Carter remembered by politicians as compassionate leader and humanitarian

Jimmy Carter is sworn in as the 39th president by Chief Justice Warren Burger as Carter’s wife, Rosalynn, holds a Bible during his presidential inauguration ceremony outside the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 20, 1977. (Eddie Hausner/The New York Times)

By Robert Jimison

The death of former President Jimmy Carter on Sunday prompted an outpouring of condolences and tributes from a range of political leaders, both Democrats and Republicans.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who took office more than four decades after Carter served one term in the same role in the mid-1970s, remembered him as the only American president from the state.

“As a son of Plains, he always valued Georgians and the virtues of our state, choosing to return to his rural home after his time in public office,” Kemp, a Republican, said in a statement.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said, “President Carter’s story was one of humble beginnings, and his life is a testament to the boundless opportunities available in this great nation.”

He praised the former president for brokering the Camp David accords, in which Egypt and Israel agreed to make peace in 1978, and for his postpresidency work building houses with the organization Habitat for Humanity.

“No one can deny that President Carter led an extraordinary life of service to his country,” Johnson said in a statement.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., the minority leader, called Carter “a great man, a great role model and a great humanitarian.”

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., the majority leader, praised Carter’s commitment to service. “As we remember President Carter’s extraordinary life, we also honor the countless lives he touched through his vision and generosity,” he said in a statement.

Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., the minority leader, alluded to Carter’s background as a peanut farmer in praising the former president. “Jimmy Carter’s character and commitment, just like his crops, were fruits of all-American soil,” McConnell said in a statement, adding that “after every season when life led him to lofty service far from home, he came back home again, determined to plow his unique experiences and influence into helping others.”

Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., the former speaker, praised Carter as “a leader who embodied dignity and decency, grace and goodness.”

“As president, his work to restore integrity to the political arena during a difficult chapter in our history was a testament to his firm faith in the sanctity of the public good, which he always placed above his own,” she said in a statement.

Members of Georgia’s congressional delegation also paid tribute. Rep. Hank Johnson, a Democrat, said the former president “restored honest competence, integrity and humility to the office of the presidency,” while Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Democrat, called Carter “one of my heroes.”

“For those of us who have the privilege of representing our communities in elected office, Jimmy Carter is a shining example of what it means to make your faith come alive through the noble work of public service,” Warnock, who also serves as the senior pastor of the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, said in statement.

Another Georgia lawmaker, Rep. Mike Collins, a Republican, celebrated Carter’s legacy of humanitarian contributions, saying in a statement that his “Christian spirit touched the lives of countless individuals.”