Barack Obama and The Parallel to Jimmy Carter

Barack Obama and The Parallel to Jimmy Carter by Jim Merriner 24 March 2009

Throughout the presidential campaign until now, well into President Obama’s first 100 days, I have been waiting for some pundit to explain how Obama is like Jimmy Carter. Nobody has, so I guess the job falls to me.

As political editor of the Atlanta Constitution, I covered Carter as governor of Georgia and as president. He was a calculating, dissembling politician who pretended to be something else.

As a freelance writer, I covered Obama as a U.S. senator and presidential candidate. He was a calculating, dissembling politician who pretended to be something else.

Both men seemed to have the mean streak that lies, however well hidden, in the spleen of every great leader. It’s forgotten now, but the governor that Carter replaced was the ax-handle-brandishing, red-faced segregationist fool, Lester Maddox. On his first week on the job, Carter drove to the Georgia Capitol with his top adviser. The adviser said he hated how they would spend the day firing all the Maddox holdovers in state government, throwing them out of work with families to support and all. Carter bared his teeth and said, “I can’t wait.”

After he was elected to the U.S. Senate, Obama tried to put his pal Will Burns in his old Illinois Senate seat. The local Democratic committeemen, who did not especially like Obama, balked and named Sen. Kwame Raoul instead. Afterward, Obama could hardly bring himself to speak civilly to Raoul.

Both men ran against the evil Washington establishment. Once elected, Carter filled his cabinet will luminaries of that establishment, guys like Cyrus Vance at State.

Once elected, Obama filled his cabinet with luminaries of that establishment, gals like Hillary Clinton at State.

Early on, Carter defended his budget chief, Bert Lance, long after scandals had caused Wall Street and Congress to lose confidence in him.

Obama defends his Treasury chief, Tim Geithner, long after scandals have caused Wall Street and Congress to lose confidence in him.

Carter promised to balance the budget after a few years. His fiscal policies caused runaway inflation.

Obama promises to slice the deficit after a few years. His fiscal policies potentially could cause runaway inflation.

There were investigations of funky transactions at the Carter family’s peanut warehouse, but nothing ever really stuck.

There were investigations of the Obama family’s funky transactions with Tony Rezko, but nothing every really stuck.

Carter had little experience or interest in foreign policy, leading to gaffes like going to a state banquet in Mexico and discussing “Montezuma’s revenge.”

Obama had little experience or interest in foreign policy, leading to gaffes like giving the British prime minister a bunch of American movie DVDs that can’t work on English players.

Both men sucked up to a mayor named Daley to get where they are.

Perhaps most important, neither man engaged the legislative process. As governor, Carter openly detested the Georgia legislature. As president, he started out by overloading Congress with fiscal, energy, environmental and health-care initiatives.

Obama was an inattentive, bored legislator both in Springfield and Washington. (True, once Democrats won a legislative majority in either city, his mentors helped him promote certain bills.) As president, Obama started out by overloading Congress with fiscal, energy, environmental and health-care initiatives.

I expect now to get emails instructing me in how Obama is totally different from Carter. Truly, I wish that you were right and I am wrong.

But there is one more point, again overlooked by the pundits, that scares me about the future of this presidency. The former Speaker of the House, Tip O’Neill, wily and tough, did not seem to fear Carter at all. The incumbent Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, wily and tough, does not seem to fear Obama at all.

Jim Merriner is a regular correspondent for the Chicago Daily Observer
http://www.cdobs.com/archive/featured/barack-obama-and-the-parallel-to-jimmy-carter/