Former President lashes out at Trump, accusing administration of kidnapping

At one point in our not-so-distant past, former Presidents acted with grace and poise when it came to one another, often eschewing their political differences for the sake of civility.

Nowadays, not so much.

Donald Trump is a statesman like no other, and like no other, he has found a way to make even the most cordial of Commander in Chiefs downright ornery – especially on the subject of Trump himself.

Take former POTUS Jimmy Carter, for example.

The following came from an interview at The Carter Center in Atlanta, Georgia this week:

JON MEACHAM: I’m interested, Mr. President, in your views on what’s happening at the U.S.-Mexican border with the family separation and your reaction to what we’re seeing now there and what you think ordinary Americans can do about it.

FORMER PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER: Every day, we send a disgraceful signal around the world that this is what the present United States government stands for, and that is torture and kidnapping of little children, separation from their parents and deprivation of those who are incarcerated. There are thousands of unknown children that are still incarcerated that hasn’t been revealed by the government itself.

I think what ICE is doing, under the orders of the president, is a disgrace to the United States, and I hope it will soon be ended. Maybe not until the 2020 election. I’m not sure, but either that or before, I hope, it will end as we change presidents.

President Carter has previously called Donald Trump’s election “illegitimate” – an absurd statement that echoes the long-held beliefs of “the resistance” movement.