# Jimmy Carter on Hospice Care (at home) (2/18/2023) **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [February 18, 2023, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010 "2023-02-18T21:18:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/1 "2023-02-18T21:18:38Z")
If not the best post-Presidency, then awfully damned close: > **[Carter Center: Former President Jimmy Carter in hospice care](https://news.yahoo.com/charity-former-president-jimmy-carter-203157861.html)** > > The Carter Center said Saturday that former President Jimmy Carter has entered home hospice care. The charity created by the 98-year-old former president said on Twitter that after a series of short hospital stays, Carter “decided to spend his... ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/2 "2023-02-18T21:26:35Z")
There is a Breaking News thread in MPSIMS: > [@Former President Jimmy Carter enters hospice care {2023-02-18}](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/former-president-jimmy-carter-enters-hospice-care-2023-02-18/980011/1): > > The former President is 98 and has decided to enter hospice care rather than continue to seek treatment. No specific mention of what he has been undergoing treatment for in the statement. From the [NYT here](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/18/us/politics/jimmy-carter-hospice.html?unlocked_article_code=nzFwl3CbjiXGC-zBlbepQ_XB7QmC1wRwtwN6KuhhIJbRibf9o2bBuVx-98gYzGzsIP3ePtA8XolDtcwit4odAnjnrRjLmdSTHiohvaW2zxsil7_fhmsDp8ydDluRaF7HUAELya10rtSd6N_aCWmuW5o-7kXNkMSDLsw6DGDTsjbSniIv5XuSf45S1a8c58oZ_3-8xUl_2T_5hnm-Ij093q6fe_mK8emIpBzOUcJYwyRd2IRtNzcJrL84vBlqkaA60n_609dARxxmeVE3-pe6lKBVIAuTGWFtf7JdabW6bLvpF8j4-vEaMU7Z4VcmPxqHjj74EMYTLX4hlCTGURuej1mh&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare) (gift link) but I’m sure it will be on other news sources. Even though he is at a very advanced age this makes me very sad. Although he was a one-term President and is often ranked as a less successful one he has lived a life of exceptional public service. I hope he and his family are able to… If anyone needs to delve into politics at this point, this thread will serve well for it. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/3 "2023-02-18T21:28:15Z")
I don’t think he was a very good President, possibly as he was too good of a man? He was a great Ex-President. I agree, maybe the best. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/4 "2023-02-18T22:08:52Z")
Kudos to him for putting quality of life foremost. ---
**Author:** ![Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kolak_of_twilo/32/73_2.png) [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/5 "2023-02-18T22:17:26Z")
His time in office was marked by difficulty getting along with Congress, which is odd since he was a Democrat and his party held both chambers. In particular he had frequent conflicts with Ted Kennedy and to a lesser extent Speaker Tip O’Neill. Kennedy ran against him for the nomination in 1980 so Teddy’s ambition could have been part of it. And once the Iran hostage crisis happened his administration went into a death spiral and paved the way for Reagan winning. OPEC didn’t do any favors for him either with the gas crisis/shortage being a huge hit to his popularity. Achievements would be the Camp David Accords and Salt II among a few other things. Probably the longest lasting thing he did was legislation removing restrictions on home-brewing of beer which led directly to the micro- and craft brewery explosion we have seen over the last few decades. Pretty ironic for someone who is a life long Baptist and I assume is a non-drinker. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/6 "2023-02-18T22:26:09Z")
He was fine as a president; he just (as mentioned) got sideswiped by events and the Republicans successfully pinned the blame on him. His Habitat for Humanity program has provided homes for thousands. He’s a person who has lived his faith without asking for reward. I have immense respect for the guy and his wife. I hope his end is as peaceful as he always was. He’s left one hell of a legacy. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/7 "2023-02-18T22:38:41Z")
Agree with all that @Chefguy said. I think now and then of the solar panels he erected on the White House roof and wonder where we might be with respect to ameliorating our oil dependence on the Middle East, together with the favorable results that would have lessened our impact on the climate. How many wars might we not have fought? What a different, better path we could have taken, had we listened to this great man. It leaves me bereft. Not a believer myself, but Godspeed, President Carter. Your lessons to us all as you led by example will be sorely missed. May your approaching end be smooth and filled with love. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/8 "2023-02-18T23:17:17Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > I don’t think he was a very good President, possibly as he was too good of a man? It makes you wonder if a person of strong moral character can even BE a successful President, if by “successful” you mean getting things done. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/9 "2023-02-18T23:20:34Z")
