And Now, Our Worst Ex-President Ever (Reintroducing the True Carter Legacy)

[PittsburghAfterDark]

And Now, Our Worst Ex-President

INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY
Posted 8/18/2006

Leadership: In a German interview, former President Jimmy Carter attacks almost everything President Bush is doing, both foreign and domestic. He should stick to building houses.

Carter's oldest son may have just won the Democratic primary for a U.S. Senate seat in Nevada, but the 39th president has never been more irrelevant.

Carter is now nearly an identical twin to left-wing gadfly Ramsey Clark, the onetime LBJ attorney general who travels the world attacking everything the U.S. stands for.

Speaking to Germany's Der Spiegel, Carter disingenuously asserts every president before the current one had "a commitment to peace instead of pre-emptive war." But both Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush took preventive military measures, and Carter knows it.

What could be more pre-emptive than Reagan's nuclear missile defense? Carter attacked the strategic defense initiative as an "almost insuperable" obstacle to an arms control agreement with the Soviet Union. Reagan not only got arms control, but also arms reduction, and SDI led to the USSR's downfall.

The elder Bush's Operation Desert Storm pre-empted escalation of Saddam's aggression after his 1990 invasion of Kuwait.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times' Jack Nelson in December 1990, Carter had in essence the same condemnations for Reagan and the first president Bush he now throws at this president.

The U.S. has the reputation of being "the world's warmonger," Carter told Nelson.

"We're the ones who sent troops to Lebanon," he complained. "We're the ones who bombed Tripoli. We're the ones that invaded Grenada. We're the ones that invaded Panama. We're the ones that orchestrated the Contra war to overthrow the Sandinistas. No other country has done that."

You'd think it was Cindy Sheehan talking.

In the Spiegel interview, he accuses Bush of ending the separation of church and state, stealing from the poor to give to the rich, and "supporting and encouraging Israel in its unjustified attack on Lebanon." Carter slanders conservative
Christians, accusing them of considering their opponents "subhumans," charging that they "don't believe they can make mistakes" and advocate torture.

Carter also maintains his presidency, resoundingly rejected by the American people in Reagan's 1980 election, "was not a failure. For someone to serve as president of the United States you can't say it is a political failure."

That's the same kind of delusion that permeates so much of liberal philosophy: Competition is evil and kids should never be told they've failed in school or in sports. Feelings might be hurt.

Carter's four years in the White House were, of course, a disastrous failure, the highlights of which include:

? The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan ? to which Carter tepidly responded with a boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics. Only U.S. athletes ? not communists ? suffered.

? A deep recession and national malaise featuring high inflation and 21.5% interest rates.

? A dangerous "human rights" ideology that pulled the rug out from under the shah of Iran, a longtime U.S. ally, letting fundamentalist Islamic forces gain control of Iran. This is the root cause today of Tehran becoming the world's chief supporter of Islamofascist terror, and Iran's regime now actively seeks nuclear capabilities.

? The resulting Iranian hostage crisis ? to which Carter responded first by exiling himself in the White House, then micromanaging the failed rescue mission, arguably the greatest humiliation in the history of the U.S. military.

? Giving away the Panama Canal to Panamanian dictator Omar Torrijos. In a major war, lack of access to the strategically vital canal would be devastating to the U.S.

One of Carter's pearls of wisdom in his German interview:
"I think most people believe that enough time has passed so that historical facts can be ignored."

Wrong. The Jimmy Carter myth may sell well in some quarters, but most Americans remember him as the unquestioned worst president of the 20th century.
Link (http://www.investors.com/editorial/editorialcontent.asp?secid=1501&status=article&id=240793823985277)

[PittsburghAfterDark]

Jimmy Carter ? a national disgrace
Posted: August 21, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern

In the history of any nation there are high and low points. There are events and people that make the nation proud or, frankly, cause it shame and embarrassment. I, for years, felt one of our proudest moments was Ronald Wilson Reagan telling Gorbachev, ''Tear down this wall.''

