we see these moments of the presidents and the first ladies coming together at a time when we really don't see much of this anymore, it's noticeable that michelle obama is not there. >> i don't see her, but melania trump, you know, she's she's probably the most enigmatic, mysterious first lady that we've had in modern history. she doesn't talk much. she's as quiet as her husband is outgoing. you see, he's talking. they're leaning in, talking to barack obama, making him laugh. and she's pretty much straight forward looking. it's going to be interesting to have her back in the white house because she was born overseas. english is her second language, she said. it was pretty hard the first time around, but now she's in the club there. of people that

know that every time they go out, people are looking at them. >> mary, we're now watching the president and the first lady, president biden, first lady jill biden arriving in the cathedral. they were here in california yesterday. shortly making trip back to washington. president biden will deliver the eulogy there today. in recent days, the president and first lady also traveling to new orleans to pay tribute to the lives lost in that attack. in just the last couple of weeks. quite an image to see them all gather there. the bidens, the vice president, the second gentleman. and in that second row, the clintons, the bushes, barack obama and the incoming

president, donald trump and his wife, the former and future first lady melania trump. one. >> and the same. nursery. be jon karl, a beautiful sunshiny day there in washington. >> a beautiful, frigid day in washington. as all of these leaders come together on such a rare occasion. fittingly, to pay tribute to jimmy carter.

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and then. right. here. >> now, with faith in jesus christ, we receive the body of our brother james for burial. let us pray with confidence to god, the giver of life, that he will raise him to perfection in the company of the saints. deliver your servant james, o sovereign lord christ, from all evil, and set him free from

every bond. that he may rest with all your saints in the eternal habitations, where with the father and the holy spirit you live and reign one god forever and ever. >> let us also pray for all who mourn, that they may cast their care on god, and know the consolation of his love. >> almighty god, look with pity on the sorrows of your servants for whom we pray. remember them, lord in mercy. nourish. nourish them with patience. comfort them with a sense of your goodness. lift up your countenance upon them, and give them peace. through jesus christ our lord. amen. hey hey

honey. >> hey. hey. hey hey hey. hey. hey. oh. 000.

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>> lindsey davis, as we watch the casket make its way into the cathedral. it would not have been lost on jimmy carter that he brought all of these former presidents and first ladies together. as we look at amy carter and the carter family sitting there as well. >> what a mount rushmore assembled there in d.c. today. david, not just those who aspired and desired the office, but for whom it eluded, but for also those who ascended to the highest office in the land. fitting, as you say, that jimmy carter would be able to bring about such bipartisanship in death. no doubt a moment he would be proud of today, among those who will be eulogizing carter from the grave, as it were. his predecessor, president gerald ford, whose son will be reading the words of his father, once a bitter rival of jimmy carter, later a trusted friend.

>> that will be an extraordinary moment today to hear the words of gerald ford through his son. similar to walter mondale, who also left words behind for the man he served as vice president, later tried to win the presidency himself. you have to wonder as they celebrate jimmy carter's legacy, any leader, any leader with an ego and that's all of them, must be thinking about what their legacy might be one day to that is actually what i am thinking when i am looking at all of them. >> david. they are obviously aging. they must be thinking of their own lives, what people will remember about them when in the future there is a state funeral for all of them, how

will they be remembered? what have i done? i covered george w bush during the iraq war, a painful, horrible experience with so many young american lives lost. and what he thinks about. he has been very, very quiet during the first trump presidency. he said nothing about donald trump. as you know, david, he started painting after his presidency in these very, very involved in in veterans and wounded warriors. but all of these men, all of these people who are there today are thinking about their own lives. the national cathedral is such a spectacular space. and when you walk in, you are somber and you are reflective, and you can see that on all of their faces. barack obama, what is he thinking about? bill clinton, hillary clinton they put pain aside. they put divisiveness aside. they think about how they

can be better people. can they be better people? could they have been better presidents or vice presidents? it is on all of their faces. >> defined by victories and by defeats. you mentioned hillary clinton. there was a moment there when the camera was trained on her having just won the medal of freedom, honored with the medal of freedom by president biden. and you do have to wonder what they're thinking as far as not only jimmy carter, but as martha points out, about how they'll be defined, and certainly. jimmy carter and how he worked so hard to give so much of himself in the decades following the presidency, how their time after their roles will be judged as well.

as.

>> i am the resurrection and the life, saith the lord. believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. that my redeemer lives, and that he shall stand at the latter day

upon the earth. body be destroyed, yet shall i see god, whom i shall see myself, and mine eyes shall behold. and not as a for none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth himself bears all writing stuff. >> pretty stuff. writing stuff, ready stuff. ready stuff. stuff, ready stuff. ready

ready stuff. ready, step. stuff. ready, step. forward. march. art. >> golf. center face. down. >> for if we live and if we die, we die unto the lord. three. >> ready, face.

ready. oh! ready. >> forward, march! lord! >> lord. >> lord, for none of us liveth to himself. and no man dieth to himself. for if we live, we live unto the lord, and we die unto the lord. whether we live therefore, or die, we are the lord's. blessed are the dead who die in the lord. even so saith the spirit, for they rest from

their labors. >> the lord be with you. and also with you. let us pray. god, whose mercies cannot be numbered. accept our prayers on behalf of your servant james, and grant him an entrance into the land of light and joy in the fellowship of your saints. through jesus christ our lord, who lives and reigns with you and the holy spirit, one god, now and forever. amen.

