- claimed that Americans were experiencing a crisis of confidence
- argued that Americans had been distracted by materialistic desires
Speaking on national television after this retreat, Carter outlined a series of energy initiatives. More memorably, however, he insisted that the United States was facing a crisis of confidence." As Carter saw it, Americans no longer believed they could contribute positively to their own government and no longer looked optimistically to the future. They had also become distracted by materialistic desires. "Owning things and consuming things," he proclaimed, sounding like a preacher, "does not satisfy our longing for meaning.
The unusual address became known as the malaise speech, though Carter never actually uttered that word, and it proved politically damaging. Critics accused the president of blaming Americans for the economic crisis and belittling their material concerns. Notably, the idea of a national malaise caught on, however. Even many of Carter's opponents and detractors seemed to agree that inflation rates and energy crises had psychological implications and correlations. Still, they wanted a president who would rise above the popular despair and project energetic confidence in the face of all the evidence of economic decline.