President Jimmy Carter's life was honored Thursday at the Washington National Cathedral, marking the conclusion of the six-day state funeral. The service was attended by a plethora of world leaders and lawmakers, featuring speeches from his family, former colleagues and President Joe Biden, marking one of his last public appearances after he leaves office on Jan. 20.
Biden started his speech by reflecting on his April 2021 meeting with the Carters in Plains, Georgia, the former president's home. The President said he and Carter discussed their "deep friendship" which spanned over six decades. Biden was one of the first senators to endorse Carter's run for the White House.
The Democratic president said his endorsement was due to what he called Carter's "enduring attribute," his "character, character, character." Carter had been particularly known for that during his post-presidency years, which he dedicated to defending democracy, ending poverty and advocating for marginalized communities.
"Because of that, the character I believe is destiny. Destiny in our lives, and quite frankly, destiny in the life of the nation. It's an accumulation of a million things built on character, that leads to a good life and a decent country. Life of purpose, life of meaning. Now, how do we find that good life? What does it look like? What does it take to build character? Do the ends justify the means?" the President said.
Interestingly, Biden noted that Carter was full of dichotomies: A White and Southern man who led on civil rights, a nuclear engineer who led on nuclear nonproliferation, a farmer who led on land conservation.
Because of this, he said, people in need of meaning and purpose should "study the power of Jimmy Carter's example."
The President also said there is an obligation to stand up to the abuse of power.
"We have an obligation to give hate no safe harbor. And to stand up to what my dad used to say is the greatest sin of all, the abuse of power. That's not about being perfect, because none of us are perfect," Biden said.
Biden was joined by the other living Presidents and their first ladies: President Bill Clinton and Secretary Hillary Clinton; George and Laura Bush; Barack Obama; Donald and Melania Trump; and Dr. Jill Biden. The only member of the exclusive club absent from the state funeral was Michelle Obama, who could not attend the event due to "scheduling conflicts."
After the funeral, Carter's body will be flown back to Georgia, where a century ago he became the first future president to be born in a hospital. The country's 39th president will be buried in his beloved hometown of Plains, next to Rosalynn Carter, his wife of 77 years.
Toward the end of the eulogy, Biden highlighted Carter's life and referred to the late president as "a man who never let the ties of politics divert him from his mission to serve and shape the world."
"We're keeping the faith with the best of humankind and the best of America, is a story, in my view, from my perspective, of Jimmy Carter's life. The story of a man, to state the obvious, you've heard today, some great, great, eulogies, who came from a house without running water, nor electricity, and rose as a pinnacle of power," Biden said.
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