Michigan governor orders flags to be lowered through January to honor Jimmy Carter
(CBS DETROIT) - Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has ordered all U.S. and state flags to be lowered through Jan. 27, 2025, in order of former President Jimmy Carter.
Carter, who was the oldest living former president, died on Sunday at age 100.
Residents, businesses, schools, local governments, and other organizations are encouraged to lower their flags to half-staff beginning Monday and return them to full-staff on Jan. 28.
"President Carter was a good man and exemplary American who set a powerful example for all of us over the course of his long life," Whitmer said in a statement.
Carter was elected the 39th president of the United States in 1976, defeating President Gerald Ford. He served one term, during which he created the departments of Energy and Education. He also established formal diplomatic ties with China and returned control of the Panama Canal to the Panamanians. Perhaps his greatest achievement was a historic peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, known as the Camp David Accords.
The former president and his wife, former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, built homes with Habitat with Humanity, including in Michigan.
Rosalynn Carter died in November 2023.
"President Carter lived an impressive life, driven by fundamental core values that so many of us share: faith, patriotism, and love. My thoughts are with his family," Whitmer said.
