I was saddened to hear Sunday of the death of Jimmy Carter at 100 after a long stay in hospice care. Sadly, I never had him as a guest on my radio show, but he was the first presidential candidate I voted for as soon as I turned eighteen in 1976.
Over the years, I have written several pieces explaining why he was the unrivaled Best Ex-President Ever. You can find other sources with lengthy obituaries citing his accomplishments over the last four and a half decades, from the Camp David Accords and subsequent Nobel Peace Prize to the years he spent helping to build more than four thousand homes with Habitat For Humanity, and on and on.
But there was one thing about him that always struck me more than any other: Jimmy Carter was a good, decent man.
I never heard a story about him bullying anyone or attacking them verbally or lying to cover up an embarrassing incident. He didn’t take lucrative speaking gigs or join corporate boards. There are no stories about him using his fame and status to gain more power at the expense of others.
To the contrary, he seemed to have a smile for everyone wherever he went, with a demeanor that helped attract others who wanted to help people as much as he did. He dedicated his post-political life to different kinds of public service, fighting for human rights, science, and democracy at home and abroad.
In doing so, he became a role model. And it’s not his fault that others who have run for office didn’t follow his lead. Whatever you may think of the four years he spent as Leader Of The Free World, you have to acknowledge that in the nearly forty-four years since his administration ended, he has been a major force for good in the USA and around the world.
There are few politicians — in fact, few people in any occupation — for whom that description would fit, but Jimmy Carter personified it.
If you’re a Max subscriber, take some time to watch “Jimmy Carter: Rock and Roll President,” a 2020 documentary about how musicians like the Allman Brothers Band, Willie Nelson, and Bob Dylan helped put Carter in the White House.