.[134] Carter described Blair's actions as "abominable" and stated that the British Prime Minister's "almost undeviating support for the ill-advised policies of President Bush in Iraq have been a major tragedy for the world." Carter said he believes that had Blair distanced himself from the Bush administration during the run-up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003, it might have made a crucial difference to American political and public opinion, and consequently the invasion might not have gone ahead. Carter states that "one of the defenses of the Bush administration ... has been, okay, we must be more correct in our actions than the world thinks because Great Britain is backing us. So I think the combination of Bush and Blair giving their support to this tragedy in Iraq has strengthened the effort and has made the opposition less effective, and prolonged the war and increased the tragedy that has resulted." Carter expressed his hope that Blair's successor, Gordon Brown, would be "less enthusiastic" about Bush's Iraq policy.[134]
Due to his status as former President, Carter was a superdelegate to the 2008 Democratic National Convention. Carter announced his endorsement of Senator (now president) Barack Obama. Speaking to the Syrian English monthly Forward Magazine of Syria, Carter was asked to give one word that came to mind when mentioning President George W. Bush. His answer was: the end of a very disappointing administration. His reaction to mentioning Barack Obama was: honesty, intelligence, and politically adept.[135]
Criticisms of Barack Obama
Carter has criticized the Obama administration for its use of drone strikes against suspected terrorists. Carter also said that he disagrees with President Obama's decision to keep the Guantánamo Bay detention camp open, saying that the inmates "have been tortured by waterboarding more than 100 times or intimidated with semiautomatic weapons, power drills or threats to sexually assault their mothers." He claimed that the U.S. government had no moral leadership, and was committing human rights violations, and is no longer "the global champion of human rights".[136]
In July 2013, Carter expressed his criticism of current federal surveillance programs as disclosed by Edward Snowden indicating that "America has no functioning democracy at this moment."[137][138]
Carter has been a prolific author in his post-presidency, writing 21 of his 23 books. Among these is one he co-wrote with his wife, Rosalynn, and a children's book illustrated by his daughter, Amy. They cover a variety of topics, including humanitarian work, aging, religion, human rights, and poetry.[citation needed]
Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid
In a 2007 speech to Brandeis University, Carter stated: "I have spent a great deal of my adult life trying to bring peace to Israel and its neighbors, based on justice and righteousness for the Palestinians. These are the underlying purposes of my new book."[139]
In his book Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, published in November 2006, Carter states:
Israel's continued control and colonization of Palestinian land have been the primary obstacles to a comprehensive peace agreement in the Holy Land.[140]
He declares that Israel's current policies in the Palestinian territories constitute "a system of apartheid, with two peoples occupying the same land, but completely separated from each other, with Israelis totally dominant and suppressing violence by depriving Palestinians of their basic human rights."[140] In an Op-Ed titled "Speaking Frankly about Israel and Palestine," published in the Los Angeles Times and other newspapers, Carter states:
The ultimate purpose of my book is to present facts about the Middle East that are largely unknown in America, to precipitate discussion and to help restart peace talks (now absent for six years) that can lead to permanent peace for Israel and its neighbors. Another hope is that Jews and other Americans who share this same goal might be motivated to express their views, even publicly, and perhaps in concert. I would be glad to help with that effort.[141]
While some – such as a former Special Rapporteur for both the United Nations Commission on Human Rights and the International Law Commission, as well as a member of the Israeli Knesset – have praised Carter for speaking frankly about Palestinians in Israeli occupied lands, others – including the envoy to the Middle East under Clinton, as well as the first director of the Carter Center[142][143] – have accused him of anti-Israeli bias. Specifically, these critics have alleged significant factual errors, omissions and misstatements in the book.[144][145]
The 2007 documentary film, Man from Plains, follows President Carter during his tour for the controversial book and other humanitarian efforts.[146]
In December 2009, Carter apologized for any words or deeds that may have upset the Jewish community in an open letter meant to improve an often tense relationship. He said he was offering an Al Het, a prayer said on Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement.[147]
