He does, however, lack the intellectual capacity (and memory) to recall and know that James E. Carter's pitifully desperate diplomatic responses to the "hostage crisis" (including one weakly conceived rescue attempt) clearly empowered and emboldened the regime.
Mister Paul also represses the memory that the same insane iranian regime understood that Ronald Reagan would not tolerate further extortion (meaning that a military solution was doubtlessly at hand); and that this led to the iranians' releasing the hostages just before Ronald Reagan's inauguration.
History therefore potties on Ron Paul's naive assertion.
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A slight correction because I remember the event so clearly. I was in college at the time and we were watching this historic event on split screen television: Reagan was being sworn in on the left side, the aircraft loaded with hostages was on the tarmac at Tehran Airport on the right side. A single Iranian guard with signal batons in each hand was standing in front of the plane preventing a take off. As soon as Reagan completed the oath of office, the guard stepped aside and gave the plane the signal to taxi.
The Iranians held Carter to the utmost contempt. They did not want to give him the satisfaction of seeing the hostages released on his watch. You think it would have made an impression on him. His activities since showed that he learned nothing.
CBS Version of the events of January 20, 1981 which tries to credit Carter with freeing the hostages.
Part 2 of the CBS coverages where they sheepishly admit "not yet."
Part 5 of the coverage. Reagan is sworn in. He begins his inagural speech.
CBS reports the release on the evening news . . . as if there was nothing to do with the timing. Reagan shows class by asking Carter to fly to Germany to greet the hostages in Germany on his behalf.
If you time the 12:41 p.m. take-off time announced on CBS news to the actual timing of the swearing in of the You-Tube clips, it is very clearly shortly after the swearing in.