jimmy carter address to the nation on energy

The energy crisis has not yet overwhelmed us, but it will if we do not act quickly. I feel like ordinary people are excluded from political power. On January 14, 1981, President Jimmy Carter delivered a farewell address to the nation, thanking his staff and the American people for the opportunity to serve, warning about the continuing threat . What is being measured is the strength and will of our Nationwhether we can acknowledge a threat and meet a serious challenge together. I do not promise you that this struggle for freedom will be easy. We've always wanted to give our children and our grandchildren a world richer in possibilities than we have had ourselves. Why have we not been able to get together as a nation to resolve our serious energy problem? The seventh principle is that prices should generally reflect the true replacement cost of energy. He also admitted that part of the problem was his failure to provide strong leadership on many issues, particularly energy and oil consumption. It's important that we promote new oil and gas discoveries and increased production by giving adequate prices to the producers. The Arab oil embargo of 1973 sent energy prices soaring, and four years later, the impacts were still rippling through the economy. The second principle is that healthy economic growth must continue. Our decision about energy will test the character of the American people and the ability of the President and the Congress to govern this Nation. Address to the Nation on Energy | The American Presidency Project Jimmy Carter 39th President of the United States: 1977 1981 Address to the Nation on Energy April 18, 1977 Good evening. Moreover, I will soon submit legislation to Congress calling for the creation of this Nation's first solar bank, which will help us achieve the crucial goal of 20 percent of our energy coming from solar power by the year 2000. Carter didn't directly recommend rationing, but it's clear he . Jimmy Carter, Address to the Nation on Energy Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/243395, The American Presidency ProjectJohn Woolley and Gerhard PetersContact, Copyright The American Presidency ProjectTerms of Service | Privacy | Accessibility, Saturday Weekly Addresses (Radio and Webcast) (1639), State of the Union Written Messages (140). Our Nation's economic and political independence is becoming increasingly vulnerable. ", "Don't talk to us about politics or the mechanics of government, but about an understanding of our common good. Each new inventory of world oil reserves has been more disturbing than the last. This is the direct cause of the long lines which have made millions of you spend aggravating hours waiting for gasoline. Along with that money that we transport overseas, we will continue losing American jobs and become increasingly vulnerable to supply interruptions. Demand will overtake production. For the first time in the history of our country a majority of our people believe that the next 5 years will be worse than the past 5 years. If they succeed with this approach, then the burden on the ordinary citizen, who is not organized into an interest group, would be crushing. Our consumption of oil would keep going up every year. ", "You don't see the people enough any more. to use solar energy in more than 2 1/2 million houses. The world now uses about 60 million barrels of oil a day, and demand increases each year about 5 percent. Energy and the National Goals - A Crisis of Confidence - Jimmy Carter : Discuss: Jimmy Carter - Address to the Nation on Energy (April 18, 1977) Discuss: Jimmy Carter - Address to the Nation on Energy (November 8, 1977) Discuss: Jimmy Carter - President Carter's Remarks on Joint Statement at Camp David Summit (September 17, 1978) Discuss But just as we are losing our confidence in the future, we are also beginning to close the door on our past. As a people we know our past and we are proud of it. Whenever you have a chance, say something good about our country. Jimmy Carter: "Solar Photovoltaic Energy Research, Development, and Demonstration Act of 1978 Statement on Signing H.R. 1924) giving one of his fireside chats on energy. They are the ones that we must provide for now. The sixth principle, and the cornerstone of our policy, is to reduce demand through conservation. This means that just to stay even we need the production of a new Texas every year, an Alaskan North Slope every 9 months, or a new Saudi Arabia every 3 years. With about the same standard of living, we use twice as much energy per person as do other countries like Germany, Japan, and Sweden. Carter became a one-term president after Reagan defeated him in a blowout victory in 1980, but Carter's political defeat intensified his lifelong quest to know whether he had done his best and . A year later, Ronald Reagan would frame his optimistic . You can help me to develop a national agenda for the 1980's. Both consumers and producers need policies they can count on so they can plan ahead. Our solutions must ask equal sacrifices from every region, every class of people, and every interest group. What can we do? In little more than two decades we've gone from a position of energy independence to one in which almost half the oil we use comes from foreign countries, at prices that are going through the roof. During the past 3 years I've spoken to you on many occasions about national concerns, the energy crisis, reorganizing the Government, our Nation's economy, and issues of war and especially peace. Washington, D.C., has become an island. It unbalances our Nation's trade with other countries. The American Presidency Project (http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=7369). This is one reason that I'm working with the Congress to create a new Department of Energy to replace more than 50 different agencies that now have some control over energy. --to use solar energy in more than 2 1/2 million houses. Two-thirds of our people do not even vote. There should be only one test for this programwhether it will help our country. Our consumption of oil would keep going up every year. The energy crisis is real. If you will join me so that we can work together with patriotism and courage, we will again prove that our great Nation can lead the world into an age of peace, independence, and freedom. During the 1960's, we used twice as much as during the 1950's. ", And this from a religious leader: "No material shortage can touch the important things like God's love for us or our love for one another. The