By Halle Brindley – Opinion Section Editor 

Jimmy Carter was the 39th president of the United States and his death on Dec. 29, 2024, invoked a public rise of appreciation, portraying him as an especially important figure. Many Americans know him as a friendly face in the Oval Office, but what made Carter’s presidency so profound?

Carter was the longest-living president, reaching triple-digit status at 100 years old. He served in the U.S. Navy and became a peanut farmer afterwards. His website details information on peanuts and methods to plant and harvest the popular legume. Carter was for the peanuts and the people, advocating for human rights and the prosperity of peace long before he became president. 

In 1979, Carter played a pivotal role in the Camp David Accords, a series of political agreements between former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, former Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, which created the framework for a historic peace treaty between Israel and Egypt. The significance of this can be simplified: this was the first time an Arab nation had officially recognized the nation of Israel. 

The year before this, Carter signed the Revenue Act of 1978, which reduced individual income taxes. Additionally, this act created Flexible Spending Accounts, allowing employees to obtain reimbursement for medical expenses from untaxed income dollars. 

In 1977, Carter and Panamanian Chief of Government Omar Torrijos signed the Panama Canal Treaty and Neutrality Treaty. This treaty provided the nation of Panama with eventual full control over the Panama Canal and declared the canal to be accessible to all nations. 

The following year, he established the government agency, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), whose aim is to help people before, during, and after disasters. 

In the same year as the Camp David Accords, the Second Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT II) was signed by Carter and former General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Brezhnev, to limit and control the number of nuclear weapons that could be manufactured by both countries. 

After his presidency, he continued to advocate for the policies he championed in office. “In 1994, the former president assisted the U.S. government settle a tension-filled nuclear weapons dispute with North Korea, showing how committed and valuable he was to the United States government and the rest of the world” (UVA Miller Center). In 2010, Carter sought the successful release of a captive U.S. citizen in Pyongyang, ending the punishment imposed by the North Korean government.

In his private life, he and his wife “would hang Ziploc bags out to dry, a nod to their experience with the Great Depression” (The Hill). Carter’s grandson Jason Carter noted that “the 39th president was the same man in public as he was in private” (The Hill). 

It is Carter we are to credit for the U.S. government’s increased focus on human rights. Carter both planted and harvested foreign relations and peaceful measures that continue to be felt today. 

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Payton Langevin