Ex-presidents seldom take an interest in Jewish affairs, with two notable exceptions: one who has repeatedly clashed with the Jewish community–Jimmy Carter–and one who turned out to be an unlikely ally of the Jews–Herbert Hoover, who passed away fifty years ago this week.

Most ex-presidents have gone quietly into the sunset, and some have taken issue with the few who have chosen to speak out on current affairs. George W. Bush, for example, last week had some strong words for fellow ex-president Jimmy Carter, following Carter’s public criticism of President Obama’s Mideast policies. “To have a former president bloviating and second-guessing is, I don’t think, good for the presidency or the country,” Mr. Bush said.

Much of Carter’s post-presidential activity has revolved around Israel. He has repeatedly taken controversial stands, such as comparing Israeli policies to apartheid, urging the U.S. to withhold aid from Israel to force it to change its positions, and praising Hamas as “a legitimate political actor.”

Douglas Brinkley’s 1998 book The Unfinished Presidency: Jimmy Carter’s Journey Beyond the White House, furnished some embarrassing details about Carter’s relationship with Yasir Arafat. According to Brinkley, Carter “developed a fondness for Arafat” based on his belief “that they were both ordained to be peacemakers by God.” The former president went so far as to personally draft a speech for Arafat that he hoped would “help him to overcome the deficit understanding” for him in the West.

By contrast, Herbert Hoover, as ex-president, repeatedly took positions favorable to Jewry–even when it was not in his political interest to do so.