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Considered the finest
ex-president
by many, Jimmy Carter is perhaps
the most underrated president as well.
By: Mike Hersh - 10/03/02
He brokered peace in the Middle
East, as most people know. But many don't realize he also increased
defense spending every year. As a former naval officer, he reformed
and revamped the military. The new dollars added to our security,
not just the deficit. He continued the tried and true containment
policies which helped win the Cold War.
Facing economic woes when he
took office in 1981, he took the painful steps needed to halt
inflation without stopping job growth. Carter's policies helped
create nearly two million new jobs per year.
So why didn't Carter win re-election
in 1980?
Carter was left holding the bag
when teetering regimes -- pawns in the Cold War superpower contest
-- became liabilities. Some, like Iran, collapsed. Nixon's and
Kissinger's arrogance and double-dealing provoked oil shocks
and international instability which reverberated all through
the Carter years. This -- not any failure of Carter's -- triggered
the foreign and economic crises that marred his term.
The bizarre outlaw Khomeini regime
humiliated Carter who -- unlike Reagan -- refused to treat with
the Ayatollah. Evidence suggests the Reagan team began secret
negotiations with the terrorist state even before taking office.
According to this alleged deal, Iran kept our hostages so Reagan
could defeat Carter.
Sources place both George HW
Bush and Reagan campaign manager William Casey at meetings with
agents for Iran in France and elsewhere before the election.
Casey went on to become Reagan's CIA director. Certainly it's
odd that our enemy Iran released our hostages the same day Reagan
took the oath of office.
Carter stood up to Iran's threats
and demands, and all our American hostages returned home safely.
Although too late to help Carter keep his job. There is no question
the Reagan administration illegally traded arms for hostages
and lied about it, but somehow Reagan seemed stronger.
Carter inherited other liabilities.
The high inflation and slow growth "stagflation" economy
elevated the "misery index." Unlike the Republicans,
Carter saw this as a long-term concern and focused federal efforts
into a new Department of Energy.
This exemplified Carter's long-term
vision. He also established a new Cabinet-level Department of
Education, and reformed government to improve performance. Reagan
reversed progress in these areas.
Carter's long view was better
for us, but not so good for him. Unemployment plus inflation
peaked just at the wrong time for Carter; largely because he
did what he thought was best for the US -- not what was most
politic for Jimmy Carter.
Reaganomics slammed a slow but
growing economy into reverse, and then Reagan blamed everything
on Jimmy Carter. Reagan also stole credit for Carter's anti-inflation
policies.
Carter was no liberal, and in
many ways his policies foreshadowed the DLC (Democratic Leadership
Conference) positions on politics and economics. As a young activist,
I rejected Carter in favor of third party candidate John Anderson
in 1980.
Carter -- often used as the example
that Democrats can't run the economy -- actually proves Republican
policies are at fault. Carter inherited "stagflation"
and other crises from the Nixon and Ford administrations. Carter
began an era of tax cutting for the wealthy and deregulation,
although he employed moderation and restraint Reagan abandoned.
Carter pushed a capital gains
tax cut through the Congress, deregulated energy, transportation,
and other industries. These conservative policies failed almost
as badly for Carter as they did for Reagan and Bush I and II.
Almost. The growth rate fell by more than 2% after the capital
gains tax rate fell from 39% to 28%, and then the economy fell
into recession. Bushwhack Bush Tax is Bad for America
Carter's policies were anti-inflationary.
His choice of Paul Volcker to run the Federal Reserve Board --
nothing Reagan did -- cured inflation. The Carter economic record
-- for job creation and deficit control -- puts Reagan's to shame.
This not even considering waste of the Reagan budgets and the
S&L Crisis which squandered $billions of taxes.
We are still paying off the interest
-- not even the principle -- on the borrow-and-spend Reaganomics
debt. Reagan -- not Tip O'Neill or Ted Kennedy anyone else --
proposed, lobbied for and signed into law eight straight out
of balance budgets which tripled the national debt.
Three dozen Presidents from George
Washington to Jimmy Carter and all the Congresses all put together
never managed to roll up even one trillion in national debt.
Reagan left us burdened with THREE TRILLION in debt. Don't Worry
About Iraq, It's The Economy Stupid
Carter was better than Reagan
in almost every respect
While Carter inaugural cost barely
more than $3 Million, Reagan's gala festivities cost $16.3 MILLION.
This was more than double what Reagan's officials said, meaning
they began lying from Day One.
Reagan's tax deductible orgy
of excess cost about five times Carter's modest ceremonies, and
-- according the to GAO (General Accounting Office) -- "much
of the support provided by the Department of Defense for [Reagan's]
1981 inaugural activities was without proper legal authority."
Reagan broke the law at least from Day One if not before!
Carter protected the environment.
Reagan was a wanton waster of our national treasures and resources.
Carter engaged the USSR and worked
to foster peace to stabilize the planet. Reagan engaged in reckless
provocation which nearly caused World War III.