> [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](#): > > His time in office was marked by difficulty getting along with Congress, which is odd since he was a Democrat and his party held both chambers. As I remember, he was considered an outsider who did too little to learn the ways that Congress operates behind the scenes; I think one or two of his cabinet or staff may have been too prickly and uncompromising (I am obviously fuzzy on the details after more than 40 years). > [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](#): > > OPEC didn’t do any favors for him either with the gas crisis/shortage being a huge hit to his popularity. The gas crisis started in '74 under Ford (and may be part of what torpedoed his re-election), but prices were still high in Carter’s time. His winter broadcast, while wearing a cardigan, telling people they needed to lower their thermostats, didn’t really make him any friends. But what I remember most about that time was an endemic spirit of hopelessness, for which I think he was partly responsible. And that spirit is also what opened the door to Reagan’s oratory about the shining city on the hill and the other BS that he was full of. Carter was too honest to lift the country out of its depression. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/10 "2023-02-18T23:30:55Z")
I wish we had been able to follow through on our plans to work for Habitat. They have an organization called “Care-A-Vanners”, which are RV owners (especially those with construction skills) who sign up to help build houses. We were all set to head to Taos for a project when Covid shut everything down. Then we decided to sell our house and move out to the Midwest, and now my knees just won’t handle the hours on my feet. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/11 "2023-02-18T23:45:36Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > His winter broadcast, while wearing a cardigan, telling people they needed to lower their thermostats, didn’t really make him any friends. My impression at the time was that in general, Americans did not want to be asked to make sacrifices. Even small ones. They wanted someone to say “Hell no, we’re going to kick some ass and take what we want. It’s our God-given destiny to do whatever we want.” ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/12 "2023-02-18T23:50:10Z")
HfH has many non-construction jobs available, if you can’t stand for long periods of time, or do heavy lifting. I for one look forward to meeting him when I go to Heaven myself. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/13 "2023-02-18T23:52:42Z")
Yeah, anyone in office 77-80 would have been easy to make look bad by those who prefer a Cheerleader In Chief, but Carter was especially targeted for derision for being seen as someone who insisted in Telling Us The Bad News. We could not handle the truth. Maybe the voters did him a favor, enabling him to give so many more years to just causes. And now as the end comes he has decided to face it however it may please Him on who he places his faith. _“You may now, Lord, dismiss this Your servant, according to Your promises…”_ ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/14 "2023-02-18T23:53:15Z")
Exactly. The conventional wisdom is that Carter was too good of a person to be president, but the truth is that America is too irredeemably corrupt to deserve a man like Carter. We want and deserve half-demented has-been actors and fascist game show hosts. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2023, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/15 "2023-02-19T01:55:41Z")
In other words, “Idiocracy”. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2023, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/16 "2023-02-19T02:34:56Z")
I share the ex-president’s last name. Whenever I traveled abroad and showed my credit card or ID, people always asked “Are you related to President Jimmy Carter?” After telling them I wasn’t, they would invariably offer a positive comment about him being a good man. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2023, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/17 "2023-02-19T05:47:20Z")
Agreed. ---
**Author:** ![up2eleven](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/up2eleven/32/13432_2.png) [@up2eleven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/up2eleven)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2023, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/18 "2023-02-19T05:54:48Z")
I know people disagree on his Presidency, but a man who spends the post-Presidency years up to age 98 physically building homes for people in need is someone who deserves respect as a person. Anyone with money can throw money at things, but I greatly respect someone who is hands-on in helping people. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2023, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/19 "2023-02-20T03:31:42Z")
The Carter Center has also been instrumental in the near-eradication of guinea worm, a nasty tropical parasite that is spread through contaminated water. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.winston_oboogie/32/2945_2.png) [@Dr.Winston\_OBoogie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Winston_OBoogie)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2023, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010/20 "2023-02-20T17:47:16Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > I don’t think he was a very good President, possibly as he was too good of a man? He was a great Ex-President. I agree, maybe the best. I have long said that he is the best human being who has been President during my lifetime. May not have been a good President (certainly, that’s up for debate), but was by far the best _person_ who has held the position. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jimmy-carter-on-hospice-care-at-home-2-18-2023/980010.md?page=2)