Former US President Jimmy Carter surprised many earlier this week when, after decades of antagonizing Israel, he published a letter of apology to Jews around the world for "stigmatizing" the Jewish state.
Carter's outbursts and accusations against Israel and his acceptance of Hamas and other terror groups are well known. His 2006 book "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid," which laid the bulk of the blame for the lack of peace on Israel, was seen as the last nail in the coffin of a relationship that ostensibly began positively at Camp David in 1978.
So, Carter's letter of apology struck many as odd, and on Tuesday it was revealed there may indeed have been ulterior motives.
Just one day after Carter's letter was published, his grandson, Jason Carter, announced that he is planning a run for the Georgia state senate, with aspirations of a much grander political career. Having his grandfather tainted as a "Jew hater" would have greatly hindered that career.
Both Carter and his grandson denied that the apology had nothing to do with Jason's upcoming electoral campaign, but the timing and the absolute reversal of the former president's earlier sentiments have raised many questions.