10 Questions For Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter has always been proud of his breadth of achievement: nuclear engineer, farmer, U.S. President, humanitarian and 2002 Nobel Peace Prize winner. Now, with The Hornet's Nest, his novel about the Revolutionary War, he has turned to fiction. The reviews were gently tough, but speaking with TIME's Massimo Calabresi, Carter showed that, as always, he's ready for a fight.

WHY WRITE A NOVEL AFTER EVERYTHING ELSE YOU'VE TACKLED?
I wanted to tell a kind of ignored story about the most important war in which America's ever been involved. And I wanted to do it in a highly personal way so that I could describe the torture that went on within the hearts and minds of 25% of the inhabitants of America all British citizens who finally made a decision to break away from the King of England. Also, it was kind of a challenge to me. I was ready to try something new.

IN THE BOOK, SOME OF THE PEOPLE ON BOTH SIDES BEHAVE ALMOST LIKE TERRORISTS, KILLING CIVILIANS. IS THERE A HIDDEN MESSAGE HERE?
I think it shows that maybe people who won't eat French fries should remember that we would never have won our independence without French support. I think it shows that the international interrelationships are much superior to a unilateral action.

DO YOU THINK THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION HAS HELPED OR HURT THE ARAB-ISRAELI PEACE PROCESS?
They've hurt it. This Administration has abandoned what has been in the past a bipartisan commitment to a relatively balanced position in trying to find peace. It's been an ostentatious alliance between the White House and the Sharon government, I think to the detriment of our nation's image and to the detriment of an eventual peace agreement.

SADDAM WAS A TERRIBLE TYRANT. DO YOU THINK, IN HINDSIGHT, REMOVING HIM WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO?
Not unilaterally, with a few British troops tagging along. I think it would have been very good to remove him once and for all with an international force, as was envisioned.

SOME HAVE CRITICIZED YOUR POST-PRESIDENCY DIPLOMACY AS LISTING TOWARD APPEASEMENT. WHAT'S YOUR DEFENSE?
I don't feel defensive. The Carter Center has the policy of promoting peace, justice, freedom, human rights and the alleviation of suffering all over the world. And quite often, as is predictable, a serious war or human-rights oppression is the fault of an unsavory character. To get to the heart of those issues, our policy has been to try to negotiate a settlement.

OTHERS SAY YOUR POST-PRESIDENCY HAS BEEN MORE SUCCESSFUL THAN YOUR PRESIDENCY. IS THAT FAIR?
The people who say that are the ones who never found anything right with my presidency. We kept the peace, we kept our country safe, we promoted human rights around the world, we normalized relations with China, we had nuclear agreements with the Soviet Union, we brought peace to Israel and Egypt. I feel comfortable about my Administration. But I have really enjoyed the life after the White House.

THE DEAN CAMPAIGN EVOKES SOME MEMORIES OF YOUR CANDIDACY IN '76. WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF HIS CHANCES?
He seems to be doing quite well. He came down to Georgia when he was just planning the campaign and talked to me and my wife about the basic tactics of '76. On occasion, he has called me to give me a report on his campaign or to ask a question.

ARE YOU A SUPPORTER OF HIS CANDIDACY?
No, I'm going to support whoever I think will have the best chance next November.

WAS DEAN OFFENSIVE OR JUST TOO HONEST IN SAYING HE WANTED THE SUPPORT OF "GUYS WITH CONFEDERATE FLAGS IN THEIR PICKUP TRUCKS"?
As I told him afterward, if you had just said you want the support of Southern whites that drive pickup trucks, the same message would have got across. But when he threw in the Confederate flag, it showed a little bit of an incompatibility with national opinion.

DO ANY OF THE DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES HAVE A CHANCE AGAINST BUSH?
It depends on two things. One is what's going on in Iraq and the war against terrorism. And the other is the economy. I think it's too early to say what's going to be happening in either.