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Jimmy Carter has finally found peace. While I don’t hold any admiration for him as a president, I’ve felt genuine sympathy for him in recent months as it became evident that his family was exploiting him. Those are harsh words, perhaps, but hear me out. You likely recall the wave of news reports a few months back, all centered on Carter, nearing 100, supposedly clinging to life with the singular hope of voting for Kamala Harris.

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“I’m only trying to make it to vote for Kamala Harris,” Carter told his son Chip, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported in August.

His grandson Jason Carter said something similar in September.

“He’s following the campaign, absolutely,” he told CBS News correspondent Mark Strassman. “And you know, when we asked him, was he excited about his 100th birthday, he said, I’m excited about that but I’m really excited to vote for Kamala Harris. And so he is still engaged; he’s still paying attention, and he’s, you know, he’s got his views.”

Of course, this all seemed believable enough. Jimmy Carter was a Democrat president who lived a long life, and to make it to 100 years is a remarkable feat, and it makes sense that voting in the next election would be a goal. 

And then his 100th birthday came, and we saw this footage of Carter.

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I vividly remember watching that footage for the first time and feeling horrified that his family had chosen to present him in such a state. While he was undeniably alive, he appeared barely present and unresponsive to those around him. It was far from dignified. His physical deterioration was shocking, and it raised the obvious question: was Jimmy Carter still fully aware of what was happening?

Let’s be honest — he looked like a shadow of his former self, likely no longer engaged in current events or capable of meaningful conversations. It was hard not to feel that his family was exploiting him by claiming that his final significant act would be casting a vote for Kamala Harris. The footage stirred a wave of uncomfortable questions that were impossible to ignore.

The man deserved some dignity in the final months of his life. Instead, the media ate up the whole “I wanna live to vote for Kamala” narrative. And when he did, they gleefully reported on the news.

“Former President Jimmy Carter cast his ballot in the presidential race in Georgia on Wednesday, the second day of early voting in his home state,” CBS News reported on Oct. 16. “He voted by mail, the Carter Center said, fulfilling his wish to live long enough to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris. Carter turned 100 earlier this month, becoming the first former president in U.S. history to do so.”

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And naturally, Kamala Harris reacted to the story.

Looking at the video of Carter on his 100th birthday, can anyone genuinely believe he was fully capable of voting? Or does it seem more likely that his family exploited his advanced age and approaching death to create a media puff piece for Kamala Harris in what we were led to believe was an extremely close election?