Jimmy Carter Talks 2012 Elections, Calls Supreme Court 'Citizens United' Decision One Of The 'Stupidest' Ever

At the 30th annual Carter Town Hall on Wednesday, former President Jimmy Carter told his audience he thought the Supreme Court decision to roll back restrictions on corporate spending in federal campaigns was "one of the stupidest rulings ever consummated or perpetrated on the American people."

The Citizens United ruling was decided 5-4 in 2010 and received criticism for allowing a flood of special interest money in politics. President Barack Obama was a major critic, saying the decision was "a major victory for big oil, Wall Street banks, health insurance companies and the other powerful interests that marshal their power every day in Washington to drown out the voices of everyday Americans."

Carter also discussed the 2012 election and the atmosphere in Washington during the talk, noting that he would not be interested in being president today, The Emory Wheel reports.

When asked about the 2012 presidential election, Carter said he has not had "any time to waste" on the Republican debates, but noted it is his belief that Rick Perry is leading the race so far. He added that the Texas governor's doubts on the theory of evolution and position on Social Security would keep him from winning the GOP nomination.

Despite saying he wouldn't side with any particular presidential candidate, Carter did say he would be happy to see Mitt Romney win the primary during an appearance on MSNBC's "The Rachel Maddow Show" on Thursday.

"I'm not taking a position, but I would be very pleased to see him win the Republican nomination," Carter said of Romney, adding that he doesn't "think anybody's going to beat Obama next year."

WATCH: Highlights from the Carter Town Hall

 

 

Comments

[Linda Edmondson]

11:56 PM on 10/12/2011

Pres. Carter isn't the only one against the SCOTUS decision of Citizens United ruling. Ask evey other person you meet who knows what it is. Ask any one who wants to get money out of the political arena.
The way we raise our childern is coming to us now, we spoil them, forget to teach real human values, or just choose not too, [they will show signs of weakness], like courage, honesty, tolerance, what the meaning of hypocrisy is, maybe it's because we didn't learn them well ourselves. Can you say we have a better Country.

I here the tea party say they want their Country back, It has'nt gone anywhere, we're still here it just otten ugly, our people have forgotten values, and tolerance of there fellow human beings. Something called greed has come in.

[BigBearcatBill]

01:54 AM on 10/11/2011

Jimmy, the most honest president in my lifetime, not born before Ike's years. I don't know if you ever though of this but I have said it many times to friends who I cannot remember ever disagreeing even if they did not think much of his presidency - After the dishonesty of the Nixon administration and fact that Ford pardoned Nixon which unfortunately taints Ford although he may have been most honest republican president since Ike, if the USA did not have a real honest presidency right after the Nixon/Ford years of deceit, it would have devasted any trust in the honesty and fairness in government, congress included.

[nightwind928]

10:52 AM on 10/04/2011

Carter made more than one bad decision in his term as President. But on this one he's right on the money. This ruling allows foreign interest, and biased and corrupt corporations through shadowy 501-c-3 corporations, and P A C's to influence the outcome of elections in America. No foreign government should have any say, whatsoever, in any election on American soil...no exceptions. And no billionaire should be able to overtly or covertly leverage the outcome to further their own greedy agenda at the expense of the quality of life of the American people.

[mrgwashere]

07:45 PM on 09/20/2011

I would venture a guess that Carter would like to see Romney win the nomination because he knows the t-party will never go for it. They would have to back Perry. If they couldn't get him on all the states' ballots in time, they could run him as an Independent... it would be the Ross Perot presidential run all over again. The cons would be split between Romney and Perry while Obama would be a guaranteed winner. So yeah... I agree. I hope good ol' Mitt wins the Repub nomination. There couldn't be better news than that.

[MNTom]

09:14 AM on 09/30/2011

If Mitt wins the nomination. He wins the White House.

[robert horwitz]

07:04 PM on 09/20/2011

I have heard every member of the Current and many members of past Supreme Courts give talks and be interviewed. Of the sitting members today Stephen Breyer is my favorite. If a Philosopher had decided to study and become a Constitutional Law and then decided to become a Stand Up Comedian this is Stephen Breyer. My least favorite of the current sitting Justices is Clarence Thomas. As tough as it is to get rid of a sitting Federal Justice in his case its worth a try. The man is completely corrupt.

[isayfew]

09:33 PM on 09/19/2011

Without citizen united the political scene will so much better but still not fair ,
let 'sum up. The us chamber of commerce,the corporations,the tea party, the wealthy tiny segment of the population .all with enough money to buy the elections on one side of the ring and the rest of us in the other corner. sounds fair to you?

[Jeff Norman]

04:57 PM on 09/19/2011

There’s nothing inherently persuasive about expressing disapproval. Critics of the Citizens United decision aren’t to be taken seriously unless and until they explain what restrictions would even the playing field, and who should be deprived of freedom of the press rights.

[isayfew]

09:34 PM on 09/19/2011

i can guess who you are working for

[Jeff Norman]

11:15 PM on 09/19/2011

CIA, obviously.

[JDMullen]

01:28 PM on 09/24/2011

No. Critics of the decision need only point out the incompetent method through which the decision was arrived at: taking the LOSING arguments of a previous case and holding them above winning arguments in complete defiance of existing legal precedent. This is what Conservatives refer to as "judicial activism." Why is it that few if any have spoken out against this decision? Could it be that they are REALLY concerned only with getting their way and not at all with the principles that they claim to espouse?

