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Haiti gang attack on journalists covering a hospital reopening leaves 2 dead, several woundedFacebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save OCEAN CITY — Is Ocean City ready for a muscle beach, similar to the one in Santa Monica, California? How about fire pits or a portable roller-skating rink? These were among the ideas pitched to City Council at a December meeting as new attractions for the Boardwalk to draw people to the north end in the absence of Gillian’s Wonderland. The group Friends of OCNJ History & Culture created a poll on social media to gather ideas for the area. Resident Bill Merritt, who is the president of the group, presented them to council. “I think it’s a really good list of stuff,” Merritt said. “I’m a particular fan of the councilman dunk tank, but that’s just me.” Wonderland operated on the Boardwalk for nearly 60 years before its closure in October. Jay Gillian, whose family name was on the pier and who also serves as the city’s mayor, had announced the closing over the summer, saying the business was no longer viable. 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BPU begins process to consider 8% increase in Atlantic City Electric rates Some locals have pleaded for the park to remain, including launching a “Save Wonderland” campaign. Developer Eustace Mita, who owns the property and leased it to Gillian in recent years, has other plans, proposing a 252-room hotel for the site. So far, no formal application has been brought to the city, but in public meetings, Mita has pitched his multimillion-dollar proposal as the best option for the site and one that would preserve some of the landmark Wonderland rides. In his comments to council, Merritt did not suggest the long-running amusement pier would be back, or mention the hotel plans. He said some people were going through the stages of grief for Wonderland. “We know it’s closed. We know it’s gone. And now we’re just talking about what goes up there instead,” he said. The proposal is called the Ocean City Carnival by the Sea, and includes multiple ideas for the Boardwalk to keep things active post-Wonderland. “Generating excitement in this area is crucial, as it will likely be years before any new development rises on the pier,” the proposal reads in part. In his comments, Merritt also suggested the city take a new look at its master plan. In the meantime, he suggested the city could “lower the temperature” of some of the rhetoric by looking both short term and long term. “Unfortunately the whole Wonderland thing has raised a lot of anger,” Merritt said. “I think we need to get through and get past the anger stage.” Emotions have run high in connection to the amusement park, which many in town remember from their childhoods and to which they brought children and grandchildren. The Icona in Wonderland hotel proposal has also generated extensive interest and controversy. Supporters say it represents a significant investment in the town and will bring jobs and visitors who will support other businesses. Others, however, say it is far too large and would hurt the community and other Boardwalk businesses. Resolution will not come soon. Once a formal proposal is brought to the city, it will be up to council to decide whether to designate the area where the park once stood as being in need of redevelopment, as Mita has suggested, which could begin a process of approvals for the proposal. Ocean City should address its development issues through the master plan process, not redevelopment, the president of the Friends of OCNJ History & Culture writes. The designation would require review by the city’s Planning Board for consistency with the city’s existing master plan, and the project itself would face site plan review. Once the local approvals and state permits are in place, if Mita succeeds in getting them, he has said it will take about two years to complete the project. In the meantime, the Friends of OCNJ want something new in that area by the summer of 2025. Council members Jody Levchuk and Keith Hartzell have expressed concern about the impact of a vacant Wonderland on the northern end of the Boardwalk, suggesting it may mean fewer visitors strolling by the businesses there. The proposals Merritt brought to council are aimed at creating a new lure. Most, but not all, would be put in place between the Boardwalk and a municipal parking area between Fifth and Sixth streets, adjacent to Wonderland, where there are now volleyball courts. Some ideas would be relatively easy to execute, while others would require significant investment and likely need staffing. A multipage report lists the ideas on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most difficult to enact. For instance, fire pits that can be rented are listed as an 8, while a skating rink comes in at a 7. Giving kids a chance