President malaise- actually it was HARDBALL'S chris mathews that wrote the speech. I had forgotten that tidbit- I remember Cubans in Angola & Yemen & elsewhere, 23% interest rates, gas lines, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the Panama Canal giveaway, the foolish outlawing of recycling nuclear fuel... I could go on, but you get the idea.
He was a small, mean little man raised far above where he should have been. His "reforms" of Georgia, which were a big part of his pitch for higher office, are still yielding unexpected and bitter fruits today. Much as his larger "legacy" for America will in the decades to come.
A friend said to me recently that all of our problems stem from Carter.
If he had been stronger the Soviets would not have invaded Afganistan- and the US would not have created the Islamofascists that fought them.
If he had not been so wishy-washy he would have backed the Shah and no Khomeini
If no Khomeini he would not have started Saddams build up to fight the Iranians.
If he had not been such a putz and gave the military a green light to free the hostages in a winnable way(without the constraints that made failure a fait accompli) the Islamofascists might have fallen