The actions of the federal reserve during president carter’s term resulted in a) americans paying higher interest rates on home and car loans. b) americans paying lower interest rates on home and car loans. c) americans losing homes and cars because of higher interest rates. d) americans buying expensive homes and cars because of lower interest rates.

Correct  A) Americans paying higher interest rates on home and car loans.

President Jimmy Carter struggled against a bad economy in the United States during his time in office (Jan, 1977- Jan, 1981).  When he entered office, the country was experiencing "stagflation" -- a combination of inflation and minimal economic growth.  The actions of the Federal Reserve Board, under chairman G. William Miller, contributed to further inflation problems.  The inflation rate went from 5.8% in 1976 to 7.7% in 1978.  That meant that interest rates for home loans and car loans for American consumers got steeper and more difficult to afford.  Then in 1979, the oil crisis hit as world oil production dropped in the wake of the Iranian Revolution.  In 1979, inflation in the US went up to 11.3%.  That only made matters worse.

In 1979, President Carter replaced Miller as chairman of the Federal Reserve, appointing Paul Volcker in his place.  Volcker continued to serve in that role under the Reagan administration also, and played a large role in bringing inflation back under control.

during the debate over his landmark energy policy proposal, president jimmy carter failed to consult one of the most powerful senators, louisiana’s russell long, who would have a big say over whether the legislation moved through the upper chamber. this was classic carter. with a strong distaste for congressional politics, the president simply refused to do what most other presidents would consider routine, such as courting key senators. long became so irate with the president that when he was finally invited to a white house dinner, he stood up to ask a question and, before doing so, proceeded to sarcastically introduce himself: “i’m russell long, chairman of the senate finance committee.”

this interaction is a revealing moment in stuart e. eizenstat’s fascinating new history of carter’s presidency. the former peanut farmer from georgia was a president who, according to conventional wisdom, didn’t care much for party politics; nonetheless, in eizenstat’s view, carter’s legacy on domestic and foreign policy has been vastly underappreciated. the author paints carter as a “bold and determined” leader who bravely attacked the challenges of his time. eizenstat goes so far as to argue that carter might very well be the most successful one-term president in american history.