to meet first responders, a kite flying contest and a venue for street performers in front of Wonderland all come in at 2. There is a proposal for a dunk tank for council members, which is listed as a 3. There is no breakdown of how much of that is to acquire the tank and how much is to convince any of the seven members of council to get in. Several of the proposals are underway elsewhere in the city, including beach yoga, a dog park and a farmers market. Sandcastle contests also take place at specific times each summer. Turnout was intense for a 3rd Ward meeting in Ocean City on Monday as residents packed into a meeting room to hear plans for a hotel at the site of the former Wonderland Pier. There are multiple ideas, and not all of them would take place in the same spot. There are proposals for a drone light show, giant chess boards and a quiet disco, in which people would wear headphones and dance to the same music. Ocean City has a history of taking seemingly far-fetched ideas and making them a beloved reality, from a mass gathering of Bassett hounds for the Doo Dah Parade to hermit crab races to taffy and French fry sculpting contests for kids. There was no response from council to the proposals, and no proposal in the report on how to fund the new activities. Contact Bill Barlow: 609-272-7290 bbarlow@pressofac.com Twitter @jerseynews_bill Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. Reporter Author facebook Author twitter Author email {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.Sauce Gardner Says 'Some People Might Be Checked Out' After Jets' Loss to Bills

Daily Horoscope for Monday, December 30, 2024, for all zodiac signs by astrologer Vinayak Vishwas KarandikarWhat's New? Toyota followed Ford 's lead and donated $1 million toward President-elect Donald Trump 's inauguration in January, The Hill reported. Why It Matters Trump has pledged to impose tariffs on Chinese, Canadian and Mexican goods, which could result in a 17 percent drop in automakers' profits, according to a recent report from S&P Global. Carmakers and tech giants appear to be trying to get ahead of that by gaining Trump's favor, by way of generous donations, before he takes office. Newsweek reached out to Toyota North America via phone and Ford via email for comment. What To Know Ford Motor Co. announced on Monday that it would donate $1 million and a small fleet of vehicles toward Trump's inauguration. Toyota North America followed suit on Tuesday, pledging $1 million to Trump's inaugural fund, which is a fundraising effort that supports the president-elect's inauguration and related events. Earlier this month, Meta , Amazon and Open AI CEO Sam Altman all pledged seven-figure donations to Trump's inauguration fund. Facebook's parent company announced it would donate $1 million to the fund, sparking anger from some on both sides of the political aisle. The announcement came two weeks after Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg met with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. Zuckerberg and Trump have had a strained relationship in recent years. Tensions between the two men hit a boiling point after Facebook banned Trump in the wake of the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Trump later repeatedly threatened to jail Zuckerberg, alleging that he personally conspired to rig the 2020 election against Trump. The Meta CEO, for his part, has publicly praised Trump, likely in an effort to defuse hostilities before Trump takes office. In addition to commending Trump's response to a July assassination attempt, Zuckerberg joined a slew of other business and tech moguls in congratulating Trump after he won the 2024 U.S. election. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this month that Amazon would also be donating $1 million to Trump's fund, as will OpenAI 's Altman. What People Are Saying Senator Elizabeth Warren criticized donations to Trump's inaugural fund, telling The Independent : Trump's "reliance on private donors to fund the transition" is "nothing more than a ploy for well-connected Trump insiders to line their pockets while pretending to save taxpayers money." Ford CEO Jim Farley told reporters earlier this month that he's looking forward to working with the Trump administration: Given "Ford's employment profile and importance in the US economy and manufacturing, you can imagine the administration will be very interested in Ford's point of view." What Happens Next? Trump's will be inaugurated on January 20 in Washington, D.C. At around noon, Trump will recite the following oath: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

