Some notable quotes from Jimmy Carter’s funeral

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This article was published 09/01/2025 (601 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Jimmy Carter was remembered at his funeral Thursday at Washington National Cathedral as a man of “character” and “something of a miracle” with “prophetic” vision.

From relatives to former aides and the current president, a look at some of the memorable and quotable moments from Carter’s funeral:

President Joe Biden

Repeating “character” several times as Carter’s chief attribute, Biden said the former president taught him the imperative that “everyone should be treated with dignity and respect.”

“We have an obligation to give hate no safe harbor,” Biden said, also noting the importance of standing up to “abuse in power.”

“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,” Biden said. “Today many think he was from a bygone era, but in reality he saw well into the future.”

“I miss him, but I take solace in knowing that he and Rosalynn are reunited again,” he concluded. “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.”

Jason Carter

“His political life and his presidency, for me, was not just ahead of its time. It was prophetic,” Carter’s grandson said.

“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.

Fifty 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 expanded renewable sources.

By the way, he cut the deficit, wanted to decriminalize marijuana, 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.”

Andrew Young

Seated at a microphone, Young — whom Carter appointed as United Nations ambassador — drew laughs from the crowd when he called Carter “something of a miracle,” noting, “It’s still hard for me to understand how you could get to be president from Plains, Georgia.”

Young, who is Black and was a pastor nearby, said he was “nervous” sometimes driving through the small town.

“Time and again, I saw in him the ability to achieve diversity by the personality and upbringing,” Young said, of Carter. “He went out of his way to embrace those of us who grew up in all kinds of conflict.”

Stu Eizenstat

“He may not be a candidate for Mount Rushmore, but he belongs in the foothills,” said Eizenstat, Carter’s former chief domestic policy adviser who also wrote a book on the Carter administration.

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Kinnard reported from Columbia, South Carolina, and can be reached at http://x.com/MegKinnardAP