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That section of the book, though, deals with how "the country's tectonic plates had shifted," and the mention of Carter was just a small part of the whole discussion about that period of history... not a "glib reading" at all. I strongly suggest you read the book yourself to get the whole sense of it instead making your judgement based on one sentence.
Carter is mentioned again later in the book as a humanitarian who "seemed prepared to once again align moral concerns with a strong defense" -- until precipitous events thwarted his purposes, and made him seem naive and ineffectual. Republicans looking for an opening seized that opportunity, Reagan won the election handily, and we've been struggling with the results ever since.
What Obama has been describing over and over again, in the book and in various talks he's given, is that historic changes happen when a constellation of circumstances come together:
(1) when the mood of the country is right,
(2) when the need is apparent, and
(3) when a leader steps forward who knows how to seize that moment.
The right leader for any given time will have the ability to seize that moment, and will galvanize the mood, the need, and the people into a powerful force full of awareness and unity of purpose.
A lot of people think Obama is the right leader for this time. I'm one of them.
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