WASHINGTON—After lying in state at the U.S. Capitol for two days, former President Jimmy Carter was honored with an official state funeral at the Washington National Cathedral on Jan. 9.
The invitation-only service, attended by dignitaries and members of Carter’s family, began at 10 a.m. ET. All five living presidents, including former President Barack Obama, President Joe Biden, and former president and President-elect Donald Trump, were present.
As the political leaders entered the cathedral, Obama shook hands with everyone except for Trump and his wife, Melania, but sat next to the president-elect and shared laughs with him while others took their seats. Trump shook hands with Mike Pence, his former vice president, who ran against him in the 2024 Republican presidential primary. Former President George W. Bush and his wife walked past the Trumps before shaking hands with the other politicians. The Clintons did not speak to Bush, Obama, or Trump before sitting down for the service.
Carter died on Dec. 29 at the age of 100—the longest-living former president in U.S. history.
Biden, who was tearful throughout the service, had been asked by Carter in late 2024 to deliver a eulogy at his funeral. Biden served in the Senate during Carter’s presidency and was the first senator to endorse his White House bid.
“Jimmy Carter’s life story … [is] of a man who was at once driven and devoted to making real the words of his Savior, the ideals of this nation, the story of a man who never let the tides of politics divert him from his mission to serve and shape the world. The man had character,” Biden said. “As you all know, around the world, through it all, he showed us how character and faith start with ourselves and then flows to others.”
“That’s the definition of a good life,” Biden added. “A life Jimmy Carter lived during his 100 years.”
Biden honored Carter for his character, Christian faith, the friendship the two shared for five decades, and the lives the former president touched over more than half a century of public service.
“May God bless a great American, a dear friend, and a good man. May he rise up, be raised up on eagle’s wings, bear on the breath of dawn, make you to shine like the sun, and hold you in the palm of his hand. God bless you. Jimmy Carter.”
Carter’s grandson, Joshua Carter, and former President Gerald Ford’s son, Steven Ford, delivered the first eulogies.
“My grandfather spent the entire time I’ve known him helping those in need,” Joshua Carter said. “He built houses for people who needed homes. He eliminated diseases in forgotten places. He waged peace anywhere in the world, wherever he saw a chance. He loved people.”
Steven Ford said his father and Carter spoke before his father died in 2006, and the two former presidents agreed to eulogize one another at their respective funerals. Steven Ford agreed to deliver the eulogy his father wrote for Carter.
“By fate of a brief season, Jimmy Carter and I were rivals, but for the many wonderful years that followed, friendship bonded us as no two presidents since John Adams and Thomas Jefferson,” Gerald Ford wrote before his death. “It was because of our shared values that Jimmy and I respected each other as adversaries, even before we cherished one another as dear friends.
“Honesty and truth-telling were synonymous with the name Jimmy Carter. Those traits were instilled in him by his loving parents, Lillian and Earl Carter,” Gerald Ford’s eulogy continued.
“He displayed that honesty throughout his life as a naval officer, state legislator, governor, president, and world leader. For Jimmy Carter, honesty was not an aspirational goal. It was part of his very soul.”
As Steven Ford concluded his father’s eulogy of Carter, he was holding back tears. “I’m looking forward to our reunion,” Gerald Ford’s eulogy continued. “We have much to catch up on. Thank you, Mr. President. Welcome home, old friend.”
Walter Mondale, Carter’s vice president, also wrote a eulogy for his former boss before he died in 2021. His son, Ted Mondale, presented it on Jan. 9.
“[President Carter and I] became very close friends. We often spent hours together throughout the day. We were working on real problems, not wasting time. The personal relationship we established while in office continued throughout our life,” Walter Mondale wrote in his eulogy.
“Toward the end of our time in the White House, the President and I were talking about how we might describe what we tried to do. We came up with this sentence which to me remains an important summary of what we were trying to do.
“‘We told the truth, we obeyed the law, and we kept the peace.’ That we did, Mr. President,” Walter Mondale continued.
“I will always be proud and grateful to have had the chance to work with you, toward noble ends. It was then and always will be the most rewarding experience of my public career.”
Jason Carter, another of Carter’s grandsons, spoke after Stuart Eizenstat, who served as the former president’s chief domestic policy adviser and executive director of the White House domestic policy staff.
“His political life and his presidency, for me, was not just ahead of its time. It was prophetic. He had the courage and strength to stick to his principles, even when they were politically unpopular,” Jason Carter said.
“Maybe this is unbelievable to you, but in my 49 years, I never perceived the difference between his public face and his private one. He was the same person, no matter who he was with or where he was, and for me that’s the definition of integrity.”
Those speaking at the funeral on Jan. 9 eulogized Carter for charting a life that began with his humble upbringing in rural Georgia, continuing through his years working as an officer in the U.S. Navy’s nuclear submarine program, before he became a Georgia state senator, governor, and president.
They remembered him for his efforts to combat racism, protect human rights worldwide, promote peace and posterity, and combat climate change.
After leaving the White House, he spent the decades of his post-presidency working with the Carter Center and Habitat for Humanity.
The solemn procession of Carter’s casket from the Capitol Rotunda, where he has lain in state since Jan. 7, to the Washington National Cathedral began at 9 a.m. ET on Jan. 9 as members of the military carried the coffin down the Capitol steps and placed it in a hearse for the 24-minute drive. Upon arrival at the Gothic cathedral, the casket was carried inside by members of the military.
Following the service, which lasted for several hours, Carter and his family members will fly from Joint Base Andrews for his final trip back home to Georgia.
Holding the funeral at the cathedral is “a sign of respect being paid to a former president,” David Zarefsky, a history professor at Northwestern University, told The Epoch Times.
After all, the location is significant and historical, agreed other experts.
“The cathedral’s mission is to open its doors to the nation at times of joy, mourning, and national significance,” Tecklenburg said. “State funerals at the cathedral are carefully planned to reflect the former president’s legacy.”
Additionally, the timing of the funeral is noteworthy.
“Less than two weeks before a presidential inauguration, Carter’s funeral service will highlight accomplishments and challenges in the 20th century as well as their implications for 21st-century American and global politics,” Bose said.
“Carter’s lifelong dedication to service, from his naval career to Georgia politics to the White House to his extensive post-presidential domestic and international public agenda, will present many moments for the general public and public officials to reflect upon how one individual can make a difference to improve people’s lives.”