>> the former president's grandson, josh carter. >> my grandfather started teaching sunday school when he was a midshipman at the naval academy. he taught the bible every sunday from world war two to covid. for all my grandfather's travels, he structured his life so that he was home in plains to teach at maranatha on sunday. it was central to his life. every time i went to church with him, it

was packed. the line started before sunrise, and i was always very thankful that i got to walk in with my grandmother. and as soon as we sat down, sunday school would start. my grandfather always began by asking if anybody had been in his church before. my grandmother and i raised our hands and almost no one. instead, and then my grandfather would poll the congregation, and we quickly found out that the church was full of people from all over the country of all different backgrounds and beliefs. and my grandfather would address the most diverse sunday school class ever assembled again before he delivered his bible lesson. my grandfather talked about his week. if he monit you talk about it. if he eliminated a disease from a village or a country, you would

talk about it. when my brother jeremy died, he announced that news in sunday school. in fact, i remember that my brother died on a sunday because it was the only time my grandfather was ever late to teach. my grandfather won the nobel peace prize. his sunday school class learned first at the end of his nobel peace prize lecture. he stated the most serious and universal problem on our planet is the growing chasm between the richest and poorest people on earth. for the next two decades, as the problem compounded, he returned to this theme with stories from the bible and stories from today of the richest people in the world, using their enormous wealth to buy a nation's poverty. many of the people that my grandparents helped lived on less than $1 a day. my grandfather spent the

entire time i've known him helping those in need. he built houses for people that needed homes. he eliminated diseases and forgotten places. he waged peace anywhere in the world. wherever he saw a chance. he loved people. and whenever he told these stories in sunday school, he always said he did it for one simple reason. he worshiped the prince of peace, and he commanded it. the bed of my grandfather's faith comes from the apostle paul's letter to the romans, chapter eight one through 1838 and 39. therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in christ jesus, because christ jesus. because through christ jesus, the law of the spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

for what the law was powerless to do, in that it was weakened by the sinful nature god did by sending his own son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. and so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us who do not live according to the sinful nature, but according to the spirit. those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires. but those who live in accordance with the spirit have their minds set on what the spirit desires. the mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the spirit is life and peace. the sinful mind is hostile to god. it does not submit to god's law, nor can it do so. those

controlled by the sinful nature cannot please god. you, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature, but by the spirit. if the spirit of god lives in you. and if anyone does not have the spirit of christ, he does not belong to christ. but if christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. and if the spirit of him who raised jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his spirit who lives in you. therefore, brothers, we have an obligation, but it is not to the sinful nature to live according to it. for if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die. but if by the spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the spirit of god are

sons of god. for you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the spirit of sonship. and by him we cry, abba. father. the spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are god's children. now if we are children, then we are heirs. heirs of god and co heirs with christ. if indeed we share in his sufferings, in order that we may also share in his glory. iwe consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing to the glory that will be revealed in us. for i am convinced that neither death nor life,, neither angels nor demon, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of god that is in christ

jesus our lord. the word lord. >> the fourth grandchild of jimmy carter, joshua carter. talking about the people his grandfather helped for so many years who had so little means. and that that is what drove his father's work. we're going to hear here next from steven ford. he's the son of former president gerald ford. he'll read a eulogy that had been written by the late gerald ford, the one time president defeated by jimmy carter. they became very close friends across party lines for many years. both jimmy carter and gerald ford said that they would give eulogies at each other's funerals. obviously jimmy carter. long outliving gerald ford, reaching the age of

100. but we will hear today in an extraordinary moment what gerald ford wanted the country to know about his friend jimmy carter, the man who defeated him in 1976 for the presidency. there he is, steven ford right there again, about to deliver remarks written by his father, the late gerald ford. extraordinary moment for two men who were determined to have their words read for each other. >> before i start, the carter children. my wife and i were sitting several rows behind you and i. we were praying for you,

and i was humbly reminded that it was 18 years ago, almost to the day that that our family sat in that very row and supporting my mom. and it was your dad his great faith that supported my mom and gave her hope. that week. he he traveled with us for several days and we were blessed. so thank you. god did good thing when he made your dad. jack. president, madam vice president, former presidents and first ladies, members of the house of representatives and the senate,

justices of the supreme court. distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, in the twilight of my dad's life, dad and president carter spoke by phone and dad asked president carter if he would do a eulogy at dad's funeral. president carter graciously agreed, and then he also asked if dad would deliver a eulogy at president carter's funeral. now, dad was thrilled to agree. after that call, as you can imagine, both of them got off the phone and had a pretty good chuckle considering which one of them would return in person to deliver that second eulogy. as you know, dad died in

2006, and president carter's eulogy continues to bring comfort, smile, laughter, joy, pride to our family. and thus, on behalf of my dad, it's an honor to share dad's eulogy to his old friend. i my dad getting his his yellow legal pad out with his pen and writing this for his beloved friend. 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. it is said that president adams last words were thomas jefferson still

survives. now, since jimmy has a good decade on me, i'm hedging my bets by entrusting my remembrances of jimmy to my son, steve. according to a map, it's a long way between grand rapids, michigan and plains, georgia. but distances have a way of vanishing when measured in values rather than miles. and 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. now, this is not to say that jimmy never got under my skin, but has there ever been a group of politicians that didn't do that to one

another? during our 1976 contest, jimmy knew my political vulnerabilities and he successfully pointed them out. now, i didn't like it, but little could i know that the outcome of that 1976 election would bring about one of my deepest and most enduring friendships. in the summer of 1981, the two of us found ourselves together again, this time aboard air force one, bound for the funeral of the great peacemaker, anwar sadat. there's an old line to the effect that two presidents in a room is one too many. frankly, i wondered how awkward that long flight might be to cairo. and it was a

long flight. but the return trip was not nearly long enough. for it was somewhere over the atlantic that jimmy and i forged a friendship that transcends politics. we immediately decided to exercise one of the privileges of a former president, forgetting that either one of us had ever said any harsh words about the other one in the heat of battle. then we got on to much more enjoyable subjects, discussing our families, our faith, and sharing our experiences in discovering that there is indeed life after the white house. we commiserated over the high cost of building presidential libraries, and the even more regrettable fact that

most of that fundraising for these otherwise admirable institutions fell to us personally on the spot. we agreed to participate in programs at each other's library beginning beginning with a series of conferences on arms control. and if that wasn't newsworthy enough, we told reporters on the plane that a lasting middle east peace would require the united states to make tough decisions, like confronting the palestinian issue directly, thereby building on the work to which president sadat had literally given his life. it was the first time, but by no means the last time, that our unlikely partnership ruffled feathers in the washington establishment. now, honesty.

