I can't remember which site I was looking through when I found a video of President Carter's so called "malaise speech." Now, I'd heard about this speech, and the commentary was usually in the negative. I do recall that President Reagan was seen as the opposite of Carter in that regard. So I took the time actually to listen to what Carter says in the speech, and I was gobsmacked. So much of what he talked about was on the money, and it was stunning to hear it come from someone who sat in the White House.
I now can understand why folks on the right were repulsed by Carter. I also have a better understanding of why people flocked to Reagan, at least to a degree. I think that it was too much for folks to hear what Carter was saying. I heard things in that speech that echo loudly today in our current politics and our current crises. But who wants to hear that. Americans are particularly turned off by looking in the mirror at the realities of our country. I am sure that Carter's words, even listened to now, always will piss off people from the right.
2 comments:
It wasn't just folks on the right that were repulsed by Carter--he lost overwhelmingly. I came across this piece on Carter several years ago and found it insightful. From a journalist that used work for him:The Passionless Presidency in The Atlantic by James Fallows--just google it.
Note that I am not really talking about his presidency. I am focused on that speech. It is usually cited as the reason why folks abandoned Carter, a last straw, if you will. In listening too it, I heard things that have indeed come to pass.
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