Jimmy Carter left office in 1981 one of the least popular U.S. presidents ever. He died Sunday, at the age of 100, according to his son, James E. Carter III, as one of the most popular ex-presidents ever. Indeed, he redefined the role. Carter’s predecessor, the never-actually-elected Gerald Ford, was Exhibit A of the previous model of ex-presidency, which had three components: giving speeches around the world; associating yourself in some way with uncontroversial charities; and playing golf. Carter did not have time for golf. He was too busy improving the world.
This is not to say that Jimmy Carter, as president, did not improve the world. He did, in spades. He facilitated negotiations between Egypt’s president Anwar Sadat and Israel’s prime minister Menachem Begin at Camp David, the presidential retreat, where the two leaders reached an agreement that established the framework for the first peace treaty between an Arab country and the Jewish state. He oversaw the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT II) with Russia; the implementation of active, ongoing diplomacy with China; and the pivotal Panama Canal Treaty. At home, he managed to triple the size of America’s protected wilderness areas and established two new governmental agencies: the Department of Energy and the Department of Education. No mean feats–and good works all.
Indeed, he died with a reputation for decency and for good works, largely channeled through the Carter Center, based in Atlanta, achieving watersheds that no former or subsequent president has. He worked tirelessly with his wife, Rosalynn, whom he’d married in 1946–on myriad projects, most notably their transformative partnership with Habitat for Humanity; each year, the couple literally rolled up their sleeves and helped build affordable housing, often for the underserved in impoverished or climate-ravaged communities. He started an initiative focused on election observation, monitoring ballot box integrity in attempts to ensure free and fair elections around the world. He worked to prevent life-threatening diseases such as guinea worm and malaria. And in 2002 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts “to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.”
From Bettmann/Getty Images.
Carter’s formula has since become the gold standard for ex-presidents. Here’s what you need. First, build a “museum” or “library” where the ex-president’s memorabilia and archives are protected from the elements for all time, and where tourists may go and teach their children about the great man’s greatness. Second, if possible, create a “center” or “institute” that is actually just a front for the ex-president’s efforts to address issues on all fronts—war, public health, and so on—through personal intervention. Third, write a passel of books. (Carter penned 32). And fourth, set up a program for appointing fellows and staging conferences about, oh, the presidency, say, or bipartisanship, or something of that order. In short, Jimmy Carter invented the role of the ex-president as a global busybody.
When he ran for president in 1976, as a Navy lieutenant cum peanut farmer cum former governor of Georgia, James Earl “Jimmy” Carter Jr.—a man of deep faith and ethical fortitude—was widely mocked for his hubris; for campaigning under his nickname; for his southern accent; for being from the tiny town of Plains, Georgia; for his hick brother, Billy; for his parody of a southern mother, Miss Lillian; and for just about everything else about him. When he won his party’s nomination and then the election, the foreign press had a great time portraying Carter as Li’l Abner. Carter himself, meanwhile, pursued with tremendous earnestness issues such as civil service reform. He went to a federal office building and told the workers there to go home and spend more time with their families.
Carter’s apparent bumbling of two crises during his presidency doomed his hopes for a second term. (Or, rather, those crises plus the arrival of Ronald Reagan doomed his hopes.) First came the economy and, in particular, inflation. It was in the single digits when he entered office in 1977, and double digits when it peaked in 1980, by which time the voters were preparing to send him back to Plains.
Carter will be remembered, unfairly, as the president who failed to deal with inflation. Actually, he is the hero of this episode. His predecessor, Gerald Ford, tried inane gimmicks like getting everybody to wear “WIN” buttons (WIN being short for “Whip Inflation Now”). That was moronic, but harmless. Carter’s predecessor’s predecessor, Richard Nixon, tried wage and price controls, which were moronic and extremely harmful.