truth telling were synonymous with the name jimmy carter. yeah, those traits were instilled in him by his loving parents, lillian and earl carter, and the strength of his honesty was was reinforced by his upbringing in the rural south. poised on the brink of social transformation, he displayed that honesty throughout his life as a naval officer, state legislator, governor, president and world leader. for jimmy carter. honesty was not a aspirational goal. it was part of his very soul. now, i think jimmy wrote more books than any former president once asked if he really enjoyed writing, he replied with that familiar twinkle in his eye. it beats

picking cotton, but i think he enjoyed writing for another reason. as an author, he was under no pressure to tailor his opinions to some political constituency or potential contributor. now, both of us had experienced the harsh reality that defeat at the polls can be painful, but we also came to know a more important consequence political defeat and writing can also be liberating if it frees you to discuss topics that aren't necessarily consistent with short term political popularity. now, jimmy learned early on that it was not

enough merely to bear witness in a pew on a sunday morning, inspired by his faith, he. he pursued brotherhood across boundaries of nationhood, across boundaries of tradition, across boundaries of caste. in america's urban neighborhoods and in rural villages around the world. he reminded us that christ had been a carpenter, and in third world villages he successfully campaigned not for votes but for the eradication of diseases that shame the developed world as they ravaged the undeveloped one. now, of course, not all of jimmy's time was spent building houses, eradicating disease, brokering cease fires, monitoring elections. while jimmy is probably the only former president to conduct a weekly

bible class, i know for certain he is the only former president to perform a duet of on the road again with willie nelson. georgia wasn't just on jimmy's mind, it was in his blood. however far he traveled. he never forgot where he came home to or where. now, in the end, he would finally come home to. the men of the many things jimmy and i had in common. the most important is this. we both married way above ourselves, way above. with jimmy, every step of the way was his first lady from plains. and a life rich with blessings. none was greater for jimmy than his. the love he

shared with rosalynn and the love the two of them shared with her, their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. like jimmy, rosalyn was and is a symbol of american compassion like no other first lady in our history. rosalyn carter is indeed a true citizen of the world, and she became a beloved friend to my wife betty and me, and to all the ford family. while the carter and ford men were decidedly mixed record when it came to lobbying congress. rosalyn and betty were unbeatable in their advocacy for millions of people whom they brought out of the shadows of despair and shame. now is the

time to say goodbye or grief, comforted with the joy and the thanksgiving of knowing this man, this beloved man, this very special man. he was given the gift of years, and the american people and the people of the world will be forever blessed by his decades of good works. jimmy carter's legacy of peace and compassion will remain unique as it is timeless. the entire family. we extend our love to you and we add our prayers to the prayers of tens of millions of people around the world. may god bless and watch over this, this good man. may he grant peace to the carter family as

they say goodbye to a man whose life was lived to the fullest with the faith demonstrated and countless good works. with a mission richly fulfilled and a soul rewarded with everlasting life. as for myself, jimmy. looking forward to our reunion. we have much to catch up on. thank you, mr. president. welcome home, old friend. >> what a deeply moving and beautiful eulogy from the late gerald ford, delivered through his son, steven ford. mary jordan, incredibly touching and

filled with humor, too, saying. gerald ford joking. two presidents in one room are too many. >> and did you see the row of presidents respond to that line? they all started nodding and laughing. it was remarkable to hear, and it was soothing somehow, and wonderful that to know that a republican president and a democratic president truly were friends. and i talked to rosalynn carter about this, and she said that she and betty ford spoke all the time. of course, rosalynn carter was a mental health advocate early on, and betty ford talked enormously about alcoholism and her own struggles. the four of them used to go on trips together, and boy, we miss those days. but somehow i feel like from the grave, those words from gerald ford, it's resonating big time today. >> no question, they are resonating. ted mondale, now the

son of former vice president walter mondale. let's listen. >> my father wrote this in 2015, and clearly he edited it a couple times since then. but here we go. today we join in sadness to honor our dear frien, president carter, for his extraordinary years of principled and decent leadership and his courageous commitment to civil rights and human rights. i remember the emergence of jimmy carter on the national stage, in particular his 1971 inaugural address for the first time, a georgia governor called for a commitment to the traditions of martin luther king jr. and for the decency that his leadership stood for over his lifetime. i

was surprised when then-candidate carter asked me to join him as his running mate in 1976. he amazed me then, as he has every year since. he, of course, was brilliant. he also had a great sense of humor. and while we had only four years in the white house, he achieved so much in that time. it stood as a marker for americans dedicated to justice and decency. carter was a man of his word. i remember when he talked about the concept of the vice presidency. i told him i'd like to do it and had only two requests. i wanted to make a real contribution, and i didn't want to be embarrassed, as many of my predecessors have. he

agreed. welcome my full participation and directed his staff to treat me as they would him. he was very careful to protect me from the frustration and too often humiliation, that had cursed the lives of many vice presidents. i want to thank the president for the good choices he made with his key personnel. we don't have time to mention many of them, but stu eizenstat comes as close as possible to rivaling president carter's formidable work ethic. hamilton jordan and jody powell were blessings every day to me, to the president and to the nation. one of the things that dawned on me during the course of our time together is how well we work together, and how we understood each other. i think one of the realities with the

carter was a devout christian who grew up in a small town and was active in his faith for almost every moment of his life. i was also a small town kid who grew up in a methodist church, where my dad was a preacher, and our faith was core to me. as carter's faith was core to him, that common commitment to our faith created a bond between us that allowed us to understand each other and find ways to work together. he allowed me to take a leadership role on issues that never would have happened before. for instance, he directed and trusted me to take a central role in trying to bring decency to the vietnamese and southeast asian boat people who were fleeing their country. with president carter's orders, the boat people were picked up by our great navy from their flimsy boats, which were capsizing and taken to safety.

