An ‘extraordinary man’: Former President Carter lies in state at the Capitol

ancient President Jimmy Carter The body was brought to the District of Columbia Tuesday afternoon and will lie in state at the U.S. Capitol ahead of a state funeral scheduled for Thursday in the city at Washington National Cathedral.

Carter died on Sunday, December 29 at the age of 100. His death came just over a year after the death of his wife of 77 years, Rosalynn Carter.

Carter’s ceremonial arrival at the US Capitol rotunda came after the start of six days of funeral ceremonies that began Saturday morning in the 39th president’s hometown of Plains, Georgia.

Carter’s casket was received Tuesday at Joint Base Andrews, outside Washington, DC, by the US Air Force Band playing “Abide with Me.” From Andrews, a hearse carried Carter’s casket to the U.S. Navy Memorial for a brief ceremony. Carter, a Naval Academy alumnus, served as a submarine officer before leaving the Navy to take over his family’s farm.

At the Navy Memorial, the casket was moved in a horse-drawn casket for a procession down Pennsylvania Avenue to the U.S. Capitol.

Vice President Harris delivered a eulogy at the state Capitol lie-in ceremony and joined Second Knight Doug Emhoff in presenting a memorial wreath on behalf of the executive branch of government.

The ceremony at the US Capitol on Tuesday featured remarks from House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-R, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-R, representing their respective houses of Congress.

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Johnson praised Carter in his speech as an “extraordinary man” and applauded both his service in the military and his work for charities such as Habitat for Humanity and The Carter Center, the latter founded in 1982 by the first couple previous

“It reminds me of his admonition to quote, ‘Live our lives as if.’ Christ was coming this afternoon,” Johnson remarked Tuesday. “And of his incredible personal reflection: ‘If I have a life and an opportunity to use it for something.’

“We all agree that he did it,” he concluded. “So today, in these hallowed halls of our republic, we honor President Carter, his family, and the enduring legacy he leaves not only to this nation but to the world.”

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Johnson announced last month that Carter would remain in the state in a letter to Carter’s second oldest son, James Carter III.

“In recognition of President Carter’s long and distinguished service to the nation, it is our intention to ask the U.S House of Representatives and the United States Senate to allow his remains to lie in state in the rotunda of the United States Capitol,” the leaders wrote.

Besides Carter, only 12 presidents have been in the US Capitol rotunda, the use of which requires approval from both the House and Senate. The last president to be in state was George HW Bush in December 2018. Since 1865, nearly every service held in the Capitol Rotunda has used the catafalque that was built in 1865 to display the casket of President Lincoln.

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Members of the public can view Carter’s casket from early Wednesday until early Thursday, when his official state funeral will be held at Washington National Cathedral.

The former president will be honored and remembered during several days of funeral services before returning to his hometown for a private funeral and burial ceremonies. He will be buried by his wife.