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Jimmy Carter
Historical figureUnited States1924-2024

Jimmy Carter

39th President of the United States (1977-1981) · 76th Governor of Georgia

One-term Democratic president, 1977-1981, who stressed human rights abroad, helped Egypt and Israel make peace and loosened rules on transport. He later spent decades on humanitarian causes.

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Profile on 12 axesAll 12 documented
ECONOMYSTATESOCIETYWORLDOwnershipMarketsWelfareAuthoritySecurityStructureMoralityReligionTechnologyCultureTradeForeign
Where they stood

Jimmy Carter, axis by axis

  1. 01Ownership+5
    PublicPrivate
  2. 02Markets+10
    PlannedFree

    He freed up airlines, trucking and railroads but widened federal energy regulation, which puts him near the centre.

  3. 03Welfare-20
    SharedSelf-reliant
  4. 04Authority-50
    DemocraticStrong leader
  5. 05Security0
    LibertyOrder
  6. 06Structure+15
    LocalCentral
  7. 07Morality+15
    ProgressiveTraditional

    Devout and traditional at home, he nonetheless promised in 1980 to protect abortion rights. The score is mixed.

  8. 08Religion+5
    SecularReligious

    Taught Sunday school and served as a Baptist deacon, but kept a firm wall between faith and government policy.

  9. 09Technology+5
    EmbraceCaution

    The record is mixed. He had worked in the nuclear navy, yet he also promoted saving energy and studies of solar, wind and synthetic fuel.

  10. 10Culture-30
    MulticulturalNational identity
  11. 11Trade-35
    GlobalProtected
  12. 12Foreign policy-35
    CooperationStrength

    Human rights and talks came first for him, though he toughened up once the Soviets invaded Afghanistan, adding a grain embargo and an Olympic boycott.

Who was Jimmy Carter?

Jimmy Carter grew up in Plains, Georgia. He served as a naval officer in the nuclear submarine programme, farmed peanuts and taught Sunday school as a Baptist deacon. He sat in the state senate and then became governor of Georgia. After Watergate he ran as an outsider and won the White House in 1976. His years in office brought high inflation, fuel shortages and the Iran hostage crisis, and he lost to Ronald Reagan in 1980. Later he ran the Carter Center, which worked on elections, disease and the settling of conflicts. The Nobel Peace Prize came to him in 2002. He died in 2024, aged 100.

Political views

  • Freed up the airline, trucking and rail industries, which in time cut the cost of moving goods and people.Source: millercenter.org
  • Founded the Department of Energy and funded work on wind, solar and similar sources.Source: millercenter.org
  • Early on, he pardoned those who dodged the Vietnam draft and cancelled the B-1 bomber.Source: millercenter.org
  • Put universal human rights at the heart of American foreign policy and preferred to use force sparingly.Source: millercenter.org
  • Brought Egypt and Israel together at Camp David and signed treaties handing the Panama Canal to Panama.Source: millercenter.org
  • Opened full diplomatic ties with Communist China, and agreed the SALT II arms limits with Moscow.Source: millercenter.org
  • Answered the Soviets' 1979 move into Afghanistan by halting grain exports and staying away from the 1980 Moscow Games.Source: millercenter.org

Legacy

Admirers point to the Egypt-Israel peace, the human rights focus in foreign policy, early backing for clean energy, looser transport rules and a post-presidency so busy that it earned a Nobel. Critics, among them many conservatives and some fellow Democrats, say his years were weak on inflation, fuel shortages and dealing with Congress. They say the hostage crisis and Afghanistan showed foreign policy that lacked force. Some historians have since judged him more kindly, noting how long the effects of deregulation and his human rights agenda have lasted.

In their own words

“It is a crisis of confidence. It is a crisis that strikes at the very heart and soul and spirit of our national will.”
Address to the Nation on Energy and National Goals ('Crisis of Confidence' speech), 1979

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Jimmy Carter: questions

Was Jimmy Carter a liberal?

Most describe him as a moderate Democrat. He mixed careful budgets and deregulation with a commitment to civil rights, human rights and the environment.

What did Jimmy Carter achieve as president?

The best known are the 1978 Camp David agreements between Egypt and Israel, the Panama Canal treaties, and freeing airlines, trucks and railroads from tight rules.

Why did Jimmy Carter lose in 1980?

Voters were angry about inflation, fuel costs and the Iran hostage crisis. Ronald Reagan won the election by a wide margin.

Sources