Offering condolences to the loved ones of a deceased political figure can be a delicate dance for politicians. It’s a test that Donald Trump, in a pair of messages following the passing of former President Jimmy Carter, for the most part managed to pass.
Another elected Republican, however, wasn’t so lucky.
Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas issued his own statement Monday, offering condolences on Carter’s passing. The problem was, he offered his condolences to Carter’s wife, Rosalynn, who died in November of 2023, more than a year ago.
Per WFAA, Abbott issued a longer statement paying tribute to Carter and closed it with “Cecilia and I send our prayers and deepest condolences to First Lady Rosalynn Carter and the entire Carter family.” Abbott later issued an updated statement on X, which changed the reference to Rosalynn to “the entire Carter family.”
Cecilia and I mourn the loss of former President Jimmy Carter alongside our fellow Americans.
Texas sends our prayers and condolences to the entire Carter family. pic.twitter.com/Ho5YwkeEPJ
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) December 30, 2024
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Since Carter reached such an advanced age, and was in hospice care for such a long time, Abbott’s staff may have drafted the statement a long time ago. They may have planned to have the statement ready whenever Carter did pass, and they had failed to update it after Rosalyn’s death. Indeed, multiple newspapers, including the New York Times, published obituaries of Carter that were written so long ago that they include the bylines of reporters who have themselves passed away.
One county Democratic Party mocked Abbott for the mistake, questioning whether anyone in the governor’s office had proofed the statement before publication.
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
The statement was otherwise effusive in its praise of our 39th president.
Abbott has in the past shown himself as not the most social media-savvy of politicians. During the “controversy” about Dylan Mulvaney and Bud Light in 2023, Abbott shared a bogus article about Garth Brooks being booed off the stage at a concert for his support of Bud Light. The article was from The Dunning-Kruger-Times, one of those sites that doesn’t so much as run “parody” articles, but rather ragebait that’s untrue. The author of the fake article went on to describe Abbott as “one of the dumbest people in the country,” in an interview with The Guardian.
Phoot courtesy of the Political Tribune media library.