I always thought the shame of slavery would forever be our low point. That was right up until Jimmy Carter took office in 1977 and again last week when he spewed his hate-filled venom against his country and its president in Der Spiegel magazine. Jimmy, you are a disgrace to our nation.

The byline of the article read: ''Former U.S. president speaks with Der Spiegel about the danger posed to American values by George W. Bush, the difficult situation in the Middle East and Cuba's ailing Fidel Castro.'' Carter should have been front and center condemning such a headline. In any other time, with any other president, this would have been unheard of, but not from the new voices coming from the Bush-haters in the Democratic Party. Al Gore does it. Howard Dean does it. Maxine Waters does it. But that doesn't make it right. Jimmy Carter has allowed partisan attacks to escalate to dangerous levels.

So, I thought a stroll down memory lane would be appropriate. In the mid-1970s, Jimmy Carter, a fine peanut farmer from Plains, Georgia, ran for the highest office in the land and won. Congratulations Jimmy. Jimmy Carter appeared not to be your garden-variety politician and the country welcomed his down-home country approach. Within a year however, the welcome wore off. Carter's legacy is now inextricably linked to the ''Misery Index.'' No president in the history of the country had a Misery Index as high as Jimmy Carter's. Carter had an average Index of 16.27 percent during his term (1977-80). When he finally left Washington in 1980 is was at an all-time high of 21.98 percent. Not a record I would be proud of if I were you Jimmy.

Of course, who could forget the 444 days America was held hostage by Iran? The now-famous program, ABC's Nightline, was birthed to cover the day-to-day events. Each night we would watch the news, counting the days our captured Americans were being held by radical Islamic terrorists while President Jimmy Carter sat by powerless and did nothing. The appeaser didn't want to upset the Ayatollah Khomeini. The leader of the free world had been reduced to a thumb-sucking peacenik by a gang of 7th-century hoodlums.

Suffice it to say, the Carter years were very bad for our nation. 16 percent inflation, 22 percent interest rates, and 70 percent marginal tax rates did little to endear Jimmy to the hard working people he claims to now protect against George W. Bush. Today, under Bush, we have 2.7 percent core inflation rates, historically low interest rates and 35 percent marginal tax rates. Looks like Jimmy is jealous.

I have to stop myself from going any further, for if Carter's own words are not enough to show his stupidity and hatred for our country and the president then nothing will. Jimmy Carter has done more than any single president to hurt this nation, not only while in office, but even more so since he was booted from office in complete humiliation. The American people rejected him and his insane policies. We in America couldn't get rid of this guy quick enough. His anger toward the country and its current leader is no surprise given how soundly he was rejected. He needs therapy to heal, not worldwide attention.

Carter is the first former president I can think of who has openly attacked a sitting president. Carter should thank his lucky stars Nixon, Ford and Reagan were men of character, for if they operated like Carter and Gore he would have been under an attack that would have made his head spin. And he would have actually deserved it.

Make no mistake about it. Jimmy Carter is not an American citizen. He is a citizen of the world. His views are so misguided that he would be relegated to a spot next to Michael Moore or Cindy Sheehan had he not been president of the United States. My God in heaven, what were we thinking at the time to elect a nut case like this in the first place?

Maybe Der Spiegel should have departed from the Bush-bashing questions and asked real questions of Jimmy, like what about the alleged million dollar contribution from the bin Laden family to your library? Or perhaps digging into his involvement with Saddam Hussein and the ''oil for food'' scam? What about accepting the Nobel Peace Prize knowing it was bestowed upon him by liberal socialists who love a Bush basher? Der Spiegel apparently follows the lead of fine journalists like 88-year-old Mike Wallace when interviewing Ahmadinejad. Don't ask the man why he wants to wipe Israel off the face of the earth or on what basis he believes the Holocaust was fiction. No. Couldn't do that. That might actually be of some journalistic value and we can't have that. We have to bash Bush.

