John LeBoutillier
Friday May 11, 2001

No President in recent memory failed on a grander scale that Carter. And no President wants to be compared to him. But what these ‘Bush allies’ were referring to was the malaise and low spirits engendered among the population when the cost of gas at the pump combines with a slowing economy to eat away at our overall national confidence.

And who bears the brunt of that negative feeling? The man in the Oval Office.

Carter’s presidency was ruined by just such a scenario. ‘Stagflation’ – a combination of inflation and a stagnant economy – joined with OPEC’s huge price hikes to cause mayhem here at home. Gas lines were frequent and we resorted to ‘even-odd’ days when you could buy gas.

Carter was seen as weak and incapable of getting a handle on the problem.

The final straw was the seizing of the hostages in Iran in November 1979. At that point America really was ‘Held Hostage’ – as the ABC precursor to Nightline was named. We were held hostage not just by the Ayatollah Khomeini but also by the deteriorating economy. Politically Jimmy Carter thus faced attacks from all sides. Ted Kennedy came at him from the Left – splitting the Democratic Party. And, sitting there in the fall, was Ronald Reagan – who ultimately won the second biggest landslide in history.

Bush’s allies today are projecting ahead a bit when they compare him to anyone; after all, we have just passed the first 112 days!

However, one fact is inescapable: rising energy prices threaten the Bush economic plan. The much-vaunted tax cut – a huge political success for Bush – will be mitigated by an explosion to $3 gas at-the-pump this summer.

Voters will not see the tax cut for months or until next year. But they will feel the pain of paying through the nose this summer.

The Democrats are going to make a clear argument: Bush and Cheney are both from oil companies and have allowed their old cronies to run amok since the Inauguration.

It is vital that the Bush Administration – perhaps too focused on the tax cut – get ahold of this energy situation immediately.

A year ago, during the early primaries, G.W. Bush said that he would "get on the phone and get OPEC to keep prices low.”

Well, he needs to do that now.

None of the proposals to be announced by Bush and Cheney next week to increase production can or will have any impact in the short term. New plants, new refineries and new sources of production all take years to come on line.

Bush and the nation do not have years of patience with blackouts, brownouts and $3 per gallon gas.

It is way too early to paint G.W. Bush with any brush. But just the image of being labeled "another Jimmy Carter” should scare the Bush team into taking executive action to avoid this short-term energy crisis – before it ruins his presidency.