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NEW YORK (AP) — No ex-president had a more prolific and diverse publishing career than Jimmy Carter . His more than two dozen books included nonfiction, poetry, fiction, religious meditations and a children’s story. His memoir “An Hour Before Daylight” was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2002, while his 2006 best-seller “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid” stirred a fierce debate by likening Israel’s policies in the West Bank to the brutal South African system of racial segregation. And just before his 100th birthday, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation honored him with a lifetime achievement award for how he wielded "the power of the written word to foster peace, social justice, and global understanding.” In one recent work, “A Full Life,” Carter observed that he “enjoyed writing” and that his books “provided a much-needed source of income.” But some projects were easier than others. “Everything to Gain,” a 1987 collaboration with his wife, Rosalynn, turned into the “worst threat we ever experienced in our marriage,” an intractable standoff for the facilitator of the Camp David accords and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. According to Carter, Rosalynn was a meticulous author who considered “the resulting sentences as though they have come down from Mount Sinai, carved into stone.” Their memories differed on various events and they fell into “constant arguments.” They were ready to abandon the book and return the advance, until their editor persuaded them to simply divide any disputed passages between them. “In the book, each of these paragraphs is identified by a ‘J’ or an ‘R,’ and our marriage survived,” he wrote. Here is a partial list of books by Carter: “Keeping Faith: Memoirs of a President” “The Blood of Abraham: Insights into the Middle East” (With Rosalynn Carter) “Everything to Gain: Making the Most of the Rest of Your Life” “An Outdoor Journal: Adventures and Reflections” “Turning Point: A Candidate, a State, and a Nation Come of Age” “Always a Reckoning, and Other Poems” (With daughter Amy Carter) “The Little Baby Snoogle-Fleejer” “Living Faith” “The Virtues of Aging” “An Hour Before Daylight: Memories of a Rural Boyhood” “Christmas in Plains: Memories” “The Hornet’s Nest: A Novel of the Revolutionary War” “Our Endangered Values: America’s Moral Crisis” “Faith & Freedom: The Christian Challenge for the World” “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid” “A Remarkable Mother” “Beyond the White House” “We Can Have Peace in the Holy Land: A Plan That Will Work” “White House Diary” “NIV Lessons from Life Bible: Personal Reflections with Jimmy Carter” “A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power” “A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety”Why Miami’s Pop-Tarts Bowl appearance is important even after missing College Football Playoff

Trudeau says dealing with Trump will be 'a little more challenging' than last time

Perhaps the state's solons have skimmed enough headlines in recent years to finally stick a thumb or two on the lopsided scales of justice. One story reported on the then-editor of the Albuquerque Journal serving 10 days in jail after pleading guilty to shoplifting $104 in merchandise from a Walmart. An earlier piece told of then-state Sen. Richard Martinez receiving a five-day jail sentence after seriously injuring two people in a car crash. State District Judge Francis Mathew convicted Martinez of reckless driving and aggravated drunken driving. Martinez, D-Ojo Caliente, could have been jailed for as long as 180 days for his two crimes, but judges in New Mexico typically dole out light punishment to first-offense drunken drivers. My purpose in highlighting these cases is not to seek sympathy for a well-paid thief. The point is one prominent, white-collar New Mexican served less time for inflicting terror and pain on innocents than another who stole some groceries. I wrote a column earlier this fall calling for a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 days in jail for any first offender convicted of drunken driving. Many readers contacted me about that column. As the holidays approach and state legislators prepare for their 60-day session starting in January, they might be interested in a few of their comments. "This state continues to do what it has always done, and at this point it doesn't seem to care that the results are the same as they always have been. Sadly, that means increased death and injury," wrote Linda Atkinson, executive director of the DWI Resource Center and New Mexico Victims' Rights Project. "The most recent data (2022) from the New Mexico Department of Transportation indicates that DWI arrests were down almost 21% from 2018 to 2022. Convictions were also down by 24% over the same time. DWI crashes have gone from 113 fatalities in 2018 to 152 in 2022. "We could increase DWI penalties, similar to Scandinavian countries. Research tells us this would reduce death and injury caused by impaired driving," Atkinson stated. Another reader, Sheila