Involvement with Bank of Credit and Commerce International
After Carter left the presidency, his interest in the developing countries led him to having a close relationship with Agha Hasan Abedi, the founder of Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI). Abedi was a Pakistani, whose bank had offices and business in a large number of developing countries. He was introduced to Carter in 1982 by Bert Lance, one of Carter's closest friends. (Unknown to Carter, BCCI had secretly purchased an interest in 1978 in National Bank of Georgia, which had previously been run by Lance and had made loans to Carter's peanut business.) Abedi made generous donations to the Carter Center and the Global 2000 Project.[citation needed] Abedi also traveled with Carter to at least seven countries in connection with Carter's charitable activities. The main purpose of Abedi's association with Carter was not charitable activities, but to enhance BCCI's influence, in order to open more offices and develop more business. In 1991, BCCI was seized by regulators, amid allegations of criminal activities, including illegally having control of several U.S. banks. Just prior to the seizure, Carter began to disassociate himself from Abedi and the bank.[148]
2012 Presidential race
Despite being a Democrat, Carter endorsed former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney in the Republican party 2012 Presidential primary in mid-September 2011, not because he supported Romney, but because he felt Obama's re-election bid would be strengthened in a race against Romney.[149] Carter added that he thought Mitt Romney would lose in a match up against Obama and that he supported the president's re-election.[150]
Carter addressed the Democratic National Convention in North Carolina by videotape, and did not attend the convention in person.[151]
Other activities
Carter has participated in many ceremonial events such as the opening of his own presidential library and those of Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and Bill Clinton. He has also participated in many forums, lectures, panels, funerals and other events. Carter delivered a eulogy at the funeral of Coretta Scott King and, most recently, at the funeral of his former political rival, but later his close, personal friend and diplomatic collaborator, Gerald Ford.[152]
President Jimmy Carter serves as an Honorary Chair for the World Justice Project.[153] The World Justice Project works to lead a global, multidisciplinary effort to strengthen the Rule of Law for the development of communities of opportunity and equity.[154]
Carter serves as Honorary Chair for the Continuity of Government Commission (he was co-chair with Gerald Ford until the latter's death). The Commission recommends improvements to continuity of government measures for the federal government.[citation needed]
Personal views
Although "personally opposed" to abortion, after the landmark US Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade, 410 US 113 (1973), Carter supported legalized abortion.[155] As president, he did not support increased federal funding for abortion services. He was criticized by the American Civil Liberties Union for not doing enough to find alternatives.[156]
In a March 29, 2012 interview with Laura Ingraham, Carter expressed his current view of abortion and his wish to see the Democratic Party becoming more pro-life:
I never have believed that Jesus Christ would approve of abortions and that was one of the problems I had when I was president having to uphold Roe v. Wade and I did everything I could to minimize the need for abortions. I made it easy to adopt children for instance who were unwanted and also initiated the program called Women and Infant Children or WIC program that's still in existence now. But except for the times when a mother's life is in danger or when a pregnancy is caused by rape or incest I would certainly not or never have approved of any abortions. I've signed a public letter calling for the Democratic Party at the next convention to espouse my position on abortion which is to minimize the need, requirement for abortion and limit it only to women whose life [sic?] are in danger or who are pregnant as a result of rape or incest. I think if the Democratic Party would adopt that policy that would be acceptable to a lot of people who are now estranged from our party because of the abortion issue.[157]
Death penalty
Carter is known for his strong opposition to the death penalty, which he expressed during his presidential campaigns, as had George McGovern. Two successive nominees, Walter Mondale and Michael Dukakis, also opposed the death penalty.[158] In his Nobel Prize lecture, Carter urged "prohibition of the death penalty".[159] He has continued to speak out against the death penalty in the US and abroad.[160]