symptoms of this crisis of the American spirit are all around us. The fifth principle is that we must be fair. They want even higher prices than those we've proposed for "new" gas and oil, and they want the higher prices sooner. This has already started. I'm sure that each of you will find something you don't like about the specifics of our proposal. The strength we need will not come from the White House, but from every house in America.". Carter ended by asking for input from average citizens to help him devise an energy agenda for the 1980s. I said 6 months ago that no one would be completely satisfied with this National Energy Plan. We've always had a faith that the days of our children would be better than our own. Point one: I am tonight setting a clear goal for the energy policy of the United States. When President Jimmy Carter addressed the nation on April 18, 1977, the U.S. was in a crisis. Many of these proposals will be unpopular. Ours is the most wasteful nation on Earth. Die Hard also became read more, John Christie, one of Englands most notorious killers, is executed. World consumption of oil is still going up. Because we are now running out of gas and oil, we must prepare quickly for a third change--to strict conservation and to the renewed use of coal and to permanent renewable energy sources like solar power. Democrat Jimmy Carter served as president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. Just as a similar synthetic rubber corporation helped us win World War II, so will we mobilize American determination and ability to win the energy war. I will continue to travel this country, to hear the people of America. The cost will keep going up. Exactly 3 years ago, on July 15, 1976, I accepted the nomination of my party to run for President of the United States. Just as the search for solutions to our energy shortages has now led us to a new awareness of our Nation's deeper problems, so our willingness to work for those solutions in energy can strengthen us to attack those deeper problems. A President is elected for just 4 years, a Senator for 6, and our Representatives in Congress for only 2 years. I have seen the strength of America in the inexhaustible resources of our people. Tonight I want to examine in a broad sense the state of our American Union--how we are building a new foundation for a peaceful and a prosperous world. Both consumers and producers need policies they can count on so they can plan ahead. And now we have a chance again to give the world a positive example. Supplies will be uncertain. ", This kind of summarized a lot of other statements: "Mr. President, we are confronted with a moral and a spiritual crisis.". It will demand that we make sacrifices and changes in every life. These are the goals that we set for 1985: --to reduce the annual growth rate in our energy demand to less than 2 percent; --to reduce gasoline consumption by 10 percent below its. Although the energy crisis and recession were the main topics of conversation, Carter heard from the attendees that Americans were also suffering from a deeper moral and spiritual crisis. We have no choice about that. But if we wait, we will constantly live in fear of embargoes. Above all, they will be fair. We've always believed in something called progress. Copyright 2023. It has been an extraordinary 10 days, and I want to share with you what I've heard. There is something especially American in the kinds of changes that we have to make. But after listening to the American people I have been reminded again that all the legislation in the world can't fix what's wrong with America. One of the most enduring aspects of Jimmy Carter's presidency is his green legacy he embraced environmental stewardship and renewable energy with an . By 1972, we were importing about 30 percent. Sign up now to learn about This Day in History straight from your inbox. I propose the creation of an energy security corporation to lead this effort to replace 2 1/2 million barrels of imported oil per day by 1990. We waste more energy than we import. There are two paths to choose. Will Obama and his ilk learn the lessons of history? Our solutions must ask equal sacrifices from every region, every class of people, and every interest group. Now, these 10 principles have guided the development of the policy that I will describe to you and the Congress on Wednesday night. Three-quarters of them would carry only one person--the driver--while our public transportation system continues to decline. Our cars would continue to be too large and inefficient. Too few of our utility companies will have switched to coal, which is our most abundant energy source. Our people are losing that faith, not only in government itself but in the ability as citizens to serve as the ultimate rulers and shapers of our democracy. Conservation helps us solve both problems at once. We must deal with the energy problem on a war footing. But I think most of you realize that a policy which does not ask for changes or sacrifices would not be an effective policy at this late date. to establish a strategic petroleum reserve of one billion barrels, more than a 6-months supply; Little by little we can and we must rebuild our confidence. The sixth principle, and the cornerstone of our policy, is to reduce demand through conservation. Jimmy Carter was born on October 1, 1924, in the farming community of Plains, Georgia. With the exception of preventing war, this is the greatest challenge that our country will face during our lifetime. We can regain our confidence. Every $5 billion increase in oil imports costs us 200,000 American jobs. - Jimmy Carter, Energy Address to the Nation, April 18, 1977. The generation-long growth in our dependence on foreign oil will be stopped dead in its tracks right now and then reversed as we move through the 1980's, for I am tonight setting the further goal of cutting our dependence on foreign oil by one-half by the end of the next decade--a saving of over 4 1/2 million barrels of imported oil per day. It's fitting that I'm speaking to you on an election day, a day which reminds us that you, the people, are the rulers of this Nation, that your Government will be as courageous and effective and fair as you demand Our decision about energy will test the character of the American people and the ability of the President and the Congress to govern. And in each of those decades, more oil was consumed than in all of man's previous history combined. Jimmy Carter. These are the goals that we set for 1985: Jimmy Carter Has 'Still Got