Carter stood up to terrorist
states. Reagan's representatives cut weapons deals with terrorist
states like Iran and Iraq.
Carter brought home our hostages
alive without capitulating or caving in to terrorist demands.
Reagan sent our weapons to terrorists, even though they had killed
a US CIA agent and other Americans.
Carter promoted human rights.
Reagan fomented war and terrorism, sponsoring death squads throughout
Latin America.
Carter achieved the Camp David
breakthrough which stabilized the Middle East. Reagan's pointless
policies directly caused the deaths of 240 US Marines in Beirut,
which he covered up by invading a tiny, obscure island called
Grenada.
Carter ran the cleanest White
House in memory. Reagan ran the dirtiest, with more than 140
crooks in his administration.
Carter protected rights and increased
opportunity for women and minorities. Reagan turned the federal
government into a force for racism and bigotry fighting against
and denied equal and civil rights.
Carter increased our investments
in the future -- education, energy policy, science, medicine
and more. Reagan slashed all non-military discretionary spending.
Carter was honest. He kept his
promise by never lying to us. Reagan was a profligate liar. He
either broke several laws and lied about it under oath, or else
was so unaware of what his administration did no one could call
him fit for office.
Still the media portrayed Carter
as a weak failure, and canonized Reagan. I blame this illusion
/ double standard on the machine created after conservatives
blamed Vietnam and Watergate on "the liberal media."
Jimmy Carter was its first victim. Honor in American politics
was its second. We're still suffering from the extreme rightwing
bias in the media -- today, more than ever.
A final compare / contrast
Reagan accepted special favors
from the rich and powerful, and did special favors for them using
our money. Besides the $1200 coffee pots and $980 toilet seats,
the Reagan years soaked most Americans with higher taxes despite
our lower real personal incomes.
Reagan endlessly blathered about
morality and family values, but showed no morality and barely
valued his family. He seldom went to church, but made a big deal
about it.
Carter leads by example, living
modestly and decently. He stood up for the weak, and still does.
Even as president, he went to church regularly and taught Sunday
School, but he never bragged about it.
He might say of all his achievements,
his four children -- sons John William (Jack), James Earl III
(Chip), Donnel Jeffrey (Jeff), and daughter Amy -- were the best.
So wish a happy 78th birthday
to our 39th president James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, born
on Oct. 1st, 1924. An underrated president and a great American.
For a present, let's stop Bush's mad rush to war in Iraq and
vote in a solid Democratic Congress this November.
Mike Hersh is a contributing
writer for Liberal Slant
Visit Mike at: www.bushoccupation.com
- www.mikehersh.com
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Featured Publications Considered the finest ex-president by many, Jimmy Carter is perhaps the most underrated president as well. By: Mike Hersh - 10/03/02 He brokered peace in the Middle East, as most people know. But many don't realize he also increased defense spending every year. As a former naval officer, he reformed and revamped the military. The new dollars added to our security, not just the deficit. He continued the tried and true containment policies which helped win the Cold War. Facing economic woes when he took office in 1981, he took the painful steps needed to halt inflation without stopping job growth. Carter's policies helped create nearly two million new jobs per year. So why didn't Carter win re-election in 1980? Carter was left holding the bag when teetering regimes -- pawns in the Cold War superpower contest -- became liabilities. Some, like Iran, collapsed. Nixon's and Kissinger's arrogance and double-dealing provoked oil shocks and international instability which reverberated all through the Carter years. This -- not any failure of Carter's -- triggered the foreign and economic crises that marred his term. The bizarre outlaw Khomeini regime humiliated Carter who -- unlike Reagan -- refused to treat with the Ayatollah. Evidence suggests the Reagan team began secret negotiations with the terrorist state even before taking office. According to this alleged deal, Iran kept our hostages so Reagan could defeat Carter. Sources place both George HW Bush and Reagan campaign manager William Casey at meetings with agents for Iran in France and elsewhere before the election. Casey went on to become Reagan's CIA director. Certainly it's odd that our enemy Iran released our hostages the same day Reagan took the oath of office. Carter stood up to Iran's threats and demands, and all our American hostages returned home safely. Although too late to help Carter keep his job. There is no question the Reagan administration illegally traded arms for hostages and lied about it, but somehow Reagan seemed stronger. Carter inherited other liabilities. The high inflation and slow growth "stagflation" economy elevated the "misery index." Unlike the Republicans, Carter saw this as a long-term concern and focused federal efforts into a new Department of Energy. This exemplified Carter's long-term vision. He also established a new Cabinet-level Department of Education, and reformed government to improve performance. Reagan reversed progress in these areas. Carter's long view was better for us, but not so good for him. Unemployment plus inflation peaked just at the wrong time for Carter; largely because he did what he thought was best for the US -- not what was most politic for Jimmy Carter. Reaganomics slammed a slow but growing economy into reverse, and then Reagan blamed