Look, I am not the biggest fan of George W. Bush and I think he has made some serious mistakes. I am, however, a big fan of my country. I believe in America and its goodness. I believe in the American people who make it work. So when I see an ex-president who is not qualified to run a five and dime offer his opinion to the world abouthow it is worse off due to the United States, it p - - - - - me off.

Jimmy Carter and Mike Wallace are shining examples of why forced retirement makes sense for anyone over the age of 80. Obviously, at that point in life, if you have experienced rejection, you become rather bitter. And while you are entitled to be bitter, it should not be at the expense of good, honest, hardworking folks who believe in their nation. So Jimmy, don't go away mad. Just go away.

Jimmy is quoted in the interview as saying: ''I don't think Israel has any moral justification for their massive bombing of the entire nation of Lebanon. What happened is that Israel is holding almost 10,000 prisoners, so when the militants in Lebanon or in Gaza take one or two soldiers, Israel looks upon this as a justification for an attack on the civilian population of Lebanon and the Gaza. I do not think that is justified, no.''

Is this guy serious? Militants take one or two soldiers? This guy needs meds, a straightjacket and a rubber room ASAP. Israel was attacked by Hezbollah, Jimmy. A terrorist organization. They came across a sovereign border and killed eight Israelis soldiers and kidnapped two others. That, in anybody's book but a whacked out liberal appeaser, is an open act of war. Is Jimmy suggesting that if someone in America is kidnapped they can be traded for all the murderers on death row? The prisoners in Israeli jails have committed crimes, Jimmy. They are not there for sport. They are suicide bombers who failed. Terrorists who have killed innocent people. I guess in Jimmy's world one man's terrorist is another man's militant. This guy is dangerous. Talk about immoral thinking. Apparently that type of thinking comes from the Carter Center. America bad. Israel Bad. Militant good.

He talks about how he was troubled by the celebrations of Cuban exiles in Miami on the news of Castro's illness. Of course, he has no problem with the Arab world rejoicing in the streets when 3,000 innocent Americans died on Sept. 11. Of course not! Those were just militants on those planes fighting the injustice of the American pigs. Jimmy, get a grip.

He ends his interview with a statement that says it all: ''I think (that was his first mistake ... thinking) that at this moment the United States and Israel probably stand more alone than our country has in generations.''

If fighting terrorism and taking a stand against radical Islamic terrorists who kill their own children, fellow Muslims, innocent Americans (241 dead Marines in Beirut and 3,000 on Sept. 11), and Israelis means standing alone, then I am proud to be on the side that stands alone. I would rather be right and alone than wrong and in the company of those who think they're right merely because a poll or a crowd says so.

Jimmy should know men of conviction often walk alone. The world would have never encouraged Truman to drop the bomb. Roosevelt promised America he would not get involved in the war. They both understood doing the right thing could mean walking alone without the world patting you on the back. So again in closing, please Jimmy, just go away. Build nice houses for people, but leave the critical thinking to those who have a brain.
Link (http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=51612)

[Rider]

No one really cares if Carter despises Bush or feels that the war in Iraq is wrong, it's just that he travels the world smearing all things American. He has destroyed the time honored precedent of former presidents not criticizing current office holders. Now Clinton is in on the act. Just more of the new "scorched earth" policy of the Democrats.

[dsanthony]

What's scary is that Carter's son was just nominated for the Senate here in Nevada. Of course, he's never held any office of any kind. The Dems are hungry for a legacy candidate like Bush Jr. I hope Carter isn't it...

[Labrocca]

Carter was a terrible president. Easily the worst in recent memory. I was only a kid when he was president but I remember how much everything sucked and my parents complaining about the economy. The gas and interest were just ridiculous.

[T.J. Wolfe]

I guess a horrible president is one who doesn't exploit third world countries in order for US citizens to have a cheaper, better life.