In a letter to the Governor of New Mexico, Bill Richardson, Carter urged the governor to sign a bill to eliminate the death penalty and institute life in prison without parole instead. New Mexico abolished the death penalty in 2009. Carter wrote: "As you know, the United States is one of the few countries, along with nations such as Saudi Arabia, China, and Cuba, which still carry out the death penalty despite the ongoing tragedy of wrongful conviction and gross racial and class-based disparities that make impossible the fair implementation of this ultimate punishment."[161] In 2012, Carter wrote an op-ed in the LA Times supporting passage of a state referendum which would have ended the death penalty. He opened the article: "The process for administering the death penalty in the United States is broken beyond repair, and it is time to choose a more effective and moral alternative. California voters will have the opportunity to do this on election day."[162]
Carter has also called for commutations of death sentences for many death-row inmates, including Brian K. Baldwin (executed in 1999 in Alabama),[163] Kenneth Foster (sentence in Texas commuted in 2007)[164][165] and Troy Anthony Davis (executed in Georgia in 2011).[166]
Equality for women
In October 2000, Carter, a third-generation Southern Baptist, announced that he was severing connections to the Southern Baptist Convention over its opposition to women as pastors. What led Carter to take this action was a doctrinal statement by the Convention, adopted in June 2000, advocating a literal interpretation of the Bible. This statement followed a position of the Convention two years previously advocating the submission of wives to their husbands. Carter described the reason for his decision as due to: "an increasing inclination on the part of Southern Baptist Convention leaders to be more rigid on what is a Southern Baptist and exclusionary of accommodating those who differ from them." The New York Times called Carter's action "the highest-profile defection yet from the Southern Baptist Convention."[167]
In subsequent years, Carter has joined with other world leaders who have spoken out about the subjugation of women by religious and other institutions. On July 15, 2009, Carter wrote an opinion piece about equality for women in which he stated that he chooses equality for women over the dictates of the leadership of what has been a lifetime religious commitment. He said that the view that women are inferior is not confined to one faith, "nor, tragically does its influence stop at the walls of the church, mosque, synagogue or temple." Carter stated:
The truth is that male religious leaders have had—and still have—an option to interpret holy teachings either to exalt or subjugate women. They have, for their own selfish ends, overwhelmingly chosen the latter. Their continuing choice provides the foundation or justification for much of the pervasive persecution and abuse of women throughout the world. This is in clear violation not just of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights but also the teachings of Jesus Christ, the Apostle Paul, Moses and the prophets, Muhammad, and founders of other great religions—all of whom have called for proper and equitable treatment of all the children of God. It is time we had the courage to challenge these views.[168]
In 2014, he published A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power.[169]
Gun control
Carter has publicly expressed support for assault weapons bans and background checks.[170] In May 1994, Carter, along with former presidents Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan, wrote to the U.S. House of Representatives in support of banning "semi-automatic assault guns."[171] In a February 2013 appearance on Piers Morgan Tonight, Carter agreed that if the assault weapons ban did not pass it would be mainly due to the National Rifle Association and its pressure on "weak-kneed" politicians.[172]
Same-sex marriage
Carter has stated that he supports same-sex marriage and that he believes that Jesus would also support it, saying "I believe Jesus would. I don't have any verse in scripture. ... I believe Jesus would approve gay marriage, but that's just my own personal belief. I think Jesus would encourage any love affair if it was honest and sincere and was not damaging to anyone else, and I don't see that gay marriage damages anyone else."[173]
Race in politics
Carter ignited debate in September 2009 when he stated, "I think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man, that he is African-American."[174][175] Obama disagreed with Carter's assessment. On CNN Obama stated, "Are there people out there who don't like me because of race? I'm sure there are ... that's not the overriding issue here."[176]
In a 2008 interview with Amnesty International, Carter criticized the use of torture at Guantanamo Bay, saying that it "contravenes the basic principles on which this nation was founded."[177] He stated that the next President should make the promise that the United States will "never again torture a prisoner."[178]
