Former President Jimmy Carter has passed away the the age of 100.
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The beloved 39th president of the United States lived the longest out of anyone who held the office in the country’s history. He died on Sunday at his family home in Plains, Georgia, according to his son.
Before running for president in 1976, Carter embodied the everyday American as a peanut farmer-turned-governor of Georgia. He won against the incumbent President Gerald Ford with a platform of rebuilding the people’s trust after Richard Nixon’s Watergate scandal.
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Carter successfully brokered peace between Israel and Egypt with the Camp David Accords of 1978, ending a 30-year war between the countries. His administration faced the Soviet Union during the Cold War, including refusing participation in the 1980 Moscow Olympics over the Afghanistan invasion.
According to Hip-Hop Wired, despite an established reputation for strength and diplomacy, the Iranian hostage crisis was cited for tipping the scales in Ronald Reagan’s 1980 victory. The occupation of the U.S. embassy in Tehran lasted 444 days with 52 Americans held hostage.
Following an embattled single term, Carter dedicated himself to an even greater legacy outside of the Oval Office. The decorated humanitarian spent nearly 40 years working with Habitat for Humanity.
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After battling several serious health issues like cancer, Carter recently said he hoped to live long enough to see Kamala Harris become President of the United States. His wife Rosalynn Carter preceded him in death at the age of 96 in 2023. He is survived by four children (Jack, Chip, Jeff, and Amy); 11 grandchildren, and 14 great-grandchildren.
Fellow U.S. Presidents Remember Jimmy Carter’s Life & Legacy
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Throughout his 100 years, Carter touched so many lives, but few knew him like the leaders who followed in his footsteps to the White House. President Joe Biden issued a statement about the loss of “an extraordinary leader, statesman and humanitarian.”
“With his compassion and moral clarity, he worked to eradicate disease, forge peace, advance civil rights and human rights, promote free and fair elections, house the homeless, and always advocate for the least among us. He saved, lifted, and changed the lives of people all across the globe,” his statement said.
Former President Barack Obama also reflected on Carter’s life and legacy.
“Elected in the shadow of Watergate, Jimmy Carter promised voters that he would always tell the truth. And he did — advocating for the public good, consequences be damned. He believed some things were more important than reelection — things like integrity, respect, and compassion. Because Jimmy Carter believed, as deeply as he believed anything, that we are all created in God’s image.
“Whenever I had a chance to spend time with President Carter, it was clear that he didn’t just profess these values. He embodied them. And in doing so, he taught all of us what it means to live a life of grace, dignity, justice, and service. In his Nobel acceptance speech, President Carter said, “God gives us the capacity for choice. We can choose to alleviate suffering. We can choose to work together for peace.” He made that choice again and again over the course of his 100 years, and the world is better for it,” Obama wrote.
Former President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton remembered Carter for “living to serve others — until the very end.
“From his commitment to civil rights as a state senator and a governor of Georgia; to his efforts as a President to protect our natural resources in the the Arctic NAtional Wildlife Refuge, make energy conservation a national priority, return the Panama Canal to Panama, and secure peace between Egypt and Israel at Camp David; to his post Presidential efforts at the Carter Center supporting honest elections, advancing peace, combating disease, and promoting democracy; to his and Rosalynn’s devotion and hard work at Habitat for Humanity — he worked tirelessly for a better, fairer world,” their statement said.
Our condolences to Former President Jimmy Carter’s family and loved ones.
