The Passing of Jimmy Carter

[imref]

Former President Jimmy Carter, 100.

[wj73]

Former President Jimmy Carter, 100.

RIP, #39. Every Habitat for Humanity house is a monument to him.

[imref]

Here’s a fascinating story about how he helped avert a nuclear disaster in the early 1950s at great personal risk:

https://www.cbc.ca/1.6293574

[sixthree175]

Former President Jimmy Carter, 100.

He was a great human being.  Having said that, he's been in hospice for 22 months -- it's about time.

[JCA-CrystalCity]

Setting this up in its own thread. With a state funeral planned, I expect posts in this thread will span the New Year. We've also broken out major passings before.

[Natsinpwc]

Quite the life he had.  RIP Jimmy.

[imref]

He was a great human being.  Having said that, he's been in hospice for 22 months -- it's about time.

And probably built a dozen houses in that time.

[JCA-CrystalCity]

I'm one of those who says more seriously than joking that he was a better ex-President than President. That said, it's gotten lost just how big Camp David and the Egyptian-Israeli peace was. Israel really hasn't faced a conventional military threat since that deal.

As skilled as he was in international relations, how would the relationship with Iran have been different had he not admitted the Shah for cancer treatment? How would history have changed had the hostage rescue worked? Would the sugar-high have lasted from April to November?

He's much more significant economically, for better or worse, than is usually acknowledged. I have not seen much commentary about appointing Paul Volcker and not undercutting him as he raised interest rates. If you think price increases have been bad since 2020, 9% would have been a good  year back in the late '70s. What I have seen mentioned is his initiating deregulation. Again, for better or worse. Flying became much more accessible due to deregulation without compromising safety. Deregulating transportation more generally also was net stimulative, but when later coupled with Reagan's anti-worker policies as well as Bush/Clinton liberalization of trade, it probably contributed to the hollowing out of the "rust belt."

His elevation of human rights issues contributed to the collapse of the USSR. While rhetorically Reagan was the hardball guy with Russia, elevating the original neocons like Jean Kirkpatrick, and was willing to ignore human rights abuses by anti-communists, to the anti-communist movements in Europe, the human rights pitch helped galvanize them. Carter and Brzezinski also armed the afghan mujahadeen resistance (again, for better or worse, as elements became the Taliban and as future terrorists like Bin Laden flocked to the cause).

I could make a few more political points but this is the Red Loft. More importantly, the dude's post-Presidency I think allowed him to be virtuous. His embrace of Habitat, his continuing work promoting democracy, his ambassador-without-portfolio work on hostage releases, and  his work on health issues like guinea worm, weigh as much or more on his legacy as anything he did as President.

[Natsinpwc]

The economic problems were really intractable. We suffered more in the early 1980s so interesting to think about what might have happened had he won a second term. 

[imref]

His elevation of human rights issues contributed to the collapse of the USSR. While rhetorically Reagan was the hardball guy with Russia, elevating the original neocons like Jean Kirkpatrick, and was willing to ignore human rights abuses by anti-communists, to the anti-communist movements in Europe, the human rights pitch helped galvanize them. Carter and Brzezinski also armed the afghan mujahadeen resistance (again, for better or worse, as elements became the Taliban and as future terrorists like Bin Laden flocked to the cause).

In his memoir, Robert Gates gives a ton of credit to Ford and the Helsinki accords for beginning the fall of the Soviet Union. It was the first step in opening up the USSR to the West and showing their people that they were being lied to by their government. It also was the first time the Soviets ever signed onto a human rights treaty.

[JCA-CrystalCity]

The economic problems were really intractable. We suffered more in the early 1980s so interesting to think about what might have happened had he won a second term. 

He did pass some stimulus early in his term, which probably didn't help on inflation.He ran a > 50% approval rating for a while. Even as late as 1979, he was near 50%. The twin kicks in the pants during his time were the poor shape of American industry in terms of competitiveness and, of course, the impact of the Iranian revolution on oil markets.

