According to The American Spectator, former president Jimmy Carter — through his lackeys at the Carter Center — inundated the White House with requests not only to be a part of the American delegation to the Vatican for the funeral of Pope John Paul II, but with requests to actually lead the American delegation should President Bush choose not to attend. A White House staffer told the Spectator that over 100 calls were placed on behalf of the worst president this nation has ever had.

Correctly, the White House told the former president (presumably in the most diplomatic way) to get lost.

Carter has made more than a nuisance of himself since leaving the White House, a portrait of abject failure and the most pessimistic man ever to sit in the Oval Office. He has routinely butted his nose into American foreign policy and thinks of himself as a roving secretary of state — though without portfolio. Carter shattered the tradition of ex—presidents refraining from criticizing their successors, and has been especially outspoken against President Bush and thinly veils his bitter jealousy of the success of the president. He has traveled the world belittling the polices of the president, even when those policies have again proved that Jimmy Carter knows nothing about foreign affairs and is nearly always on the wrong side of every argument when the dust settles.

Why Carter thinks the president should ignore all of this is beyond reason, but then, so is Jimmy Carter. When Carter watches the funeral and sees former presidents Bush and Clinton in attendance, perhaps he can think about how in a few short years Bill Clinton of all people has done more for the nation as a former president than Carter ever has and ever will. That's gonna leave a mark.

In addition to making an ass of himself and embarassing the United States all over the world, and making nice with gangsters like Arafat and Castro, Carter was never seen as any great friend of the Vatican. Twice during his miserable term in office, Carter was confronted with the death of a pope. Twice he declined to attend the funerals and sent in his stead his wife to the first and his mother to the second. During the short time Carter was president when Pope John Paul II was heading the Catholic church, Carter did much to undermine the pope's wishes to eliminate the Marxist "Libertarian Theology" movement in the Latin American church by word and deed.

In short, because of his bilious hatred and disrespect for the president in particular and the office in general, and for his previous slaps in the face to the Vatican and to the policies of freedom championed by Pope John Paul II, Jimmy Carter has no business at the pope's funeral. His presence there would be an example of deep hypocrisy, and President Bush knows it to be so. No doubt, however, Carter's self—importance and bitterness at being left behind will tempt him to call upon the Vatican to enlist him in overseeing the college of cardinals as they congregate to elect a new pope. Remember, no election is certified and valid unless Mr. Peanut says so.

Matt May   4 6 05