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Lawmakers pay their respects to Jimmy Carter as the former president lies in state at the Capitol

The flag-draped casket of former President Jimmy Carter arrives on a horse-drawn caisson to the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday in Washington, D.C. Carter’s body will lie in state in the Capitol Rotunda until a funeral service at the National Cathedral in Washington on Thursday. Carter, the 39th president of the United States, died at the age of 100 on Dec. 29 at his home in Plains, Ga. (Getty images)
The flag-draped casket of former President Jimmy Carter arrives on a horse-drawn caisson to the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday in Washington, D.C. Carter’s body will lie in state in the Capitol Rotunda until a funeral service at the National Cathedral in Washington on Thursday. Carter, the 39th president of the United States, died at the age of 100 on Dec. 29 at his home in Plains, Ga. (Getty images)
By Orion Donovan Smith orionds@spokesman.com(202) 853-2524

WASHINGTON – Lawmakers paid their respects to Jimmy Carter as the former president’s casket arrived at the Capitol on Tuesday, with both Republicans and his fellow Democrats remembering the one-term leader as a humble man who earned wide respect after a presidency that few considered successful at the time.

As the setting sun streamed through the windows high above the Capitol Rotunda, members of the House and Senate gathered along with Supreme Court justices, cabinet secretaries and Carter’s relatives. The crowd included Washington Reps. Dan Newhouse, a Republican, and Democrats Kim Schrier and Rick Larsen.

In three eulogies, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris all described Carter as a fundamentally decent man.

“Jimmy Carter established a new model for what it means to be a former president,” Harris said, “and leaves an extraordinary post-presidential legacy.”

The vice president recalled how she was in middle school when Carter, who lived to age 100, was elected in 1976.

She called him a “forward-looking president” who was “ahead of his time,” establishing the Departments of Energy and Education and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Johnson, a Southern Baptist like Carter until he left the Protestant denomination in 2000, shared the story of the former president’s first Habitat for Humanity project, which began decades of work that saw Carter don a hardhat and tool belt into his 90s to help build homes.

“It’s remarkable to think that one of the 45 men who has served as president – and one of only 13 who held the role in the nuclear age – would humble himself to such service,” Johnson said.

In an opening prayer, Senate Chaplain Barry Black thanked God “for giving us the gift of someone with the ethical congruence to be salt and light to his generation,” referring to a Bible verse in which Jesus metaphorically instructs his disciples to preserve and improve the world through good deeds.

After arriving from his native Georgia, Carter’s body will lie in state in a flag-draped casket at the Capitol until Thursday morning, when sailors will carry the casket of the Navy veteran and peanut farmer to Washington National Cathedral for a funeral that all living U.S. presidents and many other dignitaries are expected to attend.