Reflections on Jimmy Carter

I was so saddened to learn this afternoon that Jimmy Carter is suffering from cancer.  The news came as quite a shock to me when Pam told me what she had seen on TV while on the phone with Linda.

Granted that, other than the Camp David peace accords, his presidency was one of the least productive and effective of any previous president.  However, he was and is an enduring man of peace. Not a single shot was fired in an aggressive act, other than during the failed hostage rescue attempt in Iran in 1980.  That was a situation he had been forced into because of his humane act of allowing the Shah to seek medical treatment for his cancer in the United States.

I first became aware of  Carter when he became governor of Georgia. He was such a breath of fresh air on the heels of world-class bigot, Lester Maddox.  Carter's quiet demeanor and even handedness were hallmarks of his administration.  When I learned he was seeking the Democratic nomination for President, I was quite excited about the prospect of a Washington outsider coming in and making things right after Nixon and his handpicked successor, Gerald Ford.  Don't get me wrong.  I think Ford did an admirable job, given the task he was handed and one of my favorite quotes was his speech from the Oval Office the evening he took office, "Our long national nightmare is over..."

But, with the election of Carter, I was very optimistic about the future.  Unfortunately, since he had no grasp of Washington politics, it soon became apparent he might be in over his head.  His head of the Office of Management and Budget, Bert Lance, had some skeletons in his closet that were exposed and it didn't take very long for him to head back to Georgia.  A lot of people in Washington were not enamored at all with Carter's casual approach nor of the wearing of casual clothes in the Oval Office.  His brother, Billy, didn't make things easier for him either.

However, his biggest triumph in Washington (perhaps his biggest ever) was the bringing together of Israel and Egypt into a peace agreement after close to two weeks in seclusion at Camp David with Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat.  His greatest mistake, other than failing to grasp the meaning of Washington politics and that such is the name of the game, was his humanitarian allowing the Shah of Iran to come to New York for treatment of the cancer that ultimately took his life.  Of course, this led to the Iranian Revolution with it's capturing of the U.S. Embassy and the holding of American hostages for 444 days.  His intentions were good, but he was obviously in over his head.

Even though he was defeated in a bid for a second term by Ronald Reagan, he did not sulk into privacy and hide from the world (much like one George W. Bush has done), but he went to work in an effort to make the world a much better place for all.  He became involved in and is the face of Habitat for Humanity, an organization founded by a longtime friend of his.  He founded the Carter Center, an organization that fosters hope, wages peace and fights diseases.  For this and for his peace work between Israel and Egypt, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.

His dedication to his principles, to his church, and to his God have endeared him to many throughout the world--including this admirer.  To many he was a buffoon who did not deserve to be President. While I must admit his four years in office were not the greatest, there can be no doubt that he is the greatest ex-President we have ever had or probably ever will have.

May he forever rest in peace when his time comes.  He has certainly earned it.