A national day of mourning has been declared as Joe Biden and other former presidents, as well as world leaders, will gather to honor Jimmy Carter at his state funeral

Washington D.C. is currently at a standstill as world leaders gather to mourn former President Jimmy Carter at his funeral, which began at at 10 a.m. today at the Washington National Cathedral.

Dignitaries from around the world are in attendance, including the five living men who have also served as president: Joe Biden, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Donald Trump and George W. Bush, and current and former vice presidents, including Vice President Kamala Harris, Al Gore, and Mike Pence, along with their partners.

The ceremony began in the morning when military service members carried Carter’s flag-draped casket down the east steps of the U.S. Capitol, where he had laid in state, to be transported to the cathedral. A 21-gun salute was also given for the 39th President of the U.S.

The flag-draped casket of former U.S. President Jimmy Carter is carried by a joint services military honor guard down the steps of the U.S. Capitol on January 9, 2025 ( 
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Thursday has been declared a national day of mourning by President Joe Biden, following the d.e.a.th of the 100-year-old former president, who passed away on December 29, following months of hospice care.

Despite being the 39th U.S. president, Carter always saw himself as an outsider. His funeral, filled with grandeur, will take place at the Washington National Cathedral before a second service and burial in his small Georgia hometown.

The coffin was carried down the steps to a reading rather than music ( 
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‘Carried up the steps in silence’

Carter’s casket has taken its place at the front of Washington National Cathedral. As it passed, a number of dignitaries on the front row, including Biden and Clinton, placed their hands over their hearts. Rather than music for a processional, Carter’s casket is being carried up the center aisle in silence, broken only by a reading that includes passages from the New Testament gospel of John and book of Romans. The footsteps from the military pallbearers can be heard as they pivot to place Carter’s casket for the service.

Joe Biden sits at the Jimmy Carter funeral ( 
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Joe Biden to eulogize

The Armed Forces Chorus performed the hymn, “Be Still My Soul,” as Carter’s casket was brought into the Cathedral. Like many presidents before him, Carter had meticulously planned his state funeral years in advance, including most of the musical selections.

President Joe Biden, the first sitting senator to endorse Carter’s 1976 campaign, will deliver the eulogy for his fellow Democrat 11 days before he leaves office.

Melania Trump is in attendance at Jimmy Carter’s funeral, wearing a long black dress ( 
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Donald Trump and Melania in attendance

Donald Trump and rarely-seen wife Melania have entered the cathedral. Melania is dressed in an all-black gown with a white collar as the two hold hands before finding their seats next to his former opponent. Spectators have commented that her outfit makes her ‘look like she’s in a choir’ as the former and next First Lady sat with a solemn expression.

‘Reunion’ for politicians as Republicans and Dems shake hands at funeral

In an unexpected turn of events, Obama was seated next to Trump and engaged in conversation with him, despite Trump not standing to greet him but shaking hands instead. This interaction continued as Harris entered the cathedral. Even Trump and Pence exchanged a handshake as the former president took his seat just ahead of his former vice president.

Donald Trump and Obama are among the leaders in attendance in D.C. today ( 
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Kamala Harris and her spouse, Douglas Emhoff, allegedly played musical chairs at former President Jimmy Carter’s funeral to steer clear of President-elect Donald Trump, sparking yet another uncomfortable situation.

In addition to U.S. political leaders, there are also a number of foreign dignitaries in attendance, including Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau – who recently announced his resignation – Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh, and United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

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Seated together, Prince William and Trudeau were seen speaking at length as they awaited the start of the service.

Meanwhile, mourners braved the cold weather and queued for hours to pay their respects to Carter, whose flag-draped casket lay in the rotunda.

Tributes poured in, highlighting not only his presidential term from 1977 to 1981 but also his humanitarian work post-presidency. Following the morning service in Washington, Carter’s remains, along with his four children and extended family, will be flown back to Georgia on a Boeing 747, which serves as Air Force One when the sitting president is aboard.

Carter’s religious ties honored

The devout Baptist, who campaigned as a born-again Christian, will then be honored at an afternoon funeral at Maranatha Baptist Church. This small church, where he taught Sunday School for decades after leaving the White House, will house his casket beneath a wooden cross that he crafted himself in his woodshop.

Joshua Carter talked about the legendary Sunday school class his grandfather led for decades at Maranatha Baptist Church, also noting that Jimmy Carter spent his “entire life helping those in need.”

He said his grandfather “eliminated diseases in forgotten places” and “waged peace” around the world. During Sunday School lessons, Carter said he did it because “he worshipped the Prince of Peace, and He commanded it.” He noted Carter’s Sunday School students were the first to learn he’d won the Nobel Peace Prize.

Politicians sing John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’

Country music stars Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood sang their arrangement of John Lennon’s “Imagine,” which they also sang at Rosalynn Carter’s Atlanta funeral in 2023, before the funeral concluded.

President Biden was spotted singing along to the song after delivering his eulogy, where he declared how much he ‘misses’ Carter.

The song is popular at events and functions, with even U.S. leaders, who spent millions of dollars fighting for power just three months ago, blankly singing along to the lyrics written by fellow millionaire John Lennon – “Imagine there’s no countries / It isn’t hard to do / Nothing to kill or die for / And no religion, too/” – at a funeral for a deeply religious Christian president.

Funeral concludes as Carter’s coffin heads to final resting place

Following prayers and benediction from the assembled clergy, Carter’s services at Washington National Cathedral have come to a close. Once the procession reaches the cathedral’s outside steps, “Hail to the Chief” sounds again, following “Faith of our Fathers” from the U.S. Coast Guard Band.

Carter’s casket is then placed in the hearse, and it, along with Carter’s relatives and guests head in a motorcade to Joint Base Andrews.

At that point, Carter’s final journey home to Georgia begins. At the air base, there will be more music and another 21-gun salute before the casket is loaded onto the plane, and Carter’s family boards. Once it lands in Georgia, there is another ceremony, then the journey to Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, Georgia, for a private funeral service