Jimmy Carter funeral: Highlights, key moments and attendees from his service

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was one of several world leaders who attended Carter's national funeral service. Trudeau — who sat between Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, and Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa — announced his plans to resign just days earlier amid pressure from his own allies.

Trudeau was seen shaking hands with Biden at the service. He has had a much frostier relationship with Biden's predecessor and soon-to-be successor, Trump.

Carter’s casket, draped in the American flag, was carried out of the National Cathedral. His casket will be flown back to his hometown of Plains, Georgia. There, a private funeral service will be held at the town’s Maranatha Baptist Church, before Carter’s body is interred at his residence about a mile away. The former president will be buried next to Rosalynn Carter, his wife of 77 years.

Country stars Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood sang a rendition of John Lennon’s “Imagine” to honor Carter in the last minutes of the service. The husband and wife duo performed the same song at Rosalynn Carter’s funeral in 2023. 

The musicians had a close relationship with the Carters, partnering with them for several Habitat For Humanity builds over the years. In honor of Carter's 100th birthday in October, Brooks and Yearwood helped build homes for the organization's 2024 Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Week Project.

At the time, Brooks posted a tribute to Carter on X, writing, "Your work has impacted the world and your heart continues to change lives, ours included."

Here's a photo of Brooks and Yearwood performing at the former first lady's funeral in 2023:

While Biden, in his eulogy, characterized Carter as being “at peace,” one could argue that Carter’s post-presidential career suggests a man who was never truly at rest while injustice and conflict persisted in the world.

Carter was never going to be the kind of former president who simply lent his name to causes or collected enormous checks for speaking engagements. Instead, his post-presidential career was marked by tireless, hands-on involvement in humanitarian efforts. He was always the man who brokered peace negotiations, like the groundbreaking Camp David Accords, when he championed human rights globally, and spearheaded health initiatives through the Carter Center. 

Jimmy Carter's and Rosalynn Carter’s respective deaths on Sundays offer a poignant reflection of their shared faith and enduring marriage. Rosalynn died on Nov. 19, 2023, at the age of 96, with Jimmy by her side. Jimmy Carter died on Dec. 29, 2024, at the age of 100, also at his home in Plains, Georgia. These Sundays were just over 13 months apart.

This is indeed a remarkable coincidence. This symmetry in their final moments seems fitting for a couple whose faith was central to their lives and public service. Jimmy Carter was known for teaching Sunday school well into his 90s, and both were devoted members of their church in Plains, Georgia.

The Rev. Andrew Young’s time as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under Carter was just one part of a long and distinguished career. The former executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference is also one of the few living confidants of Martin Luther King Jr. He served in Congress in the mid-1970s and, after his time in the Carter administration, he was the mayor of Atlanta for two terms.

In 1970, gubernatorial hopeful Jimmy Carter made a calculated move that exemplified the complex racial politics of the era: He aligned himself with George Wallace, the infamous segregationist governor of Alabama, inviting him to speak at a campaign rally. This was a shrewd choice in Georgia, where conservative white voters were resistant to racial integration. This strategy didn’t promise progressive policies, but rather played to the prevailing sentiments of the time.

However, once elected, Carter executed a stunning bait-and-switch. In his inaugural address, he boldly declared that “the time for racial discrimination is over.” This statement marked a significant departure from his campaign tactics and signaled a new direction for Georgia’s race relations.

Carter’s ability to navigate between the old guard of Southern politics and the emerging civil rights movement demonstrated his political acumen. While his campaign pandering to segregationists was never as explicit as some of his contemporaries, his pivot once in office was unmistakable. This episode foreshadowed Carter’s ability — and at times, inability — to bridge diverse constituencies.

Carter's national funeral service was scheduled to end at approximately 11 a.m. ET. But as these high-profile events tend to do, it's running behind schedule.

We still have a performance from country singers Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood ahead after the Rev. Andrew Young, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, finishes delivering the homily.

In 2017, I made the pilgrimage to Plains, Georgia, to witness Jimmy Carter teach Sunday school at Maranatha Baptist Church. This wasn’t merely a historical curiosity; it was a profound encounter with a man who lived his faith authentically. And I wasn’t the only one; I joined countless others from around the globe. 

While many presidents invoke God for political gain, Carter’s faith was woven into the fabric of his daily life. His commitment to teaching Sunday school, even after his presidency, underscored a dedication to service that extended far beyond political office. 

Biden took to the lectern at Washington National Cathedral to honor Carter. Biden started his speech by reflecting on his April 2021 meeting with the Carters in Plains, Georgia. Biden said he and Carter discussed their “deep friendship" which spanned over six decades. 

