Christina’s Common Sense

Whenever I read a conservative book, I like to put on my liberal hat (yes, I do have one) and see how well the author can convince me. So the question for Steven F Hayward in The Real Jimmy Carter was: could he convince me, a diehard hemophiliac liberal Jimmy Carter lover that the object of my admiration is detrimental to my country?

The answer, sadly, was not really. While Hayward’s book is easy to read, not terribly long, and a well-done work, he offers little of which my liberal hat wouldn’t already be aware. I already knew that Carter wasn’t a great president, but that he tried really hard (and as a liberal, that’s what matters to me). The fact that Carter’s good friends with Yasser Arafat is perfectly fine in my book. When Hayward criticizes Carter’s criticizing the Bush administration, I see that as Carter just doing his job. Hayward said almost nothing to dissuade me from my adoration of St. Jimmy.

However, when I took off my liberal hat and put on my conservative one, Hayward did a great job. Despite his inability to persuade my inner liberal, he really does marshal good evidence and arguments in his defense (and that shouldn’t count against him; what do such things matter to a liberal?). He cites unflattering characterizations of Carter by his White House and campaign staffers, plus contemporary news accounts of Carter’s meddling with current affairs, both of which are excellent insights into Carter. These debunk the perception of Carter as a righteous saint and show him instead to be a self-righteous loser.

So on the conservative end of things, Hayward hits a home run. On the liberal end, he walks to first. Still, The Real Jimmy Carter isn’t a bad read, if you’re already convinced that Carter was an awful president and are just looking for some affirmation. Or if your history prof happens to assign it.