I guess he started talking about global warming and alternative energy while he was in the WH, but the big strategy in terms of energy independence was to encourage coal as a replacement for oil in electric generation. Even into the 2010s, most of our big coal plants dated from that period. In terms of solar, the tech really wasn't ready at utility scale back then, and the wind turbines were the tiny ones that spun fast like at Altamont Pass that really did a number on birds (not like the modern big blade big megawatt ones). I think I heard that there was a major build out of natural gas pipelines during his time, which eventually led to knocking coal out preeminence in the energy mix. I don't want to knock his environmental legacy too much. He signed major amendments to the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act, and Superfund was enacted on his way out the door. There was a lot of work done on conventional pollutants (not GHGs, not stormwater), including the original hazardous waste regulations. My own opinion was he had a positive "green" record on energy and the environment

[varoadking]

I'm one of those who says more seriously than joking that he was a better ex-President than President.

I think that sums it up beautifully...and with all due respect...

[JCA-CrystalCity]

In his memoir, Robert Gates gives a ton of credit to Ford and the Helsinki accords for beginning the fall of the Soviet Union. It was the first step in opening up the USSR to the West and showing their people that they were being lied to by their government. It also was the first time the Soviets ever signed onto a human rights treaty.

I agree with Gates. Carter used what Ford set up.

Don't get me going on Gerald Ford and George HW Bush. I think Bush's 1990 ranks up with the greatest years for any President. Americans with Disabilities Act, 2 major pieces of environmental legislation (Oil Pollution Act after the Exxon Valdez and the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments), organizing the coalition against Saddam's invasion of Kuwait, and a major budget deal that would have been even more impactful had Newt not blocked the bigger deal.

[English Natsie]

Although castigated, at the time, his 'crisis-of-confidence' broadcast has come to be regarded as the most honest, and insightful, of any politician, let alone President...

[English Natsie]

Perhaps not as well remembered, in the US but, over here, President Carter is always remembered for his visit to Newcastle (NE England). He began his address with a call of 'Howay The Lads'...(next to PC, wearing glasses, is then Prime Minister Jim Callaghan).

[Ali the Baseball Cat]

Georgian and Geordie do have some similarities

[1995hoo]

What I find somewhat wild is that with Carter's death, the oldest living US president is now (for a very brief period) the current president. All of the former presidents, including the Once and Future President, are younger than the incumbent. (Biden was born in November 1942. Clinton, Bush, and Trump were all born within just over two months of each other in 1946. Obama is the outlier in 1961.)

[JCA-CrystalCity]

Watching the Carter procession into the Capitol. I saw Jean Shaheen among the assembled inside. She ran his New Hampshire campaign in 76.

[imref]

My kids are heading down tonight to pay their respects. Hopefully with the weather the line isn't too long.

[1995hoo]

TV just showed Quayle, Gore, and Pence having a conversation. Of course it's been over 30 years since Quayle was VP, but I didn't recognize him at first.

[English Natsie]

...over 30 years since Quayle was VP, but I didn't recognize him at first.

You say potato, and I say...

[imref]

My kids are heading down tonight to pay their respects. Hopefully with the weather the line isn't too long.

The got there around 10:30 and left around midnight as they were told they were still at least an 1-2 hours away from getting into the Capitol. Temps were in the low 20's and they decided it wasn't worth freezing. Folks on Reddit were saying it was about a 4 hour wait last night.

[Natsinpwc]

You say potato, and I say...

You are no Jack Kennedy. 

I really have no idea what Quayle has been doing all these years.

[1995hoo]

You say potato, and I say...

My wife recently wrote "tomatoe sauce" on the grocery list and I asked her if she’d been visiting the Quayles. She didn’t get the joke at first. Then she got annoyed that I was making fun of her spelling.

[imref]

You are no Jack Kennedy. 

I really have no idea what Quayle has been doing all these years.

well, he kind of saved the republican in 2021 (Pence says he consulted with Quayle before Jan. 6 and Quayle told Pence that Pence did not have the authority to throw out EVs).