Carter Breaks the Ex-President Code of Silence
It's not exactly the clash of the titans, given their unpopularity, but the dust-up between Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush illustrates some important trends in the modern presidency--and the modern post-presidency.
First of all, what's an ex-president to do? There is no clear role for a former commander in chief, so most of them adhere to an informal code of silence and fade into private life, leaving public affairs to their successors. That's why it was striking for Carter to condemn Bush so harshly over alleged shortcomings in foreign policy. "I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history," Carter said in an interview with the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette published Saturday. In a separate interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation, also broadcast Saturday, Carter criticized outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair for having a "loyal, blind, apparently subservient" relationship with Bush, largely because Blair went along with Bush's "pre-emptive war" with Iraq.
White House spokesman Tony Fratto fired back. "I think it's sad that President Carter's reckless and personal criticism is out there," Fratto said Sunday. "I think it's unfortunate, and I think he is proving to be increasingly irrelevant with these kinds of comments."
The saga continued Monday as Carter retreated, saying his remarks were "careless or misinterpreted." He told NBC's Today that he was attempting to compare Bush's foreign policy only with Richard Nixon's, and his criticism came across as all-encompassing.
Carter is unusual in that he has been active in the public arena since he left office with low job-approval ratings in January 1981, after he lost his bid for re-election to Ronald Reagan. Carter's good works since then, including his efforts at international peacemaking, recently earned him a Nobel Prize. But associates say he has been fuming over what he considers Bush's bad judgment and rush to war.
"It's is an aberration to have a former president take on a successor that way," says a former adviser to an ex-president.
There are now three living ex-presidents--Carter, George H.W. Bush, and Bill Clinton. Clinton has been restrained in criticizing the current president. He leaves that to his wife, Senator Hillary Clinton of New York, who is running for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Similarly, Bush the father also has been restrained in criticizing Clinton, who defeated him in 1992. In fact, the elder Bush has worked on various charitable endeavors with his successor, such as raising money for tsunami relief.
And, of course, the 41st president has nothing but praise for his son, the 43rd.
Will the modern presidential code of silence hold up? Probably not. It's very likely that as former presidents live longer (given the overall trend toward longevity),they will be tempted to get into tangles with their successors as more and more differences of opinion pile up. If they see their images, legacies, or pet projects threatened, they are likely to defend themselves or go on the attack. Just like Jimmy Carter.
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