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Jens 'n' Frens |
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Now, there is a case to be made that some, at least, of that administration's misfortunes were not Jimmy Carter's fault. The man was elected president of an angry, unhappy country, afflicted with major systemic problems and confronted by bold, ruthless enemies. "Stagflation," with which the Carter presidency will be forever associated, was ten years in the bud, was the fruit of policies taught and approved by most expert opinion at the time, and was vanquished at last by Paul Volcker, a Carter appointee. The hostage-taking in Teheran called for a brisk military response; yet America's military, reflecting the mood of America herself, was never less keen on, or less equipped for, action of that kind than in 1979. The farcical "killer rabbit" incident might have happened to any president. Let's face it, the guy had some bad breaks. Yet still, with all allowances made and all excuses listed, there is an inner core of awfulness to Jimmy Carter. Our Endangered Values — it is his 20th book — makes this clear.Derb on the Carter book. Must read, I'd say."I announced that the protection of [human rights] would be the foundation of our country's foreign policy, and I persistently took action to implement this commitment."Is that why the embassy was removed from Taipei? I always wondered about that. |
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