Flags flying at half-staff for President Jimmy Carter. Biden sets National Day of Mourning
President Joe Biden has ordered flags to be flown at half-staff across America in honor of former President Jimmy Carter.
Carter died Sunday, Dec. 29, at his home in Plains, Georgia. He was 100.
His wife of 77 years, Rosalynn Carter, died in November 2023.
Biden also established Jan. 9 as a National Day of Mourning and U.S. stock markets will be closed.
After serving a single term in the White House, Carter was the longest-living former president and the only one to reach the century milestone.
Why is the flag at half-staff today?
In a proclamation issued Dec. 29, Biden ordered flags across the U.S. to be flown at half-staff "in honor and tribute to the memory of President James Earl Carter, Jr. and as an expression of public sorrow."
Where should flags be flown at half-staff?
The U.S. flag should be displayed at half-staff at the White House and on all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the federal government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its territories and possessions, the proclamation said.
"Representatives of the United States in foreign countries shall make similar arrangements for the display of the flag at half‑staff over their embassies, legations, consular offices, and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations," the proclamation said.
How long will the flag be flown at half-staff?
Flags should be flown at half-staff for 30 days from the day of Carter's death on Dec. 29.
That period extends through Inauguration Day, when President-elect Donald Trump will take the oath of office to become the nation's 47th president.
National Day of Mourning set for Jan. 9
Biden also appointed Jan. 9 as a National Day of Mourning throughout the U.S.
"I call on the American people to assemble on that day in their respective places of worship, there to pay homage to the memory of President James Earl Carter, Jr. I invite the people of the world who share our grief to join us in this solemn observance."
President Jimmy Carter, his life, death and funeral
Biden described Carter as a "man of character, courage, and compassion, whose lifetime of service defined him as one of the most influential statesmen in our history.
"He embodied the very best of America: A humble servant of God and the people. A heroic champion of global peace and human rights, and an honorable leader whose moral clarity and hopeful vision lifted our Nation and changed our world."
He was the son of a farmer and nurse, beginning his career in the U.S. Naval Academy and serving in both the Atlantic and Pacific fleets. He was selected to join the elite nuclear submarine program.
After the death of his father, Carter joined the Navy Reserve and returned to his Georgia home to help manage the family's peanut farm.
"He worked hard stewarding the land while leading his community as a church deacon, Sunday school teacher, and board member of a hospital and library," Biden said in the proclamation.
"His deep faith inspired a passion for public service that led him to be elected State Senator, Georgia’s 76th Governor, and ultimately President of the United States."
According to the Carter Center, public memorial observances will take place in both Atlanta and Washington, D.C.
Carter has long said he would be buried in Plains, Georgia, where his wife was also buried. The burial site will be part of the Jimmy Carter National Historical Park.
Members of the public also can visit the official Jimmy Carter tribute website, which includes an online condolence book and other materials commemorating the former president's life.
Carter's legacy as 39th president of US
Carter served as America's 39th president from 1977 to 1981, at a time soaring inflation and gasoline shortages.
Career highlights include:
- Negotiated the landmark Camp David peace accords between Israel and Egypt.
- Transferred the Panama Canal to Panamanian ownership.
- Expanded public lands in Alaska.
- Established formal diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China.
- Created the modern Department of Education and the Department of Energy.
- Failed to secure the release of Americans held hostage by Iran, including a failed rescue attempt.
- Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002, 22 years after he left the White House.
“He’s never going to be ranked as a great president; he’s middling as a president,” said historian Douglas Brinkley, author of a 1998 book on Carter, "The Unfinished Presidency."
"But as an American figure, he’s a giant."
"I can't deny that I was a better ex-president than I was a president," Carter said in 2005.
After leaving the presidency, Carter and his wife:
- Established the Carter Center in Atlanta as they worked on global health and democracy
- Helped negotiate an end to the long civil war in Nicaragua between the Contra rebels and the Sandinistas.
- Met with North Korean leaders to try to end its nuclear weapons program.
- Mediated conflicts in Ethiopia, Liberia, Haiti, Bosnia, Sudan, Uganda and Venezuela.
- Led dozens of delegations of international observers to various countries to help ensure elections were free and fair.
The couple were especially recognized for their volunteer work with Habitat for Humanity.
He also wrote more than 30 books, including a collection of poems and paintings, and the lessons and demands of his Christian faith.
Carter received Nobel Peace Prize after leaving presidency
In 2002, Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize supporters thought he had deserved years earlier, when it had been presented to Israel's Menachem Begin and Egypt's Anwar Sadat.
The Nobel committee honored Carter "for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights and to promote economic and social development."
"The bond of our common humanity is stronger than the divisiveness of our fears and prejudices," Carter said in accepting the prestigious award.
"God gives us the capacity for choice. We can choose to alleviate suffering. We can choose to work together for peace. We can make these changes – and we must."
Is it half-mast or half-staff?
On ships and at naval stations ashore, flags are flown at half-mast.
On shore, flags are flown at half-staff.
Contributing: Susan Page, David Jackson, Paste BN