At President Jimmy Carter’s funeral at the Washington National Cathedral on Thursday, all of the current American presidents poured into pews to commemorate one another in a rare display of solidarity in these turbulent times.
Even though his one tenure in the White House was viewed as a letdown at the time, Carter, who passed away late last month at the age of 100, is remembered as a kind Christian and progressive ahead of his time.
Family members and dignitaries recalled acts of public sacrifice and private compassion under the soaring neo-Gothic nave’s stained glass and stone filigree. They mentioned that Carter taught Sunday school at his Plains, Georgia, church “every Sunday from World War II to Covid.”
Carter had good vision. In a eulogy before his death in 2021, Carter’s vice president Walter Mondale stated, “He put aside his short-term political interests to tackle challenges that demanded sacrifice to protect our kids and grandkids.” His son Ted read the eulogy on Thursday.
Many of Carter’s peers had already passed away due to their lengthy lifespans, but a few had prepared speeches for the event years in advance.
Before recalling how Carter promoted renewable energy, Ted Mondale pointed out that “very few people in the 1970s had heard the term ‘climate change'” and that he was a leader in racial justice and women’s rights.
According to longstanding senior adviser Stuart Eizenstat, Carter “may not be a candidate for Mount Rushmore, but he belongs in its foothills, making the U.S. stronger and the world safer.”
Current and former Republican and Democratic presidents and vice presidents, many of whom have fought harsh elections against one another, were seated together in the front rows.
Vice President Kamala Harris was among those who sat silently and gazed ahead. Others, such as former President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump, were observed laughing and conversing with one another.
Members of Congress, judges of the Supreme Court, officials from Carter’s administration, and dignitaries from other countries also attended.
As a young man in the U.S. Senate when Carter visited Washington, President Joe Biden stated he learned from Carter that character strength is more important than a title or position of authority. It’s the fortitude to see that everyone deserves respect and decency.”
Study the impact of Jimmy Carter’s example, young people and anyone else looking for direction and significance,” Biden added. A true patriot has integrity, faith, and love.
Two weeks before Biden is scheduled to cede power to a political figure he despises at Trump’s second inauguration, the burial provided a unique opportunity for attendees to put politics aside.
Steve Ford, the son of previous President Gerald Ford, whom Carter defeated to win the office, observed, “There’s an old line that two presidents in a room is too many.” Before he passed away, Ford read a prepared eulogy for his father.
“But we immediately decided to exercise the privilege of former presidents: to immediately forget what either of us said about the other in the heat of battle,” Ford went on. “There is indeed life after the White House.”
Carter recognized it, and as he continued to lead a somewhat modest life with his cherished wife, Rosalyn, who passed away in late 2023, he threw himself into domestic and international charitable endeavors, which helped his public reputation soar after leaving office.
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According to Jason Carter, his grandfather was a simple, everyday man who answered the door wearing a T-shirt and Crocs after carrying his baggage on Air Force One during his time as president.
According to Carter, he did reside in the White House and the Governor’s Mansion for a total of eight years. He lived in Plains, Georgia, a 600-person community located many miles from an interstate or an airport, for the remaining 92 years.
He claimed that his grandfather’s political beliefs were prophetic, not just ahead of their time.
As Georgia’s governor, Carter battled mass incarceration and racial discrimination during a time when the majority of white Southerners opposed integration. Jason Carter said that he was a climate warrior and that he had preserved more public lands than any other president. Decriminalizing marijuana was his goal. Additionally, he deregulated industries in ways that made it possible for inexpensive plane tickets and craft beer to flourish.
In other words, the younger Carter joked that he might have been the first millennial nearly fifty years ago.
Since Carter’s death on December 29, tributes have been flooding in as his body slowly moved across Georgia and Washington to be seen by thousands of people.
His casket rested atop the catafalque that formerly housed Abraham Lincoln’s body and was covered with an American flag in the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol prior to the funeral.
A private family funeral will now take place in Georgia as the proceedings continue. Following that, Carter will be laid to rest on the property of his Plains residence.
Prior to his 1976 presidential campaign and victory, Carter was a little-known person outside of his home state of Georgia.
Voters dissatisfied with the world oil crisis and the abduction of American diplomats by Islamist revolutionaries in Iran rejected him after just one term in office.
Republican Ronald Reagan, Carter’s successor, destroyed much of Carter’s program, including the experimental solar panels he had put on the White House roof to support alternative energy, and for decades his legacy was overshadowed.
However, Carter’s legacy has improved over time in the eyes of historians and the public, both for his post-presidential charitable work, where he dedicated himself to causes like Habitat for Humanity, and for his presidential accomplishments, which are now regarded as groundbreaking on issues like environmentalism, women’s rights, and civil rights.