McCarthy Grainger wrote me about her family's tragedy, fresh in her mind after 40 years. "In 1984, my husband was hit head-on by a drunk playing 'chicken' in Taos Canyon. My husband was airlifted to UNMH where he lay in a coma for 10 days, finally succumbing to his injuries. He died the day after Christmas. Our young son was left fatherless, and I was left without my best friend." Richie Grainger's death led to one of the more publicized and controversial DWI cases in New Mexico's history. The Taos News led the way in describing peculiar conduct by state police officers who'd investigated the defendant, Veto Vialpando. "Taosenos wondered why Vialpando was allowed to drive away from the scene of the tragedy after he failed to produce insurance and was charged with DWI," the weekly reported. Vialpando's family hired New Mexico's most famous defense attorney, Leon Taylor, to represent him. An early ruling boded well for Vialpando. A judge decided the jury in Raton could not be told 21-year-old Vialpando had refused to take a blood-alcohol test. Taylor offered a simple defense. He said Vialpando had been blinded by the sun. Richie Grainger, Taylor argued, died as the result of a terrible accident rather than a senseless crime. Jurors acquitted Vialpando. He died 30 years after his trial. Sheila Grainger for a time tried to repair what she believed was a broken system. "My friends who worked at the Legislature would invite me to go during the sessions to talk to various legislators about improving laws concerning drunken drivers. It was like I was talking to a blank wall. "One legislator in the House of Representatives even went so far as to tell me he had three rehab places [in his district] which brought in money. He wasn’t about to change any laws that would alter that moneymaking endeavor." She wearied of lawmakers. "It used to irk me seeing them in The Bull Ring and other eating and drinking places, laughing and slapping each other on the back for jobs well done. "My son and I endured. He has done well in his life, having two college degrees and a lovely little family. Me, I’m old now, never remarried, and I still miss Richie every day. I tell you this because your column just pointed out the fact that after 40 years nothing has improved." Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and legislators in her own party battled in springtime over a package of crime bills she coveted. Trouble was, Lujan Grisham's proposals were redundant or deemed unwise. Lawmakers rejected all of them. The Scandinavian model of stiff sentences for drunken drivers wasn't part of the package. The new year represents a fresh opportunity to change that. All the politicians read about the editor who spent 10 days in a cell for shoplifting. For all their interest in crime and punishment, they didn't find any account of a first-time drunken driver doing that much time. Call it New Mexico's legal system. Justice shouldn't be part of the description. Ringside Seat is an opinion column about people, politics and news. Contact Milan Simonich at msimonich@sfnewmexican.com or 505-986-3080.The NFC’s No. 1 seed will come down to the final week when the Detroit Lions host the Minnesota Vikings. The winner takes the NFC North and gets a first-round playoff bye and home-field advantage until the Super Bowl. The loser becomes the No. 5 seed and must play on the road in the wild-card round. The Vikings (14-2) held on for a 27-25 victory over the Green Bay Packers to set up the high-stakes showdown in Week 18. The Lions (13-2) visit the San Francisco 49ers (6-9) on Monday night in a rematch of the NFC title game. Win, lose or tie, they have to beat the Vikings again. Detroit beat Minnesota 31-29 in Week 7. The Philadelphia Eagles clinched the NFC East and locked up the No. 2 seed with a 41-7 rout of the Dallas Cowboys. However, coach Nick Sirianni has a tough decision to make this week. Saquon Barkley is 101 yards away from breaking Eric Dickerson’s single-season record for yards rushing in a season. Sirianni has to decide whether to rest Barkley and most of his starters to prepare for the playoffs or let his star try for the 40-year-old record. The Los Angeles Rams (10-6) were on the verge of clinching the NFC West. They would lock it up Sunday night if the Commanders beat the Falcons. The outcome of the Atlanta-Washington game has a major impact on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7). If the Falcons win, they’d remain first in the NFC South and would win the division with a victory against Carolina next week. If the Falcons lose, the Buccaneers would take over first place and would secure the division with a victory over New Orleans next week. The Commanders would secure a wild-card spot with a win against Atlanta. If they lose, Seattle stays mathematically alive for a wild card and the Buccaneers could also find a path to the playoffs