Carter and Reagan

Born: Oct 1, 1924

Still alive today!

President from January 20, 1977 to January 20, 1981

• Walked the parade route like Jefferson had.
• Nuclear Engineer
• Sincere religious beliefs
• Micromanager
• Spent long hours going over memos and briefing notes
• Didn't like the political games and he didn't want to play
• Added posts to the Cabinet for Energy and Education
• Made human rights centered foreign policy
• 1978- Camp David Accords
• Egypt President- Anwar Sadat
• Israel Prime Minister- Menachem Baking
• October 1979- US Embassy is stormed and hostages are taken
• Carter wanted to secure safety of the hostages before leaving the office
• During Reagan's inaugural speech he was informed that the hostages were on a plane headed home

• Greatest foreign policy achievement: Long conflict between Egypt and Israel
• Egypt didn't recognize Israel's right to exist.
• 1978- Carter invites Egyptian President Anwar el-Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin to figure out a solution.
• Camp David= Presidential retreat in Maryland
• Agreement was made
• Sadat and Begin won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979

• Early 1979-Iranian revolution overthrew the leader
• Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini steps in and is a religious leader
• Preached anti-American message
• October 1979- leader enters USA for cancer treatment
• Nov 4- mob attacks American Embassy in Tehran and capture several dozen American employees.
• US is outraged
• Carter approved military rescue mission
• failed mission- helicopter crashed killed 8 soldiers
• Oil became an issue and then inflation soared as prices rose

Nobel Peace Prize in 2002

"for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development".

• Conservative
• Oldest President elected
• Good Leader and Communicator

• Had an assassination attempt
• Made the decisions and could be disengaged
• Lax management
• Build up military
• Lower Taxes
• Economic Plan
• Reaganomics
• cut taxes
• raise spending
• raise defense spending
• Overlooked many things: Aids, Homelessness and Women's Rights

• 2 goals:
• Reduce taxes to stimulate economic growth
• cut the federal budget
• Based on supply-side economics:
• tax cuts and business incentives stimulate investment
• investment encourages economic growth
• 1982- nation suffered worst recession since the Great Depression

• Happened when members of the National Security Council secretly diverted money from the illegal Iran arms sales to the Contras in Nicaragua.
• Vice Admiral John Poindexter and Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North carried out the plan.
• Revealed in 1986- Congress wanted to know if anyone higher up was involved. Investigation was launched that was modeled after the Watergate probe of Nixon.
• Reagan admitted to authorizing the Iran arms sales, but denied the diversion of funds to the Contras.
• Full details aren't known--there was a cover-up.
• Avoided criminal charges but accepted responsibility.

• Makes it moral- it is a bad thing.
• Strategic Defense Initiative- "Star Wars Initiative"
• a shock to everyone in the White House
• Dismissed by most
• Soviets took it seriously- offensive instead of defensive
• Gorbachev knew he couldn't keep up with the race
• hastened the end of the Cold War

Struggle to end Communism

Carter and Reagan

Challenger Disaster

January 28, 1986

Great Soother

#40 Ronald Reagan

Post-President:

Carter

Hostage Situation

Camp David Accords

As President:

President #39: Jimmy Carter

The President who wanted to be different.

Iran Contra Affair

Reaganomics

Reagan as President