Product Description

He has been called America's greatest ex-president, a man who lost the White House after one term but went on to become a respected spokesman for peace and human rights. Burton Kaufman's book on the Carter years was hailed as the best account of his administration. This new edition probes more deeply into Jimmy Carter's approach to the presidency and the issues that he faced. It features more information on his foreign and environmental policies and expanded coverage of his personal background - both his upbringing and naval career - along with insights into his wife's activist role. Drawing on Carter's previously unavailable "Handwriting File", as well as on new oral histories and Carter's own books, Burton and Scott Kaufman show the ways in which Carter had the opportunity - but failed - to be a successful transitional president. By the fall of 1978, he had become a more effective leader than during the first part of his presidency but could not undo his earlier mistakes and continued to make serious errors of political judgment. Weighing achievements such as the Alaska Land Bill with shortcomings such as disarray within the White House and strained relations with Congress, the authors re-examine the world events that shaped Carter's presidency, from Koreagate and the Cuban boatlift to the Camp David accords and the Iran hostage crisis. They explore bureaucratic infighting over his human rights policies, describing how the administration's position changed with greater emphasis on security issues after 1979; they also examine the issue of arms control in the light of newly opened Soviet archives and argue that the Vance-Brzezinski dispute was more profound than had originally been thought. In the final analysis, the Kaufmans fault Carter for not crafting a coherent message that would offer the American people a vision on which to build a base of support and assure his success. As his reputation as an ex-president continues to grow, this updated book offers an even better understanding of his White House years.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #340405 in Books
• Published on: 2006-08-14
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 302 pages

From Library Journal
As president, Jimmy Carter was "long on good intentions but short on knowledge." The author of this superb book (history, Virginia Tech.) firmly grounds his research in the massive collections of the Carter Library in Atlanta. He demonstrates convincingly that while Jimmy Carter was certainly "one of the nation's brightest chief executives," he failed to articulate "an overarching purpose and direction for his administration." Though personally sympathetic toward Carter and his efforts in such fields as energy conservation, arms control, and the Mideast, Kaufman must conclude that "his was a mediocre presidency and that much of the reason for this was his own doing." This reasoned and sprightly monograph will inform scholars and lay readers alike. Highly recommended.
- Thomas H. Appleton Jr., Kentucky Historical Soc., Frankfort
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
Jimmy Carter as failed President. Kaufman (History/Virginia Polytechnic Institute; The Oil Cartel Case, 1978) suggests that Carter's difficulties were less a consequence of the problems he faced (the demoralizing effects of Vietnam and Watergate and the rise of the PACs most obviously, the CIA time-bomb in Iran less so) than of a conceptual failure. It was the President's inability (or refusal) to grasp the rules of the game, the author says, that led to the impasse with Congress and the national sense of futility. Carter saw himself as a ``trustee of the public good,'' willing to do and say things that reduced him politically; he wasn't concerned enough with the process by which things get done, and squandered his unsure mandate. Kaufman makes his case well and clearly, offering a subtle appreciation of Carter as a wholesome, patient, plain-spoken technocrat who tried to do what he'd promised, starting with a more representative Cabinet. But the members of that Cabinet weren't ``original thinkers, grand strategists, or innovative planners,'' and one in particular, Attorney General Griffin Bell, was anathema to minority groups and was, simply, a bad choice. Carter's failure to prioritize his legislative agenda in light of real-world possibilities was similarly naive, says Kaufman--as was the idea that ``fiscal conservatism'' could go hand-in-hand with a costly and activist liberal agenda. Kaufman is anything but a Carter-basher, though, and while repeatedly detailing the President's awkwardness, he doesn't fault him for his goals. Why was Carter so unpopular despite a peaceful presidency and foreign-policy success in Panama and at Camp David? The question never dealt with here is whether Carter's traditional honesty and ethics simply were out of tune with a nation preferring to avoid energy reform, the legacy of Vietnam, and the implications of Watergate--a nation waiting for Ronald Reagan. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From the Back Cover
"A critical yet judicious account of the Carter administration, the first based on extensive research in the Carter Library. Despite his personal sympathy for Carter's ideals, Kaufman presents a portrait of a president who lacked a clear sense of purpose and thus became the creature of events rather than their master."--Robert A. Divine, author of The Reluctant Belligerent: American Entry into World War II

"The best book on the totality of the Carter presidency. Kaufman's exploration of how and why Carter failed in the realm of domestic economic and energy policies is especially perceptive. It has a lasting, instructive quality."--Gaddis Smith, author of American Diplomacy during the Second World War, 1941-1945

Customer Reviews

Carter as he was, mostly failure but some major successes
Several years ago, a young co-worker asked me about Jimmy Carter and my response was that he was a much better ex-president than he was a president. His subsequent work in areas such as Habitat for Humanity as well as international relations has been excellent. He has served as a goodwill ambassador, election monitor and has negotiated several international agreements that favored the United States. He has also continued to be a champion of human rights causes throughout the world.
Contrasting his success after his presidency with his performance while in office demonstrates the reasons why his presidency is generally assigned a mediocre grade. His idealism in championing human rights was the most obvious example of the truism that idealism may help get you elected, but it gets in the way of governing effectively. In the age of the cold war and international tensions, a cold, heartless pragmatism seems to be the only thing that works.
I found Kaufman's explanations of the Carter presidency to be the most even-handed and honest that I have read. Carter made many mistakes, had some made for him and in other cases was just the victim of circumstances. Nevertheless, he did have some striking successes, the two most notable being the Camp David accords between Israel and Egypt and the treaty relinquishing the Panama canal. In these events, Carter showed how much potential he really had as a president. I remember when the networks pre-empted their regular programming as Carter, Sadat and Begin came back from Camp David with the agreement in hand. It was a stunning achievement and it amazed the world. The magic of that moment is captured in the book, as well as the subsequent problems that continue to plague the region. Despite all the violence in the area of Palestine and Lebanon in the years since the accords were signed, the fact that Israel and Egypt still continue to have formal relations and are at peace show how sturdy those agreements are.
As someone who lived through those years and followed the Carter presidency in great detail, reading this book brought back a great deal of memories. Without attempting to boast, I do have an excellent memory, and the recounting of the events are all exactly as I remember them.
The author closes with a very important and often overlooked point. Carter's presidency is considered a failure, and yet he refused to negotiate away anything in order to release the hostages in Iran. Reagan's presidency is considered a success and yet he attempted a bribe for the release of the hostages in Lebanon by selling armaments to Iran. There is no doubt that on that point, Carter bests Reagan.
I would like to close this review with a personal point. Yes, Carter's pushing of human rights did create problems. But, when you consider that some of those whose rights were being violated, Walesa in Poland and Havel in the Czech Republic, rose to the leadership of their nations, perhaps he was just ahead of his time.

Fair and thorough presentation of his White House years
Having read a biography on each prez up to Carter, I was a little disappointed to find this book as the best reference on Carter the President. I had hoped for a well written book on his whole life, but since it's not over yet... The author seems to present the subject in an objective fashion. At times I felt he was trying hard to make Carter look better than he was, but the subject just wouldn't allow it. In the end, I didn't feel any better about Carter's term - just justified in my disapointment with his abilities as a leader. I can now say that I respect him as a man, but not as a President.