James "Jimmy" Carter
Nicole Francis
Election of 1976
Dem. Candidate- J. Carter
- "I'll never lie to you" ran against memory of Nixon as much as Ford
- Narrow Victory, won most of South and African Americans
Humanitarian Efforts
- Fought for black rights in Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) and South Africa
- Sept. 1978 Camp David Accords signed between Israel and Egypt
- 1979 Resumed diplomatic relations with China
- 1979 Signed Torrijos-Carter Treaty to return the Panama Canal to Panama in 2000
- 1979 SALT II Treaty to lower manufacture of strategic nuclear missiles was never signed because of USSR's invasion of Afghanistan
- Cold War continued, Cuba and USSR spread communism
Economic and Energy Problems
Debt rose- Oil prices increased but American goods remained constant
Foreign trade increased importance
Interest rates rose with inflation
Carter blamed financial deficit on America's dependence on foreign oil
- Called for strict energy conservation
- 1977 proposed legislation met public criticism
- 1979 Pahlevi's administration is overthrown in Iran
- Iranian revolution against westernization and secularization of Iran
- Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) raised petroleum prices because of Iranian shortages
Iranian Hostage Crisis of 1979
Demand the former shah, who had escaped to the US, in exchange for the hostages
Dec 27, 1979 USSR troops move to Afghanistan, Carter places an embargo on grain and high-technology to the USSR
Proposes "Rapid Deployment Force" to quickly respond to foreign crises, asks young men and women to register for possible military draft
Afghanistan fights Soviets in "Russia's Vietnam War"
Carter tried to apply economic sanctions and pressure from the world public opinion to rescue Iranian hostages
May 1980 Attempted rescue mission fails, further injuring American confidence
Jan 20, 1981 Negotiations are completed and the Iranian Hostages are returned to US custody 444 days after their capture