Energy Talk By Meg Jacobs and Julian E. Zelizer
Almost 29 years ago, on July 15, 1979, President Jimmy Carter delivered what is considered one of the worst speeches of his career. Americans were struggling with an enormous energy crisis. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries had jacked up prices again. A majority of gas stations in America did not have sufficient fuel, and those that did were charging far higher prices than one year before. Carter's energy plan, which took a long time to pass Congress, had not calmed the roiling issue.
After meeting with all kinds of experts at Camp David, Carter gave a speech to millions of Americans. He implored citizens to accept that they lived in an age of limits. He called for self-sacrifice and diminished consumption.
While the speech might have touched on the real problems underlying the crisis, it was deemed a political failure. Critics complained that the president was lecturing the nation at a time he needed to be offering relief. Presidents should not give sermons but rather solutions. Newspapers were filled with op-ed pieces lambasting the president for blaming Americans for the problem.
Democratic proponents of new energy policies have been trapped in that July moment ever since.....
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We have not yet spanned enough time for history's judgement to be accepted as the truth, but when that time arrives Carter will be seen as a truthteller to selfish and pompous nation.
We shall stick to the truth and leave the lying to the Republicans. They are much better at it than we are.