Jimmy Carter's Presidency Was Cut Short by Crisis, but His Post-White House Life Made Him an Icon

When Jimmy Carter won the 1976 Democratic presidential nomination, he was worlds away from a typical politician. But the underdog who went on to win the presidency after unseating a first-term president would later find himself in a similar situation, after numerous crises unraveled his administration and hammered his popularity among the American people.

Carter — who died Sunday, Dec. 29, at the age of 100 — grew up on a peanut farm before attending the Naval Academy and working as an engineer. He began his political career in Georgia's state Senate, later winning an election for governor before eyeing the White House.

Against the odds, Carter secured both the Democratic nomination and the presidency itself in 1976, winning a tight race against incumbent Gerald R. Ford, who came to the presidency following the resignation of Richard Nixon.

Then the small-town peanut farmer found himself mired in numerous crises almost immediately after taking office.

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During his four years in office, Carter's administration battled inflation and record-high interest rates — but a whole manner of controversies would eclipse even some of the most challenging economic trends.

In 1979, Carter's experience in nuclear engineering would come into public view with the partial meltdown of a reactor at the Three Mile Island nuclear plant, located on the Susquehanna River in Londonderry Township, Pennsylvania.

With plant workers exposed to unhealthy levels of radiation, public trust in nuclear power began to erode, and Carter paid a visit to assess the damage up close.

"I will be personally responsible for thoroughly informing the American people about this particular incident and the status of nuclear safety in the future," he said in remarks to reporters following his visit, announcing a presidential commission to investigate the incident.

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That same year would see even more headlines about energy after the Iranian Revolution led to a drop in oil production which, in turn, saw the world in the grips of an energy crisis.

The crisis would soon overlap with a 1980 recession — one the Carter administration tried to combat by making tax and health care reforms. But negotiations, even with those in his own Democratic party, stymied, and the attempts were largely unsuccessful.

While Carter struggled to manage the recession and energy crisis at home, international events would soon take center stage.

The most challenging of all the international ordeals for the Carter administration would begin on Nov. 4, 1979, when Iranian militants stormed the United States Embassy in Tehran and took approximately seventy Americans captive.

The hostage crisis consumed the Carter administration for 14 months, as the then-president "pursued a policy of restraint that put a higher value on the lives of the hostages than on American retaliatory power or protecting his own political future," according to the Carter Presidential Library.

But Carter was unable to resolve the crisis diplomatically. In April 1980, an attempt to rescue the 52 remaining hostages ended in disaster when the mission was aborted due to mechanical problems on three of the eight helicopters being used.

The chaos of the Iranian hostage crisis would ultimately consume his presidency and his life, with Carter writing in his 1982 memoir Keeping Faith: "Of course, their lives, safety, and freedom were the paramount considerations, but there was more to it. I wanted to have my decisions vindicated."

He continued: "It was very likely that I had been defeated and would soon leave office as President because I had kept these hostages and their fate at the forefront of the world's attention, and had clung to a cautious and prudent policy in order to protect their lives during the preceding fourteen months. Before God and my fellow citizens, I wanted to exert every ounce of my strength and ability during these last few days to achieve their liberation."

By the end of his term, Carter's approval rating hovered at just 34%, averaging worse than even Ford's or Nixon's before him.

In 1980, Carter lost his re-election bid to Republican Ronald Reagan in a 1980 landslide that took place on the anniversary of the hostages being seized.

Related: How Jimmy Carter's Presidency Was Really 'Ahead of His Time,' According to New Documentary

The day of Reagan's 1981 inauguration — just minutes after Carter's term ended — the 14-month hostage nightmare would finally be over, with the U.S. freeing some $8 billion in frozen Iranian assets and the 52 American hostages finally being freed.

Carter later admitted to feeling "a sense of relief" to be free of presidential duties, writing in his White House diary, which was later published as a memoir: "On the inaugural platform, my feelings were of regret that I had lost the election, but a sense of relief to be free of the responsibilities for a while."

Related: How Past Presidents Spent Their Time After Leaving the White House

But even after losing reelection, Carter wrote of his concern that "at the last minute, the hostages might not be released."

"I watched the ceremonies as a somewhat detached spectator without any emotional feelings," Carter wrote. "I thought that the speech was remarkable hackneyed, nothing new, just a collection of campaign material. I was glancing back at the Secret Service agent when the MC said, 'Would the president and First Lady please come forward.' I had an involuntary inclination to stand up with Rosalynn, but I realized he was talking about the Reagans."

The hostages were, indeed, released, with Carter himself traveling to West Germany to greet the Americans on their way home, just one day after he left the White House.

Related: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter 'Talked About the Old Days' with Joe and Jill Biden During Ga. Visit

While he left office as an unpopular president, Carter's legacy would ultimately be one of diplomacy, service and humility.

Years after being president, Carter devoted much of his attention to diplomacy and advocacy overseas in places like Haiti and North Korea — work that led to him being awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 2002.

"The bond of our common humanity is stronger than the divisiveness of our fears and prejudices," Carter said while accepting the award. "God gives us the capacity for choice. We can choose to work together for peace … and we must."

Related: Jimmy Carter’s Faith ‘Grounding Him’ 3 Months Into Hospice Care, Grandson Says: ‘It’s as Good as It Can Be’

In their later years, Carter and Rosalynn — who otherwise lived modestly back in their longtime Plains, Ga., home — traveled around the globe building houses and fighting river blindness in developing countries like Nepal and South Sudan.

A large portion of that work was done through The Carter Center, which focuses on issues that were close to the former president's heart: establishing health and agricultural programs in poor nations, and helping to prevent and resolve conflicts and monitor elections.

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Carter remained active in his own community of River Plains well into his 90s, teaching Sunday school and regularly volunteering alongside Rosalynn with Habitat for Humanity.

As the longest-living president with the longest-lasting marriage for any first couple, Carter ultimately became a beloved fixture of U.S. history, catching a glimpse of how he would be remembered during his nearly two years in hospice care, when world leaders and everyday Americans on all points of the political spectrum sent an outpouring of love and well wishes his way.

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