most became good american citizens working for a healthy and prosperous nation. loved her time as the second lady, and we have jimmy and rosalynn to thank for helping her champion the public arts and for just being so kind to her. these were good years for joan and i. 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. carter was farsighted. he put aside his short term political interests

to tackle challenges that demanded sacrifice to protect our kids and grandkids from future harm. very few people in the 1970s had heard the term climate change, yet carter put his presidency on the line to pass laws that, to conserve energy, deregulate new oil and gas prices, and invest in clean, renewable alternatives to fossil fuels. it wasn't a perfect program, but thanks to president carter, us energy consumption declined by 10% 1983. in many ways, he laid the foundation for future presidents to come to grips with climate change. some thought he was crazy to fight so hard to pass these laws, but he was dead, right? and we know that now.

also know that president carter elevated human rights to the top of his agenda. but sometimes, sometimes we forget how seriously he pursued. he pushed to advance the rights of women. he proposed and signed the law extending the period for states to approve the equal rights amendment. he appointed women to head the departments of commerce, education, hud and what is now h.e.w. women on his white house staff played crucial roles in developing his highest priority energy and environmental proposals, and he dramatically increased the ranks of female circuit and district court judges, including ruth bader, bader ginsburg. in all in all, he appointed five times as many women to the federal bench

as all of the previous presidents had. from the beginning of our country. two decades ago. president carter said he believed income inequality was the biggest global issue. more recently, in a 2018 commencement address at liberty university, he said i think now the largest global issue is the discrimination against women and girls in this world. he concluded that until. until stubborn attitudes that foster discrimination against women change, the world cannot advance, and poverty and income equality cannot be solved. towards the end of our time in the what we tried to accomplish in office. we came up with a sentence which remains an

important summary of our work. we told the truth. we obeyed the law, and we kept the peace that we did. mr. president, i will always be proud and grateful to have had the chance to work with you towards noble ends. it was then, and it will always be the most rewarding experience of my public career. thank you. >> ted mondale, the son of former vice president walter mondale, reading a eulogy there written by vice president walter mondale before he died in 2021. jon karl, it really has been truly remarkable to hear the words of leaders who have passed, but who left words behind for their friend jimmy carter. >> one of the many, many

remarkable things about jimmy carter is that he outlived many of those who wrote his obituary. when walter mondale wrote that first wrote that back in 2015, the world thought jimmy carter had only perhaps weeks to live after his diagnosis with melanoma that had spread to his brain. he wrote that, and now to hear it delivered nearly a decade later. and i have to tell you, david, i have watched and listened to speeches by gerald ford had the opportunity to do that. and i've gone back and watched some that i didn't see at the time. i think that may have been the best speech i've ever heard gerald ford deliver, of course, delivered by his son. but what a remarkable statement from the republican president, who was beaten by jimmy carter and became such a close, obviously close friend to him to describe that friendship and that bond that lasted long after

both men left the white house. >> gerald ford defeated by jimmy carter. but who would say in his own words through his son here today that his deepest, most enduring friendship came from defeat? let's listen. >> to what? and. who? pakistan. come on. it is strange to see steve moore. be. for those in peril. same.

for this. to the father. he died. for me. lord.

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light is all. praise. is o grace. from love to the. from faith. >> of the armed forces. chorus. the united states marine chamber orchestra and the cathedral choir. the t

continue. now this is the honorable stuart eizenstat, former white house domestic affairs adviser. as john karl pointed out a short time ago, so many of jimmy carter's friends and so many of the people he served with and who he chose to serve in his cabinet to fill out his white house, he survived them by many, many years, though there are still members, obviously, of that era that time. and we will hear now from the honorable stuart eizenstat. >> jimmy carter was as close to being a renaissance man. as any president entering the oval office in modern times. he was skilled in an astonishing array of activities farmer, businessman, nuclear engineer, naval submarine officer,

woodworker, painter, fly fisherman, music lover, poet, author, sunday school teacher, creator of the carter center and yes, loving husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather and nobel peace prize winner. behind that toothy smile was a man of steel determination, discipline and self-confidence. in 1974, when he was governor of georgia, has suggested that if he ran for president and won a few southern primaries, he might get lucky and be the vice presidential nominee for regional balance. with his broadest grin, he said, stu, i've already decided to run, but i will be the democratic nominee for president, not vice president

for one of our nation's most religious presidents. it's appropriate to celebrate jimmy carter's remarkable life in this magnificent cathedral. his religious values gave him an unshakable sense of right and wrong, animating his support for civil rights at home and human rights abroad, and propelling him to major achievements as the only democratic president elected between 1968 and 1992, his faith brought integrity to the presidency. after the watergate and vietnam eras. i'll never lie to you, he promised. it was a vow he fulfilled. but his faith respected other religions as well. he was the

