Farewell to Jimmy Carter: Will Trump cause scandal at funeral?

On December 29, 2024, former US President Jimmy Carter (1924-2024) died at the age of 100 in his hometown of Plains, Georgia. After his death, funeral ceremonies began on January 4th, which will last six days and will end on January 9th with the burial of the deceased. It was considered a surprise that Donald Trump (78) would also attend the official memorial service on the day of the funeral. However, recent statements by the future US president raise concerns that he could step out of line at the event.

Jimmy Carter and Trump were anything but good friends during Carter’s lifetime. , Trump in the past described Jimmy Carter, who served as the 39th President of the United States from 1977 to 1981, as the worst president in US history – which he would later also say about Barack Obama (63).

Carter, on the other hand, had always warned his compatriots against Trump’s re-election as president. He described this prospect as a “catastrophe” for the USA. Just a few weeks before his 100th birthday on October 1, 2024, Carter stated that he wanted to live long enough to be able to vote for Trump’s competitor Kamala Harris (60) in the US election on November 5.

On the day of Jimmy Carter’s death, Trump used surprisingly unctuous words about the passing of his political opponent. There he wrote, among other things: “The challenges Jimmy faced as president came at a crucial time for our country, and he did everything in his power to improve the lives of all Americans. We all owe him great respect for that Thanks obliged.”

However, on January 3rd, the Republican, who was notorious for his polemical insults, took a completely different tone. Outraged that because of Carter’s death the flags on all public buildings would be at half-mast on Inauguration Day, he commented: “In any case, because of the death of President Jimmy Carter, the flag will be displayed for the first time at the inauguration of a future president at half-mast. Nobody wants to see that, and no American can be happy about it.”

Against the background of these harsh words, there are now great fears that Trump could use his presence at Carter’s funeral on Thursday to cause further outbursts and disrespectful behavior. , all cameras will be aimed at the future president at the celebrations at which outgoing US President Joe Biden (82) will give a speech.

In order to assess his behavior at the funeral, the paper asked US historian Sarah Purcell to assess the situation. This found that Trump’s participation in the memorial service demonstrated that he at least had the desire to “follow the example of a president or former president.” In your opinion, he will probably make an effort – also on the advice of his team – not to attract unpleasant attention at the event. Her cautious prediction: “He won’t stand up and yell at Biden during the funeral.”