WASHINGTON, Dec 31: The death of Jimmy Carter has brought to the fore a defining characteristic of the late US president's life: his "decency," seen as a product of a bygone era in today's caustic political environment.
Joe Biden on Monday repeated the word three times while speaking to reporters about his late White House predecessor.
Biden, who will be replaced in the White House by Donald Trump on January 20, added: "Can you imagine Jimmy Carter referring to someone by the way they look or the way they talk?"
Despite the struggles he faced during his single term in office -- from economic malaise to the Iran hostage crisis -- Carter has emerged as a nostalgic figure.
He spent his years after the White House advocating for global democracy, fighting neglected public health scourges and teaching Sunday school.
"He was an utterly honest, transparent and healing presence in the White House, which was just what the US needed after the Watergate scandal" under Richard Nixon, Barbara Perry, a professor specializing in the history of US presidents, told AFP.
Eulogies "tell us as much about ourselves as they do about the person being contemplated and commemorated," historian Jon Meacham told broadcaster MSNBC.
"Carter is a sad but illuminating instance of someone who -- while imperfect -- believed in the centrality of character... at a moment in American politics where character is not at the forefront of most people's minds." —AFP
