If they asked respondants "who was the worst president in the last 50 years" Carter may not show up because he was so bad, people have blocked it from their memories.
Right on! We were in the process of financing a building, and interest rates soared beyond reach. Got up to 21% +. Inflation was about 14%.
But that's not what I primarily dislike about Carter.
His letting the Iranians almost totally cripple the United States by holding our embassy people hostage was despicable. His failure to act in any positive, intelligent way was cowardly. His dispatching six helicopters that were unfit for desert duty to rescue the hostages was worse than dumb. And the derision around the world and even here in the United States that stemmed from that failed mission was the genesis of some of the problems we've faced in the last 26 years.
Of course, I think that Sweet Old Bill (Clintoon) added fuel to the Mideast fires by failing to do anything except dispatch a few rockets at some tents in Iraq and an aspirin factory in Sudan after the Cole bombing, the embassy bombings, and other such actions by bin Laden. Then Sweet William refused to take bin Laden when offered. Oh yeah, he's right there on a low plane with Cahtah.
By the way, to me, the most humiliating thing Carter did during his miserable four years was to step up on his tippy-toes at the Moscow airport and kiss Leonid Brezhnev on the cheek following a summit meeting. Jimmy was so happy with whatever Leonid had swindled him out of that he had to kiss the man.
And so I was immensely glad when Reagan was inaugurated. Felt like Americans could hold our heads up again.