Jonathan Demme's new documentary, "Jimmy Carter: Man from Plains,"
reveals a personal side of President Jimmy Carter that many of us
have not seen. Carter, who is probably one of the most honest
American presidents in well over a hundred years, expresses what
can only be described as "disdain" for the administration of
George W. Bush as a result of its neocon policies of war and
non-respect for the Constitution at home.

The documentary covers Carter's nationwide book tour in November
and December 2006, a tour embroiled in controversy. Carter was
promoting his book "Palestine: Peace not Apartheid." The president
was forced to contend with talk show hosts, one of whom he called
"obnoxious" and apologists for Israel's inhuman policies in the
West Bank and Gaza.

Carter had to contend with charges from the "amen corner" of Israeli
expansionists and so-called Christian Zionists that he was bigoted,
a liar, and even a plagiarist. The plagiarism charge emanated from
Dennis Ross, the head of the pro-Israel Washington Institute for
Near East Policy (WINEP), a major policymaker for the U.S. war in Iraq,
and a one-time Middle East Special Envoy for President Bill Clinton.
Ross claimed that Carter used maps he commissioned and insinuated
Carter plagiarized the maps. In fact, the maps of the divided West Bank
were maps presented by Israel at 2000 peace talks in Camp David, Eilat,
and Taba in which Ross was involved. If Ross obtained copies of the maps
presented at the talks, they were not his personal property nor part of
his personal papers.

Mr. Ross should understand that any documents he obtained as part
of his official duties belongs to the American people, and the
American people includes President Carter. But this is just a typical
stance by the thieving neocons. It is unfortunate that in a
Hillary Clinton administration, Ross, whose loyalties to America
are highly suspect, will likely rejoin the federal government in
a senior foreign policy role. Perhaps he and Hillary Clinton's
foreign policy adviser Sandy Berger can then rifle through the
National Archives and steal official documents for their
personal libraries.

Perhaps the most surprising revelation of the documentary was
the venom hurled at Carter from top Democrats in Congress.
While House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's attack on Carter's book
was not surprising considering her long-time support for the
American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the bigger
surprise was the criticism of Carter by House Judiciary Committee
Chairman John Conyers.

Conyers accused Carter of insensitivity to African Americans for
using the term "apartheid" in his description of the treatment
of the Palestinians by the Israelis. However, Carter, more than most,
knew firsthand from intelligence reports about the close links,
including nuclear weapons links, between the apartheid regime and
the Israeli government. And the ink blot map of apartheid "Bantustans"
in South Africa closely resemble the Palestinian-assigned "sovereign"
territories in the occupied West Bank.

What Carter may or may not know is the fact that Conyers, House
Judiciary Committee because of his long-time seniority, does not
represent the aspirations of his large Arab American constituency.
Conyers' website even proclaims his 14th Michigan district has
"America's largest Arab-American population." In fact, Conyers
top staffers in his office and on his committee represent the interests
of AIPAC. Hence, Conyers' bark is much worse than his political bite.
Although some of Conyers' staffers feign interest in Arab American issues,
they are merely gathering intelligence on the community on behalf of AIPAC,
the Anti-Defamation League, and Israeli intelligence.

The "Man from Plains" also features the diatribes launched by
Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz at Carter. After investigating
Carter as a "Holocaust denier," Dershowitz complains about Carter's
anti-Semitism and then refers to Palestinians as "cockroaches,"
but quickly retracts his statement.

In one scene, Carter recounts how he wanted to visit Damascus as
head of the Carter Center to see Syrian President Bashar Assad and
try to help involve Syria in wider Middle East issues affecting
Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and Iraq. However, Carter's visit to
Syria was prevented by the Bush White House. After Carter told
National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley that he knew Assad's father
and was in a good position to convey America's wishes to Assad,
Hadley told Carter that Bush himself ordered that Carter be
prevented from going to Damascus. Carter said Bush "ordained"
his not visiting Syria.

The shoddy treatment by Bush of a former President is yet another
indication of the fascist nature of the current administration.
In another scene, Carter's vehicle is passing by an Air New
Zealand Boeing 747 at Los Angeles International Airport.
Carter notes if he were to ever leave the United States,
he would go to New Zealand. This is an astounding, gut-wrenching,
and revealing comment by a former President about the current
nature of America. That a former President would even think about
political exile says everything about the fascism imposed by Bush
and the neocons on the United States.

If this documentary does anything, it reminds us of a time
when the United States had a President with intelligence and
compassion for others. Carter was once this editor's Commander-in-Chief.
While serving abroad in the Navy, I never had to apologize for
President Carter, not once. That is not the case with many in the
military today regarding the current occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.