first president to light a hanukkah menorah. he created the u.s. holocaust memorial museum, which i have the honor of chairing. he had a kosher shabbat dinner at camp david for the israeli delegation, and came to our house for a passover seder only weeks after he negotiated the treaty between israel and egypt. as we lay our 39th president to rest, it's time to redeem his presidency and also lay to rest the myth that his greatest achievements came only as a form of president. the test of american presidents is not the number of years they serve, but the duration of their accomplishments. by this measure, jimmy carter was among the most consequential one term presidents in american history. his intellect, prodigious work

habits, discipline, and mastery of details were crucial to his success at home and abroad. president carter put politics at the oval office door to do what he believed was the right thing, taking controversial challenges on regardless of the political consequences. and frankly, there were many much of his agenda passed with bipartisan support, a quaint notion in today's hyper polarized politics. independent surveys indicated he had one of the highest success rates in passing his major legislation of any american president, and he was remarkable, a remarkably accessible to the press and to the american people. this president, from the deepest part of the deep south, championed

civil rights, appointing more people of color and women to senior executive positions and judgeships than all previous 38 presidents before him. he created the department of education and dramatically increased funding for low and moderate income students. and we can thank him for all the ethics and government laws, comprehensive civil service reform, the creation of fema to coordinate natural disaster relief and rebuilding that remain crucially important today. and we see it in los angeles. jimmy carter was also the greatest environmental president since theodore roosevelt, adding 80 million acres in alaska to the national park system, and his global 2000 report forecasts climate change. his energy bills were critical to move our country from

dependance on foreign oil to energy security. we are now, as a result, the largest oil and gas producer in the world. he provided the first incentives for conservation and inaugurated the era of clean energy and symbolized it with solar panels he installed on the white house roof. underappreciated at the time but now widely recognized by republicans and democrats alike, president carter was the great deregulator, winning legislative battles to loosen the regulatory bonds and shackles on airlines, thereby democratizing air travel on trucking and rails, therefore helping our supply chains be more efficient.

telecommunications, leading to the cable tv era and even the beer industry, which encouraged local craft beers. and he did so without compromising health and safety. these laid the foundations for today's innovative economy. nothing better embodies president carter's and how he dealt with the inflation that beleaguered the nation under three presidents, two republican nixon and ford, and himself during the 1970s. over the objection of all of his advisers, he chose paul volcker to lead the federal reserve, knowing in advance that volcker's tough monetary policy would raise interest rates and unemployment because paul told them that and would do so in a presidential election year. you take care of the economy, paul.

i'll take care of the politics. inflation indeed dropped like a rock after he left office and remained low for decades abroad. jimmy carter laid the building blocks for a better world. he was the first president to make human rights a priority for u.s. foreign policy, and this led directly to the release of thousands of political prisoners in latin america and stimulated them to a lasting democratic transition. he ushered in a new era of hemispheric relations with the panama canal treaties, the toughest legislative battle of his presidency. he uniquely combined the soft power of human rights, championing freedom from the communist east bloc countries and tripling the emigration of soviet jews. he

combined that with hard power, rebuilding america's military strength. after its post-watergate decline. he negotiated a major nuclear arms treaty with the soviets, while at the same time initiated every single weapons system that came online. in the 1980s. those new weapons helped end the cold war. he normalized relations with china, and even his critics applauded his tough measures. after the soviets invaded afghanistan, jimmy carter's most lasting achievement, and the one i think he was most proud of, was to bring the first peace to the middle east through the greatest act of personal diplomacy in american history, the camp david accords. for 13 days and nights, he negotiated with israel's menachem begin and

egypt's anwar sadat, personally drafting more than 20 peace proposals and shuttling them between the israeli and egyptian delegations. and he saved the agreement at the 11th hour. and it was the 11th hour by appealing to begin's love of his grandchildren for the past 45 years, the egypt-israel peace treaty has never been violated and laid the foundation for the abraham accords. on the other side of the ledger was iran. jimmy carter did not lose iran. the shah did. but the hostage crisis was a major factor in denying him a second term. despite his support for the shah. because he placed the safe return of the hostages above his own political fortunes, he took

full responsibility for the failure of the bold hostage rescue mission and worked tirelessly even after his bitter reelection defeat to ronald reagan, securing their release on the last day of his presidency. in the end, jimmy carter taught all of us how to live a life fulfilled with faith and service, he said, i have life to live. i feel like god wants me to do the best i can do with it, to let me live my life so that it will be meaningful. well, mr. president, you've more than achieved that goal. he may not be a candidate for mount rushmore, but he belongs in the foothills of making the u.s. stronger and the world safer.

jimmy carter has earned his place in heaven. but just as he was free with sometimes unsolicited advice for his presidential successors, the lord of all creation should be ready for jimmy's recommendations on how to make god's realm a more peaceful place. >> moving in heartfelt words there from the honorable stuart eizenstat, former white house domestic affairs adviser. about to hear from jimmy carter's grandson, jason carter. he's the chair of the carter center now, and steve osunsami, who has reported extensively on the carter family. steve, you spoke with jason and he told you about those final days and about

his grandfather wanting to see his rose. >> yes, he did. he said that he knew that his grandfather was ready. you know, he had been in hospice care for nearly two years, and he said that his it was a bit of a comforting time for them, knowing that his grandfather was prepared for this next moment. you know, i talked with jason as he was writing the words he's about to deliver right now. and he told me, it's a it's a speech that he's written many, many times, but he wanted to focus on the love that his grandfather had for not just his wife, but just for people around the world. >> in my church, we sing a song that says, from the moment that i wake up, until i lay my head, i will sing of the goodness of

