Biden says Jimmy Carter asked him to deliver eulogy
Then-Sen. Joe Biden, former president Jimmy Carter, and Jill Biden at the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
President Biden said former President Jimmy Carter asked him to deliver his eulogy after he dies, per a White House pool report Monday night.
Driving the news: Biden made the comments while discussing the health issues of Carter, who's receiving hospice care, during a Democratic National Committee fund-raiser in Rancho Santa Fe, California, which was attended by about 40 guests.
What he's saying: "I spent time with Jimmy Carter and it's finally caught up with him," Biden said, according to the pool report.
- "But they found a way to keep him going for a lot longer than they anticipated because they found a breakthrough," he added.
- "He asked me to do his eulogy. Excuse me, I shouldn't say that."
The big picture: The Carter Foundation announced last month that the 98-year-old longest-living U.S. president had "decided to spend his remaining time at home with his family and receive hospice care."
- Kim Fuller, a niece of Carter's told Fox News Digital days later that the former president was in good spirits, "eating and talking."
- The 39th president has overcome a series of health issues in recent years, undergoing brain surgery in 2019 and being treated for cancer in 2015, for which doctors later gave him the all-clear.
Of note: Biden and Carter have enjoyed a friendship that's spanned decades.
- The first presidential endorsement that then-Gov. Carter received from an elected official outside of Georgia came in 1976 from a young Sen. Biden, per Axios' Emma Hurt.
- In an endorsement message for Biden in 2020, Carter called him his "first and most effective supporter in the Senate" and "my loyal and dedicated friend."
Go deeper: How Jimmy Carter and Joe Biden built an enduring friendship
Editor's note: This article has been updated with additional details throughout.
Source: Read Full Article