President Carter s Cabinet: 1979

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1 President Carter s Cabinet: 1979 SILTMUN III Chair: John Paul Simon Political Officer: John Harlow Vice Chair: Eric Benson Lyons Township High School La Grange, Illinois 1

2 Welcome Delegates, Welcome to SILTMUN III, the third annual Saint Ignatius Lyons Township Model United Nations conference. My name is John Paul Simon, and I will be the chair of your committee, the Carter Cabinet of I attend Saint Ignatius College Prep and am currently in my junior year. I have participated in Model UN all three years I have been at the school. I am very excited to watch all of you participate in the no-doubt fruitful and efficient debate that will ensue in this committee. Many of you have probably participated in Model UN prior to this committee, though if you have not, you are certainly still welcome. However, I would be greatly surprised if the majority of you had already participated in a cabinet-style committee. The Carter Cabinet is a Joint-Crisis Cabinet, operating alongside the Iranian Cabinet. As such, you all should expect a great number of crises and will need to be able to react quickly as the situation changes. It will be very exciting, I promise. Each cabinet position is a real historical figure from the Carter Administration, and they were all involved in the topics we will be discussing. As delegates, you need to find their positions on not only the topics, but also their general attitudes, especially those toward the Middle East. It will be essential that you know enough to deal with simulations in a historically accurate manner. This will require some creativity and critical thinking, but mostly a lot of research. Further, each position will have certain powers associated with it within the cabinet. It will be highly beneficial for you to be aware of your position s abilities. As this is a training conference, I will strive to ensure that debate is accessible to all the novice delegates in the room. As always, I will be available for anyone that has questions. I hope that each of you will use this committee as an opportunity to sharpen your MUN skills and develop your knowledge about global politics. But more important than either of those, I hope that each of you comes into committee looking to win, because that will give rise to the best debate possible. Most important of all, I am relying on you delegates to beat the Iranian cabinet. Welcome to the SILTMUN III. It s going to be a blast. Chair of the Carter Cabinet, John Paul Simon 14 John.Simon@students.ignatius.org 2

3 Topic 2: Domestic Energy Instability After World War II, the United States was the largest producer of oil in the world. However, as the economies of the world developed in the postwar period, oil production increased across the globe. As the US economy grew, it began to rely more heavily on importation of foreign oil to fuel its domestic economy. That trend was epitomized in 1973, when OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) was formed and issued its oil embargo. This dramatically reduced supply for the world and led to the first energy crisis of the decade. Since then, the American economy has had to re-orient itself toward dealing with global markets, especially in the energy sector. One nation the United States turned to for oil was Iran. Iran, under Shah Pahlavi, was producing nearly six hundred thousand barrels of oil per day prior to the Islamic Revolution. Further, Shah Pahlavi was friendly toward the United States and encouraged trade between the two countries. However, in November 1978, workers at Iranian oil operations went on strike to protest the leadership of the Shah in one of the turning points of the Islamic Revolution. This reduced oil production from six hundred thousand barrels per day to around one hundred and fifty thousand barrels per day. This dramatically reduced the oil available to the world markets. This began a chain-reaction, which ended in the elevation of oil prices to record highs in the United States. First, other oil-producing nations around the world, especially OPEC nations, produced more oil to meet the demand of the United States at greater cost. This cost increase caused a price spike in the oil market which oil 6

4 speculators took advantage of to turn a profit, also driving prices higher. This then had the effect of causing great alarm in the American general public. This alarm resulted in the gas lines that are emblematic of this crisis, as millions of Americans struggled to get the gas they needed before it ran out, as they feared it would. The Department of Energy, during this time, took several measures to preserve oil supplies, especially for the winter heating season when the demand for energy to heat homes would grow considerably. These measures also contributed to fears of gasoline shortages and rationing. In response to this crisis, on July 15, 1979, President Carter delivered the Crisis of Confidence speech. In this speech, President Carter identified the core of the problem as a flaw of the American people s character. He said In a nation that was proud of hard work, strong families, close-knit communities, and our faith in God, too many of us now tend to worship self-indulgence and consumption. Human identity is no longer defined by what one does, but by what one owns. He asked the American people to shift their lifestyles away from consumption, which threatened the energy security of the nation, and to consume more moderately. The speech merited mixed reactions, as many spoke out against the speech quite aggressively. However, President Carter s approval ratings rose sharply, reflecting a divided national opinion. Bloc Positions: Please note, these are general positions, and you still have to research your individual positions to a much greater degree of specificity than that provided here. White House: The White House stands by the comments of President Carter. To the Carter administration, the key to overcoming this crisis is to focus on domestic oil consumption. State Department: The State Department has worked over the past years to ensure the security of US oil interests overseas. It feels that Iran must stabilize politically before any steps can be taken to resume trade. Until then, international focus may need to shift to developing relationships with OPEC nations. Pentagon: The Pentagon feels that the instability in Iran could pose a threat to US allies and interests in the region, and advises vigilance with regard to the situation. It also emphasizes the need of the military to be provided sufficient fuel at all times. Questions to Consider: Should the government intervene to reduce oil prices? If so, how? What courses of action should the government pursue to address the concerns held by many about the availability of oil? 7

5 What courses of action should the government pursue to address the shortages in the supply of oil? What role should domestic production play in countering this crisis? International production? What role will Iran play in the energy economy as the Islamic Revolution subsides? How can the United States protect its strategic interests in the region after the Islamic Revolution? How should the Iranian hostage crisis affect the government s energy interests in Iran? 8

netw rks Reading Essentials and Study Guide Politics and Economics, Lesson 3 Ford and Carter

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