Sometimes politics, like fashion, comes back in season.
That’s the case with “The Carter Presidency: Lessons for the 21st Century.” While the conference marks the 30th anniversary of Jimmy Carter’s inauguration, it will simultaneously be adding a new dimension to current political issues by framing them in the context of history.
Carter faced surging oil prices, discord in the Middle East and the threat of terrorism. He also spearheaded policies to protect human rights and safeguard the environment. Examining the successes and shortcomings of his time in office can provide a foil for present day dilemmas and, hopefully, offer solutions.
If proof of relevance was needed, Carter’s views gained international attention in recent weeks. His latest book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, has stirred controversy in part because of a suggested comparison of the Jewish-Palestinian struggle to South Africa’s former segregationist government. Though media coverage of the book has waned, the attention may add a new dimension to the conference.
“President Carter’s book will probably serve as a springboard for debate on our foreign policy panels,” said John Maltese, conference director and political science professor. “Generating thoughtful debate on a wide array of issues is important. It will help us to achieve a balanced review of both the successes and the failures of the Carter presidency.”
The last point is especially important to the former president, said Thomas P. Lauth, dean of the School of Public and International Affairs, which is co-sponsoring the event with the Carl Vinson Institute of Government. For Carter, honest and thorough discussions of his presidency can be best used to help address current and future national and international problems. It should include a dissection of its successes, such as his orchestration of the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel in 1979, and its shortcomings, Lauth said.
“From the outset, President and Mrs. Carter wanted very much for this to be an objective look at both the successes and failures of his presidency so that they could be examined and we could learn from those events,” he said.
That insistence is reflected in the conference’s panelists, which include Democratic and Republican leaders as well as leading journalists, researchers and historians, said Steve Wrigley, vice president for government relations and director of the Vinson Institute. “(The Carters) both seem excited to have the opportunity to have a large number of members of their administration in one place to reflect on their presidency and issues they tackled. They are very supportive and engaged in the conference,” he said.
“For UGA to host an event of this importance with the caliber of participants and attendees, including President and Mrs. Carter, adds to our growing academic reputation. This conference will be a rare opportunity for scholars and practitioners,” he added.
Part of its appeal comes from the ability of the Carter administration’s challenges to be parlayed easily into present-day relevance, said Maltese, who has written several books on politics. “With all the things that the administration and the nation faced then, we realized it could be a forward-looking conference because so many of the issues are still relevant today, such as energy policy,” he said.
Carter declared “the moral equivalent of war” on foreign energy dependence. He pushed for conservation and the development of alternate sources of energy, and he secured congressional passage of comprehensive legislation that reflected those goals. He even installed solar panels on the roof of the White House. “After he left office, much of that legislation was dismantled and the solar panels were taken down,” Maltese said, “so his legacy was not as enduring as he had hoped it would be, but now his approach to energy seems relevant again.”
From a historian’s perspective, Carter’s legacy also has shaped modern political campaigns. By taking advantage of revised election procedures that gave more power to rank-and-file voters, Carter focused almost exclusively on early contests in Iowa and New Hampshire in his 1976 bid for the presidency.
The conference marks the latest in an increasing line of national and international leaders to visit campus. In April, former President George H.W. Bush and his wife, Barbara, helped dedicate the Paul D. Coverdell Center for Biomedical Sciences; Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas visited in October. It’s a trend that stems from the university’s rigorous standards, Wrigley said.
“UGA’s academic reputation is now established and with that comes the opportunity to host leaders from many fields, including politics. Continuing to strengthen our academic quality will lead to these kinds of opportunities for faculty and students,” he said.
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