Jimmy Carter
Maggie Hohfeler
Election
Election of 1976
- Democrat nomination- Jimmy Carter
- Republican nomination- Gerald Ford
- Carter won
- Promised to never lie to the American public
- He was untainted by the corruption of Washington
- Got 97% of black votes
Humanitarian Efforts
- Championed for black rights in Rhodesia and South Africa
- Camp David Accords- Peace accords signed between President Anwar Sadat of Egypt and Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel. Mediated by Carter after relations were strained between Egypt and Israel. Success- Israel agreed to move out of the land it had taken as long as Egypt respected Israel’s territories
- Pledged to return Panama Canal to Panama by 2000
- Established trade with China after nearly 30 years of no trade in 1979
- SALT II Agreements- In 1979 Carter signed SALT II with Brezhnev, but the US Senate refused to ratify it because of the Soviet Union invasion of Afghanistan
Economic and energy issues
Economic issues:
- Inflation was at nearly 13%
- Carter blamed our dependence on foreign oil for the inflation
- Called for legislation that would improve energy conservation
- Did so without public support
Energy Crisis
- Egypt and Syria attacked Israel
- USSR backed Egypt and US supported Israel
- Arab nations put up an embargo on oil following our support of Israel in order to try to get us in a pro-Arab stance
- A national speed limit of 55 mph was established
- Oil pipeline in Alaska was approved in 1974 despite environmentalists’ cries
- Other forms of energy were researched
Iranian Hostage Situtation
- Uprising forced Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlevi to flee Iran and Ayatollah Khomeini established an Islamic Republic based off of the Koran
- President Carter allowed Shah to come to the US for medical treatment
- Iran demanded the return of the Shah
- Iranian militants broke into the US Embassy in Tehran and kept the staff hostage for 444 days
- Buried all hopes of ratifying SALT II Treaty
- Carter first tried economic sanctions and world public to force their release, but it didn't work
- Tried a commando rescue mission, but it had to be aborted
- Finally, on Reagan's inauguration day, they were released