Lolz patriotism

[lily]

Carter was a terrible president. Easily the worst in recent memory. I was only a kid when he was president but I remember how much everything sucked and my parents complaining about the economy.??The gas and interest were just ridiculous.


......well I have to defend the gas part, Labrocca. Due to the shake up with the Shaw of Iran and the hostage taking, Carter placed a ban on all Iranian oil coming into the US......if I recall my history correctly. I do remember sitting in those long lines (am I as old as your parents?!), running on fumes and cussing up a storm, hoping they wouldn't run out of gas before I filled up.

Now I sit and wonder, we went through all that, we survived.....what would have happened if we just stuck to our guns and told the entire Middle East to stick their oil, lear to conserve, Detroit built more fuel efficient cars...........

But then the world is full of what ifs..........and now I guess I'm off topic.

[Youthofthefuture]

[font=Arial][size=medium]
Carter was a terrible president. Easily the worst in recent memory. I was only a kid when he was president but I remember how much everything sucked and my parents complaining about the economy.??The gas and interest were just ridiculous.

Jimmy Carter aspired to make Government "competent and compassionate," responsive to the American people and their expectations. His achievements were notable, but in an era of rising energy costs and continuing tensions, it was impossible for his administrators to meet these high expectations. All in all he wanted something great but couldn't reach his goals so lets not hate the man.[attachment=25]

[Labrocca]

His achievements were notable...


Alright..name some.

btw..welcome to the forums sir.

[PittsburghAfterDark]

His achievements were notable

? The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan ? to which Carter tepidly responded with a boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics. Only U.S. athletes ? not communists ? suffered.

? A deep recession and national malaise featuring high inflation and 21.5% interest rates. (Add to this double digit unemployment and inflation.)

? A dangerous "human rights" ideology that pulled the rug out from under the shah of Iran, a longtime U.S. ally, letting fundamentalist Islamic forces gain control of Iran. This is the root cause today of Tehran becoming the world's chief supporter of Islamofascist terror, and Iran's regime now actively seeks nuclear capabilities.

? The resulting Iranian hostage crisis ? to which Carter responded first by exiling himself in the White House, then micromanaging the failed rescue mission, arguably the greatest humiliation in the history of the U.S. military.

? Giving away the Panama Canal to Panamanian dictator Omar Torrijos. In a major war, lack of access to the strategically vital canal would be devastating to the U.S.

[CheesyMuslim]

Sorry bout that,

1. But tick tock Carter was a Flop.
2. He should of stuck to peanuts.
3. Billy Beer was atleast original. Created by his brother.
4. Nope Jimmy Carter wasn't notable for anything other than being a first class screw up.
5. He was a better Ex-President.
6. When the pressure was off, then he could think.
7. Its hard to dislike him because he was so naive.
8. Carter would have been a better Non-President.

Regards,
SirJamesofTexas

[Youthofthefuture]

Alright im sorry, that was not a very good way to put it, but you shouldnt get on him about talking about bush and his failure in iraq. It is his opion, yes he wasn't the greatest president ever but he is a good man. He did get in at a rough time after nixon, who crushed the americans and there confidence in the government with scandels very evil in my opion. He was not very good politicaly but he did help heal the americans. He mainly got elected because he would not betray americans. Also he did have a point about Bush, he is not a very good president, one thing he failed was the economy it was at the highest point in yeaars until he took office, then it crashed horribly. All in all Carter was a good religous man that has alot after his time in office, he more healed the nation from nixion.

[Youthofthefuture]

one other thing Carter did. He formed the peace wit isreal and egypt which was just maraculous and no president could have done

[Rider]

Youth wrote- ...It is his opion, yes he wasn't the greatest president ever but he is a good man. He did get in at a rough time after nixon, who crushed the americans and there confidence in the government with scandels very evil in my opion. He was not very good politicaly but he did help heal the americans. He mainly got elected because he would not betray americans. ...
I used to admire Carter as a man even though his presidency was a flop. However, in the last few years my opinion of him has changed for the worse. It has been long standing tradition for former presidents to stay out of the way of sitting presidents. Sort of a "professional courtesy" thing. Carter, though has stuck his face in front of any and every camera he could find doing his best to discredit Bush. A real low class act.
Also, Carter was elected because the public was tired of Watergate and wouldn't vote for an ex-senator who had never been elected vice president let alone president.

