The transition from President Carter to Ronald Reagan was uniquely dramatic, not just because of the page turning moment it provided, but also because it presented the world with the perfect example of how our constitutionally mandated transfer of power works.
Mr. Carter lost his bid for a second term in 1980 due to his hapless and impotent handling of the Iran hostage crisis. By the time Inauguration Day rolled around, the hostages had been held captive for 444 days. However, during his last days in office, in an effort to salvage his presidency, Mr. Carter stepped up his efforts to secure their release. In fact, on January 19, 1981, the President stayed up all night negotiating on behalf of the hostages, working the phones up until the moment he had to leave the Oval Office to get dressed for the inauguration of Mr. Reagan.
I remember the day very well. Media outlets were following the inaugural events of the morning while at the same time giving updates on the status of the hostages.
As Carter and Reagan made their way to the platform at the Capitol, the hostages were placed on a plane, where they sat for the next half hour. And then, at the moment Reagan put his hand on the Bible and took the oath of office, at the moment Carter's presidency was officially over, the Iranians allowed the plane to take off.
It was a stab in the eye to the outgoing president, but it also shined the spotlight on our form of government. Carter was President of the United States until 12 noon on January 20th, and he worked his ass off until the last possible moment in order to bring 52 Americans back home.
While they weren't technically released until Mr. Reagan had become president, it was Carter who had worked non-stop for days at making sure it happened.
Part 1 of the Reagan inaugural below...
Part 2, here and part 3 here.
