What makes an effective leader during times of crisis?
Through this inquiry, we will examine the successes and failures of Jimmy Carter's presidency to assess the efficacy of his term in office.
How was President Carter's approach to the presidency different from previous presidents?
In what ways did he stand out as an "outsider" in Washington D.C.?
In what ways did he stand out as an "outsider" in Washington D.C.?
Source #1:
James Earl “Jimmy” Carter, former governor of Georgia, won the presidency in 1976 with the slogan: “For America’s third century, why not her best?” Carter offered a change, not only from the policies of Gerald R. Ford, his opponent, but also from the failures of previous Democratic and Republican administrations. He was narrowly elected in November, and promised a weary and divided nation a new beginning both at home and abroad. As governor, Carter had broken with the South’s racist past; as president he promised to free the United States from the burdens of imperialist wars.
After delivering his inaugural address, Carter and his family walked from the Capitol to the White House, the first of many attempts by Carter to open up the presidency, a contrast to the fortress that had surrounded presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard M. Nixon. He offered a simplicity and openness that would prevent catastrophes such as Watergate or the Vietnam War from further weakening the nation, invoking the Book of Micah’s call for a quiet strength and simple dignity. Carter used simplicity and openness as a way of achieving the highest possible national goals. However, Carter, like Ford, was a victim of a domestic economy neither could master. The huge debts incurred in fighting the Vietnam War and increases in the cost of petroleum had driven up the rate of inflation; at the same time, these and other economic factors triggered relatively high unemployment. These domestic factors might have undone any administration, but Carter also was victim to some international events he could not control. The Soviet Union, perceiving Carter’s weakness, invaded Afghanistan and increased Soviet support to leftists in countries including Nicaragua, Ethiopia, and Angola. In Iran the revolution against Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlevi turned into a revolution against the United States, and in 1979 Iranian students seized the American embassy in Tehran, holding fifty-two embassy employees hostage. Carter’s administration was not able to release them. In November 1980 the American people rather decisively voiced their judgment of Carter’s failure by replacing him with Ronald W. Reagan. What had gone wrong? In one essay, Jürgen Scheunemann of Yale University delivers a verdict on Carter’s foreign policy as one of failure, from its misguided inception to its ignominious end. In the second essay, though, Itai Sneh of Columbia University argues that Jimmy Carter had some notable international successes: in negotiating arms reductions and in the Middle East. Carter brought together President Anwar Sadat of Egypt and Prime Minister Menachim Begin of Israel, a remarkable achievement that earned both Sadat and Begin the Nobel Peace Prize. Perhaps Carter should have shared in this honor, but it was characteristic of him to allow others to take credit. Since his forced retirement Carter has emerged as an international spokesman for human rights, overseeing elections in Haiti and other nations that have begun the process of moving from dictatorship to democracy. The American electorate judged Carter harshly; history may take a different view. “Carter: Was Jimmy Carter a Successful President in the Realm of Foreign Policy?" In History in Dispute, edited by Robert J. Allison, 11-18. Vol. 2, American Social and Political Movements, 1945-2000: Pursuit of Liberty. Detroit: St. James Press, 2000. U.S. History in Context (accessed June 6, 2017). http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/CX2876200010/UHIC?u=mari93714&xid=431b0a84. |
Source #2:
“Who’s in Charge Here?” 1979. Graphite, porous point pen, ink, opaque white, and overlays over blue pencil underdrawing. Published in the Washington Post, July 18, 1979. Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress.
Source #3:
[Carter’s] conduct helped mend the breach of public trust caused by the corruption evident in the Watergate scandal, the Vietnam War, and revelations of a pattern of illicit operations by the Central Intelligence Agency abroad, as well as social turmoil caused by the Civil Rights movement, which fought segregation in the South and which included widespread racial riots. The 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy marked the beginning of an era largely characterized by a lack of credible, visionary leadership from the White House and by widespread cynicism and an almost collective disillusionment with the sense of American grandeur that had been evident since the 1945 victory in World War II. Despite his reelection defeat by Ronald W. Reagan in 1980, Carter’s principled, normative approach to the conduct of the U.S. government at home and abroad restored much legitimacy to the presidency and confidence in politicians as servants of the people. His legacy for his successors, for Americans, and particularly for how people view American foreign policy, have been formidable.
Carter’s gradual emergence from obscurity as a peanut farmer and occasional preacher in his church to becoming a national leader and international pacesetter began in his 1970 election as the governor of Georgia. He witnessed and supported the activities of the Civil Rights movement during the 1960s, when it was led by African Americans such as the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. His campaign brought many white and black groups together. Indeed, in his 1971 inaugural address, Carter took a bold step, establishing a pattern for his actions. He tried to right moral wrongs by taking public stands, even ones that were not popular among the general population. Carter apologized to African Americans for the abuses and degradation they endured during their prolonged ordeal of slavery and segregation. He did so despite the antagonism that his statements created among segregationists in his own constituency, the Democratic Party. His administration, moreover, fought to eradicate any remnants of discrimination… Carter took the unusual step of having two speeches upon accession to the presidency in January, 1977: one to Americans, another to the rest of humanity. In his inaugural address to the people of the world, Carter promised to address the needs of non-Americans. He repeated and acted upon his beliefs during his presidency, a time when regular vigilance with respect to abuses of human rights all over the world was evident. His strategy, especially in Latin America, took the form of outreach to people rather than collaboration with their oppressive leaders or outright interventions in their internal affairs… Carter’s most impressive achievement was probably his personal negotiation of the September 1978 Camp David Agreements that facilitated the March 1979 Peace Treaty between Egypt and Israel. Only thanks to Carter’s tenacity and personal involvement did these two archenemies reach a deal, such highly problematic issues as the Israeli settlements in the Sinai Peninsula and whether the Palestinians had a right to self-determination notwithstanding. Even the subsequent Reagan and Bush administrations, while repudiating Carter’s policies, did not move far away from his positions. —ITAI SNEH, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY “Carter: Was Jimmy Carter a Successful President in the Realm of Foreign Policy?" In History in Dispute, edited by Robert J. Allison, 11-18. Vol. 2, American Social and Political Movements, 1945-2000: Pursuit of Liberty. Detroit: St. James Press, 2000. U.S. History in Context (accessed June 6, 2017). http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/CX2876200010/UHIC?u=mari93714&xid=431b0a84. |
How did the energy crisis impact public perception of Carter's administration,
and what did Carter believe was the solution to America's most pressing problems?
and what did Carter believe was the solution to America's most pressing problems?