Thursday, October 16, 2014
On the Constant Comparisons Between Obama and Carter
I really hate to say it but the comparison's unfair.....TO CARTER. a) Jimmy Carter was a vastly superior leader (his response to the Soviets invading Afghanistan, for example, while not exactly perfect, certainly had a moral clarity to it).............b) He was also an exponentially more effective broker when it came to peace in the Middle East (his tireless work on the Egyptian, Israeli peace accords was amongst the finest of the 20th century).............c) Carter was a far more honest person (it's gotten to the point where I really don't believe much of anything that Obama says anymore).............And d) Carter was a political moderate (my kind of Democrat, in other words) who probably had a better relationship with the Republicans in Washington (the leadership back then being Howard Baker in the Senate and Bob Michel in the House) than with his own damned party (the entire thing being complicated by the Ted Kennedy challenge)....................................................................................Look, I'm not saying that the Carter Presidency was a successful one - it clearly wasn't. But the fellow was decent and not everything that went wrong was entirely his fault (the OPEC craziness, for example)....And, so, yeah, I would take him over Obama (and, yes, Bush, too) in a heartbeat.
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6 comments:
I doubt if many hear will believe this but I actually voted for Carter when he first ran. I also attended a campaign fundraiser put on by Willy Nelson
during Carters second run.
Thankfully I came to my senses and voted for The Old Cowboy.
And yes Will,I tend to agree with you...even though I view Carter as a failure and a bit weak....I think Obama trumps him with his weakness and complete lack of honesty.
I am glad you are comparing the Presidency of Carter, rather than everything overall... including Carter's recent befuddled turn to antisemitism and blaming the victims in the Middle East.
I won't go into detail about the economic disaster (hyper interest rates) and gas lines etc. of the Carter years. I essentially agree with the /i> points you noted.
I recall that Cater was actually a conservative Southern democrat and had executive experience having been the Governor of Georgia.
As I see it Jimmy Carter was doomed to a failed presidency. He was a Washington outsider (which is what got him elected) and the old guard in DC was not about to welcome him with open arms.
He was a decent, honest (almost too - (I've lusted after other women in my heart), and hard working president. I kear he was a pretty god peanut farmer too.
And Obama isn't saddled with a
Brother Billy.
So, Russ, you and I are about the same age. Wow, for some reason I had thought that you were younger.......Sorry, dmarks, I definitely should have included a caveat pertaining to that recent book of his which was hugely bizarre/over the line.......Good points, Les and BB (though I must confess that I did try Billy Beer one time at least).
RN said: "I recall that Cater was actually a conservative Southern democrat and had executive experience having been the Governor of Georgia."
Yes, a very important type of experience/qualification that, in 2008 leading into the election, even Sarah Palin had more of. As weak as it was with her.
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