Now, I know that some of you may doubt that we face real energy shortages. After restoring faith in itself, the nation would be able to march on to the the battlefield of energy [where] we can win for our nation a new confidence, and we can seize control again of our common destiny.. More than 6 months ago, in April, I spoke to you about a need for a national policy to deal with our present and future energy problems, and the next day I sent my proposals to the Congress. Some will cause you to put up with inconveniences and to make sacrifices. From now on, every new addition to our demand for energy will be met from our own production and our own conservation. These quotas will ensure a reduction in imports even below the ambitious levels we set at the recent Tokyo summit. The oil and natural gas that we rely on for 75 percent of our energy are simply running out. We will feel mounting pressure to plunder the environment. They made possible the age of automobile and airplane travel. I'm sure that each of you will find something you don't like about the specifics of our proposal. Will Obama and his ilk learn the lessons of history? We must look back into history to understand our energy problem. We can continue using scarce oil and natural gas to generate electricity and continue wasting two-thirds of their fuel value in the process. ", "Mr. President, we're in trouble. And this year we may spend $45 billion. The eighth principle is that Government policies must be predictable and certain. In fact, it is the most painless and immediate way of rebuilding our Nation's strength. During the 1960's, we used twice as much as during the 1950's. 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. Inflation will soar; production will go down; people will lose their jobs. They want immediate and permanent deregulation of gas prices, which would cost consumers $70 billion or more between now and 1985. The ninth principle is that we must conserve the fuels that are scarcest and make the most of those that are plentiful. 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. Gradually, you've heard more and more about what the Government thinks or what the Government should be doing and less and less about our Nation's hopes, our dreams, and our vision of the future. ", "There will be other cartels and other shortages. By 1972, we were importing about 30 percent. This energy plan is a good insurance policyfor the future, in which relatively small premiums that we pay today will protect us in the years ahead. Every $5 billion increase in oil imports costs us 200,000 American jobs. We know the strength of America. That path would be one of constant conflict between narrow interests ending in chaos and immobility. The fifth principle is that we must be fair. Good evening. It costs about $13 to waste it. Several of our discussions were on energy, and I have a notebook full of comments and advice. In closing, let me say this: I will do my best, but I will not do it alone. Nearly everyone who is alive today grew up during this period, and we have never known anything different. Washington, D.C., has become an island. January 23, 1979. All Rights Reserved. Working with Congress, we've now formed a new Department of Energy, headed by Secretary James Schlesinger. A President is elected for just 4 years, a Senator for 6, and our Representatives in Congress for only 2 years. Each American uses the energy equivalent of 60 barrels of oil per person each year. Each American uses the energy equivalent of 60 barrels of oil per person each year. And the truth is that you cannot talk about economic problems now or in the future without talking about energy. Imports have doubled in the last 5 years. Above all, they will be fair. Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia, November 8, 1977: Address to the Nation on Energy, Notice of Non-Discrimination and Equal Opportunity, Miller Center: November 8, 1977: Address to the Nation on Energy, September 7, 1977: Statement on the Panama Canal Treaty Signing, January 19, 1978: State of the Union Address, September 17, 1978: President Carter's Remarks on Joint Statement at Camp David Summit, October 24, 1978: Anti-Inflation Program Speech, December 15, 1978: Speech on Establishing Diplomatic Relations with China, January 23, 1979: State of the Union Address, July 15, 1979: "Crisis of Confidence" Speech, January 23, 1980: State of the Union Address, April 25, 1980: Statement on the Iran Rescue Mission, August 14, 1980: Acceptance Speech at the Democratic National Convention. Inflation will soar; production will go down; people will lose their jobs. Now, I know that some of you may doubt that we face real energy shortages. Energy will be the immediate test of our ability to unite this Nation, and it can also be the standard around which we rally. He puts forth several initiatives to push the nation towards greater. We can take the first steps down that path as we begin to solve our energy problem. Working together with our common faith we cannot fail. Only by saving energy can we maintain our standard of living and keep our people at work. ", 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. Now we have a choice. He proposed a plan to solve the crisis that focused on expanding the government's responsibility, promoting conservation, and expanding the search for oil to previously untapped areas. On July 15, 1979, President Jimmy Carter addresses the nation via live television to discuss the nations energy crisis and accompanying recession. 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. That is the concept of the energy policy that we will present on Wednesday. You often see a balanced and a fair approach that demands sacrifice, a little sacrifice from everyone, abandoned like an orphan without support and without friends. These changes did not happen overnight. We need to shift to plentiful coal, while taking care to protect the environment, and to apply stricter safety standards to nuclear energy. We will act together. . They made possible the age of automobile and airplane travel. 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. Only by saving energy can we maintain our standard of living and keep our people at work. His remarks were broadcast live on radio and television. If it were possible to keep it rising during the 1970's and 1980's by 5 percent a year, as it has in the past, we could use up all the proven reserves of oil in the entire world by the end of the next decade. But we still have another choice. Conservation is the quickest, cheapest, most practical source of energy. I hope that each of you will take steps to conserve our precious energy and also join with your elected officials at all levels of government to meet this test of our Nation's judgment and will. 