Youth wrote- ...one thing he failed was the economy it was at the highest point in yeaars until he took office, then it crashed horribly. ...
Are you trying to make the case that the election of Bush made the economy crash? If so, you need to brush up on economics. The president has very little to do with the state of the economy with the possible exception of pushing tax increases or cuts. The economy was headed south by the time Bush took office. It wan't his fault, or Clinton's. It had a lot to do with the "dot. com" bubble bursting and other, unrelated circumstances.

[lily]

one other thing Carter did. He formed the peace wit isreal and egypt which was just maraculous and no president could have done


A good point, Youth.......a peace that still remains today. At the time, that was now easy task.

Welcome, by the way.

[lily]

Are you trying to make the case that the election of Bush made the economy crash? If so, you need to brush up on economics. The president has very little to do with the state of the economy with the possible exception of pushing tax increases or cuts. The economy was headed south by the time Bush took office. It wan't his fault, or Clinton's. It had a lot to do with the "dot. com" bubble bursting and other, unrelated circumstances.


That's a fair enough statement. I'll remeber it the next time I see someone tout how good the economy is doing under Bush.

[Youthofthefuture]

Also, Carter was elected because the public was tired of Watergate and wouldn't vote for an ex-senator who had never been elected vice president let alone president.


That may be true but also at the time the people had no faith left in the government, so they voted for the person that wouldnt betray them. He also took office after vietnam which in my opion was the worst war yet.

[Rider]

Good points Youth, but just what makes you think that people believed that Carter wouldn't betray them? The way I see it, the Repubs lost the election more than the Dems won it. Carter was an unknown challenging a non- elected nobody. I have never understood the constitutionality of Nixon being able to appoint his successor.

[PittsburghAfterDark]

Spiro Agnew was Nixon's elected VP. He had to resign over corruption charges that stemmed from his time as Maryland's governor. In that instance Nixon was able to select a VP and have him confirmed by the Senate.

You can't serve as VP without meeting a Constitutional requirement of age, citizenship and eligibility.

[Labrocca]

The economy is actually very strong and has been under Bush. 9/11 created some extreme conditions to work under yet the economic indicators show the US as doing pretty well.

I am not sure where youth thinks the economy crashed but I don't see it. Unemployment is very low, interest rates are still very reasonable, gas has risen but we still can buy it, and the housing market has boomed very well under Bush. So where is this bad economy you speak of?

[ECW]

So where is this bad economy you speak of?


here (http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/28/business/28wages.html?_r=1&oref=slogin)

[Labrocca]

Easily corrected when they raise the minimum wage which should be soon.

[Youthofthefuture]

?
interest rates are still very reasonable, the housing market has boomed very well under Bush.??So where is this bad economy you speak of?


Interest rates arent very resonable. Right now housing isnt booming, i invest money (through dad) and rite now real este is the best to go into bcz younger couples cant afford the interest rate Therefore the market is very bad in the real estate.

[lily]

Easily corrected when they raise the minimum wage which should be soon.


Huh? Who's this they that you're talking about. I remember just a few short months ago a very bitter battle over raising the minimum wage.

[wonder cow]

Carter. Sick'em. He's a threat. He was in office 30 years ago and is relevant to the current political discussion because he is a serious threat to the way we do business today. If he regains serious political influence gas could go to $3 per gallon...er...uhm...Well, we could have serious problems in Iran....er..uhm....humm....

And Carter, with all his "thinking" and "reasoning" is just such a pu**y. We don't need any stinking "thought" going on in regard to "policy".

Let's just kick some ass and see where that gets us. Bring it on, I say.

