Jimmy Carter: To beat Trump, Dems cannot scare off moderates

ATLANTA (AP) — Former President Jimmy Carter sees little hope for the U.S. to change its human rights and environmental policies as long as Donald Trump is in the White House, but he has a warning for his fellow Democrats looking to oust the current administration: Don't go too far to the left.

"Independents need to know they can invest their vote in the Democratic Party," Carter said Tuesday during his annual report at his post-presidential center and library in Atlanta, where he offered caution about the political consequences should Democrats "move to a very liberal program, like universal health care."

That's delicate – and, Carter admitted, even contradictory – advice coming from the 93-year-old former president, and it underscores the complicated political calculations for Democrats as they prepare for the November midterms and look ahead to the 2020 presidential election.

"Rosie and I voted for Bernie Sanders in the past," Carter noted.

He was referring to his wife, Rosalynn, and their support for the Vermont senator, an independent who identifies as a democratic socialist, over establishment favorite Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Democratic presidential primary. At another point, he pointed to California's environmental policies – limits on carbon emissions, stiffer fuel-efficiency standards – as the model for combating climate change.

Still, Carter stressed, Democrats nationally must "appeal to independents" who are souring on the current administration.

Trump's job approval rating, according to Gallup, has dipped to 40 percent, mostly because of declining support among independents.