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). Point two: To ensure that we meet these targets, I will use my Presidential authority to set import quotas. If it were possible to keep it rising during the 1970's and 1980's by 5 percent a year, as it has in the past, we could use up all the proven reserves of oil in the entire world by the end of the next decade. Jimmy Carter, "Address to the Nation on Energy," April 18, 1977 (excerpts). Our children who will be born this year will come of age in the 21st century. The selection of this time span made perfect sense from a Hollywood read more, On July 15, 1988, Die Hard, an action film starring Bruce Willis as wisecracking New York City cop John McClane, opens in theaters across the United States. The cost will keep going up. I can't be too concerned about other things when I have a 10-year-old daughter to raise and I don't have a job and I'm 56 years old." Carter prefaced his talk about. that it be. We are strong. We've always wanted to give our children and our grandchildren a world richer in possibilities than we have had ourselves. There is not enough discipline among your disciples. This from a young woman in Pennsylvania: "I feel so far from government. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a Georgia state senator from 1963 to 1967, and as the 76th governor of Georgia from 1971 to 1975.. Carter was born and raised in Plains, Georgia, graduated from the United States Naval . We will monitor the accuracy of data from the oil and natural gas companies for the first time, so that we will always know their true production, supplies, reserves, and profits. In spite of increased effort, domestic production has been dropping steadily at about 6 percent a year. But you did not choose your elected officials simply to fill an office. The erosion of our confidence in the future is threatening to destroy the social and the political fabric of America. I know that many of you have suspected that some supplies of oil and gas are being withheld from the market. Jimmy Carter's Acceptance Speech, July 15, 1976 Inaugural Address as President, January 20, 1977 State of the Union Address, January 19, 1978 State of the Union Address, January 23, 1979 Energy and National Goals: Address to the Nation, July 15, 1979 State of the Union Address, January 23, 1980 State of the Union Address, January 16, 1981 I'm announcing tonight that for 1979 and 1980, I will forbid the entry into this country of one drop of foreign oil more than these goals allow. ", And the last that I'll read: "When we enter the moral equivalent of war, Mr. President, don't issue us BB guns.". Since the great price rise in 1973, the Japanese have cut their oil imports, the Germans, the French, the British, the Italians have all cut their oil imports. We are the heirs of generations who survived threats much more powerful and awesome than those that challenge us now. We simply must have faith in each other, faith in our ability to govern ourselves, and faith in the future of this Nation. It hurts every American family. We will use research and development projects, tax incentives and penalties, and regulatory authority to hasten the shift from oil and gas to coal, to wind and solar power, to geothermal, methane, and other energy sources. It's worse because more waste has occurred and more time has passed by without our planning for the future. One such lesson is don't count conventional energy out. But the sacrifices can be gradual, realistic, and they are necessary. "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. 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 By acting now we can control our future instead of letting the future control us. I've given you some of the principles of the plan. But we can make that transition smoothlyfor our country and for our children and for our grandchildrenonly if we take careful steps now to prepare ourselves for the future. 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. With about the same standard of living, we use twice as much energy per person as do other countries like Germany, Japan, and Sweden. The story of the human race is one of adapting to changing circumstances. 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. place in this century, with the growing use of oil and natural gas. What can we do? It's crucial that you understand how serious this challenge is. In April 1977, under the dark cloud of the energy crisis, President Jimmy Carter told the nation that the difficult effort needed to move beyond the shortages and high prices of that era "will be the moral equivalent of war.". These wounds are still very deep. Now we need efficiency and ingenuity more than ever. I will sign the energy bills only if they meet these tests. But if we wait, we will constantly live in fear of embargoes. The . to use solar energy in more than 2 1/2 million houses. The former . Imports have doubled in the last 5 years. The Congress has recognized the urgency of this problem and has come to grips . Last week the Senate sent its version of the legislation to the conference committees, where Members of the House and Senate will now resolve differences between the bills that they've passed. These were the promises I made 3 years ago, and I intend to keep them. When expanded it provides a list of search options that will switch the search . His remarks were broadcast live on radio and television. But sometime in the 1980's, it can't go up any more. When President Jimmy Carter addressed the nation on April 18, 1977, the U.S. was in a crisis. There is something especially American in the kinds of changes that we have to make. The symptoms of this crisis of the American spirit are all around us. And you are also deeply involved in these decisions. The energy crisis has not yet overwhelmed us, but it will if we do not act quickly. The sixth principle, and the cornerstone of our policy, is to reduce demand through conservation. And it will get worse every day until we act. The most important thing about these proposals is that the alternative may be a national catastrophe. read more. These are the purposes of the new energy legislation.