Sports radio legend Mike Francesa gave a fairly blunt eulogy to former President Jimmy Carter, as the world leader died at the age of 100 on Sunday.
Francesa recapped the day in the NFL on “The Mike Francesa Podcast” and ended the show talking about Carter. He did not remember Carter’s presidency fondly and ultimately called him a good man but a bad president.
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Sports radio talk show host Mike Francesa at Carnesecca Arena in Queens, New York, on Feb. 18, 2023. (Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports)
“I just saw the breaking news that former President Jimmy Carter has passed away at the age of, amazingly, 100. I don’t know if he’s the first president to ever make 100. I would think he probably is, but I don’t know that,” he said. “Don’t swear me to that because I don’t know if that’s true, but I think it is.
“History hasn’t been great to Jimmy Carter. He was not a great president. I’m not trying to disparage him in any way. Remember, you were coming off Watergate. The United States, the country felt that Washington was dirty and corrupt. They had had enough of career politicians, and (Richard Nixon) was the ultimate career politician. I mean, he had been in Congress, he had been a two-time vice president, he ran for president in ’60, he ran for governor in ’62, he lost in ’60, lost in ’62. He came back and won the presidency; he came back and won it again; and then came Watergate. He resigned the office and (Gerald Ford) pardoned him. It finished Ford.
“So you got a guy who was an outsider, soft spoken, bright man. A peanut farmer from Georgia who had no ties to Washington, who was as honest as they come and as clean as a whistle. Won the presidency. Came in, was an honest man. He was a good man. In his life, he did a lot of good things after his political career was over. So, there was a lot of nice things to say about this man. He was a good man and a very bright man, but he was not an effective leader and he was not a good president. Just the way it is. Some guys are, some guys aren’t.”
Former President Jimmy Carter attends the 2012 National League wild card playoff game between the Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals at Turner Field in Atlanta on Oct. 5, 2012. (Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports)
“Our deepest condolences to his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.”
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