Jimmy Carter (Again)

I've long contended, and continue to think, that Jimmy Carter was the worst president of the United States in the latter half of the 20th century. I was young when he assumed the presidency, but I recall seeming rather impressed with him. (Ah....youth....) He certainly had a considerably more sanguine disposition than the lumbering Gerald Ford, and he didn't have the baggage of Watergate, either. (I recall being aware of Watergate as a child. It seemed weird to me that the president was in so much trouble for letting all the water out of the gate. Did he cause a flood?) But Carter's tenure at the White House turned out to be so bad that the world (and specifically the United States) is still paying for his ineptitude. Sure the Shah was an autocrat, but was Ayatollah Khomenei preferable? It was Carter, not some random twist of fate, that put Khomenei in power. If Carter had followed American policy in regards to backing the Shah, a policy that stretched back to the Eisenhowever Administration, there would not have been an Islamic revolution in Iran. There wouldn't have been 52 American hostages held for 444 days, and more importantly, there wouldn't have been Hezbollah (which subsequently went on to take over Lebanon (along with the Syrians)). Hezbollah was responsible for killing 241 of our Marines (sent there as UN peace-keepers, might I add) in Beirut, as well as kidnapping many, many western journalists, clergymen (remember Terry Waite?), and diplomats. (Hezbollah once sent a videotape to the American embassy in Beirut which found its way to CIA Director Bill Casey. The contents of the video was the murder of a CIA agent who was one of Casey's best friends. In the video, Hezbollah killed him by shoving a tube down his throat and attaching it to a hose, thus drowning him to death. On viewing this video, Bill Casey was inconsolable and purple with rage. He started to formulate the plan to get the release of all western hostages, a plan that would later take shape as Iran-Contra, therafter.) They're still wreaking havoc throughout the region, not to mention perpetrating various acts of mass killing throughout the world. It is not out of the realm of possibilities that had Hezbollah never come into existence, there might've already been a real settlement between the Palestinians and Israelis. Mere speculation on my part, mind, butI can't see how their existence makes it easier. The loss of Iran also resulted in losing a key CIA listening post while the Cold War was still burning hot. I needn't get into the problems Iran is causing at this moment, with its nuclear ambitions and its support of the jihadists in Iraq. Bad policy has long-term consequences, eh?

Carter also embarked on "reforming" the CIA. Positioning Stansfield Turner as director, the CIA was then turned into an affirmative action experiment, with obvious results. Michael Ledeen relates a story about an East German spy who had made contact with the CIA in the hopes of defecting. He told the CIA in Berlin that he would meet at a cafe in West Berlin with his newly-minted contact, but to make sure that the contact was germanic in appearance and demeanor. Inconspicuous was the watch-word. The CIA sent a young black man, who needless to say, stuck out like a sore thumb. The East German spy turned around and walked out of the cafe when he realized who his contact was, never to be heard from again. No wonder Brehznev invaded Afghanistan without reservation. Look at who his geopolitical opposite was? (In case there's any question as to why the Soviets invaded Afghanistan, take a look at a map. Afghanistan in and of itself is strategically insignificant; it is land-locked. But over the border was Pakistan, where the Straits of Hormuz ran through. The significance of the Straits of Horuz? It was and continues to be a major artery for the shipping of petroleum. Secure Afghanistan, subsequently conquer Pakistan, and the Cold War would be won....by the Soviets.)

I've vented my spleen about Carter enough for one day. I'll let George Will take it over. To quote Jonah Goldberg at NRO in regards to this column, "Carter should be on all fours searching for his teeth after this one." It's a good rip job, but honest as well.

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