In the end, there was no assassination plot against President Carter at all. The book "Hunting the Presidents" quotes FBI agent Tom Shield as saying, "We conducted an investigation and have satisfied ourselves that such [a plot] did not occur." Secret Service agent Jack Warner supported this conclusion, chiming in, "At this point we don't believe his [Raymond Lee Harvey's] story. Our investigation shows no evidence of a conspiracy. It sounds like the type of thing we get all the time." And so Harvey, the shotgun case and three shells in the hotel room, stories of rooftop snipers and starter pistol distractions, and weird name linkages between people involved: none of it was connected or meant anything whatsoever.
So why did Harvey paint a portrait of himself as a co-conspirator to assassinate the president? Maybe his own name inspired him. Coupled with his history of mental health issues, this might have been enough to drive him to self-destructive behavior. "Hunting the Presidents" also describes how some people target presidents for assassination out of nothing more complex than a vie to become famous.
A year after this 1979 non-spiracy, Carter had an eerie, quiet brush with a man who would actually try to end another president's life. While on his failed re-election campaign, Carter came within feet of John Hinckley Jr., per Dayton Daily News, who would later attempt to assassinate President Ronald Reagan. Hinckley apparently considered shooting Carter but backed out.
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