# Jimmy Carter and World Chaos

### How The Architect of Modern Jihad Redefined The Middle East

[Maral Salmassi](https://substack.com/@maralsalmassi)  
Dec 29, 2024

Jimmy Carter, often described as a “well-intentioned” idealist, has passed away. Upon closer inspection, he leaves behind a legacy that ranks among the most destructive for the Middle East and the world.

Carter's foreign policy destabilized and ultimately dismantled the West's most crucial ally in the region, the Shah of Iran, setting off a cascade of catastrophic consequences. In a misguided effort to curtail Soviet influence, he empowered the Afghan Mujahedin, planting the seeds for what would eventually become the Taliban. Mike Evans, in his book " _Jimmy Carter: The Liberal Left and World Chaos_," recounts a chilling revelation: a former U.S. Navy intelligence officer and CIA operative disclosed that Carter's administration funneled approximately $150 million to Ayatollah Khomeini during his stay at _Neauphle-le-Château_ in Paris. These funds not only financed Khomeini's stay but also covered the costs of an Air France plane for his return to Iran.

Moreover, Carter's administration orchestrated 117 international interviews for Khomeini to bolster his influence while they simultaneously crippled Shah's military and ensured they would not fight Khomeini's ascent. Undoubtedly, Carter's machinations paved the way for the Islamic Republic, ushering in Iran's darkest chapter in 1979.

The ripple effects of his disastrous decisions plunged the Middle East into relentless conflict and chaos, resulting in millions of lives lost to this day—including the 2,974 Americans who perished on September 11, 2001.

Jimmy Carter embodied the perilous hubris of ideological moralism. His tenure cements his place in U.S. history as the most misguided—and consequential—U.S. president.