Personal life
Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, are well known for their work as volunteers with Habitat for Humanity, a Georgia-based philanthropy that helps low-income working people around the world to build and buy their own homes and access clean water.[179]
Carter's hobbies include painting,[180] fly-fishing, woodworking, cycling, tennis, and skiing.[181] He also has an interest in poetry, particularly the works of Dylan Thomas.[182] Carter suggested during a state visit to the UK in 1977 that Thomas should have a memorial in Poets' Corner at Westminster Abbey, an idea which came to fruition in 1982.[182][183][184]
From a young age, Carter showed a deep commitment to Christianity. He teaches Sunday school and is a deacon at the Maranatha Baptist Church in his hometown of Plains.[185][186][186] As president, Carter prayed several times a day, and professed that Jesus Christ was the driving force in his life. Carter had been greatly influenced by a sermon he had heard as a young man. It asked, "If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?"[187] The New York Times noted that Carter had been instrumental in moving evangelical Christianity closer to the American mainstream during and after his presidency.[188]
In 2000, Carter severed his membership with the Southern Baptist Convention, saying the group's doctrines did not align with his Christian beliefs. In April 2006, Carter, former President Bill Clinton, and Mercer University President Bill Underwood initiated the New Baptist Covenant. The broadly inclusive movement seeks to unite Baptists of all races, cultures and convention affiliations. Eighteen Baptist leaders representing more than 20 million Baptists across North America backed the group as an alternative to the Southern Baptist Convention. The group held its first meeting in Atlanta, January 30 through February 1, 2008.[189]
Carter had three younger siblings: sisters Gloria Carter Spann (1926–1990) and Ruth Carter Stapleton (1929–1983), and brother Billy Carter (1937–1988).[190] He was first cousin to politician Hugh Carter and a distant cousin to the Carter family of musicians.[191]
Carter and Rosalynn Smith were married in July 1946. Together, they have three sons, one daughter, eight grandsons, three granddaughters, and two great-grandsons. They celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary in July 2011, making them the second-longest wed Presidential couple after George and Barbara Bush. Their eldest son Jack Carter was the 2006 Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Nevada before losing to the Republican incumbent, John Ensign. Carter's grandson Jason Carter is a former Georgia State Senator[192] and in 2014 was the Democratic candidate for governor of Georgia, losing to the Republican incumbent, Nathan Deal. On December 20, 2015 while teaching a Sunday school class, Carter announced that his 28-year-old grandson Jeremy Carter had died from an unspecified illness.[193]
Cancer diagnosis
On August 3, 2015, Carter underwent elective surgery to remove "a small mass" on his liver, and his prognosis for a full recovery was initially said to be "excellent". On August 12, however, Carter announced he had been diagnosed with cancer that had metastasized, without specifying where the cancer had originated.[194] On August 20, he disclosed that melanoma had been found in his brain and liver, and that he had begun treatment with the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab and was about to start radiation therapy. His healthcare is being managed by Emory Healthcare of Atlanta. The former President has an extensive family history of cancer, including both of his parents and all three of his siblings.[195] On December 6, 2015 Carter said in a statement that his cancer was gone.[2]
Funeral and burial plans
Carter has planned to be buried in front of his home in Plains, Georgia. Carter noted in 2006 that a funeral in Washington, D.C. with visitation at the Carter Center was planned as well.[196]
Public image and legacy
Public opinion
In the wake of Nixon's Watergate Scandal, exit polls from the 1976 Presidential election suggested that many still held Gerald Ford's pardon of Nixon against him.[197] By comparison Carter was a sincere, honest, and well-meaning Southerner.[198] Carter began his term with a 66 percent approval rating[199] which had dropped to 34 percent approval by the time he left office, with 55 percent disapproving.[200]
In the 1980 campaign, former California Governor Ronald Reagan projected an easy self-confidence, in contrast to Carter's serious and introspective temperament. What many people believed to be Carter's personal attention to detail, his pessimistic attitude, his seeming indecisiveness and weakness with people were accentuated in contrast to what many people believed, Reagan's charismatic charm and delegation of tasks to subordinates.[201][202] Reagan used the economic problems, Iran hostage crisis, and lack of Washington cooperation to portray Carter as a weak and ineffectual leader. Like his immediate predecessor, Gerald Ford, Carter did not serve a second term as president. Among those who were elected as president, Carter was the first since Hoover in 1932 to lose a reelection bid.[203]
