How Did Jimmy Carter's Religion Influence His Foreign Policy?

The Hostage Crisis in the late 1970s was considered one of Carter’s biggest failures. More than 60 members of the United States Embassy were taken hostage in Tehran. Their capturers were mere Iranian Students who were able to keep them captive for 444 days ("Jimmy Carter", 2016). This event portrayed President Carter as inept (“Jimmy Carter”, 2009). He did not negotiate their release and the rescue attempt the government tried failed. A group of student had held American citizens for over a year and nothing much was done about it. This was one of the most undermining events of Carter’s Presidential career and an embarrassment to America (Fink, 2002). Carter’s private negotiations with Panama about the canal led to more mistrust of the American citizens. They thought he was going to simply give it away without thinking about the consequences for America. Once again he lost more respect and distrust from his country (“Jimmy Carter”,

Furthermore, the Shah purchased billions of dollars worth of weapons of security from the US. In 1979 the realm was overthrown by extreme Islam’s that were followers of Ayatollah Khomeini. The intention of the Iranian students was to display their displeasure against the Shah. Their demand was the return of the Shah for a trial followed by his death. In addition, they asked that the US stay out of their country’s affairs. Carter’s approach required the safeguarding of American hostages but also guaranteed an alliance with Iran. Carter’s tactics on the situation had devastating effects on his run for re-election (Hamilton, 1982).

This novel explains the importance of Reagan’s foreign policy and how the American exceptionalism displayed by Reagan and his policies allowed for peace.

The election of 1980 marked a ‘new political era’ that was ushered in by President Reagan and that followed on through the presidencies of George H. W. Bush and William Jefferson Clinton. These presidents were inaugurated at different times and succeeded the successes and the failures of their predecessors. Having came from different political backgrounds and having unique political and social beliefs, Bush, Reagan, and Clinton can only be analyzed through their foreign policies, domestic policies, achievements as well as shortcomings, and legacies.

On David Farber 's book Taken Hostage, Farber informs us about the Iran Hostage Crisis and America 's First Encounter with Radical Islam. This book tells us how the United States and Iran got into conflict, leading to the Iranians holding American Embassy members hostage as revenge for them feeling betrayed by the United States. It also informs us about other events that occurred in a decade that caused the United States many problems. Farber talked about all the events that lead to the Iranian Hostage Crisis. November 4, 1979, seizure of the United States embassy in Tehran and the hostage of four hundred and forty four days following, were the first steps leading up to the perpetual War on Terror. Farber believes the failure from American policymakers and more specifically from President Carter, to identify the severity of the crisis made for the prolonged crisis. The sheer ineptitude of Carter administration was the cost of the US to lose it’s way economically, culturally, politically and even military. Carter struggled to respond to the impulses of Islamic fundamentalism within the prevailing Cold War paradigm. They saw the real battle as against secular modernism and they recognized that the US was the major force spreading this cultural and political belief throughout the world. The media misrepresentations of the struggle and mass media manipulation of Americans played on the peoples emotions. Although Carter was popular at the beginning of his presidency, this began

November 4, 1979, seizure of the United States embassy in Tehran and the hostage of four hundred and forty-four days following, were the first steps leading up to the perpetual War on Terror. In the book Taken Hostage by David Farber informs about the Iran Hostage Crisis and the First Encounter with Radical Islam. United States and Iran got into conflict, leading to the Iranians holding American Embassy members hostage as revenge for them feeling betrayed by the United States. It also informs us about other events that occurred in a decade that caused the United States many problems. Farber believes the failure of American policymakers and more specifically from President Carter, to identify the severity of the crisis made for the prolonged crisis. The sheer ineptitude of the Carter administration was the cost of the US to lose it’s way economically, culturally, politically and even military. Carter struggled to respond to the impulses of Islamic fundamentalism within the prevailing Cold War paradigm. They saw the real problem as against modernism and they knew that the US was the major force spreading this belief throughout the world. The media misrepresentations of the struggle and mass media manipulation of Americans played on the peoples emotions. Although Carter was popular at the beginning of his presidency, this began to change when he was unable to solve economic problems and was unsuccessful in negotiating the release of the American hostages in Iran.

