We mourn both your passing and the loss of America’s promise.
America has entered an era of form over substance, expedience over decency, ignorance over informed debate—and we are impoverished because of it!
When Jimmy Carter told his mother, Miss Lillian, that he was going to run for president, she is said to have asked, “Of what?”
Carter, an unknown Governor of Georgia—and before that a peanut farmer and a U.S. Navy officer—was elected in 1976, defeating incumbent President Gerald R. Ford. Carter was on hospice care for eight months before his death at age 100, making him the longest lived U. S. president in history. He was honored yesterday with a state funeral at the Washington National Cathedral, with all of the living former presidents in attendance, and a cadre of respected clergy officiating. Carter’s beloved wife of 77 years, Rosalynn, died in 2023.
Jimmy Carter, 1924-2024, 39th President of the United States
It was under Jimmy Carter that I became a Democrat—many folks do not know that! Previously—even as a very young man—I would have described myself as a progressive Republican after the example of Michigan Gov. Bill Milliken. I was then and still am personally conservative. Those who thought you knew me, are you surprised? That was at a time when the promise of America burned brightly and seemed to overcome much—but certainly not all—partisanship. I was drawn to public life and thought for a time that I might run for office some day.
The late 60s and early 70s, when I came of age, fell barely three decades after the end of WW II. My dad, my father-in-law, my grandfather—who saw two world wars—and every one of my uncles served. Love of country was a substantive emotion in the minds of most people, even in the midst of that Vietnam thing; I do not wish to minimize the oppositions to that war. The civil rights struggles of that era reached a fever pitch, and only the dullest wit could have missed the obvious conclusion that something new and invigorating was stirring.
There was a collective conviction that the American ideal was genuine and achievable, and I wanted to be a part of that energy. It never occurred to me that the day would come soon in which money would become the medium by which policies are made and human life is degraded under color of law.
My political transition probably began when I matriculated at Wayne State University in the fall of 1969. I promptly joined the College Republicans and attended a few gatherings, where there was always spirited political discussion over a few beers—I was underage at that time, but never had difficulty being served on-campus. All was well, and I was intellectually challenged—until my introduction to Ayn Rand and her philosophy of objectivism. I stopped attending meetings when it occurred to me that what was being celebrated was selfishness over altruism. That was the antithesis of what I had been taught as a Christian disciple, and I simply could not abide that.
By the time Nixon’s crimes had been exposed in the years after Watergate and his disgraceful resignation in 1974, I was thoroughly disappointed in the GOP. I voted for Jimmy Carter in 1976 and again in 1980. Few, if any, pundits have spoken of why Carter lost his reelection bid against Ronald Reagan—and it was nothing short of the reprehensible betrayal of America!
I remember, and so do you, the image of that plane carrying the American embassy hostages taken in Iran on November 4,1979, as it took off on January 20, 1981.
That the Reagan campaign had instigated the holding of the hostages until after he was sworn in is irrefutable—and while it might not rise to the legal definition of treason, it is damned close! With all the coverage about Carter and his presidency, virtually no one has mentioned this treachery. Reagan died without ever being held accountable. Sound familiar? That trend toward normalizing aberrant public behavior—especially prominent vis-a-vis Donald Trump—is a slippery slope that threatens our democratic republic. The worst part is that nobody seems to care.
Which brings me to the present as convicted felon Donald J. Trump is about to be sworn in as president again. What a contrast with the decency of Jimmy Carter!
Both Reagan and Trump enjoyed being the darlings of the religious right, even though neither ever expressed any deeply-held spiritual convictions. Reagan had been divorced and never attended church services. He was estranged from his children and was known to have concocted apocryphal stories to illustrate how the welfare state was the biggest problem in the federal government. His illustrations often evoked dog whistle racism, leading one observer to suggest that Reagan’s greatest talent was in making white people comfortable in their prejudices.
Similarly, Trump has had multiple marriages and apparent instances of adultery. He does not belong to any organized religious institution, and he clearly has no familiarity with the Bible—I thought he appeared uncomfortable when he held up that copy of the scriptures during the BLM demonstration in Lafyette Park in June of 2020. His infamous reference to “2 Corinthians” is at odds with how religiously informed people would refer to that book; his comment was laughable. Trump has repeatedly declined to name his favorite book of the Bible—because he does not know any! He once claimed to be a Presbyterian, which prompted the Stated Clerk of the Presbyterian Church (USA) to announce that there was no evidence of Trump’s membership any PCUSA congregation.
Trump has been found responsible for sexual assault and has openly bragged about such behavior. And then there are those stolen classified documents and the disgraceful insistence that he actually won the 2020 election, despite any credible evidence to support that claim. That was bad enough, but Trump compounded the disgrace when he failed to stop the invasion of the U.S. Capitol before the disgusting events of January 6, 2021, especially the loss of life. His reported callousness about the safety of Vice President Pence on that day shows who he is. Trump is purely and coldly transactional in all of his relationships.
By contrast, Jimmy Carter was married for 77 years, with no hint of marital infidelity. He even Sunday School while he was in office. He was a good and decent man in every way. On the other hand, both Reagan—whose status in right wing circles is almost that of a saint—and the many flaws of Donald Trump—have become preferable in the eyes of many. What a sad realization!
A friend recently asked me why I thought people voted for Trump. He was making the point that Americans were frustrated with the status quo. I reminded him that Trump won the election only because Americans could not comprehend the accomplishments of Joe Biden—a flaw that was enhanced by the reluctance of the media to ask the hard questions. There was no way—if the facts had been known and all things were equal—that Trump would have won! The second disturbing reason has to do with racism and misogamy. Please do not suggest that the victory was in any way pure and unencumbered by widespread lying, the irresponsibility of the news media, and good old fashioned prejudice.
America has entered an era of form over substance, expedience over decency, ignorance over informed debate—and we are impoverished because of it! The high school kid in me weeps for another time.
The affection for Donald Trump—like Reagan before him— from so-called evangelical Christians is legendary. It is, in fact, heretical and has no place in orthodox Christian thought. I fear that the policies of the next four years will be equally as objectionable, and every genuine Christian should oppose them! Jimmy Carter would agree.
Thank you. Mr. President. Rest in peace.
Thinking Out Loud publishes twice weekly on Substack.com and on WordPress at Shalomista.com.. Thank you for supporting my work. Please share these posts widely and consider a subscription. Join the fray with a paid subscription and give me a piece of your mind— or you can always lurk for free! All views expressed are entirely my own and have no connection to any institution of which I might be a member.
Raising Basileia 