Jimmy Carter Thirty-Ninth President 1977-1981
Thirty-Ninth President 1977-1981 http://www.americanhistory.abc-clio.com Jimmy Carter aspired to make Government "competent and compassionate," responsive to the American people and their expectations. His achievements were notable, but in an era of *rising energy costs, mounting *inflation, and continuing *world tensions, it was impossible for his administration to meet these high expectations.
Carter came from an unusual Southern political culture. While most deep south Democratic politicians were "good ole boys," happy to participate in corrupt county courthouse rings good at backslapping and deal making, Carter came from the Wilsonian southern tradition, which was far different.
Wilsonian Style of Government Woodrow Wilson s foreign policy was based on supporting the growth of just governments using the rule of law. For example, when asked what he was going to do to stabilize matters in Latin America, Wilson said "I am going to teach the South American republics to elect good men" Wilson s beliefs showed signs of influence from the philosophy of Immanuel Kant. Kant s 1795 essay Perpetual Peace, stated that democracies are less likely to be warlike in comparison to monarchies and dictatorships. This is because people governed by a democracy are citizens who participate in the governing process.
Carter s Thoughts on Political Leaders: He was a reformer and progressive, who put his faith in science and technology to advance the human condition, even as he retained his moral values from his deep religious faith. He thought political leadership should function for the common good, not to please a set of organized constituencies. Carter intended to act with honesty and candor, leading people by setting an example, and by asking them to reach a higher moral plane. He promised he would never lie to the American people.
Each New President Takes on the Problems of their Predecessor Carter was confronted with almost the same challenges as Ford but they had escalated due to the energy crisis: Inflation Struggling to revive a depressed economy Solving chronic energy shortages Continuing to ensure world peace
The inflation rate climbed higher each year Carter was in office, rising from 6 percent in 1976 to more than 12 percent by 1980. Both business leaders and the public at large blamed Carter for the nation's economic woes, charging that the president lacked a coherent strategy for taming inflation without causing a painful increase in unemployment.
The Inflation Rate Also Climbed because of OPEC Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries OPEC is a permanent, intergovernmental oil organization, created at the Baghdad Conference on September 10 14, 1960, by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.
The 1973 Oil Crisis In October of 1973 Middle-Eastern OPEC nations stopped exports to the US and other western nations which greatly contributed to the energy crisis. The faltering economy was due in part to the energy crisis that had originated as a result of overdependence on foreign oil.
The 1973 Oil Crisis In 1977 the president proposed an energy program that included an oil tax, conservation, and the use of alternative sources of energy. The House supported the program but the Senate squashed it.
Carter s Accomplishments Established a national energy policy He sought to improve the environment. His expansion of the national park system included protection of 103 million acres of Alaskan lands. 1980 The biggest national conservation campaign in history, was the Alaska Coalition
Carter s Accomplishments In 1977 he obtained two treaties between the United States and Panama that gave the latter control over the Panama Canal at the end of 1999 and guaranteed the neutrality of that waterway thereafter.
Carter s Accomplishments On January 1, 1979, Carter established full diplomatic relations between the United States and China. Also in 1979, in Vienna, Carter and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev signed a NEW bilateral strategic arms limitation treaty (SALT II) intended to establish parity in strategic nuclear weapons delivery systems between the two superpowers on terms that could be adequately verified.
Carter's Greatest Legacy In 1978 Carter brought together Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin at the presidential retreat in Camp David, Maryland, and secured their agreement to the Camp David Accords, which ended the state of war that had existed between the two countries since Israel's founding in 1948. A good example of this conflict is the Yom Kippur War.
Carter's Greatest Legacy His unprecedented efforts brought Arabs and Jews together, establishing a framework for peace. The president accomplish this in just thirteen days! The difficult negotiations which lasted 13 days and were salvaged only by Carter's tenacious intervention provided for the establishment of full diplomatic and economic relations on condition that Israel return the occupied Sinai Peninsula to Egypt.
U.S. President Jimmy Carter (center), Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin (left), and Egyptian President Anwar el-sadat (right) clasping hands on the White House lawn after the signing of the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, March 26, 1979.
After the Presidency Jimmy Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his "decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solution to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development."
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