Biden was one of the first senators to endorse Carter’s run for the White House. The president said his endorsement was due to what Biden called Carter’s “enduring attribute," his character. 

“Character, I believe, is destiny in our lives, and quite frankly, destiny in the life of the nation,” Biden said.

Among those paying respects to the former president today are several members of the U.S. Supreme Court, including Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Elena Kagan and Brett Kavanaugh.

Although Carter did not appoint any justices to the Supreme Court during his time in office, he appointed a total of 262 judges to the federal bench. That's more judges than any other president in a single term, according to the Office of the U.S. Courts.

Stuart Eizenstat, Carter’s domestic policy adviser, eulogized his longtime confidante moments ago. Even more than Mondale’s speech, Eizenstat’s eulogy was a case for Carter’s accomplishments as president, ranging from the Camp David Accords to the deregulation of the trucking industry.

“He may not be a candidate for Mount Rushmore,” Eizenstat concluded, “but he belongs in the foothills for making the U.S. stronger and the world safer.”

Though her husband is attending Carter's service today, Michelle Obama is noticeably absent today among the other former first ladies at the cathedral, including Melania Trump and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Michelle Obama, who would have sat by Trump in the pews, had a scheduling conflict and is in Hawaii, reported CNN, citing her advisers. Politico also reported the scheduling conflict, citing a person familiar with her schedule.

Most presidents gravitate towards the fairways, but Jimmy Carter’s presidential leisure took a decidedly different swing. His devotion to tennis manifested in an unprecedented manner: personally curating the schedule for the White House’s South Lawn court, a task neither his predecessors nor successors have desired nor deigned to undertake.

In the Carter administration, the tennis court became an extension of the Oval Office, serving as an arena for informal diplomacy and guest entertainment. His unorthodox approach to presidential recreation, however, didn’t escape scrutiny. Critics volleyed accusations that Carter’s court time was detracting. 

Undeterred by political backspin, Carter persisted in his tennis pursuits throughout his term, finding solace from the pressures of office in the rhythmic exchange of volleys. His curiously hands-on management of the White House tennis schedule epitomized his distinctively involved presidential style.

Former Vice President Walter Mondale’s eulogy, delivered by his son Ted, praised Carter for putting aside “short-term political interests to tackle challenges that demanded sacrifice.” The speech, written before Mondale’s death in 2021, spotlighted Carter’s efforts on climate change. “Thanks to President Carter,” Mondale wrote, “U.S. energy consumption declined 10% between 1979 and 1983. In many ways, he laid the foundation for future presidents to come to grips with climate change.”

“Some thought he was crazy to fight so hard to pass these laws. But he was dead right,” Mondale concluded, “And we know that now.” As wildfires rage around Los Angeles, that statement is more true than ever.

Carter was eulogized by his former vice president, Walter Mondale, in a speech delivered moments ago by Mondale's son Ted.

Ted said his later father had first drafted the speech in 2015 and had “edited [it] a few times since then” before the former vice president passed away in 2021.

“I was surprised when then-candidate Carter asked me to join him as his running mate in 1976,” Mondale wrote. “He amazed me then as he has every year since.” 

Today, the “ex-presidents club” gathered to remember Jimmy Carter, but their relationship wasn’t always warm. 

In January 2009, an iconic photo was taken at the White House, capturing President George W. Bush, President-Elect Barack Obama, and former Presidents George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter. The image is striking not just for its rarity, but for the noticeable distance between Carter and the others. 

Upon leaving office in 1981, Carter had declared he was resuming “the most important title in a democracy: citizen.” This role, as he interpreted it, meant openly criticizing his successors when he disagreed with their policies or actions, regardless of party lines. Before Trump, this approach was unprecedented and often led to tense relationships with subsequent presidents.

While Carter’s political courage wasn’t always respected in real time, it has come to define his legacy. Carter’s commitment to active citizenship, though sometimes controversial, reflected his dedication to his principles and his expansive vision of a former president’s role in America — and the world.

Former President Gerald Ford’s eulogy for Carter was delivered by his son Steve. Ford described a friendship between two presidents unseen since Thomas Jefferson and John Adams almost 200 years earlier.

At first, Ford says, their relationship was one of respect. That changed on the way back from the funeral of longtime Egyptian president Anwar Sadat in the early 1980s. “It was somewhere over the Atlantic,” said Ford, “that we forged a friendship that transcends politics.”

Joshua Carter, the fourth grandchild of the former president, was the first to speak at Carter’s funeral. Joshua shared memories of attending his grandfather’s Sunday school classes, which he noted the former president taught “every Sunday from World War II to Covid.”

Joshua said the classes were central to his grandfather’s life. “I remember that my brother died on a Sunday because it was the only time my grandfather was ever late to teach,” he shared.

