Carter signed the Airline Deregulation Act into law on October 24, 1978. The main purpose of the act was to remove government control over fares, routes and market entry (of new airlines) from commercial aviation. The Civil Aeronautics Board's powers of regulation were removed. The Act did not remove the FAA's regulatory powers over all aspects of airline safety.
In 1979, Carter deregulated the American beer industry by making it legal to sell malt, hops, and yeast to American home brewers for the first time since the beginning of Prohibition in the United States. This Carter deregulation led to an increase in home brewing over the 1980s and 1990s that by the 2000s.
During his presidential campaign, Carter wanted healthcare reform.
Carter's proposals on healthcare while in office included an April 1977 mandatory health care cost proposal, and a June 1979 proposal that provided private health insurance coverage. Carter saw the June 1979 proposal as a continued progress in American health coverage made by President Harry Truman and Medicare and Medicaid being introduced under President Lyndon B. Johnson. The April 1977 mandatory health care cost proposal was passed in the Senate, and later was not approved in the House.
During 1978, Carter also had meetings with Kennedy for a healthcare law that proved unsuccessful. Carter would later say Kennedy's disagreements as having ruined Carter's efforts to provide a health-care system for the country.
Early into his term, Carter worked with Congress to create an education department. In a February 28, 1978 address at the White House, Carter argued, "Education is far too important a matter to be scattered piecemeal among various Government departments and agencies, which are often busy with sometimes dominant concerns". On February 8, 1979, the Carter administration released an outline of its plan to create an education department. On October 17, 1979, Carter formally signed a law that created the United States Department of Education.
Carter expanded the Head Start program with the addition of 43,000 children and families. In a November 1, 1980 speech, Carter said his administration had extended Head Start to migrant children and was "working hard right now with Senator Lloyd Bentsen and with Representative Kika de la Garza to make as much as $45 million available in Federal money in the border districts to help with the increase in school construction for the number of Mexican school children who reside here legally".
In September 1977, Carter and General Omar Torrijos signed the Panama Canal Treaty. The treaties guaranteed that Panama would gain control of the Panama Canal after 1999, ending the control of the canal that the United States had since 1903. The second treaty said that Panama would assume full control of canal operations and become responsible for its defense. The treaty was criticized by conservative.
In September 1978, Carter formed several political agreements betweem Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin at Camp David. The two framework agreements were signed at the White House and were witnessed by Carter. The second of these frameworks ("A Framework for the Conclusion of a Peace Treaty between Egypt and Israel") led directly to the 1979 Egypt–Israel Peace Treaty.
Historian Jørgen Jensehaugen argued that by the time Carter left office in January 1981, he:
In an October 4, 1977 address to African officials at the United Nations, Carter stated the United States's interest to "see a strong and prosperous Africa with as much of the control of government as possible in the hands of the residents of your countries". At a news conference later that month, Carter outlined the United States wanting "to work with South Africa in dealing with the threats to peace in Namibia and in Zimbabwe" and to end racial issues such as apartheid.
Carter visited Nigeria from March 31 to April 3, 1978, the trip being an attempt by the Carter administration to fix relations with the country. He was the first U.S. president to visit Nigeria. Carter wanted to create peace in Rhodesia.
On May 16, 1979, the Senate voted in favor of President Carter lifting economic sanctions against Rhodesia, the vote being seen by both Rhodesia and South Africa "as a potentially fatal blow to the diplomacy that the United States and Britain have pursued in the region for three years and to the effort to reach a compromise between the Salisbury leaders and the guerrillas".
On November 15, 1977, Carter said that his administration would continue positive relations between the United States and Iran, calling the country "strong, stable and progressive".
On November 4, 1979, a group of Iranian students took over the United States Embassy in Tehran. The students were in support of the Iranian Revolution. Fifty-two American diplomats and citizens were held hostage for the next 444 days until they were finally freed immediately after Ronald Reagan replaced Carter as President on January 20, 1981. During the crisis, Carter never left the White House for more than 100 days. A month into the affair, Carter stated his plans to resolving the dispute without "any military action that would cause bloodshed". On April 7, 1980, Carter issued Executive Order 12205, adding economic sanctions against Iran and announced more measures by members of his cabinet and the American government that he saw necessary to make sure a safe release. On April 24, 1980, Carter ordered Operation Eagle Claw to try to free the hostages. The mission failed, leaving eight American servicemen dead and causing the destruction of two aircraft.
On February 8, 1977, Carter stated he had wanted the Soviet Union to work with the United States in forming "a comprehensive ban to stop all nuclear testing" and that he was in support of the Soviet Union ceasing deployment of the RSD-10 Pioneer. During a June 13 conference, Carter reported that the United States would "beginning this week to work closely with the Soviet Union" and would negotiate demilitarization of the Indian Ocean with the Soviet Union beginning the following week. At a news conference on December 30, Carter said that the United States and the Soviet Union have made great progress in dealing with a long list of important issues. The talk of a comprehensive test ban treaty led to the signing of the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty II by Carter and Leonid Brezhnev on June 18, 1979.
Communists under the leadership of Nur Muhammad Taraki seized power in Afghanistan on April 27, 1978. Following an uprising in April 1979, Taraki was removed by Khalq rival Hafizullah Amin in September. By December, Amin's government had lost control of much of the country, causing the Soviet Union to invade Afghanistan. Carter was surprised by the invasion. In the West, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan was seen as a threat to global security. In the aftermath of the invasion, Carter saw the Soviet Union as dangerous. In a televised speech, he announced sanctions on the Soviet Union. He created an embargo on grain shipments to the Soviet Union. Carter also called for a boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. British prime minister Margaret Thatcher supported Carter's tough stance. In early 1980, Carter created a program to arm the mujahideen. The Soviets were unable to fight off the insurgency and withdrew from Afghanistan in 1989.