[Jeff Norman]

01:55 AM on 09/26/2011

No need to reply to your questions. As you say, all that is needed is for critics to "point out the incompetent method through which the decision was arrived at."

Thank you for your brilliant analysis.

What was I thinking?

[Littlewords]

12:49 PM on 09/19/2011

...done by arguably the w0rst Chief Justice in our court's long history as he deliberately worked this onto the SCOTUS docket after Sandra Day O'Connor stepped down (she's revealed that corp tool Roberts had approached her with the scheme and she said her vote would be No). Once she was out, activist corp tool Roberts put this on the docket and drove this h0rrid Right Wing Corporate Activist ruling leveraging an errant clerk entry on an old prior case (personhood of corporations is not what the Justices in the prior case had stated...the clerk however added the superfluous and errant definition) which Roberts used as the fodder for his Citizens United case along with his novel and off base notion that 'money always equates to free speech.' Combined with the cr@zed notion that a corporation is a person gives us the disaster0us but deliberately concocted case ruling. A ruling that hist0rians could well note as one of the nation's great democratic Gov of/by/for the people downfall factors....a truly tragic ruling.

[Dr Moon]

12:29 PM on 09/19/2011

Correction Left-Wing Organizations

[Cheryl2]

11:03 AM on 09/19/2011

The easiest way to settle this whole thing is to legally get rid of corporations, everyone at the head is personally liable for breaking any law and dealing with any debt. That is why they say they get the big bucks, why should corporate laws protect them ?

[LeaderofMen]

10:28 AM on 09/19/2011

This is certainly not news.

I've been posting how incredibly stupid that SCOTUS decision is since Feb 2010.

[nativemama]

11:25 AM on 09/19/2011

It definitely is NOT news....but some of us don't mind hearing about it many times. It reminds us of the world we are in. We tend to forget too easily being Americans and all.
So don't give up saying it. I repeat myself many times on certain things. The annoyed ones have the right to skip over to the next comment.

[layman]

12:10 PM on 10/10/2011

If you're for the corrupt corporations, that's a brilliant move of the Supreme. However, if your're for the people and the nation as a whole, it's a stinkingly corrupt move of the highest court of the land. It's not really about being stupid or not.

[RockyMissouri]

10:04 AM on 09/19/2011

He is, without a doubt, a genuine human being.....a role model for all of us, and an outstanding American..!

[behavingbadly]

10:12 AM on 09/19/2011

... and the kind of a honest-to-god christian that even Gandhi would have admired—one who lives his beliefs every day.

[RockyMissouri]

04:58 PM on 09/19/2011

Absolutely....and a thoroughly decent man..!

[Jeff Norman]

10:42 PM on 09/19/2011

An admirable man, yes, but like most critics of the Citizens United decision, Carter has failed to address the two most pertinent questions:

What spending restrictions would level the playing field?

Who is and who isn’t entitled to freedom of the press rights?

So what Carter said is just an unpersuasive expression of disapproval.

[chas52man]

12:51 PM on 09/19/2011

The WORST president in our history? "role model"? Gettin too much moonshine are we?

[MNTom]

04:35 PM on 09/19/2011

Sorry but Bush (W) was the worst.

[RockyMissouri]

05:01 PM on 09/19/2011

Allow me to guess... By your rudeness, I would say you're a republican.....

[justsaying101]

09:12 AM on 09/19/2011

Jimmy needs to shut his trap!

[SPQR1052]

09:38 AM on 09/19/2011

Was it the final sentence by Presidnet Carter  that struck a nerve? 

It should  becasue he spealks the truth.

[nativemama]

11:27 AM on 09/19/2011

Nope. He needs to keep it open. It annoys the hell out out of the unGodly ones among us.

[InTheSouth]

04:47 PM on 09/19/2011

As an atheist, I resent that remark. I have the utmost respect for Pres. Carter and always have. But perhaps you were speaking in regard to the ungodly christians.

[Pleneras]

07:44 AM on 09/19/2011

The wisest president ever. Brilliant man who this country did not deserve. A true christian if there ever was one.

[Pollytiques]

10:14 AM on 09/19/2011

And you saw what the Non-Christians did to him. But they would not now be in the position to control so much of this country if they hadn't gotten rid of him and paved the way for Reagan. And look how they did it. Look at what Carter has done since he left office. Then look at what the Bushes have done. You can certainly distinguish the honest from the dishonest by the lifestyles they have after they leave office.

[RockyMissouri]

10:19 AM on 09/19/2011

Indeed! ......and who was a godly man, yet believed in 'separation of church and state!' A rare man among men...

[nativemama]

11:33 AM on 09/19/2011

You talking "rare"? A very best example. To not show off when you are off to teach Sunday school? Today, that kind of person would say.....look, I have my American pin on and am going to church today. How can I not care for other human beings? They just love taking care of themselves and want us out of the way as we screw them up. Really.

[gharison43]

03:27 AM on 09/19/2011

Much like the Patriot Act, it's a lousy bill aimed at screwing the American public, but named so nicely that most Americans won't think twice about it.

[2012TP]

07:37 PM on 09/19/2011

Hey I agree, to bad Obama supported extending provisions of it and not letting it just die.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/15/obama-supports-extending-_n_288054.html