After four years of criticism, Trump and his former vice president came face-to-face for the first time. Pence shook hands with Trump and his wife, former first lady Melania Trump, though Pence’s wife, Karen, remained seated.

In a serendipitous twist of fate, Lillian Carter, Jimmy Carter’s mother, played a pivotal role in her son’s love story before it even began. In the summer of 1927, Lillian, a skilled nurse and midwife, delivered Eleanor Rosalynn Smith — who would be known as Rosalynn — next door. She then introduced 3-year-old Jimmy to the newborn, unknowingly setting the stage for what would become a 77-year marriage.

Lillian’s dedication to health care was extraordinary and, at times, a source of unease for young Jimmy. In rural Georgia, she often worked exhausting 20-hour days for $6 day. But it was always a source of pride: Her commitment to service transcended racial and socioeconomic barriers; she treated African American patients and, recognizing her patients’ financial constraints, often accepted eggs, chickens or firewood as payment. Her career as a nurse imparted invaluable lessons of compassion and community service to Jimmy, principles that would shape his future.

I was fortunate enough to attend school on the grounds of the National Cathedral, and have attended various services there over the years. The sheer scale of the structure always makes me stop for a second upon entering. That said, the only time I attended a service with a president in attendance — a National Prayer Service for victims of Hurricane Katrina — the atmosphere was, somehow, even grander. One can only imagine what it’s like with five of them present.

I think we’d all be curious to know what former President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump were laughing about minutes before the national funeral service began.

It’s jarring to see the two former presidents appearing chummy in the pews given the very pointed comments they’ve made about each other over the years. For instance, Obama has accused Trump of endangering democracy and Trump has pushed the baseless and racist birther conspiracy theory about Obama.

According to The Washington Post, the ceremony will have an “eclectic” selection of music. The preludes run from J.S. Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in E flat Major (c. 1705) to Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings (1936) to John Denver’s “Fly Away” (1975). Later, country stars Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood will sing “Imagine” by John Lennon. And the service will conclude with the hymn “All Hail the Pow’r of Jesus’ Name.”

In 1953, fresh from his naval service and with three young sons in tow, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter found themselves navigating an unexpected challenge: housing their burgeoning family amidst a severe postwar shortage. Plains, Georgia, their beloved hometown, offered an unconventional solution for the future first family: a newly constructed public housing project, mere blocks from the heart of its modest downtown.

To this day, Carter remains the only U.S. president to ever receive federally subsidized housing. It was an unlikely stop on the road to the White House, and one that would plant seeds for Carter’s later work with Habitat for Humanity and his advocacy for affordable housing

Though brief, the Carters’ tenure in public housing left an indelible mark. When Jimmy’s father passed, he transitioned from subsidized living to peanut farming, moving the family to more comfortable quarters.

Andrea Mitchell speaking on MSNBC moments ago:

There’s a remarkable difference between Carter and just about every other former president. After his presidency, Carter devoted his life to service, not going on boards, not playing golf, not making speeches for money, but writing books and living his faith by going around the world and helping people with his work in Africa and with Habitat for Humanity.

On the topic of his faith, it’s so fitting that Carter's coming to the Washington National Cathedral. Every part of today was planned by Carter. The religious part of the ceremony was dictated completely by his wishes, the hymns, the prayers and the readings. 

But the ceremony in Plains, Georgia, at the end of all this, the private burial, will be so important to him. He’s not being buried in Arlington National Cemetary, even though, as a former president and as a military man, he could be. Instead, he’s being buried next to Rosalynn.

These comments have been slightly edited for length and clarity.

Here’s who’s set to speak at the national funeral service today:

• Carter’s grandson Joshua will deliver a reading.
• There will be eulogies from Biden; Steve Ford, son of the late President Gerald Ford; Ted Mondale, son of Carter’s late vice president, Walter Mondale; and former White House domestic affairs adviser Stuart Eizenstat.
• Jason Carter, a grandson of the former president and chair of the Carter Center Board of Trustees, will also deliver a eulogy.
• There will be musical performances by country singers Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood.

In addition to the interactions between the presidents, we’ll be watching closely for any interactions between Trump and his former vice president, Mike Pence, together for the first time in four years. 

There has been little love lost between the two members of the 2016 Republican ticket ever since Pence refused to go along with Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election results. After an aborted presidential campaign of his own, Pence refused to endorse Trump in 2024, though he stopped short of backing either Joe Biden or Kamala Harris.

Carter's casket has arrived at Washington National Cathedral in the nation's capital, where it's sunny and cold today.

Inside, all living presidents, family members and others are waiting for the service to begin.

All living presidents will be in attendance at today’s funeral — the first time that all the presidents are together since Trump won a second term in November.

