The Washington Post’s Kevin Sullivan described his experience visiting what would become former president Jimmy Carter’s gravesite in Plains, Georgia.

But noticeably absent was former first lady Michelle Obama, whose office did not provide details on why she skipped the proceedings. Start the day smarter. Get all the news you ne

Jimmy Carter, who considered himself an outsider even as he sat in the Oval Office as the 39th U.S. president, was honored Thursday with the pageantry of a funeral at Washington National Cathedral before a second service and burial in his tiny Georgia hometown.