Carter leaves a significant foreign policy legacy.
Former President Jimmy Carter’s Foreign Policy Legacy
Former President Jimmy Carter’s Foreign Policy Legacy
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter passed away this week at the age of one hundred. A CFR member since 1983, he spoke several times at the Council. CFR experts provide insight into the legacy of Carter in U.S. foreign policy and beyond.
Senior Fellow Ray Takeyh and Gideon Weiss examine how Carter leaves behind a rich and at times confounding foreign policy legacy that eludes any simplistic narrative. Read the analysis
In this Foreign Affairs piece, former National Security Advisor and CFR Distinguished Fellow Thomas E. Donilon reflects on Carter’s contributions to U.S. foreign policy. He asserts that Carter’s death “is a moment for appreciation and reevaluation.” Read more on Foreign Affairs
Carter suffered from the fate of many one-term presidents, who by being defeated are judged to have been unsuccessful. But CFR President Emeritus Richard Haass argues that Carter accomplished more in four years than many presidents do in eight. Read more on Project Syndicate
After Carter’s presidency, the consensus in Washington was often that his foreign policy had been a failure. However, Ambassador Stuart E. Eizenstat, who served as a domestic policy adviser to Carter, argues that “Carter left an enduring and positive foreign policy legacy that few presidents who have served two can match.” Read more on Foreign Affairs
Four decades after he left power, Carter’s presidency is being reevaluated by historians. At CFR in 2021, Kai Bird, author and recent biographer of Carter, explored whether Carter was an underrated foreign policy president. Watch the discussion
Panelists discussed in 2018 the policies and priorities of the Carter administration and the lessons to be learned for U.S. foreign policy today. Watch the discussion
At CFR in 2012, Jimmy Carter discussed his presidency and U.S. foreign policy involving the Panama Canal, the Cold War, Africa, and more. Watch the discussion