Carter's post-Presidency activities have been favorably received. The Independent wrote, "Carter is widely considered a better man than he was a president."[198] His presidential approval rating, at 31 percent just prior to the 1980 election, was polled in early 2009 at 64 percent.[204]
Carter's presidency was initially viewed by some as a failure.[205][206][207] In historical rankings of US presidents, the Carter presidency has ranged from No. 19 to No. 34. Although his presidency received mixed reception, his peace keeping and humanitarian efforts since he left office have made Carter renowned as one of the most successful ex-Presidents in American history.[208][209]
The documentary Back Door Channels: The Price of Peace (2009) credits Carter's efforts at Camp David, which brought peace between Israel and Egypt, with bringing the only meaningful peace to the Middle East. The film opened the 2009 Monte-Carlo Television Festival in an invitation-only royal screening[210] on June 7, 2009 at the Grimaldi Forum in the presence of Albert II, Prince of Monaco.[211]
Honors and awards
Carter has received numerous awards and accolades since his presidency, and several institutions and locations have been named in his honor. His presidential library, Jimmy Carter Library and Museum was opened in 1986.[212] In 1998, the US Navy named the third and last Seawolf-class submarine honoring former President Carter and his service as a submariner officer. It became one of the few US Navy vessels to be named for a person living at the time of naming.[213] That year he also received the United Nations Human Rights Prize, given in honor of human rights achievements,[214] and the Hoover Medal, recognizing engineers who have contributed to global causes.[215] He won the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize,[216] which was partially a response to President George W. Bush's threats of war against Iraq and Carter's criticism of the Bush administration.[217] Six of Carter's audiobook recordings have been nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album; his book Our Endangered Values won the award in 2007.[218][219] The Souther Field Airport in Americus was renamed Jimmy Carter Regional Airport in 2009.[220]
See also
- Electoral history of Jimmy Carter
- History of the United States (1964–1980)
- History of the United States (1980–1988)
- List of peace activists
- Jimmy Carter rabbit incident
- "Mush From the Wimp" incident
- Raymond Lee Harvey, assassination conspirator
- List of Presidents of the United States
- List of Presidents of the United States, sortable by previous experience
- ^ Carter was the first U.S. president to be born in a hospital.[4]
- ^ With Carter out of the race, Maddox narrowly won the runoff ballot over Arnall, clinching the Democratic nomination. In the general election, Callaway won a plurality of the vote but came short of the 50 percent majority. The election was thus decided by the Georgia House of Representatives with its Democratic majority; they settled on Maddox.[26]
- ^ Warner, Greg. "Jimmy Carter says he can 'no longer be associated' with the SBC". Baptist Standard. Retrieved December 13, 2009.
He said he will remain a deacon and Sunday school teacher at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains and support the church's recent decision to send half of its missions contributions to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.
- ^ a b "Jimmy Carter says his cancer is gone". BBC News. BBC News. December 6, 2015.
- ^ "Jimmy Carter Says He No Longer Needs Cancer Drug Treatment". ABC News. ABC News. March 7, 2016.
- ^ a b c Bourne, pp. 11–32.
- ^ a b Bourne, pp. 33–43.
- ^ Bourne, pp. 44–55.
- ^ Annual Register of the United States Naval Academy (v. 1946–1947), p. 33
- ^ a b Zelizer, pp. 11–12.
- ^ Bourne, pp. 72–77.
- ^ Frank, Northen Magill (1995). Great Events from History II: 1945–1966. p. 554. ISBN 978-0-89356-753-8.
- ^ Martel, Peter (2008). Memoirs of a Hayseed Physicist. p. 64. ISBN 978-1-60693-341-1.
- ^ Milnes, Arthur (January 28, 2009). "When Jimmy Carter faced radioactivity head-on". The Ottawa Citizen.
- ^ Bourne, pp. 77–81.
- ^ Hayward, p. 23.
- ^ Eckstein, Megan (March 9, 2015). "From Ensign to Commander-in-Chief: A Look at the Presidents Who Served in the U.S. Navy Reserve". USNI News. Annapolis, MD: United States Navy Institute.
- ^ Ocean Science News. Washington, DC: Nautilus Press. 1976. p. 109.
The Naval Record of James Earl Carter, Jr.: Medals and awards: American Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal, China Service Medal, and Natl. Defense Service Medal
- ^ Bourne, pp. 83–91.