All eyes will be on the body language between the presidents: At George H.W. Bush’s funeral in 2018, Trump did not shake hands with the Carters or the Clintons.

One guest originally scheduled for today’s funeral will not be present. California Gov. Gavin Newsom canceled his trip to Washington as deadly fires continue to rage across the Los Angeles area. More than 100,000 people have been evacuated and five people have died in the fires.

In addition to attending Carter’s funeral, Politico reports that “Newsom had planned to lobby federal officials to grant California waivers on health and environmental policy.” Given Trump’s misleading attacks on Newsom this week, one doubts that lobbying trip will be rescheduled.

Andrea Mitchell speaking on MSNBC moments ago:

When I reflect on Jimmy Carter’s legacy, it’s a story that spans the arc of my career at NBC News. One of my first assignments was covering the Camp David Accords, which led to the signing of the Egypt–Israel peace treaty in March 1979. The relationship, between Israel and Egypt, has withstood decades and decades of tension. It’s being tested now, with the Israel-Hamas war and all of the disputes over the Rafah border crossing, but it’s still standing.

The fact that was the first peace treaty between an Arab country and Israel is so notable. It’s the beginning of the framework that President-elect Trump started with during his last administration with the Abraham Accords. The Camp David Accords was the predicate for all of that. 

The late president departed the Capitol moments ago after lying in state in the Rotunda since Tuesday, with thousands of people paying their respects.

The departure ceremony from the Capitol included a band playing four Ruffles and Flourishes and “Hail to the Chief,” cannons firing a 21-gun salute, and the transfer of Carter’s casket to the motorcade hearse.

The motorcade is set to arrive at Washington National Cathedral in a few minutes for the 10 a.m. national funeral service.

Here’s the schedule for today, the sixth and final day of Carter’s state funeral:

9 a.m.: Carter departs the U.S. Capitol

9:30 a.m.: Carter motorcade travels to Washington National Cathedral with a brief ceremony upon arrival

10 a.m.: National funeral service begins

11: 15 a.m.: Carter and his family travel by motorcade to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, where they will board Special Air Mission 39

I first met President Carter as a child. My dad, Zbigniew Brzezinski, served as his national security adviser from 1977 to 1981 — from age 10 through my early teen years. They were also friends. My dad was his trusted confidant and jogging partner. I feel so lucky that I got to know the Carter family.

President Carter was a good man, one who was underestimated, faithful, humble and a public servant to his core.

Being part of the Carters’ lives also gave me a front-row seat to history. My dad took me and my two brothers on any work trip he could so we could see the world through the lens of a national security adviser. President Carter always welcomed us on those trips, from a private dinner with Pope John Paul II during his official visit to the U.S. to private meetings with several world leaders.

Read more below.

Journalist Jonathan Alter, author of “His Very Best: Jimmy Carter, a Life," explained in a column for MSNBC Daily how Carter did more for the security of Israel than almost any other American president.

Alter wrote:

In 1979, Carter secured peace between Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, and neither country has made war on the other since. ...

The Camp David Accords and the treaty that resulted did more than save tens of thousands of Egyptian and Israeli lives; they dramatically reduced the odds of general war — even superpower confrontation — in the Middle East.

Before Carter was elected president in 1976, he gave an interview to Playboy magazine (of all places) that’s probably best remembered for Carter’s unprompted confession that he had “looked on a lot of women with lust” and, thus, according to Jesus’ “almost impossible” standard, had “committed adultery in my heart many times.”

Though his statement provoked some laughter (and some outright derision), the interview revealed Carter as a man of a deep and deeply considered faith. In that interview, he candidly discussed what he believed, why he believed it, how his beliefs would intersect with his presidency and, of course, his unwavering love for his wife, Rosalynn Carter, who died on Nov. 19, 2023, at age 96. The couple was married for 77 years.

We have reason to believe that the faith of the country’s best-known Sunday school teacher was just as unwavering.

Read more below:

Carter’s casket will be transported from the U.S. Capitol to Washington National Cathedral at 9 a.m. ET, and the invitation-only service is scheduled to start an hour later.

MSNBC’s live television coverage will begin at 6 a.m. ET.

Biden, who has declared today a day of national mourning, will deliver a eulogy. Several former presidents are expected to attend, including President-elect Donald Trump.

• Carter — whose full name was James Earl Carter Jr. — served as the 39th president from 1977 to 1981. He was a Democrat.
• He was the longest-lived president in U.S. history. He turned 100 on Oct. 1, 2024, and died about two months later on Dec. 29.
• Before serving as president, Carter — a U.S. Navy veteran — was the governor of Georgia and, prior to that, a member of the Georgia State Senate.