WASHINGTON (Gray DC) – John Finch worked under Jimmy Carter in the Department of Housing and Urban Development. He knew Carter from the beginning of his career.
He says when he first saw Carter on the campaign trail in 1966, he wasn’t impressed. Finch says he soon changed his mind,
“I kind of made short shrift of the guy, you know, dismissed him as, you know, somebody who probably would not win. I learned never to underestimate the guy again.”
In his unlikely ascent to the White House, Finch says Carter lead with humility.
“He was so much better I think one-on-one as a retail politician that he was a wholesale politician”
He says Carter was also guided by his faith.
“It was always there, a sense of fairness. He taught Sunday school lessons in Plains, Georgia. He came to Washington. He did the same thing at the First Baptist Church”
But what stands out to Finch, is what Carter did when the spotlight of power and the currency of the Presidency faded.
“Personally, I think it’s the inventor of the post-presidency in a way that nobody’s ever thought of. I mean, I know people who were not even fond of Jimmy Carter. But they were so impressed with what he has done compared to any other president. You know, he didn’t go for the multimillion dollar speaking engagements. Like some others we could name”
Instead, he began to build.
“Where is most of the substandard housing in the United States? The answer is in rural areas, it was his region. It was his culture. He understood that there were people, black and white, who did not have running water, indoor plumbing with his own hands and his own nails and his own hammer.”
Following the presidency, Jimmy Carter spent endless hours with Habitat for Humanity.
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