- ^ Morris, p. 115.
- ^ Bourne, pp. 92–108.
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- ^ a b Bourne, pp. 153–165.
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- ^ a b c Bourne, pp. 180–199.
- ^ a b Hayward, pp. 46–51.
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- ^ Bourne, pp. 201–202.
- ^ a b Bourne, pp. 204–212.
- ^ Hayward, pp. 55–56.
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- ^ Freeman, Roger A. (1982). The Wayward Welfare State. Hoover Press. p. 5. ISBN 978-0-8179-7493-0.
- ^ a b Bourne, pp. 212–213.
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Further reading
- Allen, Gary (1976). Jimmy Carter, Jimmy Carter. '76 Press. ISBN 978-0-89245-006-0.
- Annual register of the United States Naval Academy. 1946–1947. Annapolis, Maryland: United States Naval Academy. June 6, 1946.
- Berggren, D. Jason; Rae, Nicol C. (2006). "Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush: Faith, Foreign Policy, and an Evangelical Presidential Style". Presidential Studies Quarterly. 36 (4): 606–632. doi:10.1111/j.1741-5705.2006.02570.x. ISSN 0360-4918. (subscription required (help)).
- Bourne, Peter G. (1997). Jimmy Carter: A Comprehensive Biography From Plains to Post-Presidency. New York: Scribner. ISBN 0-684-19543-7.
- Busch, Andrew E. (2005). Reagan's Victory: The Presidential Election of 1980 and the Rise of the Right. University Press of Kansas.
- Clymer, Kenton (2003). "Jimmy Carter, Human Rights, and Cambodia". Diplomatic History. 27 (2): 245–278. doi:10.1111/1467-7709.00349. ISSN 0145-2096. (subscription required (help)).
- Dumbrell, John (1995). The Carter Presidency: A Re-evaluation (2nd ed.). Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press. ISBN 0-7190-4693-9.
- Fink, Gary M.; Graham, Hugh Davis, eds. (1998). The Carter Presidency: Policy Choices in the Post-New Deal Era. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas. ISBN 0-7006-0895-8.
- Flint, Andrew R.; Porter, Joy (March 2005). "Jimmy Carter: The re-emergence of faith-based politics and the abortion rights issue". Presidential Studies Quarterly. 35 (1): 28–51. doi:10.1111/j.1741-5705.2004.00234.x.
- Freedman, Robert (2005). "The Religious Right and the Carter Administration". The Historical Journal. Cambridge University Press. 48 (1): 231–260. doi:10.1017/S0018246X04004285. ISSN 0018-246X. (subscription required (help)).
- Gillon, Steven M. (1992). The Democrats' Dilemma: Walter F. Mondale and the Liberal Legacy. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-07630-4.
- Glad, Betty (1980). Jimmy Carter: In Search of the Great White House. New York: W. W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-07527-3.
- Godbold, Jr., E. Stanly (2010). Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter: The Georgia Years, 1924–1974. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-977962-8.
- Hahn, Dan F. (1992). "The rhetoric of Jimmy Carter, 1976–1980". In Windt, Theodore; Ingold, Beth. Essays in Presidential Rhetoric (3rd ed.). Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt. pp. 331–365. ISBN 0-8403-7568-9.
- Hargrove, Erwin C. (1988). Jimmy Carter as President: Leadership and the Politics of the Public Good. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press. ISBN 0-8071-1499-5.
- Harris, David (2004). The Crisis: the President, the Prophet, and the Shah – 1979 and the Coming of Militant Islam. Little, Brown. ISBN 978-0-316-32394-9.
- Jones, Charles O. (1988). The Trusteeship Presidency: Jimmy Carter and the United States Congress. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press. ISBN 0-8071-1426-X.
- Jorden, William J. (1984). Panama Odyssey. Austin: University of Texas Press. ISBN 0-292-76469-3.
- Kaufman, Burton I. (1993). The Presidency of James Earl Carter, Jr. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas. ISBN 0-7006-0572-X.