You guys make me laugh. You are cheerleading for what History will certainly view as a complete fool of a President while you occupy your mind with a President from 30 years ago. See how far you can stick that head in the sand. Maybe this nightmare of current Presidential idiocy will fade away and you can keep your delusional political beliefs.

[PittsburghAfterDark]

Wonder cow, just who was it that allowed the fanatical Islamic takeover of Iran and did absolutely nothing about it?

The entire birth of state funded Islamic fundamentalism and subsequent terrorism is squarely at the base of Jimmy Carter's legacy.

[Rider]

Wonder cow probably believes that the Soviet Union collapsed all on its own and that Reagan just slept through it.

[wonder cow]

just who was it that allowed the fanatical Islamic takeover of Iran and did absolutely nothing about it?

Yes, if only Gerald Ford had been elected in 76, the Iranian revolution would have never happened.

But I can't understand why our superhero Regan didn't do anything about it? He was in office starting January of 1981.

He would never back down from those Mideast radicals by, say, not allowing marines in Beirut to have bullets in their weapons. He would never do anything that stupid and surrender monkey'ish.

Wonder cow probably believes that the Soviet Union collapsed all on its own and that Reagan just slept through it.

Yes, Ronald Regan won the cold war all by himself. You see, the cold war started in January of 1981 and was over in January of 1989.

[Rider]

I'm about 99% certain that Ford would have backed the Shah, in which case you're right... the Iranian revolution would not have happened, at least until the Clinton administration.

If you'll remember, the Iranians gave up the hostages before having to deal with Reagan, I suspect because they weren't so sure he was a pussy like Carter.

I suppose that you deny that Truman won the second world war because he wasn't in charge until the very end.

[lily]

If you'll remember, the Iranians gave up the hostages before having to deal with Reagan, I suspect because they weren't so sure he was a pussy like Carter.

hmmmm........and all this time I thought they did that to further embarrass Carter. That's why they released them on Inauguration Day.

[Rider]

Well, neither one of us knows the motivations of the mad mullahs.

[Churchel]

Carter was a terrible president. Easily the worst in recent memory. I was only a kid when he was president but I remember how much everything sucked and my parents complaining about the economy.??The gas and interest were just ridiculous.


......well I have to defend the gas part, Labrocca. Due to the shake up with the Shaw of Iran and the hostage taking, Carter placed a ban on all Iranian oil coming into the US......if I recall my history correctly. I do remember sitting in those long lines (am I as old as your parents?!), running on fumes and cussing up a storm, hoping they wouldn't run out of gas before I filled up.

Now I sit and wonder, we went through all that, we survived.....what would have happened if we just stuck to our guns and told the entire Middle East to stick their oil, lear to conserve, Detroit built more fuel efficient cars...........

But then the world is full of what ifs..........and now I guess I'm off topic.


Funny how things change when agendas change.

I do not post paragraphs of other peoples words, so HERE (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/carter/filmmore/ps_energy.html) is a link of a speech where Jimmy Carter laid out 80 some odd billion dollars to turn a corner in our nations energy policies.

It is unfortanute that the oil companies quashed the research and alternative energy companies derived from that speech in the mid 80's by lowering the price of petroleum fuel to a price that made all of this alternative energy non-cost effective.

[lily]

Truer words were never spoken:

By acting now, we can control our future instead of letting the future control us.

[Rider]

Churchel wrote- It is unfortanute that the oil companies quashed the research and alternative energy companies derived from that speech in the mid 80's by lowering the price of petroleum fuel to a price that made all of this alternative energy non-cost effective.
Alternative energy sources have not gotten any traction until recent years because while Americans love the concept of clean, renewable energy sources they stay away in droves when they see the price tag.
I've worked for an electric utility for 25 years and they've tried to get a foothold in some of these fields, but until very recently couldn't make it cost effective.
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for energy sources that would get us out of the middle east and help our environment and I believe they're on the way, but the price of oil had to go high enough to make them competitive.