President Joe Biden revealed late Monday that he was asked by former President Jimmy Carter to deliver his eulogy.
“He asked me to do his eulogy,” President Biden told reporters, before adding, “Excuse me, I shouldn’t say that.”
This was according to a White House pool report.
Carter entered hospice care last month after a “series of short hospital stays.” Carter and his family have not given any updates on his health since the Feb. 18 announcement.
President Biden said he recently spoke to Carter.
“I spent time with Jimmy Carter, and it’s finally caught up with him, but they found a way to keep him going for a lot longer than they anticipated because they found a breakthrough,” President Biden said.
At age 98, Carter is the oldest former president in U.S. history. He also had the longest post-presidency ever.
President Biden last visited Carter in April 2021 in Plains, Georgia, three months after President Biden took office.
President Biden was a U.S. senator during Carter’s 1977 to 1981 presidency.
“He reminded me that I was the first person to endorse him outside of Georgia,” President Biden said following his 2021 visit to Georgia. “And we sat and talked about the old days. And he introduced me to a friend of his — a reverend who he wanted me to get to know. And Rosalynn was great too. We just had a nice time.”