as a wild-card team. Three teams in the AFC have already secured their seeds. The two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs (15-1) won the AFC West weeks ago and clinched the No. 1 seed. The AFC East champion Buffalo Bills (13-3) are the No. 2 seed. The AFC South champion Houston Texans (9-7) are the No. 4 seed. The Baltimore Ravens (11-5) would win the AFC North and get the No. 3 seed with a win or tie against Cleveland next weekend or a loss or tie by Pittsburgh, which hosts Cincinnati. If they don’t win the division, the Steelers have already clinched a wild-card berth. The Los Angeles Chargers (10-6) also secured a wild-card spot. They’ll be no lower than the sixth seed. The final AFC playoff spot comes down to the Broncos (9-7), Dolphins (8-8) or Bengals (8-8). Denver clinches with a win or tie against the Chiefs. The Dolphins need the Broncos to lose and they must beat the Jets on the road to get in. The Bengals must win and the Broncos and Dolphins have to lose for them to get in. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

Report: Kentucky QB Brock Vandagriff retires from footballATLANTA (AP) — Jimmy Carter, the peanut farmer who won the presidency in the wake of the Watergate scandal and Vietnam War, endured humbling defeat after one tumultuous term and then redefined life after the White House as a global humanitarian, has died. He was 100 years old. The longest-lived American president died on Sunday, more than a year after entering hospice care , at his home in the small town of Plains, Georgia, where he and his wife, Rosalynn, who died at 96 in November 2023 , spent most of their lives, The Carter Center said. “Our founder, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, passed away this afternoon in Plains, Georgia,” the center said in posting about his death on the social media platform X. It added in a statement that he died peacefully, surrounded by his family. As reaction poured in from around the world, President Joe Biden mourned Carter’s death, saying the world lost an “extraordinary leader, statesman and humanitarian” and he lost a dear friend. Biden cited Carter’s compassion and moral clarity, his work to eradicate disease, forge peace, advance civil and human rights, promote free and fair elections, house the homeless and advocacy for the disadvantaged as an example for others. “To all of the young people in this nation and for anyone in search of what it means to live a life of purpose and meaning – the good life – study Jimmy Carter, a man of principle, faith, and humility,” Biden said in a statement. “He showed that we are a great nation because we are a good people – decent and honorable, courageous and compassionate, humble and strong.” Biden said he is ordering a state funeral for Carter in Washington. Businessman, Navy officer, evangelist, politician, negotiator, author, woodworker, citizen of the world — Carter forged a path that still challenges political assumptions and stands out among the 45 men who reached the nation’s highest office. The 39th president leveraged his ambition with a keen intellect, deep religious faith and prodigious work ethic, conducting diplomatic missions into his 80s and building houses for the poor well into his 90s. “My faith demands — this is not optional — my faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I am, whenever I can, for as long as I can, with whatever I have to try to make a difference,” Carter once said. A president from Plains A moderate Democrat, Carter entered the 1976 presidential race as a little-known Georgia governor with a broad smile, outspoken Baptist mores and technocratic plans reflecting his education as an engineer. His no-frills campaign depended on public financing, and his promise not to deceive the American people resonated after Richard Nixon’s disgrace and U.S. defeat in southeast Asia. “If I ever lie to you, if I ever make a misleading statement, don’t vote for me. I would not deserve to be your president,” Carter repeated before narrowly beating Republican incumbent Gerald Ford, who had lost popularity pardoning Nixon. Carter governed amid Cold War pressures, turbulent oil markets and social upheaval over racism, women’s rights and America’s global role. His most acclaimed achievement in office was a Mideast peace deal that he brokered by keeping Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin at the bargaining table for 13 days in 1978. That Camp David experience inspired the post-presidential center where Carter would establish so much of his legacy. Yet Carter’s electoral coalition splintered under double-digit inflation, gasoline lines and the 444-day hostage crisis in Iran. His bleakest hour came when eight Americans died in a failed hostage rescue in April 1980, helping to ensure his landslide defeat to Republican Ronald Reagan. Carter acknowledged in his 2020 “White House