Jimmy Carter, the 39th US President, Dies at 100

James Earl (Jimmy) Carter, America’s 39th president (1977-1981) and the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize winner, whose aspiration to make government “competent and compassionate” was stymied by surging energy costs and the Iran hostage crisis, has died at his home in Plains, Georgia. He was 100.

Fight Against Inflation

Carter became president during a period of stagflation, when the economy experienced both high inflation and slow economic growth. Upon taking office, he proposed what became the Economic Stimulus Appropriation Act of 1977.

The proposal called for a $50 tax rebate for each citizen, a $900 million cut in corporate taxes, and increased spending on public works. The relatively limited spending in the act, a reflection of Carter’s fiscal conservatism, drew the ire of fellow Democrats who wanted more attention on unemployment and less on the deficit.

As inflation worsened, in October 1978, Carter announced “phase two” of his anti-inflation campaign, calling for voluntary wage and price controls. ”

The anti-inflation policy that was forced on Carter by the economic realities of the day included controlling public spending, limiting the expansion of the welfare state, and postponing popular tax cuts,” wrote author W. Carl Biven in Carter’s Economy. “Although he faced severe criticism during his term, Carter accurately perceived the changed fiscal landscape and the need for a shift in Democratic policy.”

To deal with the energy crisis of 1979, the Carter administration set automobile mileage standards and deregulated the airline, trucking, and railroad industries. He established a national energy policy that deregulated oil prices. The combination of lower demand and higher supply led to lower oil prices. He also created the U.S. Department of Energy to regulate the industry and fund research on alternative fuels.

Foreign Policy Challenges

Two major events, the Camp David Accords, and the Iran hostage crisis shaped the lion’s share of Carter’s foreign policy legacy.

On March 26, 1979, Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in Washington, following meetings orchestrated by Carter between Egyptian leader Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin at the presidential retreat.

In November 1979, a group of Iranians took 66 American captives in Tehran, sparking the Iran hostage crisis. Operation Eagle Claw, an attempt to rescue the hostages, ended in disaster, badly damaging Carter’s reputation. Ultimately, the hostages were not released until after Carter left office on January 20, 1981.

It has long been believed Ayatollah Khomeini and Iranian hardliners acted alone in delaying the hostage release to ensure Carter’s defeat. However, recent reporting by the New York Times found long-time Texas politician Ben Barnes said he met with Middle Eastern leaders in the summer of 1980. Barnes said he was attempting to get a message to Iran to delay the hostage release until after the election to ensure a Reagan victory and a better deal for Iran.

At any rate, the hostage crisis, Carter’s appointment of Paul Volker as Fed chair in 1979, and the resulting recession sealed Carter’s fate and ended any chances of reelection in 1980.

Carter’s Legacy

During his post-presidency, Carter established what many consider his biggest and most lasting legacy, a life of service to others. This includes the establishment of the Carter Center, teaching, writing numerous books, and his personal involvement in Habitat for Humanity.

He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2002 for “his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.”

Following a series of hospital stays, Carter, with the full support of his family, elected to discontinue medical treatment and return to his home in Plains to spend his remaining time in hospice care with his family.

Carter was the longest-living president in American history, and is survived by his four children, 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.