was as far as events and budgeting and things like that. tensions in the capitol increased when the oil crisis hit in 1979. bringing with it a vicious return of empty gas stations, heating oil challenges and skyrocketing prices. here was jimmy carter who had promised to take on the energy crisis, and yet here we are again waiting in these mile long gas lines. people ran out of fuel. sometimes they turned violent. there were murders and stabbings and a sense that washington was incompetent. and americans more and more became dissatisfied with its leadership. where is our leadership out of washington, d.c.? with his poll numbers plummeting to record low numbers and inflation rising into the double digits carter knew he had to do more than come up with new policy proposals.
he had to address the country s new sense of doom. carter was feeling along with many americans that things were falling apart. a general sense of uncertainty and disease within the country. it really seemed like the american dream was over, and that s the context in which carter decides to now give this speech addressing what his advisers called the malaise. it is a crisis of confidence. it is a crisis that strikes at the very heart and soul and spirit of our national will. he wanted to kind of shake americans and say, listen, we need to get ahold of ourselves, we need to understand who we are and what our collective purpose is. first of all, we must face the truth. and then we can change our course. in a time, you know, when a president won t admit to error about anything, it s almost unimaginable that an american president would level with the american people the way he did
address the country s increasing sense of doom. by july of 1979 carter was feeling along with many americans that things were falling apart. general sense of uncertainty and disease within the country. it seemed like the american dream was over. and that s the context in which carter decides to now give this speech addressing what his advisers are call the malaise. it is a crisis of confidence. it is a crisis that strikes at the very heart and soul and spirit of our national will. he wanted to kind of shake americans and say listen, we need to get ahold of ourselves, we need to understand who we are and what our collective purpose is. first of all, we must face the truth. and then we can change our course. in a time when a president won t admit to error about anything, it s almost unimaginable for the american