god. >> i don't know how many people in here can say that. i know i can't, but my grandfather certainly can. from the moment that he woke up, until he laid his head, his life was a testament to the goodness of god. and i thank all of you for being here to celebrate this life. to the presidents and first ladies, it is a great honor to have you here. you know, the human side of the american presidency like no others, and we appreciate you. to the vice president's other distinguished guests and friends of all kinds. thank you for being here. to those of you who came from all across the world, thank you for being here to celebrate and pay tribute to my grandfather. i say grandfather, but we called him pawpaw, as many of you know, and we called

my grandmother mom carter. so we spent our time talking about mom and papa and mostly speaking of the human side of the presidency, just letting people know that they were regular folks. yes. they spent four years in the governor's mansion and four years at the white house, but the other 92 years they spent at home in plains, georgia. and one of the best ways to demonstrate that they were regular folks is to take them by that home. first of all, it looks like they might have built it themselves. second of all, my grandfather was likely to show up at the door in some 70s short shorts and crocs. and then you'd walk in the house and it was like thousands of other grandparents house all across the south, fishing trophies on the walls. the refrigerator, of course, was papered with pictures of grandchildren and

ten great grandchildren. their main phone, of course, had a cord and was stuck to the wall in the kitchen like a museum piece and demonstrating their depression era roots. they had a little rack next to the sink where they would hang ziploc bags to dry. that they changed with the times. eventually he did get a cell phone, and he one time he called me sort of early on in that process and on my phone it said pawpaw mobile. so i answered it. of course. i said, hey, pawpaw, he said, who's this? i said, this is jason. he said, what are you doing? i said, i'm not doing anything. you call me. he said, i didn't call you. i'm taking a picture. it was a nuclear engineer, right? i mean. they were

town people who never forgot who they were and where they were from. no matter what happened in their lives. but i recognize that we are not here because he was just a regular guy. as you've heard from the other speakers, 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. as governor of georgia half a century ago, he preached an end to racial discrimination and an end to mass incarceration. as president in the 1970s, as you've heard, he protected more land than any other president in history. 50 years ago, he was a climate warrior who pushed for a world where we conserved energy, limited emissions and traded our

reliance on fossil fuels for an expanded renewable sources. by the way, he cut the deficit, wanted to decriminalize marijuana, and deregulated so many industries that he gave us cheap flights. and as you heard, craft beer, basically all of those years ago, he was the first millennial. and he could make great playlists, as we've heard as well. maybe this is unbelievable to you, but in my 49 years, i never perceived a 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. that honesty was matched by love. it was matched by faith. and in both public and private. my grandparents did

fundamentally live their lives in an effort, as the bible says, to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with their god. sometimes i feel and felt like i shared my grandfather with the world. today is one of those days. but really, he shared the world with me. the power of an atom, the beauty and complexity of a south georgia forest. when we fished, he celebrated the majesty of everything from the smallest minnow to that grand circulation of waters. and he shared this love with my boys. taking these atlanta public school kids out into the fields to show them about row crops and wild plums. in the end, his life is a love story. and of course, it's a love story about jimmy and rosalynn and their 77 years

of marriage and service. as the song says, they were the flagship of the fleet. and rest assured that in these last weeks, he told us that he was ready to see her again, but his life was also a broader love story about love for his fellow humans, and about living out the commandment to love your neighbor as yourself. i believe that that love is what taught him and told him to preach the power of human rights, not just for some people, but for all people. it focused him on the power and the promise of democracy, its love for freedom, its requirement and founding belief in the wisdom of regular people raising their voices and the requirement that you respect all of those voices, not just some. that conviction made him a naval officer who believed and demonstrated, as you've heard, that the greatest power of

america was not the military, but its values. and those values were personal to him. and he lived them both publicly and privately, as you heard stu say. as president, he gave voice to dissidents, stood up to dictators, brought countries together in peace. his heart broke for the people of israel. it broke for the people of palestine. and he spent his life trying to bring peace to that holy land. and he talked about it at the dinner table. it was the same in public as it was in private. and for the last 40 years, as you've heard, he spent his time living out that love and that faith alongside the poorest and most marginalized people in the world. and that work, again, has been based fundamentally on love and respect. the carter center has

3500 employees, but only a couple hundred in the united states. the rest are spread throughout the countries where we work ethiopia, south sudan, chad, bangladesh and all of the carter center's programs are based on a respect that same respect for the power of regular people, even if they are in tiny villages miles from anywhere else. to give one example, we've all heard a lot lately about guinea worm disease. it's an ancient and debilitating disease of poverty, and that disease will have existed from the dawn of humanity until jimmy carter, when he started working on this disease. there were 3.5 million cases in humans every year. last year there were 14. and the thing that's remarkable is that this disease is not eliminated with medicine. it's eliminated essentially by neighbors talking

to neighbors about how to collect water in the poorest and most marginalized villages in the world. and those neighbors truly were my grandfather's partners for the last 40 years. and as this disease has been eliminated in every village in nigeria, every village in sudan or uganda, what's left behind in those tiny 600 person villages is an army of jimmy and rosalynn carter's who have demonstrated their own power to change their world. and that is a fundamental truth about my grandfather. it begins where it ends. when he saw a tiny 600 person village that everybody else thinks of as poor, he recognized it. that's where he was from. that's who he way is a place to find partnership and power, and a place to carry out that commandment to love your

neighbor as yourself. essentially, he eradicated a disease with love and respect. he waged peace with love and respect. he led this nation with love and respect. to me, this life was a love story. from the moment that he woke up, until he laid his head. conclude with this. as andy young told me, he may be gone, but he's not gone far. the outpouring of love and support that we have felt from you and from around the world has shown how many lives he has touched, and how his spirit will live on in many ways for us. he'll be in the kitchen making pancakes. or his woodshop, finishing a cradle for a great

