Former US President Jimmy Carter’s body arrives in Washington on Tuesday for three days of mourning, beginning with him lying in state at the US Capitol before a funeral service at the Washington National Cathedral on Thursday.
The state funeral for the 39th US president comes at a time of transition as Republican President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take power from Democratic President Joe Biden. Security in Washington is higher than usual with the Capitol where Carter will lie in state surrounded by miles of fencing ahead of Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration.
Carter, a Democrat who served one White House term from 1977 to 1981, died Dec. 29 at the age of 100. The former Georgia peanut farmer struggled with a bad economy and the Iran hostage crisis while in office and was handily defeated for re-election by Republican Ronald Reagan. In the decades since he earned a reputation as a committed humanitarian, he has been widely seen as a better former president than he was a president. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.
The longest-living US president
Carter lived longer than any other US president and had been in hospice care for nearly two years before his death. His last public appearance was at his wife Rosalynn’s funeral in November 2023, where he used a wheelchair and appeared frail. In August, his grandson Jason Carter said Carter was looking forward to casting a ballot for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, who lost to Trump.
Biden has ordered flags at government buildings to be flown at half-staff as a sign of mourning for 30 days. That has irked Trump, who has said they should not be lowered during his Jan. 20 inauguration.
Carter is due to arrive from Atlanta at 2:15 p.m. (1915 GMT). The body of the former Navy submarine officer and his family will travel by motorcade to the US Navy memorial on Pennsylvania Avenue, where his remains will be transferred to a horse-drawn caisson for a funeral procession to the Capitol.
Members of Congress will pay their respects at a 4:30 p.m. (2130 GMT) service in the Rotunda. Members of the public will be able to pay their respects from 6:00 p.m. (2300 GMT) until midnight (0500 GMT).
On Wednesday, public viewing hours will resume at 7 a.m. ET (noon GMT) and Carter will lie in state in the Rotunda with a military guard of honor for 24 hours when his body will be carried by motorcade to the National Cathedral.
Both Biden and Trump are expected to attend Carter’s funeral service on Thursday.
Biden is expected to deliver the eulogy at the 10 a.m. (1500 GMT) funeral service. After that, Carter’s remains will be flown back home to Georgia. His body will be interred later that day in his hometown of Plains.
This article was originally published at www.jpost.com
