Will Jimmy Carter's one-term presidency be viewed more favorably after his death?
Carter's time in the White House has always played second fiddle to his post-presidency accomplishments


When former President Jimmy Carter died on Dec. 29, remembrances and tributes began pouring in, mostly related to his accomplishments after leaving the White House. Carter, whose death at age 100 makes him the longest-living president in American history, rose from beginnings as a Georgia peanut farmer to become the leader of the free world, but it was his efforts post-presidency that have endeared him to subsequent generations.
While his decades after the presidency were defined by numerous humanitarian efforts, including massive advancements for Habitat for Humanity and the near-eradication of the deadly Guinea worm disease, most historians consider his actual presidency a failure. This is largely due to his botched handling of the Iranian hostage crisis and a series of economic issues that confounded his four years in office.
Carter's life is now set to be remembered in the history books, and political analysts and those who knew him seem to be reconsidering the Carter administration and its consensus as a "failure." While his post-presidency will always be what he is remembered for the most, a reevaluation of his presidency itself may also be needed.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What did the commentators say?
Conventional history "holds that Jimmy Carter was a failure as a president, redeemed only by his philanthropy and efforts to promote democracy in his post-presidential years," but this is "palpably wrong," Stuart E. Eizenstat, Carter's chief White House domestic policy adviser, said at The Washington Post. Rather, what Carter achieved both domestically and foreign policy-wise was "more extensive and longer lasting than those of almost all modern presidents." Carter also "helped restore trust in the presidency through ethics reforms more relevant today than ever before" in the years after the Watergate scandal fell on Washington, D.C.
So while Carter left office with disastrously low approval ratings, he "should also be remembered as a consequential president whose single term produced lasting accomplishments," Eizenstat said at The Wall Street Journal. His "success rate at passing major legislation was among the highest of modern presidents," and he also "respected the institutions of government and the free press, no matter how brutal its coverage." But "many major successes remain unappreciated."
This is why viewing Carter as a failed president "doesn't bear scrutiny: He was not a weak president," said Jonathan Alter at the Post. While Carter dealt with several crises during his administration, they were "largely beyond his control," including the "seizure of 52 American hostages in Iran and the failed rescue mission to free them." And while Carter is blamed for the poor American economy during his tenure, this "resulted largely from disruptions in Middle Eastern oil supplies."
Carter will "face history's judgment in determining whether" his presidency "resulted from sheer misfortune or Carter's miscalculations," said Barbara A. Perry at Newsweek. But judicially, his "commitment to egalitarianism on matters of race and gender manifested itself in his approach to federal court nominations," and his attempts to "balance the representative characteristics of appointees, especially in terms of race, ethnicity, and gender, gave him an influential role in shaping the national judiciary."
If "you're president and you're defeated for a second term — that, in our system, is the definition of failure," Les Francis, a strategist who worked for Carter, said to the Los Angeles Times. But Carter "also had a self-righteousness that could present as starchy and sanctimonious, a trait he exhibited even in his good works once he left the White House" but hindered him while in office, Mark Z. Barabak said at the Times.
What next?
Carter's state funeral will take place on Jan. 9, which President Joe Biden also declared a National Day of Mourning. The president will deliver a eulogy at Carter's memorial service, reportedly at the behest of Carter himself; there was a "unique relationship Biden developed with Carter early on in his political career," NPR said.
The 39th president is set to be buried in his hometown of Plains, Georgia, where he was born and died. He will be laid to rest alongside his wife, Rosalynn Carter, who died in November 2023 at the age of 96.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Justin Klawans has worked as a staff writer at The Week since 2022. He began his career covering local news before joining Newsweek as a breaking news reporter, where he wrote about politics, national and global affairs, business, crime, sports, film, television and other news. Justin has also freelanced for outlets including Collider and United Press International.
-
Book reviews: 'Moral Ambition: Stop Wasting Your Talent and Start Making a Difference' and 'Is a River Alive?'
Feature A rallying cry for 'moral ambition' and the interwoven relationship between humans and rivers
-
'King of the Hill' actor shot dead outside home
speed read Jonathan Joss was fatally shot by a neighbor who was 'yelling violent homophobic slurs,' says his husband
-
DOJ, Boulder police outline attacker's confession
speed read Mohamed Sabry Soliman planned the attack for a year and 'wanted them all to die'
-
Time's up: The Democratic gerontocracy
Feature The Democratic party is losing key seats as they refuse to retire aging leaders
-
A running list of all the celebrities Trump has pardoned
IN DEPTH Reality stars, rappers and disgraced politicians have received some of the high-profile pardons doled out by the president
-
The Biden cover-up: a 'near-treasonous' conspiracy
Talking Point Using 'Trumpian' tactics, the former president's inner circle maintained a conspiracy of silence around his cognitive and physical decline
-
Elon Musk says he's 'done enough' political spending. What does that really mean?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION The world's richest man predicted he'd do 'a lot less' electoral financing moving forward. Has Washington seen the last of the tech titan?
-
Hurricane season is here. How will Trump's FEMA respond?
Today's Big Question An internal review says the agency is not ready for big storms
-
Democrats are on the hunt for their own Joe Rogan
IN THE SPOTLIGHT Party leaders and mega-donors want to counter MAGA's online momentum by recreating a digital right-wing ecosystem for the left
-
'The national appetite has been waning'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
A running list of Trump's conflicts of interest
In Depth A potential Qatari plane is the latest in a series of problematic connections