Mediocre President, Great Former President
The general consensus among unbiased historians is that Jimmy Carter was a mediocre president. The fiercest of his opponents always tried to make his period in office look like a complete failure. This does Carter a great injustice. He was a decent, socially concerned, somewhat moralizing man. His presidency met with a hopeless economic climate, and it’s unlikely a Republican would have made better job of it. His administration came with decent legislation, but had trouble getting it trough Congress. As far as foreign policy is concerned, Carter had some huge personal successes, including enduring peace between Egypt and Israel. Nevertheless just as often, he also acted hesitant and ambivalent.
After being voted out of office and a relative young age, 56 years old, Carter became one of the most energetic and highly regarded former U.S. Presidents ever. As head of the Carter-centre he travelled over the world to promote peace, human rights and development aid. For this he was awarded the Nobel Peace Price in 2000. The role of moral and authoritative elder statesman obviously suited Carter better, than the office of the President.