Jimmy Carter: A Rebuttal

[mikegriffith1]

Which of Carter's endeavors is more important than his creating the Ayatollah's barbaric Iran? How many lives does that equate to?

It is easy for rabid partisans to paint Carter's actions toward Iran in a misleadingly negative light. The truth is far more complicated. We can start by noting that Carter was getting erroneous CIA reports that were assuring him there was no immediate danger of a radical revolution in Iran. Dr. Kai Bird discusses this in his outstanding, balanced biography The Outlier: The Unfinished Presidency of Jimmy Carter.

Also, Carter was by no means the only official who believed Khomeini's assurances that he would govern as a moderate, would continue to sell oil to the U.S., etc. CIA and State Department officials likewise viewed Khomeini as a moderate alternative to the Shah's unpopular government.

Yes, Khomeini double-crossed Carter and quickly imposed radical Muslim rule. Carter responded with severe sanctions, including freezing Iranian assets held in the U.S. and banning oil trade with Iran, which devastated Iran's economy. Perhaps this is why Iran's mullah-run government responded to the news of Carter's death with harsh condemnations of Carter, one of which said Carter "will rot in hell."

 

[PoliticalChic]

You haven't read Carter's book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, have you? He loudly condemned Palestinian terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians as "morally reprehensible" and "dastardly" (p. 18). He attacked "the refusal of some Arabs to accept Israel as a neighbor," "the rise in Islamic fundamentalism," and "the absence of a clear and authoritative Palestinian voice acceptable to Israel" (p. 13). He argued that "the Arabs must acknowledge openly and specifically that Israel is a reality and has a right to exist in peace" (p. 207). And on and on I could go.

As a proud Zionist and staunch supporter of Israel, I take issue with some of Carter's statements in the book, but no sane person who reads the book could conclude that Carter was a "passionate Jew hater." That is just absurd. Carter expressed great love for Jews and for the state of Israel, flatly condemned Arab terrorism, and insisted that Arabs had to recognize Israel's right to exist and cease attacking her.

And anyone who knows anything about modern Middle East history knows that radical Muslims were outraged by Egypt's peace treaty with Israel, which is why they assassinated Egypt's leader, Anwar Sadat, who signed the peace deal.

What make you think the book is true?

Reality is defined by actions, not words.

 

[mikegriffith1]

Conservatives rightly cheer Reagan for standing up to the air traffic controllers' union in the 1981 air traffic controllers strike, but they usually overlook the fact that Carter stood up to the much larger and more powerful mine workers' union (UMWA) in the 1977-78 coal miners strike.

After the UMWA rejected two contract offers brokered by Carter, he invoked Taft-Hartley and ordered the miners back to work. He even cut off food stamps to miners who defied the order! Following Carter's return-to-work order, the UMWA soon accepted a new contract.

Read what the ultra-leftists at the World Socialist Web Site have to say about Carter's dealings with the UMWA during the strike. They published this article two weeks ago, soon after Carter's death was announced:

Jimmy Carter and the 1977-78 coal miners strike

The 111-day walkout by coal miners, which began on December 6, 1977, was a major strategic experience for the American and international working class.

www.wsws.org

EXCERPT:

Domestically, Carter embraced free-market economics, deregulating industries and resisting social program expansion. His administration’s . . . subsequent anti-working-class measures, including the appointment of Paul Volcker to the Federal Reserve and drawing up the plans to smash the air traffic controllers union, laid the groundwork for the attacks on labor under his successor, Republican Ronald Reagan.