CNN Hails 'New Cult Favorite' Jimmy Carter, Asks If His Image Is 'Being Rehabilitated'
CNN touted ex-president Jimmy Carter as a "new cult favorite" and asked if his image was "being rehabilitated" on Monday's The Situation Room. After friendly interviews of Carter and his grandson last week, it might be more accurate to ask if CNN is trying to "rehabilitate" Carter's image.
Liberal historian Douglas Brinkley made the laughably thin case for Carter. "But when you look at the Iran hostage crisis, I mean, Carter eventually negotiated the release of all of those hostages.
It cost his political re-election. He could have bombed Tehran during
it, and maybe gotten himself re-elected but he didn't," he argued.
[Video below the break. Audio here.]
So despite a long crisis including a failed rescue mission with eight
dead U.S. servicemen, Carter did negotiate the release. Brinkley
continued whitewashing the hostage crisis: "But Carter worked nonstop
trying to get those hostages out. You know what, they're alive today.
They have grandkids. And they – Carter saved all their lives."
Blitzer had to break in to provide some much-needed context: "there
was, what, 444 days of Americans being held hostage in Iran. There was
high inflation. Very high interest rates. People were deeply worried
about their savings." Brinkley himself admitted that "nobody's pining for the Carter days."
But apparently Carter's been vindicated on the matter of solar panels:
"But I think when he put solar panels on the White House, that seemed
quite flaky. And Ronald Reagan ripped them all down. And we all laughed
at Jimmy Carter. But we're now constantly talking about solar and wind
and alternatives."
Do most houses and cars in America really have solar panels on top? Do names like Solyndra resonate with Brinkley?
Yet the stretching of Carter's accomplishments kept coming: "Carter
doubled the size of the National Parks. And he saved all these great
wilderness areas. Well, it may not seem that big to you now. But about
50 years from now when the rain forests are dead and so much of the
world has been in ruin, saving all this bits of wild America will look
like a greater achievement."
Seriously? What credible evidence does Brinkley have that in 50 years
the rain forests will certainly be dead and much of the world will lie
in ruins? Yet all he had to offer were assumptions and revisionist
history in defense of Carter.
A transcript of the segment, which aired on The Situation Room on February 25 at 5:34 p.m. EST, is as follows:
WOLF BLITZER: "Argo" certainly putting a spotlight, and possibly a new bit of light on the Jimmy Carter presidency.
[HEADLINE: "Ex-President a New Cult Favorite: Carter's image being rehabilitated?"]
BLITZER: Doug Brinkley is a presidential historian. He's joining us
from Austin, Texas right now. Doug, thanks very much for coming in.
You've written an intriguing piece suggesting that maybe this film
"Argo" is going to be a little revisionist history for the former
President of the United States. Why do you say that?
DOUGLAS BRINKLEY, presidential historian: Well, first off, as he's
getting near 90, he's already a Nobel Peace Prize winner, I think people
are just starting to just like Jimmy Carter. He was on CNN last week
and did I thought a brilliant interview with you guys. But when you look
at the Iran hostage crisis, I mean, Carter eventually negotiated the
release of all of those hostages. It cost his political re-election. He
could have bombed Tehran during it, and maybe gotten himself re-elected
but he didn't. And sometimes we have to learn to judge presidents for
what they don't do. He didn't get us into a war in Iran. Look what
happened to George W. Bush and Iraq, it didn't turn out so well for the
country. But beyond that in the article, I talk about the Panama Canal
doubling in size. That was Carter doing it. He was the one who
recognized the People's Republic of China. Created a friendship with
Deng Xiaoping, who we're all beneficiaries of today. And particularly on
environment and energy, I think Carter's looking better and better.
BLITZER: And he also achieved the Camp David accords, peace between
Israel and Egypt. A peace which was a cold peace but still in business
all these years later. But at the same time, and you know this well,
there was, what, 444 days of Americans being held hostage in Iran. There
was high inflation. Very high interest rates. People were deeply
worried about their savings. And a lot of folks remember that, looking
at that 1980 election, which he lost to Ronald Reagan.
BRINKLEY: Well, that's right. I mean, nobody's pining for the Carter
days. And certainly I mean he didn't control his own party. He had Scoop
Jackson, Democrats, hawks, abandoning Carter and Ted Kennedy liberals
abandoning him. But what we can do is start looking at what it was like
in his one term. Just like we're going to have a revision with President
41. See Carter did some great things in Alaska and our National Parks
service. Carter doubled the size of the National Parks. And he saved all
these great wilderness areas. Well, it may not seem that big to you
now. But about 50 years from now when the rain forests are dead and so
much of the world has been in ruin, saving all this bits of wild America
will look like a greater achievement. Only Theodore Roosevelt and FDR
was a better conservation president than Jimmy Carter.
BLITZER: How much would pop culture have an impact on some revisionism
as far as Jimmy Carter is concerned? For example, the film "Argo"?
BRINKLEY: I think it's helpful because it's put – it shows that film. I
think the Carter administration was trying desperately to get rid of
those hostages. And they were always between a rock and a hard place.
When you had the famous rescue, we were one helicopter short. And it
didn't happen well. It became, The New Republic called it the
"Jimmy Carter desert classic." It was a disaster. But Carter worked
nonstop trying to get those hostages out. You know what, they're alive
today. They have grandkids. And they – Carter saved all their lives. And
so we can honor at least the fact that he was trying to work those 444.
But it was a political disaster for him. Cost him re-election.
BLITZER: What you're basically saying is as time goes on and years
continue to fade away, we're going to have a little bit better
recollection of Jimmy Carter, sort of the way Harry Truman
contemporaneously, he was criticized, but over time, he looked pretty
good.
BRINKLEY: Because Carter's integrity is always there. And nobody – he's
an honest man. And that's going to make him look good. His
post-presidential work's been amazing. But I think when he put solar
panels on the White House, that seemed quite flaky. And Ronald Reagan
ripped them all down. And we all laughed at Jimmy Carter. But we're now
constantly talking about solar and wind and alternatives. And Carter was
talking about that in a very sophisticated way. A long time ago, 40
years ago, he wanted to make alternative energy our new moon shot. We
didn't do it. So when environmental historians and the like will start
looking at this and say, you know what, Carter didn't have the political
– didn't know how to lead, he wasn't a great leader, but he had some
important ideas for our country. And I think Carter sometimes overstates
things wrongly about the Middle East. I disagree with his views often.
But he's always intriguing, interesting to listen to, and people are
starting to appreciate that as he's heading into age 90.
BLITZER: That was an excellent interview that Piers Morgan did with
Jimmy Carter the other day as well, right here on CNN. Doug Brinkley,
always good to have you in The Situation Room, thanks.
