THE PRESIDENCY OF JAMES EARL CARTER, JR. As President, Jimmy Carter was renowned for abandoning Washington protocol. Ousting presidential pomp and circumstance and elitism, he banished the presidential limousines and carried his own bags. Following his political convictions, he saw himself as a public trustee, determined to play a dominant role in government and undertake a number of bold initiatives. In the process, argues Burton Kaufman, he tried to do too much too quickly in foreign and domestic policy and ignored political process, regardless of the consequences.