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McClellan said the White House "reached out" to Carter, but he would not explain why Carter was not going along.
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A spokesman at The Carter Center in Atlanta, Jon Moore, said Carter relishing the memories of two visits as president with the pontiff had told the White House he wanted to go to the funeral. Upon learning that the Vatican was limiting the U.S. delegation to five people and that "there were also others who were eager to attend," Carter was "quite willing" to withdraw his request, Moore said.
"He and his wife Rosalynn are very pleased with the official delegation," Moore said of Carter.
Former President Ford, who lives in California, is 91 and no longer travels extensively.
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