Diary” that he could be “micromanaging” and “excessively autocratic,” complicating dealings with Congress and the federal bureaucracy. He also turned a cold shoulder to Washington’s news media and lobbyists, not fully appreciating their influence on his political fortunes. “It didn’t take us long to realize that the underestimation existed, but by that time we were not able to repair the mistake,” Carter told historians in 1982, suggesting that he had “an inherent incompatibility” with Washington insiders. Carter insisted his overall approach was sound and that he achieved his primary objectives — to “protect our nation’s security and interests peacefully” and “enhance human rights here and abroad” — even if he fell spectacularly short of a second term. And then, the world Ignominious defeat, though, allowed for renewal. The Carters founded The Carter Center in 1982 as a first-of-its-kind base of operations, asserting themselves as international peacemakers and champions of democracy, public health and human rights. “I was not interested in just building a museum or storing my White House records and memorabilia,” Carter wrote in a memoir published after his 90th birthday. “I wanted a place where we could work.” That work included easing nuclear tensions in North and South Korea, helping to avert a U.S. invasion of Haiti and negotiating cease-fires in Bosnia and Sudan. By 2022, The Carter Center had declared at least 113 elections in Latin America, Asia and Africa to be free or fraudulent. Recently, the center began monitoring U.S. elections as well. Carter’s stubborn self-assuredness and even self-righteousness proved effective once he was unencumbered by the Washington order, sometimes to the point of frustrating his successors . He went “where others are not treading,” he said, to places like Ethiopia, Liberia and North Korea, where he secured the release of an American who had wandered across the border in 2010. “I can say what I like. I can meet whom I want. I can take on projects that please me and reject the ones that don’t,” Carter said. He announced an arms-reduction-for-aid deal with North Korea without clearing the details with Bill Clinton’s White House. He openly criticized President George W. Bush for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He also criticized America’s approach to Israel with his 2006 book “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid.” And he repeatedly countered U.S. administrations by insisting North Korea should be included in international affairs, a position that most aligned Carter with Republican President Donald Trump. Among the center’s many public health initiatives, Carter vowed to eradicate the guinea worm parasite during his lifetime, and nearly achieved it: Cases dropped from millions in the 1980s to nearly a handful. With hardhats and hammers, the Carters also built homes with Habitat for Humanity. The Nobel committee’s 2002 Peace Prize cites his “untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.” Carter should have won it alongside Sadat and Begin in 1978, the chairman added. Carter accepted the recognition saying there was more work to be done. “The world is now, in many ways, a more dangerous place,” he said. “The greater ease of travel and communication has not been matched by equal understanding and mutual respect.” ‘An epic American life’ Carter’s globetrotting took him to remote villages where he met little “Jimmy Carters,” so named by admiring parents. But he spent most of his days in the same one-story Plains house — expanded and guarded by Secret Service agents — where they lived before he became governor. He regularly taught Sunday School lessons at Maranatha Baptist Church until his mobility declined and the coronavirus pandemic raged. Those sessions drew visitors from around the world to the small sanctuary where Carter will receive his final send-off after a state funeral at Washington’s National Cathedral. The common assessment that he was a better ex-president than president rankled Carter and his allies. His prolific post-presidency gave him a brand above politics, particularly for Americans too young to witness him in office. But Carter also lived long enough to see biographers and historians reassess his White House years more generously. His record includes the deregulation of key industries, reduction of U.S. dependence on foreign oil, cautious management of the national debt and notable legislation on the environment, education and mental health. He focused on human rights in foreign policy, pressuring dictators to release thousands of political prisoners . He acknowledged America’s historical imperialism, pardoned Vietnam War draft evaders and relinquished control of the Panama Canal. He normalized relations with China. “I am not nominating Jimmy Carter for a place on Mount Rushmore,” Stuart Eizenstat, Carter’s domestic policy