Jimmy Carter's presence at the Democratic National Convention was limited to a blink-of-the-eye moment - as in, blink and you'll miss him. A quick wave of his hand, and he was ushered from the Pepsi Center podium. But Carter isn't the sort of man to remain in the background, out of the public eye - as Democratic leaders clearly preferred. So he called attention to himself by the cheapest stunt possible - insulting John McCain' service to his country.
The GOP standard-bearer, he whined yesterday, is "milking every possible drop of advantage" from the 5Å“ years he spent as a POW in Hanoi, undergoing debilitating torture. "John McCain was able to weave in his experience in a Vietnam prison camp, no matter what the question was," said the former president.
That's low, coming from a former commander in chief, himself a Navy veteran.
And it's also uncalled for, given Carter's own abysmal record when it comes to US prisoners - specifically the 52 Americans who were held captive by Iran for 444 days, thanks wholly to his political ineptitude.
John McCain demonstrated strength of character during his imprisonment.
Jimmy Carter's bungling of the Iran crisis demonstrated America's weakness and impotence.
Shame on him.