Former President Jimmy Carter Says His "Heart Goes Out to" Paula Deen

He says Deen reached out to him after the racism scandal.

Here's some very unexpected news to end your Friday with: In a new interview with CNN, former president Jimmy Carter revealed that disgraced celebrity chef Paula Deen is actually his good friend, and she reached out to him after the racism scandal seeking advice.

Carter and Deen apparently grew up 40 miles apart in rural Georgia neighborhoods around the same time period. According to Carter, he "advised her to let the dust settle and to make apologies"—and that his "heart goes out to her, but of course there’s no condoning the use of a word that abuses other people."

In his words:

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Since the scandal involving Deen and her past usage of racial slurs broke, she's been dropped from Food Network, and fired from a handful of lucrative business deals such as Walmart, Caesar's Entertainment, Target, and Home Depot

RELATED: Paula Deen Breaks Down On the "Today" Show, Claims She Is Not a Racist

[via Mediaite]

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