Ronald Reagan is often regarded as one of the best presidents of the United States of America. He is rewarded with restoring hope to the American people, breaking down the Soviet Union, reviving the American economy, and reestablishing trust between the American people and the American government. Much less known to the American people is the fact of how religious Regan was. In Paul Kengor’s book God and Ronald Reagan: a Spiritual Life, Kengor explores just how spiritual Regan was not only during his presidency, but during his entire life and how it led to success in Regan’s life.

America faced its greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression. Greatly influenced by his devout Christian mother, she taught him that the most important knowledge concerned right and wrong. Reagan believed there was a Devine plan and purpose for everyone. His mother taught him to see the best in people, to help those less fortunate, and to keep an optimistic attitude even in tough situations. Reagan had a deep faith in God and belief in the fundamentals of Christianity (D’Souza 26, 38-39, 214). The way he related to people made them feel like he was their friend (Noonan 171). He stood firm on the moral issue of abortion and voiced his beliefs when he stated that it was a “…wound in our national conscience” (D’Souza 212). Reagan believed in Americans working in unity. Citizens should be a part of communities that work together to improve their lives. In fact, he praised people that voluntary supported “…church, charity, culture, art and education” with gifts (D’Souza 117). At the beginning of his presidency, Reagan challenged Americans to "begin an era of national renewal” (The Reagan Presidency).

Ronald Wilson Reagan, born February 6, 1911, served the United States as the 40th president from 1981 to 1989. Reagan was the first and only movie actor elected to office. During his two-terms in office, Reagan had many accomplishments; cutting taxes, strengthened and increased national defense spending, and through foreign policy pursued “peace through strength.” (Freidel & Sidey, 2006). The primary strength Reagan possessed in office was his oratory skills, in which he was dubbed “The Great Communicator”. The presidency of Ronald Reagan corresponded with a “long period of dramatic economic growth and the beginning of a momentous change in international relations.” (Brinkley, 2002). Through legislation, Reagan stimulated the

To start of, he and his cabinet administration started to tweak the foreign policy for people outside the United States lacking human rights. " Human rights is the soul of our foreign policy, because human rights is the very soul of our sense of nationhood" (BrainyQuote, Web). Words like this shows how much Jimmy Carter cares about human rights. Next of, Jimmy Carter informed the press about women abuse.

I decided to read the “Crisis of Confidence” speech by President Carter, as I was in high school during this period of history. As a young man, during this period of history, I along with my peers, was too busy with life (school, work, volunteering, sports, and girls) to really pay attention, or watch, read or listen to anything of a political nature. I recall the general mood of displeasure of the times, but have blocked much of it from my memory, choosing like most people, to only remember the good times.

Ronald Reagan’s influence in conservatism can be analyzed in Ideals and Ideologies through three different texts which are each three different speeches. The first is his Inaugural Address, the second is a speech given at an annual Evangelical Christian convention, and the third is his Farewell Address given after his second term as the President of the United States. These three texts are rooted in strong references to foundational ideologies of the establishment of the United States in the first place. He uses these ideals to draw upon a sense of American patriotism seen from America’s birth, to create somewhat of a conservative revival or rebirth.

Reagan believed that the world could attain peace through military preparedness, antithetical to Jimmy Carter’s beliefs. During Ronald Reagan’s presidency, he focused on economic growth as he believed that it allowed for national freedom. His nationalist perspective proposes that the United States’ national interest should be above others. The focus of economics to benefit only America contradicts with Jimmy Carter’s foundations because Ronald Reagan does not recognize the citizens in need. His lack of acknowledgment for global human rights and foreign interests caused a dispute in the nation because economic gains do not secure a sustained quality of life.

While he was president, political scientist Paul Kengor notes in his book a "spiritual journey,"Reagan's religious faith was, at best, dismissed or ridiculed." But as Kengor states decisively, the criticisms couldn't be any further from the truth: Reagan's belief in God only helped make him more confident in not just the small

Ronald Reagan’s speech “Evil Empire” was given in front of the National Convention of Evangelicals on March 8, 1983. The National Convention of Evangelicals was a big enough platform for Reagan to convey his message to the citizens of the United States and the world. Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, served his presidency during the reign of the Soviet Union. Reagan established his credibility throughout the speech, through quoting many different individuals such as, C.S. Lewis, Abraham Lincoln, and many others. Along with using quotes, Reagan also used statistics and facts to back up his messages. Reagan’s objective was to inform and persuade not only the citizens of the United States, but the rest of the world, about the cruel ideologies of the Soviet Union, abortion, and infanticide.