Some Time In Him,' So There's Still Time to Speak Ill of Him. On July 15, 1979, amid stagnant economic growth, high inflation, and an energy crisis, Jimmy Carter delivered a televised address to the American people. The Arab oil embargo of 1973 sent energy prices soaring, and four years later, the impacts were still rippling through the economy. The confidence that we have always had as a people is not simply some romantic dream or a proverb in a dusty book that we read just on the Fourth of July. Those citizens who insist on driving large, unnecessarily powerful cars must expect to pay more for that luxury. We have the most skilled work force, with innovative genius, and I firmly believe that we have the national will to win this war. We simply must have faith in each other, faith in our ability to govern ourselves, and faith in the future of this Nation. It gives us more freedom, more confidence, that much more control over our own lives. The first principle is that we can have an effective and comprehensive energy policy only if the Government takes responsibility for it and if the people understand the seriousness of the challenge and are willing to make sacrifices. But, unfortunately, there are still some who seek personal gain over the national interest. Now, I know that some of you may doubt that we face real energy shortages. This from a young woman in Pennsylvania: "I feel so far from government. We've always been proud of our ingenuity, our skill at answering questions. And then I left Camp David to listen to other Americans, men and women like you. Cunanan had no criminal record before the spring of 1997, when he began a killing read more, During a live television and radio broadcast, President Richard Nixon stuns the nation by announcing that he will visit communist China the following year. And the truth is that you cannot talk about economic problems now or in the future without talking about energy. Our nation's 39 th president, Jimmy Carter, is currently in hospice care. But over those years the subjects of the speeches, the talks, and the press conferences have become increasingly narrow, focused more and more on what the isolated world of Washington thinks is important. place in this century, with the growing use of oil and natural gas. . This is one reason that I'm working with the Congress to create a new Department of Energy to replace more than 50 different agencies that now have some control over energy. What are his proposed solutions? It causes unemployment. Our energy plan will also include a number of specific goals to measure our progress toward a stable energy system. All rights reserved. Play Video. I invited to Camp David people from almost every segment of our society--business and labor, teachers and preachers, Governors, mayors, and private citizens. Now the energy proposal that I made to Congress last April has three basic elements to ensure that it is well balanced. During the 1960's, we used twice as much as during the 1950's. Former President Jimmy Carter (James Earl Carter, Jr.), was the 39 th president of the United States, serving from 1977-1981. Obviously, this cannot continue. We can't substantially increase our domestic production, so we would need to import twice as much oil as we do now. We've always been proud, through our history, of being efficient people. "use strict";(function(){var insertion=document.getElementById("citation-access-date");var date=new Date().toLocaleDateString(undefined,{month:"long",day:"numeric",year:"numeric"});insertion.parentElement.replaceChild(document.createTextNode(date),insertion)})(); FACT CHECK: We strive for accuracy and fairness. We are only cheating ourselves if we make energy artificially cheap and use more than we can really afford. But a common national sacrifice to meet this serious problem should be shared by everyone-some proof that the plan is fair. To further conserve energy, I'm proposing tonight an extra $10 billion over the next decade to strengthen our public transportation systems. It's a problem that we will not be able to solve in the next few years, and it's likely to get progressively worse through the rest of this century. To some degree, the sacrifices will be painful--but so is any meaningful sacrifice. You see every extreme position defended to the last vote, almost to the last breath by one unyielding group or another. Launched in November 1964, Mariner 4 carried a television camera and six other science instruments to study Mars and interplanetary read more, Zebulon Pike, the U.S. Army officer who in 1805 led an exploring party in search of the source of the Mississippi River, sets off with a new expedition to explore the American Southwest. Industry will have to do its part to conserve just as consumers will. They will say that sacrifice is fine as long as other people do it, but that their sacrifice is unreasonable or unfair or harmful to the country. These quotas will ensure a reduction in imports even below the ambitious levels we set at the recent Tokyo summit. This difficult effort will be the "moral equivalent of war," except that we will be uniting our efforts to build and not to destroy. They made possible the age of automobile and airplane travel. Let me try to describe the size and the effect of the problem. It's worse because more waste has occurred and more time has passed by without our planning for the future. Our excessive dependence on OPEC has already taken a tremendous toll on our economy and our people. They want greatly increased prices for "old" oil and gasenergy supplies which have already been discovered and which are being produced now. World consumption of oil is still going up. HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate. We've always been proud of our ingenuity, our skill at answering questions. No one will gain an unfair advantage through this plan. Carter prefaced his talk about. They want lower taxes on their profits. It will be money well spent. The gap between our citizens and our Government has never been so wide. In the days to come, let us renew that strength in the struggle for an energy secure nation. On July 15, 1978, the Longest Walka 2,800-mile trek for Native American justice that had started with several hundred marchers in Californiaends in Washington, D.C., accompanied by thousands of supporters. We should reward individuals and companies who discover and produce new oil and gas, but we must not give them huge windfall profits on their existing wells at the expense of the American people. You don't like it, and neither do I.