director, wrote in a 2018 book. “He was not a great president” but also not the “hapless and weak” caricature voters rejected in 1980, Eizenstat said. Rather, Carter was “good and productive” and “delivered results, many of which were realized only after he left office.” Madeleine Albright, a national security staffer for Carter and Clinton’s secretary of state, wrote in Eizenstat’s forward that Carter was “consequential and successful” and expressed hope that “perceptions will continue to evolve” about his presidency. “Our country was lucky to have him as our leader,” said Albright, who died in 2022. Jonathan Alter, who penned a comprehensive Carter biography published in 2020, said in an interview that Carter should be remembered for “an epic American life” spanning from a humble start in a home with no electricity or indoor plumbing through decades on the world stage across two centuries. “He will likely go down as one of the most misunderstood and underestimated figures in American history,” Alter told The Associated Press. A small-town start James Earl Carter Jr. was born Oct. 1, 1924, in Plains and spent his early years in nearby Archery. His family was a minority in the mostly Black community, decades before the civil rights movement played out at the dawn of Carter’s political career. Carter, who campaigned as a moderate on race relations but governed more progressively, talked often of the influence of his Black caregivers and playmates but also noted his advantages: His land-owning father sat atop Archery’s tenant-farming system and owned a main street grocery. His mother, Lillian , would become a staple of his political campaigns. Seeking to broaden his world beyond Plains and its population of fewer than 1,000 — then and now — Carter won an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy, graduating in 1946. That same year he married Rosalynn Smith, another Plains native, a decision he considered more important than any he made as head of state. She shared his desire to see the world, sacrificing college to support his Navy career. Carter climbed in rank to lieutenant, but then his father was diagnosed with cancer, so the submarine officer set aside his ambitions of admiralty and moved the family back to Plains. His decision angered Rosalynn, even as she dived into the peanut business alongside her husband. Carter again failed to talk with his wife before his first run for office — he later called it “inconceivable” not to have consulted her on such major life decisions — but this time, she was on board. “My wife is much more political,” Carter told the AP in 2021. He won a state Senate seat in 1962 but wasn’t long for the General Assembly and its back-slapping, deal-cutting ways. He ran for governor in 1966 — losing to arch-segregationist Lester Maddox — and then immediately focused on the next campaign. Carter had spoken out against church segregation as a Baptist deacon and opposed racist “Dixiecrats” as a state senator. Yet as a local school board leader in the 1950s he had not pushed to end school segregation even after the Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education decision, despite his private support for integration. And in 1970, Carter ran for governor again as the more conservative Democrat against Carl Sanders, a wealthy businessman Carter mocked as “Cufflinks Carl.” Sanders never forgave him for anonymous, race-baiting flyers, which Carter disavowed. Ultimately, Carter won his races by attracting both Black voters and culturally conservative whites. Once in office, he was more direct. “I say to you quite frankly that the time for racial discrimination is over,” he declared in his 1971 inaugural address, setting a new standard for Southern governors that landed him on the cover of Time magazine. 'Jimmy Who?' His statehouse initiatives included environmental protection, boosting rural education and overhauling antiquated executive branch structures. He proclaimed Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the slain civil rights leader’s home state. And he decided, as he received presidential candidates in 1972, that they were no more talented than he was. In 1974, he ran Democrats’ national campaign arm. Then he declared his own candidacy for 1976. An Atlanta newspaper responded with the headline: “Jimmy Who?” The Carters and a “Peanut Brigade” of family members and Georgia supporters camped out in Iowa and New Hampshire, establishing both states as presidential proving grounds. His first Senate endorsement: a young first-termer from Delaware named Joe Biden. Yet it was Carter’s ability to navigate America’s complex racial and rural politics that cemented the nomination. He swept the Deep South that November, the last Democrat to do so, as many white Southerners shifted to Republicans in response to civil rights initiatives. A self-declared “born-again Christian,” Carter