As tributes to former President Jimmy Carter have been flowing in following his death on Sunday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott extended his sincerest condolences to Carter’s wife, Rosalynn … who died last year.
A cartoon by Mike Luckovich depicting Jimmy Carter reuniting with his wife, Rosalynn, after he died on Dec. 29
Toward the end of a press release issued by Abbott’s office, the governor wrote: “Cecilia [Abbott’s wife] and I send our prayers and deepest condolences to First Lady Rosalynn Carter and the entire Carter family.”
Rosalynn Carter died on Nov. 19, 2023, at the age of 96 shortly after entering hospice. She had dementia and faced declining health for many months before her passing.
It didn’t take long before social media users caught wind of Abbott’s flub. A Texas-based Democratic-aligned group seized on the statement and questioned whether any of Abbott’s staffers had proofread the statement before blasting it out.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott mistakenly offers condolences to the late Rosalyn Carter on the death of her husband, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter. Rosalyn Carter passed away on November 19, 2023. Did anyone in the Governor’s Office Proof the Condolence note? @GovAbbott pic.twitter.com/VHLE3kQDkl— Texas Democrats ⭐️Collin County (@CollinDems) December 30, 2024
Within hours, Abbott amended the statement to read: “Cecilia and I send our prayers and deepest condolences to the entire family.”
Beyond that, Abbott’s statement was remarkably kind, praising Carter for his “selfless service to the American people.”
“President Carter leaves behind a great legacy as a husband, father, naval officer, governor, and Nobel prize winner, and he will be greatly missed by many,” he wrote.
As The Guardian pointed out, Abbott’s latest gaffe called to mind another of his screwups. In June 2023, Abbott shared—and then quickly deleted—a parody site’s article that falsely claimed that country singer Garth Brooks was booed off stage by “patriots” at the 123rd Texas Country Jamboree in Hambriston, Texas.
In a since-deleted post, Abbott attempted to make a point about Brooks going “woke” after the singer refused to ban Bud Light, which is hated by conservatives because it featured a transgender influencer in some promotional materials, from his new Nashville bar.
“Go woke. Go broke,” Abbott tweeted, in apparent agreement with the nonexistent “patriots” who the article falsely stated booed Brooks offstage.
What’s worse, the jamboree is not a real event and Hambriston is not even a real Texas town. But those details mattered little to Abbott and his staffers as they happily tweeted out the fake news story.
Abbott, who has been the governor of Texas since 2015, ordered all of the state’s flags to be flown at half-mast until Jan. 29 in the wake of Carter’s death.
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