Carter actually started off fairly strong in office (for him) in 1977-1978, and there was not a terrible economic or foreign crisis like we have today, so some comparisons are tough to make. He really fell apart in 1979-1980, for a slew of well-documented foreign and domestic problems. The reputation he gained for being weak in his first two years fatally undid him in his second two years. One shared characteristic they both have: they both want to lecture Americans on how they need to sacrifice and get used to being second-rate. Of course, that gets old fast with the electorate!
Compare my chart, referenced in post #10, for some interesting comparisons of the “Presidential Crises” for the various Presidents...
Yes. Being lectured by Carter about how “we the people” were stuck in a “malaise” and needed to sacrifice and quit being so spoiled, needed to wear sweaters and turn down the heat . . then Reagan came along and told us “we the people” were more than OKAY, that it was Carter who was stuck in the malaise, that America was dear, a shining city on a hill, the last best hope of mankind for liberty. It wasn’t hard to have REAL HOPE with Reagan, and he came along, knocked Khadafi’s and his ilk’s turbans on crooked, got us out of Carter’s “malaise” and that was it. That’s why those of us who loved Reagan are having a very hard time with Obama’s apparent “destroy America” tour and mission. (I credit the military with freeing the captain and expect Obama to have dropped any pretension of dealing harshly with such terrorists ASAP.)