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President:
Jimmy Carter
Wife: Eleanor Rosalynn Smith (1928- ), on July
7, 1946
Kids: John William "Jack" Carter (1947-
); James Earl "Chip" Carter III (1950- );
Donnel Jeffrey "Jeff" Carter (1952-); Amy
Lynn Carter (1967- )
Pets: Grits the dog; Misty Malarky Ying Yang,
a Siamese cat
Bio: James Earl Carter, Jr.,(1924- ), was the
39th President of the United States. Born October 1,
1924, in Plains, Georgia, Carter was the son of a peanut
farmer and politician father and mother who was a nurse.
Carter graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1946,
and for the next seven years he served in the U.S. Navy,
becoming a lieutenant commander. After leaving the Navy,
Carter returned to Plains, where he lived with his new
wife, Rosalynn, and eventually took over the family
peanut business.
His interest in politics drove him to begin his career
as a state senator from 1962 to 1966. He then moved
up to governor status from 1971 to 1974. While campaigning
for the U.S. presidency, Carter promised an honest government,
something the American public was yearning for after
the Nixon fiasco. He won the Democratic nomination in
1976, and narrowly beat Gerald Ford in the presidential
election.
Major accomplishments of his administration were the
creation of the Panama Treaty and the historic Camp
David Agreement between Israel and Egypt in 1979. Although
he was an honest man, and had excellent intentions,
his weakness in times of crisis was his downfall. When
52 Americans were seized from the U.S. Embassy in Iran
on November 4, 1979, he had no solution. The perpetrators
were angry that Carter allowed the exiled Shah of Iran
into the United States for medical treatment. A tragic
rescue attempt killed 8 Marines. All attempts were ineffective.
The nation’s economy and high rate of inflation
plagued the administration, and the public lost confidence
in his ability to lead and solve problems. He lost the
1980 presidential election by one of the largest margins
in U.S. history. The very day that his successor, Ronald
Reagan, was sworn in, the hostages were released.
Carter retired to Georgia, but remained quite active
in volunteer activities and is revered to this day for
his devotion to the underprivileged.
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