grandchild, standing in a trout stream with mom carter. or for me, just walking those georgia fields and forests where he's from. thank you. >> a profound tribute from the grandson of jimmy carter, jason carter, who helps run the carter center. of course, now the board of trustees, talking about the army of jimmy and rosalynn carter around the world, standing up for the people in these small villages who have so little. a lot of humor there, though, to describe the 70s short shorts, the crocs, that he would open the door in the house he said that they lived in that looked like they could have built it. the refrigerator with papers attached, the phone with the cord still hanging from it, he said. like a museum piece, that they would hang the ziploc bags that eventually he did get a mobile phone, a cell phone. they got a call from his grandfather, he answered. he said hello, and he said, who's

this? he said, i didn't call you. i was taking a photo. we can all relate to that. amazing grace, now performed by the phyllis adams and pianist leila bolton. on g, c grace city. >> it only h can be me those. first not was before the boston show

mean. we. old boy hard to hear if he is really she was. so

first in me late in we didn't talk to you the year boy came over i. favor.

disgrace. his room. is set bare. three. will lead from. grace. will >> home. >> simply extraordinary. amazing

grace by phyllis adams. she's a long time delta flight attendant. believe it or not, that's extraordinary. hope to end up on one of her flights one day to tell her how beautiful that was. we will now hear from president biden. and as we know, long time friend of jimmy carter's president biden and first lady jill biden traveled to plains, georgia, to visit with the carters very publicly. once he was elected president. to give them to offer them the sort of respect they believe the carters deserved after all these years. let's listen to the president. >> leaders of the clergy, distinguished guests, most importantly, the carter family. in april 2021, jill and i visited jimmy and rosalynn at

warner spring day down in plains, georgia. we wanted to see them. rosalynn met us at t front door with her signature smile. together, we entered a home that they had shared for almost 77 years of marriage. an unassuming red brick ranch home that reflects their modesty more than any trappings of power. we walked into the living room where jimmy greeted us like family that day, just the four of us sat in the living room and shared memories that spanned almost six decades, a deep friendship that started in 1974. i was a 31 year old senator, and i was the first senator outside of georgia, maybe the first senator to endorse his candidacy

for president. it was an endorsement based on what i believe is jimmy carter's enduring attribute character, character, character. because of that character, i believe, is destiny. destiny in our lives and quite frankly, destiny in the life of the nation. and 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 to the ends? justify the means? jimmy

carter's friendship taught me and through his life taught me. the strength of character is more than title or the power we hold. it's the strength to understand that everyone should be treated with dignity, respect that everyone. and i mean everyone deserves an even shot. not a guarantee, but it's a shot. you know, 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. we're all fallible. but it's about asking ourselves, are we striving to do things, the right things? what values? what

are the values that animate our spirit? do we operate from fear or hope? ego or generosity? we show grace? do we keep the faith when it's most tested for 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 from great, great eulogies who came from a house without running water or electricity and rose to the pinnacle of power. the story of a man who was at once driven and devoted to making real the words of his savior. and 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. jimmy held a deep christian faith in god, and that his candidacy spoke and wrote about faith as a substance of things hoped for and evidence of things not seen. faith founded on commandments of scripture. love the lord thy god with all thy heart, and all thy mind, and all thy soul, and love thy neighbor as thyself. easy to say, but very, very difficult to do in

his life. in this life, any walk of faith can be difficult. it can be lonely, but it requires action to be the doers of the world. but in that commandment lies the essence of my view, found in the gospel, found in many faith traditions, and found in the very idea of america. because the very journey of our nation is a walk of sheer faith to do the work, to be the country we say we are, to be the country we say we want to be a nation where all are created equal in the image of god, and deserve to be treated equally throughout our lives. we've never fully lived up to that idea of america. we've never walked away from it either

because of patriots like jimmy carter. throughout his life, he showed us what it means to be a practitioner of good works and a good and faithful servant of god and of the people. and today, many think he was from a bygone era, but in reality he saw we into the future 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 hard working farmer who championed conservation and clean energy, and a president who redefined the relationship with a vice president. jimmy and i often

talked about our dear friend walter mondale, whom we all miss very much. together, they formed a model partnership of collaboration and trust because both were men of character. and as we all know, jimmy carter also established a model post-presidency by making a powerful difference as a private citizen in america. and i might add, 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. at our best, we share the better parts of ourselves. joy, solidarity, love, commitment. not for reward, but

in reverence for the incredible gift of life we've all been granted to make every minute of our time here on earth count. that's the definition of a good life, a life jimmy carter lived during his 100 years. to young people, to anyone in search of meaning and purpose, study the power of jimmy carter's example. i miss him, but i take solace in knowing that his beloved rosalynn are reunited again and to the entire carter family. thank you. and i mean this sincerely for sharing them both with america and the world. we love you all. jill and i will

cherish our visits with them, including that last one in their home. we saw jimmy as he always was, at peace with a life fully lived, a good life, a purpose and meaning of character driven by destiny and filled with the power of faith, hope and love. i'll say it again faith, hope and love. as he returned to plains, georgia, for his final resting place. we can say goodbye and the words of the prophet micah, who jimmy so admired until his final breath. jimmy carter did justly love mercy and walk humbly. may god bless a great american and a

dear friend and a good man. may he rise up, be raised up on eagle's wings, and bear you on the breath of dawn. and make you to shine like the sun. and hold you in the palm of his hand. god bless you, jimmy carter. >> the tribute from the current president of the united states to a former president, his dear friend jimmy carter. joe biden was the first sitting democratic senator to endorse jimmy carter in the race in 76. he said to the young people out there listening to anyone listening in search of purpose, he said, study jimmy carter's example. he said many people believe that jimmy carter is of a bygone era. but he said, actually, jimmy carter in many ways saw the future was ahead of his time in