drew snickers by referring to Scripture in a Playboy magazine interview, saying he “had looked on many women with lust. I’ve committed adultery in my heart many times.” The remarks gave Ford a new foothold and television comedians pounced — including NBC’s new “Saturday Night Live” show. But voters weary of cynicism in politics found it endearing. Carter chose Minnesota Sen. Walter “Fritz” Mondale as his running mate on a “Grits and Fritz” ticket. In office, he elevated the vice presidency and the first lady’s office. Mondale’s governing partnership was a model for influential successors Al Gore, Dick Cheney and Biden. Rosalynn Carter was one of the most involved presidential spouses in history, welcomed into Cabinet meetings and huddles with lawmakers and top aides. The Carters presided with uncommon informality: He used his nickname “Jimmy” even when taking the oath of office, carried his own luggage and tried to silence the Marine Band’s “Hail to the Chief.” They bought their clothes off the rack. Carter wore a cardigan for a White House address, urging Americans to conserve energy by turning down their thermostats. Amy, the youngest of four children, attended District of Columbia public school. Washington’s social and media elite scorned their style. But the larger concern was that “he hated politics,” according to Eizenstat, leaving him nowhere to turn politically once economic turmoil and foreign policy challenges took their toll. Accomplishments, and ‘malaise’ Carter partially deregulated the airline, railroad and trucking industries and established the departments of Education and Energy, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He designated millions of acres of Alaska as national parks or wildlife refuges. He appointed a then-record number of women and nonwhite people to federal posts. He never had a Supreme Court nomination, but he elevated civil rights attorney Ruth Bader Ginsburg to the nation’s second highest court, positioning her for a promotion in 1993. He appointed Paul Volker, the Federal Reserve chairman whose policies would help the economy boom in the 1980s — after Carter left office. He built on Nixon’s opening with China, and though he tolerated autocrats in Asia, pushed Latin America from dictatorships to democracy. But he couldn’t immediately tame inflation or the related energy crisis. And then came Iran. After he admitted the exiled Shah of Iran to the U.S. for medical treatment, the American Embassy in Tehran was overrun in 1979 by followers of the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Negotiations to free the hostages broke down repeatedly ahead of the failed rescue attempt. The same year, Carter signed SALT II, the new strategic arms treaty with Leonid Brezhnev of the Soviet Union, only to pull it back, impose trade sanctions and order a U.S. boycott of the Moscow Olympics after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan. Hoping to instill optimism, he delivered what the media dubbed his “malaise” speech, although he didn’t use that word. He declared the nation was suffering “a crisis of confidence.” By then, many Americans had lost confidence in the president, not themselves. Carter campaigned sparingly for reelection because of the hostage crisis, instead sending Rosalynn as Sen. Edward M. Kennedy challenged him for the Democratic nomination. Carter famously said he’d “kick his ass,” but was hobbled by Kennedy as Reagan rallied a broad coalition with “make America great again” appeals and asking voters whether they were “better off than you were four years ago.” Reagan further capitalized on Carter’s lecturing tone, eviscerating him in their lone fall debate with the quip: “There you go again.” Carter lost all but six states and Republicans rolled to a new Senate majority. Carter successfully negotiated the hostages’ freedom after the election, but in one final, bitter turn of events, Tehran waited until hours after Carter left office to let them walk free. 'A wonderful life' At 56, Carter returned to Georgia with “no idea what I would do with the rest of my life.” Four decades after launching The Carter Center, he still talked of unfinished business. “I thought when we got into politics we would have resolved everything,” Carter told the AP in 2021. “But it’s turned out to be much more long-lasting and insidious than I had thought it was. I think in general, the world itself is much more divided than in previous years.” Still, he affirmed what he said when he underwent treatment for a cancer diagnosis in his 10th decade of life. “I’m perfectly at ease with whatever comes,” he said in 2015 . “I’ve had a wonderful life. I’ve had thousands of friends, I’ve had an exciting, adventurous and gratifying existence.” Sanz is a former Associated Press reporter. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. 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