- Keys, Barbara J. (2014). Reclaiming American Virtue: The Human Rights Revolution of the 1970s. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-72603-1.
- Kucharsky, David (1976). The Man From Plains: The Mind and Spirit of Jimmy Carter. New York: Harper & Row. ISBN 0-06-064891-0.
- Mattson, Kevin (2010). 'What the Heck Are You Up To, Mr. President?'. a foreword by Hendrik Hertzberg. Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-1-60819-206-9.
- Morgan, Iwan (2004). "Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and the New Democratic Economics". The Historical Journal. Cambridge University Press. 47 (4): 1015–1039. doi:10.1017/S0018246X0400408X. ISSN 0018-246X. (subscription required (help)).
- Morris, Kenneth Earl (1996). Jimmy Carter, American Moralist. University of Georgia Press.
- Ribuffo, Leo P. (1989). "God and Jimmy Carter". In M. L. Bradbury and James B. Gilbert. Transforming Faith: The Sacred and Secular in Modern American History. New York: Greenwood Press. pp. 141–159. ISBN 0-313-25707-8.
- Ribuffo, Leo P. (1997). "'Malaise' revisited: Jimmy Carter and the crisis of confidence". In John Patrick Diggins (ed.). The Liberal Persuasion: Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. and the Challenge of the American Past. Princeton: Princeton University Press. pp. 164–185. ISBN 0-691-04829-0.
- Rosenbaum, Herbert D.; Ugrinsky, Alexej, eds. (1994). The Presidency and Domestic Policies of Jimmy Carter. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press. pp. 83–116. ISBN 0-313-28845-3.
- Schram, Martin (1977). Running for President, 1976: The Carter Campaign. New York: Stein and Day. ISBN 0-8128-2245-5.
- Schmitz, David F.; Walker, Vanessa (2004). "Jimmy Carter and the Foreign Policy of Human Rights: the Development of a Post-cold War Foreign Policy". Diplomatic History. 28 (1): 113–143. doi:10.1111/j.1467-7709.2004.00400.x. ISSN 0145-2096. (subscription required (help)).
- Strong, Robert A. (Fall 1986). "Recapturing leadership: The Carter administration and the crisis of confidence". Presidential Studies Quarterly. 16 (3): 636–650.
- Strong, Robert A. (2000). Working in the World: Jimmy Carter and the Making of American Foreign Policy. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press. ISBN 0-8071-2445-1.
- "Topics; Thermostatic Legacy". The New York Times. January 1, 1981. Section 1, Page 18, Column 1.
- Vogel, Steve (May 4, 2000). "Remembering Failed Iranian Mission". Washington Post – via ArlingtonNationalCemetary.net.
- White, Theodore H. (1982). America in Search of Itself: The Making of the President, 1956–1980. New York: Harper & Row. ISBN 0-06-039007-7.
- Witcover, Jules (1977). Marathon: The Pursuit of the Presidency, 1972–1976. New York: Viking Press. ISBN 0-670-45461-3.
Primary sources
- Califano, Joseph A., Jr. (2007) [1981]. Governing America: An insider's report from the White House and the Cabinet. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4165-5211-6.
- Jordan, Hamilton (1982). Crisis: The Last Year of the Carter Presidency. Putnam. ISBN 978-0-399-12738-0.
- Lance, Bert (1991). The Truth of the Matter: My Life in and out of Politics. Summit. ISBN 978-0-671-69027-4.
External links
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Jimmy Carter
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- White House biography
- Jimmy Carter Presidential Library & Museum
- Jimmy Carter National Historic Site
Books and movies
- Works by Jimmy Carter at Project Gutenberg
- Works by or about Jimmy Carter at Internet Archive
- Works by Jimmy Carter at Open Library
Interviews, speeches and statements
- Full audio of a number of Carter speeches at the Miller Center of Public Affairs
- Oral History Interview with Jimmy Carter (1974) at the Southern Oral History Program
- Carter Nobel lecture, Oslo, Norway (December 10, 2002)
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- "Life Portrait of Jimmy Carter", from C-SPAN's American Presidents: Life Portraits, December 3, 1999
- Jimmy Carter at TED
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