so many ways. we have talked about it on the air here this morning. the power of this image right here, the president, the first lady. and former presidents and first ladies gathered from both parties to honor the 39th president, who served one term, was defeated by ronald reagan. and now president biden after having served one term, president elect donald trump returning to the white house. polarizing times, but proof that in these moments, a country can come together and that the leaders in that cathedral there today are determined to send a message that there is common ground and common good. and we've heard a lot about the common good offered by jimmy carter. james carter, the grandson of the president, former president carter, reading from the gospel according to saint matthew with

the reading. >> now, when jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. his disciples came to him, and he began to teach them, saying, blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see god. blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of god. blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. blessed are you when people insult you,

persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven. for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. you are the salt of the earth. but if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? it is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled by men. you are the light of the world. a city on a hill cannot be hidden. neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. instead, they put it on its stand and it gives light to everyone in the house. in the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your father in heaven. the word of the lord. thanks be.

>> james carter, the grandson of jimmy carter. now the homily from the honorable andrew young, former u.s. ambassador to the u.n. former ambassador jimmy carter, for more than 50 years. the grandchildren represented well here on this morning. martha will hear from the former u.s. ambassador, who had a deep connection to jimmy carter for so many decades. >> he did indeed in in work and of course, in friendship. the two were incredibly close. i have an incredible history together. you can see he's been

very moved throughout this service. and his words, i'm sure, will be profound. just as president biden's were talking about character in writing to the ephesians, the fourth chapter of the 32nd verse. >> be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other. just as in christ, god forgave you. me, was something of a miracle. i was born in the deep south shortly a few years after him and. it was always a place of miracles. i couldn't see how we could have had the differences

in background. the coming from different places on the planet. the experiences of slave and slave owner. the diversity of color and creed and national origin and still become great nation that we are in the united states of america. something of a miracle. and i don't mean this with any disrespect, but. hard for me to understand how

you could get to be president from plains, georgia. i plains from my pastorate in thomasville, georgia, about 60 or 70 miles south of there. and i was even nervous driving through prayings and plains sumter county gave us one of the meanest experiences that we had in the civil rights movement, so much so that martin luther king said that the sheriff of plains, of sumter county, he really thought was the meanest man in the world. and when i first met jimmy carter running for governor and said, the only

thing i know about plains and sumter county is fred chappell, and he said, oh, yes, he's one of my good friends. and that was the last thing i wanted to hear. and yet time and time again, i saw in him the ability achieve greatness by the diversity of his personality and his upbringing. doctor king used to say that greatness is characterized by antithesis, strongly marked. you've got to have a tough mind and a tender heart. and that was jimmy carter, and he grew up in the tremendous diversity of the

south, and he embraced both sides. he was a minority sumter county, just about 20 to 25% of the population was white. but growing up as a minority, he became the friend of the majority. and when he went to the naval academy, he asked that his roommate be the first black midshipman to come to annapolis. and he said, i know minorities. i've been a minority most of my life, and maybe i can help him in his adjustments. and he went out of his way to embrace those

of us. who. kinds of conflict. but that was the sensitivity, the spirituality that made james earl carter a truly great president. james earl carter was truly a child of god, not only a good farmer, but. physicist chosen by admiral rickover to assist him in developing a new nuclear navy. but at the same time he was working on a nuclear navy. he was thinking of peace on earth and goodwill toward all men, and especially women and children.

i've known president carter for more than half of my life, and i never cease to be surprised. i never cease to be enlightened. i never cease to be inspired by the little deeds of love and mercy that he shared with us every day of his life. it was president james earl carter that, for me, symbolized the greatness of the united states of america, and i am truly grateful for him, because in spite of the harshness of the depression and the explosions of inflation, he never wavered for his from his commitment to god

almighty and his love of all of god's children. a blessing that helped to create a great united states of america. and for all of us and many who are not able to be here. i want to say thank you. you have been a blessing from god and your spirit will remain with us. and as jason said, h may be gone, but he ain't gone far. thank you, president beautifully done by ambassador young. linsey davis, he said i

still have a hard time figuring out how do you become president. from plains, georgia to laughter in the cathedral. but then he talked about the climate that he knew himself in the south. >> 92 years old, andrew young, putting his notes aside to speak strictly from the heart. there he was, of course, appointed u.s. ambassador to the united nations by jimmy carter, the first african american to ever hold the position, which perhaps says more about jimmy carter, the man more than the president. young described carter as growing up in a minority and ultimately becoming a friend of the majority. and here's garth brooks, who jimmy carter famously said his favorite song was by garth brooks, unanswered prayers. >> he and trisha yearwood will perform imagine.

imagine this no ever >> sees if you try >> below >> above. us only. sky. all the people >> living for today i there's no country. >> it isn't hard to do to care or die. >> no, really urgent

imagine all the people life in peace. you who say i'm a dreamer the only one. >> i hope someday you'll join us . >> and the world will be his one. imagine. no possessions >> the wonder if you can't >> there's no need for greed or hunger.

>> the brotherhood of man >> and all the people of. sharing all the youth may say i'm a dreamer the only one. >> i hope someday you'll join us . for you and the world. >> will evans. one.

that's correct. up. >> martha raddatz, deeply moving in that cathedral. so moving. >> and i can't imagine david, that garth brooks ever saw he perform there and performing such a beautiful, beautiful and powerful and powerful song. >> hallowed be thy name. i think to come thy will be done. on earth as it is in heaven. give us this day our daily bread. and forgive us our trespasses. as we forgive those who trespass against us. >> and lead us not into temptation us not into temptatit deliver us from evil. for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. >> amen, amen.