everything on Jimmy Carter. Reagan also stole credit for Carter's anti-inflation policies. Carter was no liberal, and in many ways his policies foreshadowed the DLC (Democratic Leadership Conference) positions on politics and economics. As a young activist, I rejected Carter in favor of third party candidate John Anderson in 1980. Carter -- often used as the example that Democrats can't run the economy -- actually proves Republican policies are at fault. Carter inherited "stagflation" and other crises from the Nixon and Ford administrations. Carter began an era of tax cutting for the wealthy and deregulation, although he employed moderation and restraint Reagan abandoned. Carter pushed a capital gains tax cut through the Congress, deregulated energy, transportation, and other industries. These conservative policies failed almost as badly for Carter as they did for Reagan and Bush I and II. Almost. The growth rate fell by more than 2% after the capital gains tax rate fell from 39% to 28%, and then the economy fell into recession. Bushwhack Bush Tax is Bad for America Carter's policies were anti-inflationary. His choice of Paul Volcker to run the Federal Reserve Board -- nothing Reagan did -- cured inflation. The Carter economic record -- for job creation and deficit control -- puts Reagan's to shame. This not even considering waste of the Reagan budgets and the S&L Crisis which squandered $billions of taxes. We are still paying off the interest -- not even the principle -- on the borrow-and-spend Reaganomics debt. Reagan -- not Tip O'Neill or Ted Kennedy anyone else -- proposed, lobbied for and signed into law eight straight out of balance budgets which tripled the national debt. Three dozen Presidents from George Washington to Jimmy Carter and all the Congresses all put together never managed to roll up even one trillion in national debt. Reagan left us burdened with THREE TRILLION in debt. Don't Worry About Iraq, It's The Economy Stupid Carter was better than Reagan in almost every respect While Carter inaugural cost barely more than $3 Million, Reagan's gala festivities cost $16.3 MILLION. This was more than double what Reagan's officials said, meaning they began lying from Day One. Reagan's tax deductible orgy of excess cost about five times Carter's modest ceremonies, and -- according the to GAO (General Accounting Office) -- "much of the support provided by the Department of Defense for [Reagan's] 1981 inaugural activities was without proper legal authority." Reagan broke the law at least from Day One if not before! Carter protected the environment. Reagan was a wanton waster of our national treasures and resources. Carter engaged the USSR and worked to foster peace to stabilize the planet. Reagan engaged in reckless provocation which nearly caused World War III. Carter stood up to terrorist states. Reagan's representatives cut weapons deals with terrorist states like Iran and Iraq. Carter brought home our hostages alive without capitulating or caving in to terrorist demands. Reagan sent our weapons to terrorists, even though they had killed a US CIA agent and other Americans. Carter promoted human rights. Reagan fomented war and terrorism, sponsoring death squads throughout Latin America. Carter achieved the Camp David breakthrough which stabilized the Middle East. Reagan's pointless policies directly caused the deaths of 240 US Marines in Beirut, which he covered up by invading a tiny, obscure island called Grenada. Carter ran the cleanest White House in memory. Reagan ran the dirtiest, with more than 140 crooks in his administration. Carter protected rights and increased opportunity for women and minorities. Reagan turned the federal government into a force for racism and bigotry fighting against and denied equal and civil rights. Carter increased our investments in the future -- education, energy policy, science, medicine and more. Reagan slashed all non-military discretionary spending. Carter was honest. He kept his promise by never lying to us. Reagan was a profligate liar. He either broke several laws and lied about it under oath, or else was so unaware of what his administration did no one could call him fit for office. Still the media portrayed Carter as a weak failure, and canonized Reagan. I blame this illusion / double standard on the machine created after conservatives blamed Vietnam and Watergate on "the liberal media." Jimmy Carter was its first victim. Honor in American politics was its second. We're still suffering from the extreme rightwing bias in the media -- today, more than ever. A final compare / contrast Reagan accepted special favors from the rich and powerful, and did special favors for them using our money. Besides the $1200 coffee pots and $980 toilet seats, the Reagan years soaked most Americans with higher taxes despite our lower real personal incomes. Reagan endlessly blathered about morality and family values, but showed no morality and barely valued his family. He seldom went to church, but made a big deal about it. Carter leads by example, living modestly and decently. He stood up for the weak, and still does. Even as president, he went to church regularly and taught Sunday School, but he never bragged about it. He might say of all his achievements, his four children -- sons John William (Jack), James Earl III (Chip), Donnel Jeffrey (Jeff), and daughter Amy -- were the best. So wish a happy 78th birthday to our 39th president James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, born on Oct. 1st, 1924. An underrated president and a great American. For a present, let's stop Bush's mad rush to war in Iraq and vote in a solid Democratic Congress this November. Mike Hersh is a contributing
writer for Liberal Slant Home Page | Building the Global Village | Events Latest News | Featured Publications | Join Today | Fundraising |