WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden hailed former President Jimmy Carter, the nation’s 39th president, as “a practitioner of good works” in a eulogy delivered on the final day of the state funeral at the Washington National Cathedral.
“Patriots like Jimmy Carter throughout his life, he showed us what it means to be practitioner of good works and a good and faithful servant of God and of the people,” Biden said. “And today, many think he was from a bygone era, but in reality he saw well into the future.”
Carter, who served as president from 1977 to 1981, died Dec. 29 at the age of 100 in his hometown of Plains, Georgia.
All members of the so-called presidents’ club — all five living presidents, past and present — gathered for the event. In addition to Biden, former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and President-elect Donald J. Trump were in attendance.
“A white southern Baptist who led the civil rights, a decorated navy veteran who brokered peace, a brilliant nuclear engineer who led on nuclear nonproliferation, a hardworking farmer who championed conservation and clean energy,” said Biden. “Jimmy Carter also established a model post presidency by making a powerful difference as a private citizen in America.”
Biden told USA TODAY in a interview on Sunday that delivering Carter’s eulogy was a promise he made back in 2021, the last time the two saw each other. Carter was 96 at the time.
“I bent down − he was in tough shape − to kiss him goodbye, and he asked me to do his eulogy,” Biden said of their final conversation, which also marked his 100th day in office.
Their friendship dates back to 1974, when Biden was serving his first term as senator of Delaware and Carter was in the final year of his only term as governor of Georgia. Before Biden, 31 at the time, was supposed to give a speech in Atlanta, the two men met at the governor’s mansion and hit it off.
He became an elder statesman after his time in office, volunteering to mediate disputes between the U.S. and other nations, including North Korea and Libya. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his diplomacy efforts.
Among tributes paid were eulogies written by former President Gerald R. Ford who died in 2006, read by his son Steve and another written by Walter Mondale, who served as Carter’s vice president, also written before his death was delivered by his son, Ted. Carter’s grandson, Jason, also paid homage to his grandfather.
When Carter ran for president that year, Biden endorsed him.
In a statement after Carter’s death, Biden described him as “a man of great character and courage, hope and optimism.”
“With his compassion and moral clarity, he worked to eradicate disease, forge peace, advance civil rights and human rights, promote free and fair elections, house the homeless, and always advocate for the least among us. He saved, lifted, and changed the lives of people all across the globe,” he said.
Contributing: Susan Page, USA TODAY
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy is a White House Correspondent for USA TODAY. You can follow her on X @SwapnaVenugopal
